Felix Hernandez is off to the All-Star Game, joining Ichiro as the lone Mariners selected.

Hernandez was anything but a shoo-in for the AL team when May drew to a close. But his last seven or eight outings, earning him Pitcher of the Month honors for June, obviously swung things in his favor.

Time to market this one before Mike Sweeney gets the t-shirts made. Sweeney has come up with a name for the M's squad of reservists, many of whom have played key roles on this 5-3 road trip. The Mariners head into today with a chance to do something never done before in franchise history -- sweep the Red Sox at Fenway Park.

And the "L. Ben Show'' team of reservists has had plenty to do with it. Sweeney has toyed with the name -- pronounced "El Bencho" (ha, ha!) since spring training. But now, with the reservists seeing the lion's share of playing time for an M's squad just 2 1/2 games out of first place, he's about to get the t-shirts made.

The toughest part is figuring out who's on the L.Ben Show team and who isn't.

Seems a handful of you are confused about why I wrote in a blog headline that today's win by the Mariners was an "unlikely" one.

Now I'm confused.

Because to me, the only thing less likely than a Mariners victory today would have been to see Michael Jackson moonwalk out to the mound to sing "God Bless America'' in the seventh inning.

So, I've done a podcast for you to try to explain.

This is what happens to teams that suddenly find themselves angling for a playoff berth. Guys start to perform in ways not expected. Hitters not known for hitting suddenly do. A team not known for drawing walks suddenly takes five of them, including three in the ninth to win the game 3-2 over the Boston Red Sox.

And yeah, while Red Sox reliever Takashi Saito couldn't find the strike zone, how many times the past few years have the Mariners swung away wildly in any event?

Nope, these are odd times indeed. The times that make you put away the stats sheets and the flow charts and just watch guys trying to win baseball games. The Mariners came in here with a bunch of subs trying to scrape together runs. Instead, they have won their first series here since 2001 and guaranteed a winning record on this trip, now 5-3, that ends tomorrow.

Which brings us to Roy Corcoran.

We told you pre-game that David Aardsma was feeling better. He got a chance to prove it in the ninth, retiring the side to preserve a 3-2 victory for the Mariners. Who would have thought Seattle would win a late-inning bullpen battle? Not many folks, but Roy Corcoran and Aardsma did the job after 6 1/3 innings by Garrett Olson.

Chris Jakubauskas told me something interesting last night about the Mariners bullpen: "The one thing about us is, we all want to get out there and pitch. It doesn't matter what the situation is, or who you're talking about. We all want to be out there contributing.''

That said, how many of you thought Roy Corcoran would survive the eighth inning once David Ortiz strolled into the on-deck circle? Raise you hands. Thought so. Believe me, my hand was at my side, too.

Corcoran went out nonetheless and threw a 1-2-3 inning, getting Ortiz on a soft lineout to right that was caught by second baseman Jose Lopez, playing the deep shift. So, this 2-2 game heads to the ninth.

Miguel Batista will pitch the bottom of the inning if we're still tied, David Aardsma will go if Seattle has the lead.

Here's a stat for you courtesy of longtime Boston Globe beat writer Gordon Edes, now a senior writer for Yahoo Sports (and the guy who wrote a letter to U.S. immigration on my behalf to get me into this country in 2006 -- blame him). After that last Ken Griffey Jr. flyout in the sixth, he is now just 4-for-52 with no RBI and only one extra-base hit in Fenway Park games since leaving the Mariners in 1999. That includes interleague games and his return affairs here with Chicago and now Seattle.

Griffey will lead off the ninth.

By the way, for those who hadn't heard, Dave Niehaus arrived at the ballpark, so that's great news here on the Fourth of July. No city to be in quite like Boston for all things patriotic. This is my third July 4 covering baseball in this city and there's always lots of fanfare associated with it.

UPDATE: 9:54 a.m.: Niehaus has arrived at the ballpark, looking no worse for wear. Presumably, he's doing the game.

Hall of Fame boradcaster Dave Niehaus was taken by ambulance to a Boston hospital this morning after waking up feeling disoriented. Niehaus was conscious at the time and, from what we hear, was talking about actually doing the game broadcast this afternoon.

Niehaus is 74, so you have to be careful with these things, So far, he's not at the ballpark, We'll let you know when we get further word on his condition.

In other Mariners news, closer David Aardsma is feeling fine this morning after team trainers worked out "a knot'' that had developed near the back of his rib cage area. Mariners manager Don Wakamatsu had earlier described the injury as perhaps "a mild intercostal strain'' bu Aardsma told me afterwards that the problem had been taken care of while the manager was still speaking to reporters.

The Mariners owe a huge round of thanks to Chris Jakubauskas after this nerve-wracking win over the Boston Red Sox. Jakubauskas came on and tossed two scoreless innings to pick up the win, settling things down after that blown lead in the eighth.

Rob Johnson then did the unthinkable, tying a club record with his third double of the game, off Ramon Ramirez in the 11th, to give Seattle two runs and an eventual 7-6 victory.