Ryan Rowland-Smith News

Jack Zduriencik will be asked about the availability of Felix Hernandez, as long as the ace right-hander remains property of the Seattle Mariners.

Dave Wallace was known as one of the better pitching coaches of his generation, helping to develop the arms of Orel Hersheiser , Pedro Martinez and John Wetteland , to name a few.

I just got off the phone with Mariners' manager Don Wakamatsu in Texas. He said he that he had no inkling at the end of the year that Kenji Johjima wouldn't be back.

While the Mariners celebrated their season Sunday with an impromptu Love Boat parade around Safeco Field, it was easy to forget that the team that enjoyed such rare camaraderie in 2009 won't resemble the team that returns in 2010.

The final weekend of Don Wakamatsu's first season as a Major League manager has arrived, and the skipper is looking forward to being reunited with his Arlington-based family.

Julio Borbon made his first start in center field on Friday night. He will get his first start against a left-hander on Saturday.

A year ago, the final game couldn't be over fast enough. Sure there were postgame handshakes and well-wishes, but when the 2008 season came and went, the Seattle Mariners were glad to get away from each other.

Ken Griffey Jr. has given the Mariners a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning, cranking the 630th home run of his career over the right field wall.

There's not much to be gained by watching the out-of-town scores like they once did, and there's no visible rally cry taking place as the Seattle Mariners move into their final three games of the season.

A dedicated Mariners fan and long-ago sportswriter , I have over the past eight years done "looking-ahead" pieces at the beginning and end of each season.

Toronto grabbed the lead with three runs in the eighth one day after Lind homered twice, including a game-ending solo drive in the 10th inning, to power the Blue Jays to a 5-4 win that included Seattle star Ichiro Suzuki's first career ejection.

Roughly two hours before the first pitch yesterday, catcher Rod Barajas was telling Vernon Wells how close he came.

Left-hander Ryan Rowland-Smith was stellar for almost seven innings on Sunday afternoon and the Mariners discovered a way to score runs without putting runners in scoring position.

A day after Suzuki's first career ejection, the struggling Mariners look to do a better job of handling the Blue Jays lineup Sunday.

In most regards, the Rays' 4-3 loss to the Mariners on Tuesday night amounted to the same old, same old.

The Mariners and Rays are just about to get underway in about 20 minutes time. And no, I am not in St.

Ryan Rowland-Smith turned in another sensational performance in the M's 4-1 victory over the White Sox at the Safe last night.

The consistency with which Jeff Niemann has gone about his business this season has managed to get him slightly overshadowed when he's done well.

With slightly more than two weeks remaining in the season, the Mariners have improved more in the win-loss column than any team in the Major Leagues.

Some of you have wondered about Bill Hall and why the Mariners insist on playing him every night.