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Aug 21, 2010 - 4:50 AM By SANTOSH VENKATARAMAN STATS Senior Writer

Seattle (48-73) at New York (75-46), 1:05 p.m. EDT

The New York Yankees may have to get used to playing without Alex Rodriguez for longer than they expected.

The superstar third baseman won't be available Saturday - and may be out for some time - as the Yankees try to even a three-game home series against the Seattle Mariners.

Rodriguez returned to the lineup for Friday's 6-0 loss after missing three games with a left calf strain. His return lasted one at-bat before he said he felt a pull in the calf.

"I just felt something on the swing," Rodriguez said. "Same thing. I wouldn't say it's any worse."

Manager Joe Girardi said the three-time AL MVP will likely miss a few more games, but didn't rule out the disabled list.

"We'll just try to get him back on the field," Girardi told the Yankees' official website.

Ramiro Pena started at third base in the three games Rodriguez missed this week - all Yankee victories. New York is 10-1 when Rodriguez does not play.

"I want to be out there," Rodriguez said. "I thought I was beginning to get into a groove. It's obviously very frustrating."

The Mariners (49-73) improved to 7-3 under interim manager Daren Brown after Felix Hernandez fell one inning shy of pitching his fourth straight complete game against the Yankees. New York (75-47) fell to 4-4 against Seattle, with three losses to Hernandez and one to Cliff Lee.

Seattle has won three straight, and has 10 homers in its last six games. The Mariners, who have been at or near the bottom of the majors in that department through most of the season, have 77 homers on the year.

Russell Branyan went deep twice for his 14th multihomer game and second this year. He drove in four runs to match the total from his previous 19 games.

Branyan is 3 for 9 in his career against New York's Saturday starter Javier Vazquez (9-9, 4.89 ERA), and all three hits were homers.

The Yankees have seen a disturbing trend in which Vazquez has pitched fewer innings in each successive outing during his last four starts. He's 0-2 with a 6.75 ERA in that span.

The veteran right-hander lasted four innings, threw 106 pitches and gave up two runs Monday in a 3-1 loss to Detroit.

"My changeup was terrible all day," Vazquez said. "I couldn't throw my changeup for strikes. I didn't locate it."

The Yankees have lost both of Vazquez's previous starts against Seattle this year, though he limited the Mariners to three runs over 13 innings in those outings.

Hernandez matched Jason Vargas (9-5, 3.15) for the most wins on the Mariners, but Vargas gets a chance to pull back ahead Saturday. Vargas has won three straight starts for the first time in his career, posting a 2.84 ERA in that span.

The left-hander gave up three runs over seven innings last Saturday in a 9-3 victory at Cleveland. He had been 0-2 with a 6.33 ERA in his previous four road starts.

"Vargas was solid," Brown said. "He pitched well inside and as always, had a good changeup. Nothing flusters him."