Final Score in Seattle: Angels 1, Mariners 8 ... the wrong game to be at on the west coast this Sunday afternoon saw the Mariners bid welcome to their new hitting coach with back to back homeruns in a four run 4th inning that was all the sputtering M's needed to end their 8 game losing streak and snuff the Angels' modest two game winning streak.
Despite early domination, Angels right Ervin Santana left some fat fastballs over the plate and the M's batters showed why they are at least triple A talent. The Mariners stole 4 bases, 3 by Ichiro Suzuki, while the Angels took none. A combined 15 base-runners were left on base
The loss leaves the Angels at 14-19 after 33 games, 4 and a half games behind a surging Texas Rangers club feasting on a mediocre stretch of opponents. The season is now 1/5th over and at the 20 percent mark it is an underwhelming club with below average everything: the starting pitching has been a nibbling mess, the offense is slow, the defense is sloppy and the bullpen has passed the meltdowns around. Looking ahead, the supposedly tough TB Rays meet up with the Halos at Angel Stadium tomorrow for three games and were just beat in baseball's 19th ever perfect game. Looking a little farther, the Angels face Dallas Braden Friday night and then play easy opponents thru the All Star break save for some games against the first place Texas Rangers and an interleague series with the no-competition Cardinals in St. Louis.