Mariners' Raul Ibanez showing worth of his bat

Long after this latest defeat was in the books, Mariners manager Jim Riggleman pulled Raul Ibanez aside for a question.

"Can you DH tomorrow?" Riggleman asked.

The pair headed toward Riggleman's office to finish the conversation, but it's a question bound to be asked about Ibanez again as the season draws to a close. Ibanez drove in all four runs in his team's 7-4 loss to the New York Yankees on Saturday night to surpass the 100 mark in runs batted in for a third consecutive year.

But for each level Ibanez's bat climbs, questions increase about his defense and whether he'd be willing to switch to first base or a designated-hitter role should he remain in Seattle. A pending free agent, Ibanez will likely field plenty of offers with his batting already poised to finish at a career high.

And with that, the question of whether teams will want to keep him in left field could become an interesting one.

"I don't see why not," Ibanez said, after his three-run homer and run-scoring single gave him 101 RBI for the season. "Physically, I feel very good. I feel the same that I've always felt, really. I don't see why not."

But as strong as he's looked at the plate, even improved defense from Ibanez this year hasn't masked the fact he has trouble getting to some balls. One of those, a second-inning liner off the bat of Hideki Matsui, fell in for a double when a speedier outfielder might have made the catch.

As with most of Ibanez's nights, though, his bat wound up having a far bigger impact on the game than his glove. Seattle trailed 2-0 after home runs by Bobby Abreu in the first and Jason Giambi in the sixth off Mariners starter Ryan Rowland-Smith.

But Ibanez stepped up in the bottom of the sixth, with two on and two out, and deposited a Sidney Ponson offering over the wall in right center to give the Mariners their first and only lead of the game. It didn't last, though, as Rowland-Smith left the game with one on and one out in the seventh and watched the bullpen trio of Sean Green, Justin Thomas and Roy Corcoran cough up the lead for good.

New York scored five runs in the inning, two on an Abreu triple and another on a double by Giambi. Green walked the only batter he faced, but the runner came around to score and saddled the reliever with the loss.

Ibanez surpassed the 100 RBI mark for the fourth time in his career on the same night his potential replacement as the team's premier left-handed power threat decided to call it a season. Mariners catcher Jeff Clement opted to have season-ending surgery on Tuesday to repair a torn medial and lateral meniscus in his left knee.

"It's not a complicated procedure, I've had it done once before, so I figure let's get it over with and come back fresh," Clement said after the game.

Clement said the knee, worn down by the wear and tear of catching, had bothered him for about a month. He ends his rookie season with a .227 batting average and .655 OPS, but he hit .325 in August as he was starting to pick things up offensively.

"I've gotten to take back both the positive and the negative," he said. "I think you learn a lot from the bad times. Struggling's not unusual and everybody's done it. It's how you handle it that defines who you become as a player, and I think I handled it as best I could."

The Mariners are hoping that Clement can one day reach the heights Ibanez has with his bat. At age 36, Ibanez is supposed to be showing signs of regressing.

Instead, his .307 average and .887 OPS are both career bests. And his batting average is actually higher against left-handed pitchers -- who've traditionally given him trouble -- than against righties.

"He's in great shape," Riggleman said. "He's just an unbelievable worker. His preparation for the game, starting in the winter and every day before the game -- him and Ichiro, at their age, they play like young guys."

Ibanez has spent more and more time talking with and offering tips to the younger hitters.

Mariners president Chuck Armstrong likes Ibanez's clubhouse presence and has said he'd like to bring him back -- but only at a price the team can afford. Seattle could receive two higher-level compensatory draft picks for Ibanez if he declines arbitration here and heads elsewhere as a free agent.

Ibanez was asked on Saturday whether the ability to play in left field could also be a sticking point in any contract talks.

"I don't see that happening, really," he said. "And to be honest, I don't think that far ahead."

But it won't be too long before he and the Mariners will have to. Have to look ahead and decide whether what's shaping up as Ibanez's best season in the major leagues will also be his last in this city.

Note

• Jarrod Washburn has a torn abdominal muscle with a small hole in it that will keep him out of action until at least next week. The Mariners will now go with Felix Hernandez on Tuesday, Ryan Feierabend on Wednesday and Brandon Morrow on Thursday.

"I want to get back in there as quick as I can, but I won't know when that is until I can move properly," Washburn said.

Washburn and team trainers feel he might have torn the muscle while lunging for a line drive in his previous start.

Geoff Baker: 206-464-8286 or gbaker@seattletimes.com

For the record

Streak: L1

Home: 29-42

Road: 26-44

vs. AL West: 17-24

vs. L.A.: 4-7

vs. Oakland: 6-7

vs. Texas: 7-10

vs. AL East: 14-29

vs. AL Cent.: 15-24

vs. NL: 9-9

vs. LHP: 19-28

vs. RHP: 36-58

Day: 16-30

Night: 39-56

One-run: 16-26

Extra inn.: 5-7

Home attendance

Saturday's crowd: 44,473

Season total: 2,089,815

Biggest crowd: 46,334 (March 31)

Smallest crowd: 15,818 (May 6)

Average (71 dates): 29,434

2007 average (71 dates): 33,643