News
Silva battles through tightness for victory
Starter nabs inaugural win of 2009; Branyan drives in four
By Jim Street / MLB.com
04/26/09 2:20 AM ET
ANAHEIM -- That wisp of wind passing through Southern California on Saturday night might have been the huge sigh of relief coming from Mariners right-hander Carlos Silva. Not so much because the right-hander won his first game of the season -- and for just the second time in more than a year -- but because of the way he battled through the upper-back tightness that nearly knocked him out in the third inning. Silva went the required five innings to qualify for the win, departed with a three-run lead, and watched the bulge grow to six runs. But the usually rock-solid bullpen sprung a few leaks along the way before escaping with a 9-8 nail-biter over the Angels before a sellout crowd of 43,542 at Angel Stadium. "We seem to like one-run games," manager Don Wakamatsu said, sighing. The Mariners are now 5-2 in one-run games this season. But the run differential was less important to Silva than the outcome. The veteran right-hander won for the first time since June 28, when he defeated the Padres in an Interleague game. He had gone 14 starts since his last victory, and it was his first win against an American League team since April 17, 2008, against the Athletics. This one felt so good, although he didn't feel all that great most of the night. "I'm OK, just a little tightness in my back," Silva said. "It started bothering me in the bullpen, but I wanted to go out there and compete for my teammates. I know they are counting on me, and I don't want to let them down." The Mariners had gotten a three-run home run from Russell Branyan in the first inning to give Silva an early cushion. But the Angels scored two runs in the third and had Silva on the ropes when Wakamatsu and a team trainer visited the mound. "I thought he was going to take me out," Silva said, "but I asked him to give me a chance. Thanks to Don, I was able to go five innings and was able to help the team. It's not as important for me to get the win as for the team to get the win. "My teammates want me to help the team, and for me, that is the most important." By the narrowest of margins, the Mariners did get the win, securing their first series win over the Angels in Anaheim since 2006. But it was not easy. The Angels scored one run in the seventh, two in the eighth and two more in the ninth to make it, well, interesting. With closer Brandon Morrow unavailable because of "mild" tightness in his right shoulder, the final three outs landed in David Aardsma's lap. He walked one batter, surrendered a two-run home run to Torii Hunter and then watched a towering fly ball travel to the warning track in left-center for the second out. Aardsma ended the game by striking out Mike Napoli on a wicked slider. The runs were the first Aardsma has surrendered this season, but he still picked up his third save. "It wasn't my night, but I got through it," Aardsma said. "I wasn't going to give in to Torii right there, got a pitch up and he killed it. If you're going to give one up, give it up big to someone who earns it. "The main thing is we still had the lead." While he knew Hunter's ball was gone the moment he heard the loud thud of bat hitting ball, Aardsma was confident the ball Kendry Morales hit would be a long out. Center fielder Endy Chavez hustled over to the warning track to make a routine play. A terrific play by left fielder Wladimir Balentien that ended the eighth inning loomed large an inning later. His diving catch saved at least one run after the Angels had already scored two to continue their comeback from the 9-3 lead Seattle had heading into the bottom of the seventh inning. "It was a nice catch," Balentien acknowledged. "It kind of saved a run. I knew if it dropped, it would score a run, so I had to catch it." He not only saved a run, but produced one with his long blast into the left-field seats leading off the fourth inning. And, when it was all said and done, the Mariners had improved their record to 7-1 against AL West opponents and allowed Silva to wake up Sunday morning, look at the box score and see a "W" behind is name. "He did a good job getting through five innings," Wakamatsu said. "That is an awfully good team over there, and Aardsma had a tough assignment going through the meat of their order." Rookie right-hander Shawn Kelley contributed a crucial one-third of an inning, replacing Mark Lowe with two out and two runs across in the eighth inning. Branyan continued his powerful return from a back ailment that kept him out of action for five games. Besides his first-inning home run, he singled in the sixth and seventh innings and ended with four RBIs. Ichiro Suzuki also had three hits, giving Seattle 29 hits over the past two games.Jim Street is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
