M's Back To Doing What They Do Best - Win

June 19, 2001

"Just when it looked like their mojo was finally falling and they wouldn't attain total global domination after all, Seattle's stars realigned and order was restored to the baseball world." -Larry Stone, sportswriter

What a game. I'm still kind of in awe. It started out wretchedly. While I was taking a nap, we sat down in order and then Paul Abbott had a shaky start... which I would get into detail about except that 1, I don't want to, 2, I slept through it so I didn't get to see it anyway, and 3, nobody wants to suffer through the particulars of going down 4-0 in the first inning after coming off two losses anyway.

So second inning and I come stumbling out all groggy and flip on the TV and I am squinting at the score box like my eyesight has gone bad and John Olerud leads off with a double, and an out later, Mike Cameron walked but we don't score either one of them, and I'm still meanwhile blinking in disbelief at the score box and Abby seems to be feeling better as he retires the side in order, bless his heart and as we head to the third inning I am all, "Does that say 4-0 OAKLAND?".

Third inning and here come the Mariners. David "We're Gonna Win This Game" Bell led off with a single and then Ichiro doubled to score David and then an out later, Edgar "I'm Goin Yard!" Martinez WENT YARD and all of a sudden, there we are, 4-3.

Unfortunately, with two outs, Miguel Tejada doubled and then Jeremy Giambi was intentionally walked and Ramon Hernandez doubled to score Tejada before we were out of the inning, and we trail 5-3.

Fourth inning and we do nothing, but Oakland doesn't either and so fifth inning and both Mac and Edgar walked with 2 down but we don't score again and Oakland is again retired in order, thanks in large part to an excellent catch by Ichiro.

So sixth inning and nothing for us, and a harmless single that was taken care of via double play for Oakland's and here we go to where this just got crazy.

Seventh inning and Tom Lampkin led off with a single and then David "I'm Goin Yard!" Bell WENT YARD TO TIE THE GAME, and I am so, so happy and then Mark Guthrie relieved started Gil Heredia and got Ichiro to ground out, but Mac walked and Edgar flew out and John Olerud was safe on an error by leftfielder Billy McMillion and that scored Mac and we TAKE THE LEAD and I am beside myself even though I feel bad for the poor leftfielder and Jeff Tam relieved Guthrie and we head to the bottom half leading 6-5 and everything is as it should be. Arthur Lee Rhodes relieves Abby, who, despite a shaky start, settled down and went six innings, and Artie gave up a one-out walk, but came back to strikeout both Jason Giambi and John Jaha.

"We've been doing this sort of thing all year. There's no quit here. We've been making up runs whenever we have to. You have to win some games like this to have the kind of season we're having." -Lou Piniella

So eighth inning and we sit down in order and then... this was distressing. Okay, Artie loaded the bases with no outs. And then he got an infield fly. Double play and we're out of it with no runs scoring. And he got the doubleplay ball! And he turned to second but he very un-Artie-like DIDN'T THROW IT and I am meanwhile SCREAMING IN TERROR, I mean I was literally SCREAMING in full panic mode and Artie FINALLY threw to first so we got ONE out, and that of course tied the game back up and then Johnny Damon singled to put the A's back on top 7-6 and I am just cursing up a storm.

"The first thing they teach you in spring training is to get a double play. I just had a brain cramp. I messed up, but my teammates came back for me. That's no surprise. This team is something else." -Arthur Rhodes

"He could have gone third and first, second and first, or home and first. What scared me, when he started moving all around, I could see the ball going down the right-field line. We work on that all spring. He just got excited. As a pitcher, you concentrate on the hitter so much, sometimes you don't think situation." -Lou Piniella

So ninth inning and we're staring at our first third-consecutive-loss of the season and I'm wondering WHAT'S GOING ON HERE, I mean we're not going to be perfect all the time of course, but three in a row where we can't get it together? Not this team. Jason Isringhausen came in to relieve Jeff Tam, and Ichiro singled to lead things off and then Mac singled, so runners on first and third and Edgar grounded out to score Ichiro and tie the game and Mac went to third and NO WAIT! Mac was still standing there on second and from the look on his face, he is evidently just as surprised as I am to see him there and not at third and you can tell he's not very happy about it and Oakland also takes note of this and figures Mac will try to steal third to make up for it... so they try to pick him off at second and throw the ball away and he gets to third anyway and I am all "HOLY NIGHT!" because I thought for sure we had just screwed up royally and Oakland helped us make up for our own baserunning boo-boo and then John Olerud walked and Bret "RBI" Boone hit a sac fly and we take the lead AGAIN!

So then we head into the bottom of the ninth and Kazuhiro Sasaki relieved Artie and he got Frank Menechino to fly out and then he struck out Jason Giambi and Jaha to record a perfect inning and a save and WE WIN IT 8-7!

"I know we won the game. I'm not sure how we won it." -Lou Piniella

"I'm sure Lou has seen this so many times. They have got magic going now. This loss was tough for us because they're so good. And when you let it get away... It would be nice to see them lose three in a row sometime." -Gil Heredia, Oakland starting pitcher

"Seattle hasn't lost three consecutive games all year. Oakland was bidding to end that streak. At the same time, the A's were in the running to be the first team to beat Seattle three times this season." -John Hickey, sportswriter

"When you look at this team the second time around, you say, 'Hey, the Mariners are something else'. You look at them now and you really see what they have been doing to win. McLemore is 21-for-21 in steals. Dan Wilson gets the job done, moving the runners over. Ichiro forces an error on a slow ground ball. I see Bret Boone hitting a ball heading for his nose for a single. They are playing at a very high level. They seem to be a different team now than they were when we first saw them. They've got the feeling. They know what they have to do to win. You can see it in the way they do things. It's in their eyes. The thing that makes them so good is how efficient they are. They do all the little things, things other clubs don't. And they are always in position to win a game. Let's face it, they maximize their abilities. If you are a fan of the game, they are a pleasure to watch." -Billy Beane, Oakland's GM

"The Mariners bullpen suffered losses Sunday (Jeff Nelson) and Monday (Norm Charlton). Despite that, the Mariners relief corps leads the majors in most victories (18), fewest losses (six), most saves (33) and is second in bullpen earned-run average at 3.06." -John Hickey

"It's hard to keep in perspective, so we don't try. We just come to the park every day to play, and we show up expecting to win." -Bret Boone

And a few words on Cal Ripken Jr....

"He's certainly a first-ballot Hall of Famer who epitomized what the game is all about. He played hard, he played every day, and he showed a lot of respect for it. He's had a marvelous career, but when you play into your 40s like he has, sooner or later it's time to make a decision. In Cal's mind, it's come, and I salute his career and applaud his decision." -Lou Piniella

"I remember being at third base and how hard he hit the ball down that way. There are so many memories of him, but they weren't always good memories for us. He hit us hard. The thing I remember the most is the streak, of course. It was such an amazing thing. The toughest guys get hurt and have to miss games. He plays one of the toughest positions on the field, played it great and he went out there every day. He's always been just remarkable." -Edgar Martinez

"I've played 10 years, and when you do that, you hurt just about every day. A lot of it you can play through. Some of it you can't. To do what he did is the most amazing thing, really remarkable." -Jeff Nelson