Rangers throttle M’s again
ARLINGTON, Texas — Josh Hamilton homered for the fourth time in seven games, Michael Young went 3 for 4 with a homer, and the Texas Rangers won their third straight over the Seattle Mariners, 12-3 on Thursday night.
Hamilton got the Rangers’ offense rolling with a two-run homer in a three-run first.
Hamilton had three RBIs, giving him 13 during a seven-game homestand. Hamilton has driven in at least one run in seven straight games, the longest streak by a Ranger this season.
Texas improved to 8-2 against Seattle this season, outscoring the Mariners 31-6 in the final three games of the four-game series.
Julio Borbon added three hits and Vladimir Guerrero went 2 for 3 with two RBIs for Texas.
The Rangers, who had 17 hits, increased their lead in the AL West to 11/2 games over the Los Angeles Angels.
Texas’ Tommy Hunter (2-0) allowed three runs — two earned — and five hits in six innings of his second major league start this season.
Hunter threw a five-hitter in a 6-1 victory over Tampa Bay on Saturday in his season debut.
Michael Saunders and Chone Figgins had two hits each for Seattle, which has lost six of seven.
Texas jumped on Ryan Rowland-Smith (0-5) for a three-run first on Guerrero’s RBI single and Hamilton’s two-run homer.
Seattle scored twice in the third with the help of a throwing error by Borbon in center field.
Saunders started the third with a single, and scored from first when Borbon’s throw to third on Figgins’ single sailed into the Seattle dugout. Figgins went to third on the overthrow, and later scored on Franklin Gutierrez’s sacrifice fly to get within 3-2.
But Texas kept up the offensive pressure as Young led off the third with a homer, and the Rangers got another run when Figgins made a fielding error at second on Justin Smoak’s grounder. Guerrero scored on David Murphy’s ground out, and Matt Treanor added an RBI single for a 7-2 lead.
Figgins’ two-out RBI single in the fourth got Seattle within 7-3.
Texas broke the game open with a five-run sixth — all the runs were unearned — highlighted by Smoak’s two-run double. Seattle shortstop Josh Wilson’s fielding error gave Texas the opening for an outburst that included RBI singles from Guerrero, Hamilton and Murphy.
Rowland-Smith allowed eight runs — four earned — and 11 hits over 5 2-3 innings. He hasn’t won since last October when Seattle beat Texas 2-1.