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Mariners won road series this week

Joel Pineiro had company in the dugout between innings: a scary, seven-inch rat that stood up on its hind legs and hissed at the Seattle Mariners. When his teammates scattered, Pineiro stayed put -- things were going too well to alter anything. Someone eventually bonked it with a bat. Mike Morse hit a tiebreaking single in the seventh and Pineiro ended a three-start winless stretch with eight strong innings, leading Seattle to a 3-2 victory over the slumping Oakland Athletics last Tuesday night. Oakland lost its fourth straight game and blew a chance to gain ground in the standings. Oakland remained several games behind the first-place Los Angeles Angels in the AL West race and thus several games behind the New York Yankees in the wild-card standings. The Angels lost at Boston and the Yankees were beaten at home by Tampa Bay. Pineiro (6-9) won for the first time since a 4-3 victory over Kansas City on Aug. 16, and Ichiro Suzuki had an RBI single as the Mariners captured their first series since sweeping the Royals that same week, Aug. 15-17, during Kansas City`s club-record 19-game losing streak. The right-hander started the season on the disabled list after missing the second half of 2004 with a strained right elbow, though he says he?s been comfortable on the mound all year. Manager Mike Hargrove likes how Pineiro is going after hitters and no longer being tentative as he was early in the year. Pineiro allowed six hits and two runs, retired 10 of the last 11 batters he faced, struck out five and walked one. Eddie Guardado finished for his 31st save. Seattle won a road series for the first time since taking all four against the Angels from July 7-10.