Mariners slip past White Sox 4-1

[September 17, 2009]  SEATTLE (AP) -- Ryan Rowland-Smith pitched eight innings to lead the Seattle Mariners to a 4-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday night.

The Australian left-hander allowed nine hits and struck out two, punctuating his outing with an escape of a seventh-inning jam.

The White Sox had runners on first and third with one out, but the bottom of the order failed to deliver as Rowland-Smith (4-3) retired consecutive hitters.

Closer David Aardsma, who last pitched on Sept. 2, worked the ninth for his 35th save.

The White Sox have little margin for error in the AL Central with 16 games to play, falling 6 1/2 games behind first-place Detroit.

Ichiro Suzuki hit the first pitch of the game from Chicago starter Gavin Floyd (11-11) into the gap in left-center for a double. He scored on Jose Lopez's double, one of three the Mariners hit in the first two innings. Seattle made it 3-0 with a sacrifice fly from Ryan Langerhans in the second.

Floyd's early struggles were attributed to a sore left hip, which led manager Ozzie Guillen to pull the right-hander after just three innings and 42 pitches in his shortest outing of the year.

Three batters into the fourth inning, D.J. Carrasco gave up a solo homer to Seattle rookie Mike Carp, the first of his career.

The White Sox, who are near the bottom of the American League in team hitting with a .260 average, scored in the eighth on Gordon Beckham's one-out homer to left.

NOTES: Mariners SS Jack Wilson hobbled into the clubhouse on crutches Wednesday, an ominous sign about his return to the lineup. He had to leave Tuesday night's game after beating out an infield single in the seventh. Wilson is termed day-to-day, but his return is up in the air. ... Mariners utilityman Bill Hall was not in the lineup one day after experiencing cramps in his right quad. ... The Mariners said they will monitor RHP Ian Snell to see if he makes his next start as he recovers from a jammed wrist.

[Associated Press]

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