Wilkerson blows away Mariners

ARLINGTON, Texas – Brad Wilkerson thought he had a sacrifice fly. But the ball kept carrying with the help of wind blowing out to right field. All of a sudden, Wilkerson had a lot more than an RBI.

Wilkerson’s fourth career grand slam highlighted a six-run third inning as the Texas Rangers beat Seattle 6-4 Tuesday night, the Mariners’ season-high sixth straight loss.

“I hit it pretty good, but it was a little high up in the air,” Wilkerson said. “Where I hit it, it can carry in this ballpark. I thought I’d get at least a sac fly out of it. I was pleased when I got four RBIs instead of one.”

Seattle had taken a 3-0 lead against Rangers starter Kevin Millwood before Texas sent 11 hitters to the plate against Gil Meche (4-4) in a third inning that also included a two-run homer by Michael Young.

The Rangers needed the big inning to overcome an otherwise sloppy effort that included four errors, two wild pitches and a passed ball.

“It was a strange game – a lot of things that don’t usually happen in a ballgame happened, to say the least,” Rangers manager Buck Showalter said.

Millwood (6-3) allowed four runs and nine hits in six innings, striking out four and walking one.

The Mariners are 8-17 on the road, having lost 12 of their last 14.

“Nobody likes what we’re going through right now,” Mariners manager Mike Hargrove said. “It’s not a fun time. It’s the exact opposite of what we do at home. But we have to keep working hard, which I think we’re doing.”

Mariners left fielder Raul Ibanez was ejected in the first inning for arguing a checked-swing third strike. Ibanez was thrown out of a game for the first time in his career.

“I lost it,” Ibanez said. “That’s as angry as I’ve ever been on a baseball field. It was the first time but I deserved it. I regret the language that I used. There are kids in the stands.”