The Angels took a 6-9 loss to the Mariners last night to even up the series and leave their win streak at five.
Gary Matthews Jr. gave the Angels an early lead with a two-run homerun in the second for his first homerun since June 11. The Mariners tied it up in the third but the Angels regained in the lead with three runs in the fourth, courtesy of a three-run homerun by Mike Napoli, one of three hits for Napoli on the night. Vlad knocked in Figgins with a sac fly in the sixth to put the Angels up 6-2 before Weaver and the bullpen lost the lead.
Weaver held the Mariners to two runs through five while the offense gave him a nice 6-2 lead heading into the bottom of the sixth. The Mariners rallied for four runs that inning, all being tagged to Weaver, who left with two outs after giving up a two-run double. He left with the tie so wasn’t in line for the decision. Jepsen then got out of the sixth but was tagged for three runs in the seventh to take the loss, his first of his big league career.
The Angels still need three wins to get to the 100-win mark, and send Jon Garland to the mound on Wednesday to move a win closer to that feat. Garland doesn’t have a set spot in the playoff rotation, so he will need to fare better than his recent outings if he wants a shot to make a start after this one. He is 2-1 in three starts against the Mariners this season, with the loss coming at Safeco field. He will face Felix Hernandez, who is 9-11 despite a decent 3.37 ERA.
