Mariners' losing streak ties season high

After his team's sixth straight loss -- this time 5-3 Tuesday to Pittsburgh -- Mariners manager Mike Hargrove called off his usual postgame news conference, deciding instead to meet behind closed doors in his office with his coaches.

For a while, his players were equally quiet, taking their time showering or eating their postgame meals.

At one point, only Ben Broussard, who grounded out meekly to first base in a critical pinch-hit appearance in the eighth inning, was present to take the brunt of questions from the media in an otherwise empty locker room.

Not exactly the greatest vibe.

The Mariners stumbled home after dropping the last five games in a grueling 10-game, 10-day, four-city trip, hoping the day off Monday, plus playing at home, might rejuvenate them and their chances of staying in the American League West race.

Instead, they started slow and lost again, giving up two runs in the first inning, falling behind 5-1 and eventually succumbing in front of 24,520 at Safeco Field.

"We've got to battle back. That's all you can do," said Raul Ibanez when he emerged, shaking his head repeatedly. "We've got to battle. We've just got to come out [today] and make the outcome different. It's not going to be handed to us."

Ichiro, who stole his 20th base of the year and extended his hitting streak to 14 games, also expressed disappointment in the loss.

"There are things that we need to recognize for this team," Ichiro said through a translator, "and just because we have a day off, doesn't mean that those things we need to recognize are just going to take care of themselves."

When asked if his team could rediscover the magic that led to a season-best 35-26 record just one week ago, he replied: "If we just expect it to happen and do nothing else, it will not happen. You just can't expect things to happen."

The Pirates, making their Seattle debut, took advantage of their chances, especially early.

Seattle first baseman Richie Sexson, who hadn't botched a fielding opportunity since September 2006, picked a terrible time to mess up his streak, misplaying a Nate McLouth ground ball in the top of the first inning.

It kicked past him and rolled all the way to right field, leaving McLouth at second base. Then Miguel Batista, who had been Seattle's most consistent starter, with nine of 13 starts lasting six innings or more, got wild.

He gave up back-to-back singles to Adam LaRoche and Jason Bay, the British Columbia native who lives in Kirkland during the offseason, and walked Xavier Nady and another in-state product, Ryan Doumit, a 1999 Moses Lake High School graduate.

"It was basically horrible," said Batista of laboring through a 34-pitch first inning. "I missed my location a couple of times and then after that, I was trying to be too fine, and that got me into trouble. But besides that, it was just totally bad pitching."

Batista (7-6) went just 5-1/3 innings, giving up four runs before he departed, walking four and striking out a season-high seven in 107 pitches.

The Mariners are last in baseball in the number of runs given up in the first inning, now with 68.

Sexson had a chance for redemption right away, coming up with two on in the bottom of the first, after Jose Guillen and Ibanez reached on base hits. Sexson grounded out to shortstop, and went 0 for 2 with runners in scoring position.

The Mariners scored their first run in the second, when Ichiro drove home Kenji Johjima, who got on base to start the inning after being hit by a pitch. Johjima had advanced to second after Adrian Beltre singled.

Beltre, who had been out since June 12 with an injured left thumb, started at third base and appeared to have no trouble defensively.

Batista was in trouble again in the top of the fifth, after Jose Bautista singled then stole second. After McLouth struck out looking, Freddy Sanchez doubled to right-center, putting the Pirates up 3-1.

Pittsburgh added one run each in the sixth and seventh innings.

Seattle scored its second run in the bottom of the seventh. Yuniesky Betancourt doubled, advanced to third on an Ichiro ground out and scored on Jose Vidro's sacrifice fly to right field.

The Pittsburgh bullpen had already blown four saves in Tom Gorzelanny's 14 starts this year. Already missing Salomon Torres, on the disabled list with elbow inflammation, it was depleted even further with the loss of closer Matt Capps to a three-game suspension, for hitting Milwaukee's Prince Fielder on May 5.

And Sexson gave the crowd some late-game hope, hitting a towering home run to left field in the bottom of the eighth, his 11th of the year, an upper-deck solo shot to greet reliever Jonah Bayliss.

Michael Ko: 206-515-5653 or mko@seattletimes.com