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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
SEATTLE (AP) – Aaron Sele is a savvy veteran who's not going to
let one mistake ruin a solid pitching performance.
|  | | Aaron Sele became the first pitcher in the AL to eight wins by giving up one run in 7 1/3 innings. |
"I left a fastball in the middle of the plate and Cal's been
around long enough not to miss it," Sele said, shrugging off Cal
Ripken's home run to become the American League's first eight-game
winner on Thursday night.
Sele notched his 100th career victory as the Seattle Mariners
won their eighth in a row, 2-1 over the Baltimore Orioles.
The Mariners won eight straight for the second time in May. They
had a nine-game winning streak in April.
Ripken hit his third homer, a 402-foot shot into the upper deck
in left field in the seventh inning.
"I didn't have much breathing room before the home run and I
didn't have much breathing room after it, either," Sele said.
Sele (8-0) is off to the best start ever by a Mariners' pitcher.
In 7 1-3 innings, he allowed four hits and two walks, while
striking out two. He lowered his ERA to 2.69.
Sweeping their seventh series, the history-making Mariners ended
May with a 20-7 record after their 20-5 start in April. They're the
only team in major league history to win 20 games in April and May.
With a 40-12 record, they take a 14-game lead in the AL West into
June.
"The biggest key to my start is that our club is doing so
well," Sele said. "This is pretty nice."
Seattle swept its third straight series against Baltimore,
giving the Mariners 10 consecutive wins over the Orioles.
The Orioles lost two one-run games in Seattle and gave up seven
runs in the eighth inning in a 12-5 loss Wednesday night.
"To tell you the truth, I thought in this series, except for
one inning, we played the best team in baseball to a standstill,"
Baltimore manager Mike Hargrove said.
The Mariners took a 2-0 lead in the third. David Bell, who went
3-for-3 with a double, opened the inning with a single and Jose
Mercedes (1-7) walked Ichiro Suzuki and Mark McLemore to load the
bases.
Edgar Martinez's sacrifice fly and John Olerud's RBI single put
Seattle ahead.
A drawn-in Olerud made the defensive play of the game in the
eighth, throwing out Melvin Mora at the plate on Brady Anderson's
hard-hit chopper to first base.
Mora opened the eighth with a double off Sele and Jerry Hairston
sacrificed. Arthur Rhodes then replaced Sele.
"Olerud is as good as defensive first baseman as there is in
baseball," Seattle manager Lou Piniella said. "That was a tough
play, especially for a left-handed first baseman."
Olerud won his first Gold Glove last season in Seattle.
"They were trying to put pressure on the defense," Olerud
said. "It was just a groundball to my right, kind of a chopper. I
fielded it, I saw Mora going and I got a good throw home."
Kazuhiro Sasaki pitched the ninth for his major league-leading
21st save in 24 opportunities.
Suzuki, who got his major league-leading 86th hit of the season,
and McLemore each stole their 17th bases.
Mercedes, who got his first victory last Friday against Texas,
gave up two runs on six hits and six walks in 6 1-3 innings.
Game notes
The Mariners are 9-5 in one-run games, including 5-1 at
home. ... Sele recorded his 12th consecutive victory over two
seasons. His last loss came last Aug. 30 against the New York
Yankees at Safeco Field. ... Sele has walked 10 batters in 71 1-3
innings. ... McLemore made his first start in CF in place of Mike
Cameron, his fifth position for the Mariners this season. He also
has started at 3B, LF, 2B and SS. ... McLemore is 17-for-17 in
stolen bases this season. McLemore has an 11-game hitting streak.
... A record total of 6,246 fans took part in Buhner Buzz Night
VII, including 112 women. In the seventh year of the promotion,
fans have their heads shaved so they can be bald like OF Jay
Buhner. All the fans that take part in the promotion got in free to
the game. ... Only nine teams have started a season 40-12 or
better. The last team to start 40-12 or better was the 1955
Brooklyn Dodgers at 40-12. ... Jeff Conine went 0-for-3, ending his
14-game hitting streak for the Orioles.
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OTHER GAMES
Baseball Scoreboard
Baltimore Clubhouse
Seattle Clubhouse
RECAPS
Kansas City 8
Texas 2
Oakland 10
Tampa Bay 1
Boston 11
Toronto 5
Detroit 0
Chi. White Sox 0
Anaheim 5
Minnesota 4
Seattle 2
Baltimore 1
Houston 8
San Diego 4
Florida 5
NY Mets 3
Philadelphia 5
Montreal 2
Milwaukee 6
St. Louis 2
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