Pineda leaves Phillies flat
<p>Philadelphia's Placido Planco argues balls and strikes with home plate umpire Doug Eddings after he was struck out by Mariners starter Michael Pineda with the bases loaded to end the sixth inning Friday night at Seattle. The Mariners beat the Phillies 4-2.</p>
SEATTLE (AP) - Rookie right-hander Michael Pineda wasn't afraid to walk Philadelphia slugger Ryan Howard to load the bases in the sixth inning.
The move paid off.
Pineda wriggled out of a jam in the sixth after giving up his first hit, helping the Seattle Mariners end the Phillies' season-high seven-game winning streak with a 4-2 victory Friday night.
Entering the sixth, Pineda (7-4) had a 3-0 lead and no-hitter but Shane Victorino singled to right with two outs and a runner on. Then Chase Utley followed with an RBI single. That brought up Howard, with 15 home runs and 57 RBIs.
"I did not want to make mistake for him," Pineda said. "I need to make my pitches because he's a good hitter."
He made his pitches so Howard couldn't hit them, walking him on five pitches to load the bases. That allowed Pineda to focus on Placido Polanco. He struck him out on three pitches - a checked swing called by home umpire Doug Eddings.
"He felt like the guy called a check-swing strike and didn't check with another umpire," said Phillies manager Charlie Manuel, who trotted out to break up Polanco's debate with Eddings.
Pineda went six innings, allowing the two hits and one run. He walked three and struck out five.
Ichiro Suzuki, the two-time batting champion, had three hits and has six straight multihit games to raise his average from .252 to .275.
Brendan Ryan had two hits and two RBIs.
Dustin Ackley, the second pick in the 2009 draft, called up before the game, stroked his first big league hit — a single through Roy Oswalt’s legs — in his first at-bat in the second inning.
It’s the first time a Mariners player had a hit in his first career plate appearance since Wladimir Balentien on Sept. 4, 2007.
Miguel Olivo hit his 11th home run for the Mariners while Victorino had his seventh for the Phillies.
“Everyone handled themselves appropriately,” Mariners manager Eric Wedge said, “starting with Pineda. He really had to work there in the sixth, throwing almost 30 pitches (28). We took care of him and got him out of there.”
Aaron Laffey worked two innings — giving up Victorino’s solo shot in the eighth — before yielding to Brandon League in the ninth.
League earned his 21st save in 24 opportunities. He now leads the majors in saves.
“He (Pineda) was good. He was real good. He was very good,” Manuel said. “We didn’t hit very many balls hard the first five, six innings. He mixed his pitches good and he’s big and strong.”