Rangers Rough-up Mariners

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SEATTLE — Even after his decision to move ace Felix Hernandez back two days resulted in one of his Seattle Mariners’ worst losses of the season, manager Lloyd McClendon wasn’t looking back Wednesday afternoon.

“It just gives (the media) something to write about,” McClendon said after replacement starter Erasmo Ramirez was tagged for 10 runs in a 12-4 loss to the Texas Rangers on Wednesday. “You can say I was a dumb S.O.B.”

McClendon’s decision to give Hernandez some extra rest might pay off by the time he takes the mound for Friday night’s game against the red-hot Washington Nationals, but it sure came back to bite the Mariners.

The Rangers tagged Ramirez for 11 hits and 10 runs in three innings.

Texas second baseman Rougned Odor hit the first grand slam of his career, and catcher Tomas Telis and center fielder Leonys Martin each added three RBIs in the Rangers’ most productive offensive performance since they beat the Chicago White Sox 16-0 on Aug. 4.

“It’s always good to have a day like that,” Rangers right fielder Jim Adduci said after the 12-run performance. “The thing about it is: tomorrow’s a new day, and we have to back at it again.”

Texas starter Colby Lewis, who was also on the mound for the Aug. 4 win, turned in

his second complete game of the season, allowing four runs and seven hits in nine innings. Lewis (9-11) ended a three-start losing streak with the victory. His last two wins were complete games, with Texas outscoring the opposition 28-4.

“After he got that lead, he started to really focus on throwing strikes,” Texas manager Ron Washington said.

The Rangers piled up 11 hits, with Martin going 3-for-5. In the process, Texas (52-80) posted just its third series win since July 1.

“You never know what happens in this game,” Washington said. “I wish it was easy to predict, but you have to play. We did a good job of playing today.”

Seattle (72-60) held a half-game lead over Detroit in the American League wild-card standings heading into the day but fell into a tie as the Tigers prepared to play the New York Yankees on Wednesday night.

The Mariners hadn’t lost a home series since late July before Texas took two of three from them heading into Seattle’s off day Thursday.

“That game’s over with,” McClendon said shortly after the loss. “We got our butts kicked. It happens.”

The Mariners juggled their pitching rotation to give Hernandez a couple extra days off, and the decision to start Triple-A call-up Ramirez blew up in their face. Texas tagged Ramirez for nine hits and 10 runs while taking a 10-1 lead in the fourth inning.

The big blow came on Odor’s third-inning grand slam. Teammates Mike Carp, Adrian Beltre and Adduci opened the inning with consecutive singles to load the bases before a pop fly to shortstop resulted in the first out of the inning. Odor then slammed the first pitch he saw over the right field fence for a grand slam and an 8-1 lead.

It marked the second consecutive inning in which the Rangers scored four times against Ramirez.

Telis, the Rangers’ No. 9 hitter, drove in three runs with a bases-loaded double in the second inning.

Telis hit a towering fly ball and Mariners right fielder Logan Morrison caught it on a dead run before slamming face-first into the wall. All three runners scored, giving Texas a 3-0 lead. Telis then scored on an RBI single from Martin for a 4-0 advantage.

Seattle’s first run came on a solo home run from catcher Mike Zunino in the bottom of the second inning. It was his 19th home run of the season, matching Miguel Olivo’s three-year-old club record for home runs by a catcher.

Third baseman Kyle Seager added a solo homer in the ninth inning for Seattle.

Ramirez (1-6) lasted just three innings — he didn’t get an out in the fourth — and was charged with 10 earned runs, nine hits and a walk. His ERA swelled to 5.21 in the process.

“Not very good,” McClendon said of Ramirez. “He was up in the zone. I was encouraged after the first inning, but for some reason he got the ball up in the zone — and that’s not a good thing against any team.”

The Mariners’ team ERA, which is on pace to be the first sub-3.00 American League ERA in the post-DH era, went from 2.92 to 2.98.

The hits kept coming after Ramirez left. Martin’s two-run homer in the sixth inning put Texas ahead 12-1.

Mariners first baseman Kendrys Morales had a two-run double in the bottom of the sixth, pulling Seattle to 12-3.

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