M's Notebook: Pineiro comes together at seams

ARLINGTON, Texas — Hidden behind the welter of boo-boo baseball Sunday was a pretty solid outing by Joel Pineiro, who came back from food poisoning two days earlier. Pineiro's performance gave his team a chance — a chance the Mariners kept fumbling.

Pineiro's game was an abrupt turnaround from his previous three starts, in which he allowed 16 earned runs in only 14 innings.

The basis of his improved game was a two-seam fastball. He estimated that half of the 60 fastballs he threw were sinkers, which produced nine of the 20 outs in his 6-2/3-inning outing.

"It's always a matter of getting a good release point," Pineiro said. "I've gotten more comfortable with the sinker as the season has gone on, but this was the most I've thrown it. It's great for quick outs to keep the pitch count down."

Pineiro has also revived his once-good curveball to good effect. But the foundation of his game was the two-seam fastball.

"Some days you have it, some days not," he said. "Now that I've had a good game with it, I've got to go out and repeat that game."

No disagreement here

While he heard about reliever Eddie Guardado's passionate postgame critique of his team Sunday, manager Mike Hargrove said he was not familiar with what the reliever said.

When he was informed Guardado had talked about the club's play being terrible, including his own, and they should be embarrassed, Hargrove said: "I don't disagree. I think it needed to be said. It doesn't bother me."

While sometimes the manager might be the one to say such things, Hargrove pointed out: "We had a meeting a week ago in Oakland and another one two weeks before in Baltimore. One of the worst things you can do is have too many meetings.

"Did I want to say those things? Sure. I have. But on every team I've ever been on or with, it means more coming from a player. Eddie saying what he said needs to be done."

How does Hargrove keep his temper as his team makes mistakes or things go wrong?

"I grip the bench — real hard," he said.

Bunts panned

Judging by e-mail and fan reaction, Hargrove's attempt to bunt three times with Jose Lopez on Sunday drew a lot of criticism.

It produced a run in the fifth, when Lopez bunted Yuniesky Betancourt to third to score on Raul Ibanez's sacrifice fly. It did not work in the seventh when Johan Santana threw a high pitch and Lopez popped up a squeeze bunt with Ichiro running from third.

The result was neutral in the 10th when Lopez fouled off the bunt, then singled Ichiro to second, where he stayed as Ibanez flied out deep to right and Richie Sexson deep to center.

The bunt calls in the fifth and 10th were standard baseball. Although Lopez is the Mariners' leading run producer, he is the team's best bunter. Hargrove was asked: When you get a runner to second, isn't it time for the 3-4-5 men to step up and get him in?

"You're right," Hargrove said. "What else do you want me to add to that?"

The bunt that may have been a tossup was the squeeze, but Hargrove said it was not a matter of simply trying something new.

"When you start thinking, 'Let's try something new' ... that's a panic move," he said.

Hargrove then listed the rationale: "We're playing on turf, where the chances of someone scoring on a ground ball are not great ... our best bunter is up ... a fast runner is on third ... Santana is throwing strikes.

"The fact that Santana threw a pitch up and away, extremely tough to bunt, simply turns out to be baseball, the way things are going when things are going bad."

Hargrove said the fact that Santana was a lefty pitching from the stretch had nothing to do with his decision.

Note

• After being swept in Minnesota, the Mariners are 3-9 this year when roofed, 1-3 at the Metrodome and 2-5 at Safeco Field (1-2 with roof closed for whole game, 1-3 when it is closed during the game).

• At 11-16 in May, Seattle has played its 14th straight losing month.

How the runs scored Monday

Rangers sixth: Kinsler struck out. Matthews Jr. singled to right. Young flied out to right fielder Ichiro. Teixeira homered to left on the first pitch, Matthews Jr. scored. Blalock grounded out, third baseman Beltre to first baseman Sexson. 2 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 0 left on. Rangers 2, M's 0.

Mariners statistics (through Monday)

The week ahead

TU @ Texas

5:05 p.m., Ch. 11

RH Gil Meche (4-3) vs. RH Kevin Millwood (5-3)

W @ Texas

11:05 a.m.

RH Felix Hernandez (3-6) vs. LH John Koronka (4-2)

TH OFF DAY

F vs. Kansas City

7:05 p.m., FSN

LH Jamie Moyer (2-5) vs. LH Jeremy Affeldt (2-5)

SA vs. Kansas City

7:05 p.m., FSN

RH Joel Pineiro (4-5) vs. RH Seth Etherton (1-0)

SU vs. Kansas City

1:05 p.m., Ch. 11

LH Jarrod Washburn (3-6) vs. LH Jimmy Gobble (0-1)

M vs. Kansas City

7:05 p.m., FSN

RH Gil Meche (4-3) vs. RH Scott Elarton (1-5)

For the record

W/L streak: L-5

At home: 14-15

On the road: 8-16

vs. AL West: 6-11

vs. Angels: 4-2

vs. Oakland: 1-6

vs. Texas: 1-2

vs. AL East: 7-7

vs. AL Cent.: 6-13

vs. NL: 3-0

vs. LHP: 5-14

vs. RHP: 17-17

Day: 6-11

Night: 16-20

1-run games: 3-9

Extra-inning games: 2-2