• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Mariners-Brewers Preview

Jun 25, 2010 - 1:28 AM By BRETT HUSTON STATS Writer

Seattle (30-41) at Milwaukee (31-40), 8:10 p.m. EDT

The Milwaukee Brewers say there's a different vibe in their clubhouse after tying a season high with their fourth straight victory.

It seems to be starting with the play of Rickie Weeks.

Baseball's most productive leadoff hitter has the Brewers feeling confident they can make a move in the NL Central, and they'll look to extend their winning streak to a season-high five in Friday's series opener against the visiting Seattle Mariners.

Weeks has had an up-and-down career after being one of baseball's top prospects five years ago, but he's been remarkably productive lately.

Weeks' two-run homer in the third inning put Milwaukee (32-40) on the board Thursday afternoon against Minnesota, providing all the offense it would need in a 5-0 victory.

He's 9 for 20 with two homers and nine RBIs in his last five games, and has a major league-high 43 RBIs leading off.

"As of late, he's done some real good things," manager Ken Macha told the team's official website. "I keep preaching this: Up the middle and opposite field always is a good way to go."

Weeks' play seems to have Milwaukee on the verge of a turnaround. They hadn't won four in a row since April 18-22 prior to this stretch, but third baseman Casey McGehee said there's a hard-to-describe "different vibe" in the Brewers' clubhouse.

"Winning definitely helps that," said McGehee, who's hitting .192 in June after batting .301 the first two months. "But we've already proved a couple of times, don't get too excited because it can go the other way quick."

The Mariners (30-42) begin a tough nine-game road trip that will take them to Yankee Stadium and Detroit, and Thursday afternoon they missed out on carrying a serious amount of momentum into it.

Seattle had won six straight - allowing one or zero runs in each game - before falling 3-2 in 13 innings in its series finale against the Chicago Cubs.

"We had 10 strikeouts with runners on base and that just can't happen," manager Don Wakamatsu said.

Ryan Rowland-Smith (1-6, 5.98 ERA) might be able to get the Mariners back on track after lifting a major weight off his shoulders Sunday. The left-hander, who had been refining some mechanical issues, allowed five walks but only three singles in a 1-0 win over Cincinnati, his first since Oct. 3.

"I think you saw (the adjustments) today," Wakamatsu said. "Talking about missing down in the zone. You could see the confidence grow in him. Just a tremendous job."

Dave Bush (2-5, 4.67) hadn't been in quite the drought Rowland-Smith was in, but he still hadn't won since April 20 prior to taking the mound June 15 against the Los Angeles Angels. Bush gave up one run over a season-high 7 1-3 innings in a 7-1 win.

Macha, however, responded by skipping Bush against Minnesota. The right-hander is 1-1 with a 4.96 ERA in three starts against the Mariners, whom he hasn't faced since 2005.

"The most frustrating thing is that I felt so much better, had one of my best games of the year my last time out," Bush said. "It would have been nice to stay on a regular schedule."

The Brewers and Mariners last met in 2004 at Miller Park, where Milwaukee won two of three.