M's flunk vs. A's

OAKLAND, Calif. — Manager Mike Hargrove didn't see frustration until Joel Pineiro's final batter.

He saw a pitcher lose control, walking five in the first four innings. He saw a pitcher lose hold of the game, allowing a hit to every other batter he faced.

But Hargrove didn't see frustration until Pineiro's four-pitch walk to Jay Payton with two outs in the fourth to load the bases.

"I saw frustration then," Hargrove said Tuesday night.

It was the 24th batter Pineiro faced, the 17th to reach base safely and the final hitter Pineiro faced on a night in which he gave up nine runs in an 11-2 loss to Oakland at the Coliseum. If Monday's one-run loss left the Mariners feeling snake-bitten, last night's defeat left them feeling like a piñata. They got clobbered as Oakland beat Seattle for the 14th consecutive game.

Every one of Oakland's starters had a base hit before the fourth inning was over, and the Athletics scored five runs against Pineiro in the fourth inning after the Mariners had two outs and no one was on base.

"Before we could blink, basically, we're out of the game," Hargrove said.

M's update


WP: Saarloos (5-6)

LP: Pineiro (7-11)

Tonight: M's at Oakland, 7:05 p.m., FSN/KOMO (1000 AM)

Starting pitchers: M's Gil Meche (9-7) vs. Dan Haren (10-9)

Pineiro talked after the game about his struggle to find consistency this season.

"You don't know what kind of Joel you're going to get out there," Pineiro said.

Actually, the problem this month is the results have been predictable. Pineiro has given up 15 runs in the last five innings he has pitched going back to the sixth and seventh innings of his start in Texas on Thursday. He is 0-3 in August with an earned-run average of 13.50.

Hargrove was asked where he would go with Pineiro (7-11) from here.

"That's a legitimate question," he said. "But I'm not going to talk about that."

Seattle (56-63) lost its sixth consecutive game. The Mariners have a 14-game losing streak to Oakland, one short of matching the longest losing streak to a team in franchise history. Seattle lost 15 in a row to Boston from 1977 to '78, and the Mariners will have to beat Oakland (67-52) tonight to keep the A's from matching that mark. Oakland would match the longest winning streak against a division opponent since divisional play started in 1969, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The Atlanta Braves won 15 straight vs. the San Diego Padres in 1974.

The Mariners had 11 hits, which were scattered both throughout the game and the lineup by Oakland starter Kirk Saarloos. Seattle never had more than two hits in an inning, and Yuniesky Betancourt was the only Seattle player with multiple hits. His solo home run in the fifth inning scored the Mariners' first run.

The Mariners' starting pitcher has completed the sixth inning in only two of the six games on this trip, and each starter has given up at least three runs.

"We've ran into a spell where our starters have not kept us in games like they have the entire season," Hargrove said.

When August began, Seattle was 52-53 and 3 ½ games behind Oakland. The A's have gone 11-2 this month, Seattle is 4-10 in August and the Mariners now have the largest division deficit of their season. Oakland has beaten Seattle five times this month by a combined score of 33-16.

Oakland's Nick Swisher had three hits in the first four innings of Tuesday's game. Two of those hits were doubles, and he finished with four runs batted in. Marco Scutaro drove in a career-high four runs.

Nine of Oakland's 12 hits against Pineiro were singles, and the Mariners had four double plays in the first four innings. Three of those double plays were inning-enders for Oakland beginning with the first inning when the A's had the bases loaded with one out.

"It was one of those times I did make a good pitch, got the double play," Pineiro said. "And then I said, 'All right, that's over with. Let's go out there next inning.' It goes again."

The double plays didn't let Pineiro escape damage, they just delayed it.

Danny O'Neil: 206-464-2364 or doneil@seattletimes.com