Beckham, Seager lead Mariners over Tigers
SEATTLE (AP) Tim Beckham hit his second grand slam of the season and Kyle Seager connected for a solo drive, leading the Seattle Mariners to a 10-2 victory over the lowly Detroit Tigers on Thursday night.
J.P. Crawford added two hits and scored three times as Seattle won two in a row for the first time in a month. Daniel Vogelbach drove in three runs, and Wade LeBlanc (6-3) pitched six effective innings.
Last-place Detroit lost for the ninth time in 10 games, continuing years of trouble against the AL West. The Tigers finished with just five hits.
John Hicks homered in the third, but Seattle responded with five runs in the bottom half.
With one out and the bases loaded, Vogelbach hit a grounder to second baseman Niko Goodrum, who attempted to tag Omar Narvaez in the base path, but dropped the ball. Tim Lopes scored to tie the game.
Beckham, an infielder who is playing left field to remain in the lineup, then drove a 0-2 pitch from Drew VerHagen over the wall in left for his 15th homer.
The Mariners added two more in the fourth. Lopes stayed in after he was beaned by a fastball from VerHagen (1-1). He stole second and scored on Crawford's triple before being pulled after the sixth inning. Narvaez doubled in Crawford for a 7-1 lead.
Seager hit his eighth homer of the season on Blane Hardy's first pitch of the fifth.
LeBlanc allowed two runs, one earned, and four hits in relief of opener Erik Swanson, who struck out three in two hitless innings.
Detroit dropped to 1-12 against the AL West this year.
HERNANDEZ UPDATE
Mariners right-hander Felix Hernandez threw 22 pitches to batters from the mound before batting practice. He is coming back from stiffness in his pitching shoulder.
''Physically I was fine,'' Hernandez said. ''I've just lost my command. I just got to keep throwing the ball and find my mechanics back.''
Manager Scott Servais said he looked rusty.
''He hasn't pitched in forever,'' Servais said. ''That was the first time we had hitters in there. I don't want to put him out somewhere and then have a setback.''
Hernandez would like to return sometime next month with the hope of making a handful of starts to prove his value to teams when he becomes a free agent after the season.
''I've got to show the people that I'm healthy,'' he said.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Tigers: Catcher Grayson Greiner was transferred to the 60-day disabled list. He has been out since mid-June with a lower back strain. The move allowed the Tigers to bring up VerHagen for Thursday's start.
Mariners: OF Domingo Santana appears to have avoided a stay on the injured list after an MRI showed he might be able to hit and serve as designated hitter. Muscle and tendon swelling will keep him out of the outfield for several games, Servais said. Santana, the team's No. 3 hitter and steadiest offensive player, injured his elbow in Tuesday's game during a series of plays that required two difficult throws. ''If he doesn't respond well in the cage, in batting practice, we may have to go a different route,'' Servais said.
UP NEXT
Tigers: LHP Daniel Norris (2-8, 5.02 ERA) returns to the mound Friday night after rain cut his last outing at Toronto to four innings. He's 0-2 in five starts against the Mariners.
Mariners: LHP Yusei Kikuchi (4-7, 5.37 ERA) looks to stop a two-game skid. He's 3-6 after a loss this season.
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