Griffey's home run ignites Mariners, who snap losing streak

MINNEAPOLIS — It wasn't entirely the kind of home-run shot that inspires tales for future baseball generations.

To be sure, Ken Griffey Jr. got most of it right, starting with the sweet Mother's Day swing that catapulted a ball so hard and deep to right that the outfielder playing there didn't bother to budge a muscle. There was also the collective crowd groan on contact, telling everyone within earshot that the ball was gone before it was even halfway to the fence, not to mention the Mariners leaping to life in a dugout that long seemed dead.

About the only problem with Griffey's tying, eighth-inning blast on Sunday afternoon — which propelled the Mariners to a 5-3 comeback win over the Minnesota Twins — was when it traveled through a hole in an overhanging Subway sandwich sign offering a $25,000 prize for hitting a ball there. Not exactly the type of baseball detail W.P. Kinsella or Ken Burns would include in a book or screenplay, but perhaps a fitting modern twist for a player attracting attention mostly for his promotional value to the Mariners so far.

That might have changed here at the Metrodome, where 25,555 fans caught a glimpse of the designated hitter the Mariners hoped they had signed finally making a big-time difference with his bat.

"It's one of those things where you try to do your best on certain days and Mother's Day is one of them," said Griffey, who has seven home runs in Mother's Day games. "You don't want to get yelled at by Mom at home when you take an 0 for 4 with three strikeouts."

All kidding aside, the home run could not have been more opportune. The Mariners had been stymied for seven scoreless innings by Twins starter Nick Blackburn and seemed headed to a seventh consecutive defeat before Jose Lopez drew a one-out walk and Griffey went deep off left-handed reliever Jose Mijares.

Forget Griffey's mother for a second. The mother of Mariners manager Don Wakamatsu's children had apparently issued an ultimatum of her own.

"My wife said I couldn't come home to Texas unless we won today," Wakamatsu quipped.

So, the Griffey homer apparently saved more than his team's fragile psyche.

Griffey won't be getting $25,000 from Subway — the promotion only applies to Twins home runs — but the Seattle offense certainly cashed in after his shot. Adrian Beltre and Russell Branyan connected for singles, a wild pitch by reliever Jesse Crain brought a run home, and another scored on a Wladimir Balentien double.

Lopez provided a 5-2 cushion in the ninth with a solo homer that proved huge in the bottom of the frame. That's when closer Brandon Morrow, fresh off the disabled list, allowed a run-scoring single, then walked the bases full before retiring Brendan Harris on a full-count ground out to end it.

Griffey had launched a double to right-center in the third inning. But with runners at the corners and none out, the rally fizzled.

Wakamatsu admitted the dugout was a bit flat once the eighth inning rolled around. Erik Bedard had gamely fought through 4-2/3 innings on a cramped-up leg, allowing two runs on 110 pitches, and he, Mark Lowe and winning pitcher Miguel Batista kept the score close enough for Griffey to finally tie it.

"It takes little things like that to ignite you," Wakamatsu said. "Just going through what we've gone through lately, for one of the team leaders to do that and pick us up right there was huge."

Griffey downplayed the significance his game-changing blast — the 26th of his career here, one shy of Jim Thome's all-time mark for a visiting player — might have on the team going forward.

"We've still got to go out and play good baseball," he said. "Hopefully, we can continue to do that and throw a streak together."

That will be easier if Griffey the DH continues to wield the kind of power that Griffey the promotional tool already does.

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