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Texas dealt Seattle another loss

For the second straight game, the Texas Rangers got a quality outing from a young starter. This time, it was rookie Juan Dominguez`s turn. Dominguez pitched two-hit ball over six innings for his second career victory, and Kevin Mench homered to lead the Rangers past the Seattle Mariners 8-1 last Wednesday night.

At 53-72, the Mariners fell 19 games below .500, their low point of the season. Seattle has dropped 14 of 22. Dominguez (1-3) allowed one run and five walks while striking out three in his 10th major league start. The Rangers have won the first two of a 10-game homestand following a 1-12 road trip that was the worst in club history. Texas is trying to avoid a last-place finish in the AL West for the fourth time in five years. The Rangers (59-66) are third in the division, six games in front of the Mariners.

Texas starters have struggled over the last two months with a 6.64 ERA in a 58-game span heading into Wednesday night. However, Dominguez`s sharp effort came one day after Chris Young gave up one run and four hits in five innings of a 6-4 victory over Seattle. Young and Dominguez combined for a 1.64 ERA in their consecutive starts. Texas got back-to-back wins from starters for the first time since Aug. 6-7.