M's bats go silent in home opener

SEATTLE - Justin Duchscherer missed last season because of an elbow injury and later was treated for clinical depression. When he made it back to the mound, he was confident he would do well.

"I just didn't expect it to come this early," the right-hander said with a grin.

Duchscherer was terrific in his second start in 20 months, pitching into the eighth inning to help the Oakland Athletics ruin the Seattle Mariners' home opener with a 4-0 victory Monday.

Cliff Pennington homered and Gabe Gross had a two-run single for Oakland, off to a surprising 6-2 start.

The 32-year-old Duchscherer won for the first time since July 8, 2008, a two-hitter also against Seattle.

"More than anything, I'm just proud of myself," he said. "It's been a long time since I got a win in a major league baseball game."

Former Mariners star Randy Johnson sent a charge through Safeco Field with a ceremonial first pitch but that was one of the few bright spots for the sellout crowd of 45,876.

Seattle has scored just 21 runs while stumbling to a 2-6 start, an especially difficult beginning since it entered the year with playoff aspirations following a splashy offseason.

They already look discouraged, and manager Don Wakamatsu scheduled a team meeting for Tuesday before batting practice.

"You look out there during the course of the ballgame and you see a lot of guys right now with their heads down a little bit," Wakamatsu said. "It's something we're going to talk about."

This is the Mariners' worst start since beginning 1-7 in 2004.

"We are just pressing offensively," Ken Griffey Jr. said in a quiet clubhouse. "We'll get on track, and the first six, seven games will be forgotten. I'd rather it happen this week than late September."

Ryan Rowland-Smith (0-1) allowed just three hits in seven innings for Seattle, but issued a career-high five walks and allowed four runs.

Randy Johnson got a warm welcome from the sellout crowd of 45,876 before he fired a strike to his former Mariners catcher, Dan Wilson, minutes before the game.

The 46-year-old Big Unit, a five-time Cy Young Award winner who rose to prominence with Seattle in the 1990s, looked tanned and relaxed in a black, open-collared shirt and jeans. He tossed the ball about 20 rows back into the lower seats behind the Mariners dugout as he walked off the field with Griffey, Wilson, and fellow former teammates Edgar Martinez and Jay Buhner.

The crowd roared - for one of the last times of the day.

Oakland Seattle

ab r h bi ab r h bi

RDavis cf 4 1 0 0 ISuzuki rf 4 0 0 0

Barton 1b 2 0 0 0 Figgins 2b 4 0 0 0

RSwny rf 3 0 1 0 FGtrrz cf 4 0 1 0

Kzmnff 3b 3 1 1 1 JoLopz 3b 4 0 1 0

KSuzuk c 3 1 0 0 GrffyJr dh 4 0 0 0

ARosls 2b 2 0 1 0 Bradly lf 1 0 0 0

Fox dh 4 0 0 0 Ktchm 1b 3 0 0 0

Gross lf 4 0 1 2 RJhnsn c 3 0 0 0

Pnngtn ss 3 1 1 1 JWilson ss 2 0 0 0

Totals 28 4 5 4 Totals 29 0 2 0

Oakland 000 101 200 - 4

Seattle 000 000 000 - 0

E-Bradley (1). DP-Seattle 2. LOB-Oakland 6, Seattle 5. 2B-Kouzmanoff (2), F.Gutierrez (3). HR-Pennington (2). SB-R.Davis (5). S-A.Rosales. SF-Kouzmanoff.

IP H R ER BB SO

Oakland

Duchscherer W,1-0 7 1/3 2 0 0 2 4

Blevins 2/3 0 0 0 0 0

A.Bailey 1 0 0 0 0 1

Seattle

Rowland-Smith L,0-1 7 3 4 4 5 1

Kelley 1 1 0 0 1 2

White 1 1 0 0 1 0

HBP-by Duchscherer (J.Wilson).

Umpires-Home, Dale Scott; First, Jerry Meals; Second, Doug Eddings; Third, Dan Iassogna.

T-2:20. A-45,876 (47,878).