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Bedard dominates as Mariners top Rangers

Apr 1, 2008 - 5:01 AM SEATTLE (Ticker) -- Erik Bedard made a quick impression on his new team and the Seattle Mariners scored just enough to make him a winner.

Bedard pitched five strong innings and Jose Lopez drove in two runs to lead the Mariners to a 5-2 win over the Texas Rangers on Monday in the season opener for both clubs.

Acquired from the Baltimore Orioles in the offseason for a package of five prospects, Bedard (1-0) allowed one run and three hits while striking out five and issuing four walks.

"Bedard was a bulldog," Seattle manager John McLaren said. "He had good stuff but his command wasn't there. He hung in there and kept us in the game. He was really fighting out there and I thought he had really good stuff. He had good breaking stuff, but he couldn't quite get it over the plate."

The acquisition of Bedard brings with it high expectations for a Mariners team that finished 88-74 last season and counted starting pitching as its largest point of concern.

"I just try to battle for my team and try to give them as many innings as I can," Bedard said. "They fouled a lot of pitches off and I walked a lot of guys and you just try to stick in there and not give up the big inning. It's always a big thing for a team to get that first win out of the way and you just try to keep it up and win tomorrow."

The veteran lefthander was leading the American League with 221 strikeouts in 181 innings before getting shut down with the Orioles at the end of August last season. He provides Seattle with an intimidating presence on the mound and a Cy Young Award candidate that can tutor young Felix Hernandez.

After allowing a solo home run to Rangers shortstop Michael Young with one out in the first inning, Bedard settled down to allow just two more hits over the next 4 2/3 innings.

"I definitely wasn't thinking about what happened in the past, that's for sure," said Young, who entered the game 1-for-17 in his career against Bedard. "He's obviously a great pitcher, one of the best lefties in the league. The Mariners got a very nice pickup and I am sure he's going to pay dividends for that club.

"He threw well tonight. Pretty much the only thing we did was work a couple of walks. But outside of that we weren't able to get any big hits. As the season progresses, we would like to have better at-bats in those kind of situations."

Kevin Millwood started for Texas and matched Bedard into the sixth inning before the Mariners put a pair of unearned runs on the board.

"He was awesome," Rangers manager Ron Washington said of Millwood. "He gave us exactly what we wanted, and he kept us in the game."

Ichiro Suzuki led off the six with a grounder to short that Young failed to play cleanly, and Lopez and Raul Ibanez followed with singles to tie the score at 1-1.

"I should have made that play," Young said. "He hit it hard but it's a play I'd like to have back, that's for sure. Obviously, if he doesn't get on, that inning might have a different look to it."

Seattle took the lead two batters later when Adrian Beltre grounded into a fielder's choice that scored Lopez from third.

Millwood (0-1) lasted six innings, allowing a pair of unearned runs and four hits while striking out four and walking three.

"Millwood is tough," McLaren said. "I knew we had to work when we came into this game. Millwood's a bulldog. He never stops coming at you. At one point Erik's pitch count was nearly double what Millwood's was and it was definitely a concern the way it was unfolding."

The Mariners put it away with a three-run rally in the seventh off Japanese reliever Kazuo Fukumori, who was making his major league debut.

"He did a great job against the first batter, then just had some balls that ran away," Washington said. "He'll be better the next time out."

J.J. Putz pitched a scoreless ninth for his first save of the season.