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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
SEATTLE (AP) -- The young Oakland Athletics are playing like the
experienced ones in their big series with Seattle. The Mariners, a
team of veterans, are not.
|  | | Oakland's Miguel Tejada smacked a two-run double in the fifth inning Friday as the A's downed the Mariners. |
"We know we're a good team. There's no reason for us not to
have confidence," Ben Grieve said after the A's took the wild-card
lead and tightened the AL West race by beating the Mariners 8-3
Friday night.
"We're a young team," Grieve added. "We're just out there
having fun."
Two-run singles by Eric Chavez and Jeremy Giambi keyed a
five-run first inning for the A's.
"It was huge for us to go out there and score five," Chavez
said.
"We're in the hunt for two different things," manager Art Howe
said. "We'd like to get the division, though."
The Athletics closed within one game of Seattle for the division
lead. They also moved one game ahead of Cleveland, a 3-2 loser to
Kansas City, for the wild-card spot.
The A's won for the seventh time in eight games -- all on the
road -- to move to a season-high 16 games over .500. The Mariners
lost for the second straight night to Oakland after a season-best
eight straight wins.
Coming off Tim Hudson's 5-2 victory Thursday night, the A's got
a solid performance from Omar Olivares (4-8). It was his first
start since June 16, a day before he went on the disabled list with
a strained right shoulder.
"It's been a tough season for me, but I put everything behind
me because I got a chance to prove myself in an important game like
this," Olivares said. "I didn't know how I was going to feel, but
I felt great. I'm OK now."
In five-plus innings, Olivares gave up two runs on four hits and
two walks.
Scott Service pitched four innings, giving up one run, for his
first save of the season.
Service had a 10.57 earned-run average in eight appearances against Seattle
when he pitched for Kansas City last season.
"They abused me last year," Service said. "So it feels great
to go out against them and give us four innings so the guys in our
bullpen could get some rest."
Freddy Garcia (8-5), who was 4-0 in four previous starts in
September, gave up four hits and also made a throwing error in the
first inning when Oakland batted around.
"He didn't locate," Seattle manager Lou Piniella said. "He
fell behind the batters. But, basically, we have to swing the bats
better."
Grieve agreed with Piniella, saying, "In that first inning, he
had bad control. He was wild."
Oakland can move into first place in the division Saturday, for
the first time since June 28, if it can beat the Mariners on
Saturday. That would give the A's the lead by a single percentage
point.
Said Mariners veteran catcher Joe Oliver: "We are just going to
have to go out, regroup and try to relax tomorrow. We know what
have to do. We know that there is a lot on the line here for the
next two games."
"Everyone knows how important this series is," Piniella said.
After Garcia surrendered three consecutive hits, capped by
Miguel Tejada's two-run double to open the fifth, he was gone. He
gave up eight runs, six earned, on eight hits and four walks.
Terrence Long drew a walk to lead off the game, Randy Velarde
singled and Matt Stairs hit an RBI single.
After a walk to Grieve, Chavez singled for a 3-0 lead. Garcia
threw the ball into center when he attempted to pick off Grieve at
second, moving runners to second and third, and Giambi singled them
home.
In the fifth, Stairs and Grieve singled before Tejada's double.
Center fielder Mike Cameron's error on Grieve's hit allowed Grieve
to take an extra base and resulted in another unearned run off
Garcia.
Mark McLemore drove in Seattle's first run
in the third. After Olivares was taken out after hitting Alex
Rodriguez in the back with a pitch to lead off the sixth, Edgar
Martinez had an RBI double off Service and pinch-hitter Raul Ibanez
had a sacrifice fly.
Game notes
Martinez's 137th RBI of the season tied Babe Ruth's major-league record for the most RBI for a player 37 or older. Ruth had
137 when he was 37 in 1932. ... Tejada had his ninth three-hit game
of the season. ... The Mariners announced their schedule for the
2001 season. They will open it at Safeco Field against Oakland
on Monday, April 2.
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ALSO SEE
Baseball Scoreboard
Oakland Clubhouse
Seattle Clubhouse
RECAPS
Baltimore 3
Boston 1
Detroit 9
NY Yankees 6
Tampa Bay 3
Toronto 2
Kansas City 3
Cleveland 2
Chi. White Sox 5
Minnesota 4
Anaheim 2
Texas 1
Oakland 8
Seattle 3
Chicago Cubs 5
St. Louis 4
Cincinnati 12
Houston 5
Montreal 6
Atlanta 4
NY Mets 9
Philadelphia 6
Pittsburgh 0
Milwaukee 0
Florida 8
Colorado 4
San Diego 3
Los Angeles 2
Arizona 7
San Francisco 1
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