Tillman, Jones Lead Orioles Past Mariners 4-2
BALTIMORE (AP) -- Chris Tillman pitched six innings of three-hit ball, Adam Jones went 4 for 4 with two RBIs, and the Baltimore Orioles beat Felix Hernandez and the Seattle Mariners 4-2 on Wednesday night.
Tillman and Jones were both traded from the Mariners to Baltimore in 2008 as part of a five-player deal that sent pitcher Erik Bedard to Seattle. Although the Mariners really didn't need a reminder of just how lopsided that trade was, Tillman and Jones did just that.
Drafted in the second round of the 2006 draft by Seattle, Tillman (2-3) gave up one run in his first start against the Mariners. The right-hander struck out five and walked three before being lifted after throwing a career-high 112 pitches.
Kevin Gregg, the third Baltimore reliever, worked the ninth for his seventh save.
Jones put the Orioles up 4-1 in the fifth with a two-run triple off Hernandez, the reigning AL Cy Young winner. The four hits tied a career high for Jones, Seattle's top pick in the 2003 draft.
Hernandez (4-3) allowed four runs and seven hits in five innings. It was only the second time in eight starts this season that he yielded more than two earned runs.
Michael Saunders homered for the Mariners, who have lost four straight. Ichiro Suzuki had two hits to extend his hitting streak to 14 games at Camden Yards, where he's a .389 lifetime hitter.
Baltimore used a three-run fifth inning to take a 4-1 lead.
Hernandez retired the first two batters before Derrek Lee singled and Vladimir Guerrero was hit by a pitch. Luke Scott then grounded an RBI single up the middle and Jones followed with a liner to the gap in right-center.
Saunders homered off Jason Berken in the seventh.
After working a perfect first inning, Hernandez struggled the rest of the way. The Orioles used a pair of two-out singles and a walk to load the bases in the second, but Robert Andino grounded out to end the threat.
In the third, Tillman hit Brendan Ryan with a pitch and issued a four-pitch walk to Saunders before Chone Figgins hit an RBI single.
Baltimore got a run in the bottom half when Brian Roberts walked, took third on a single by Felix Pie and scored on a fly ball by Lee.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
