Seattle, WA (Sports Network) - Hisashi Iwakuma tossed seven outstanding
innings on Friday as the Seattle Mariners topped the Minnesota Twins, 5-3, in
the opener of a three-game series at Safeco Field.
One game after Felix Hernandez tossed a perfect game in a 1-0 win over the
Tampa Bay Rays, Iwakuma (4-3) retired the first 12 batters he faced before
giving up a double to Justin Morneau. He allowed one run on four hits with
six strikeouts to notch the win.
Morneau's double snapped a streak of 42 consecutive batters set down by
Mariners pitching, going back to the ninth inning of Tuesday's game against
Tampa Bay.
John Jaso ripped a two-run home run and Miguel Olivo clubbed a solo shot,
while Eric Thames and Dustin Ackley added RBI for the M's, who have won three
straight.
Joe Mauer and Josh Willingham ripped solo home runs for the Twins, who lost
for the third straight time. Nick Blackburn (4-9) took the loss after giving
up five runs on 11 hits over 5 1/3 innings.
The Sports Network