Pineda's gem helps M's finish Motown sweep

DETROIT (AP) - Michael Pineda challenged Miguel Cabrera with pitch after pitch, repeatedly reaching the mid-to-high 90s on the ballpark's radar gun.

Finally, with his ninth offering of the at-bat, the rookie struck out the slugger with a nifty slider.

"He's not afraid to throw the ball," catcher Miguel Olivo said. "No matter who's hitting, he just goes and gets him."

Pineda struck out nine in six sharp innings, and Olivo and Luis Rodriguez each homered to help the Seattle Mariners beat Detroit 7-2 on Thursday for a three-game sweep of the Tigers.

The 22-year-old Pineda was particularly impressive at the start, fanning the first four hitters he faced, including Cabrera to begin the second inning.

Afterward, the 6-foot-7 righty had a big grin on his face when asked about that matchup.

"He's a pretty good hitter," Pineda said. "I'm focused and threw the ball down - my slider down. No mistakes, because he has a lot of power."

Ichiro Suzuki added two hits, and Justin Smoak hit an RBI double in the fourth inning that put Seattle ahead to stay. The Mariners swept a three-game set against Detroit for the first time since July 2003.

Pineda (4-1) allowed a couple runs in the second inning, but he was overpowering at times. Brad Penny (1-3) gave up four runs on nine hits and a walk for the Tigers. He struck out three.

Pineda allowed four hits and three walks in his fifth career start. This was actually the most earned runs he'd given up since his debut April 5, and his ERA rose from 1.78 to 2.01. That was small consolation for the Tigers.

"That guy was nasty," Detroit catcher Alex Avila said. "He's going from 94-99 on his fastball, plus a slider and a split-finger, and he's throwing all three of them for strikes. He's going to be tough on everyone."

Detroit didn't put a ball in play off Pineda until Brennan Boesch doubled in the second. Ryan Raburn followed with a walk, and Avila drove both runners in with a double, but the lead didn't last.

Suzuki hit an RBI double in the third, and Chone Figgins drove home a run with a groundball. Smoak's double gave the Mariners the lead in the fourth.