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Guerrero's return sparks Angels, who snap six-game skid

Apr 21, 2007 - 6:21 AM ANAHEIM, California (Ticker) -- Joe Saunders couldn't have honored his university any better way.

Saunders, who attended Virginia Tech, pitched six shutout innings wearing a orange and maroon hat with the letters "VT" emblazoned on it in honor of the 33 people tragically killed on campus Monday, as the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim posted an 8-4 victory over the Seattle Mariners.

Saunders picked up his second win of the season by allowing just seven hits and two walks with one strikeout. The lefthander allowed a leadoff double in the third and got Kenji Johjima on a flyout with the bases loaded to end the fourth.

"I'm happy that I got a win for my team and my college tonight," Saunders said. "I wanted to go out and pitch a good game in honor of all those people."

Vladimir Guererro returned from injury with three hits, including his fourth homer of the season, and Mike Napoli homered as the Angels avoided their longest losing streak in six years.

Guerrero, who missed the last two games after being hit on the wrist by Boston's Josh Beckett last Saturday, helped the Angels bust out of their offensive slump. Los Angeles scored just six run in during their six game losing streak, and finished off a 1-7 road trip.

"It was a good win for us after struggling on the road trip," Guerrero said through an interpreter.

The righthanded slugger's homer off starter Miguel Batista in the fifth made the score 5-0 and Napoli followed in the sixth to make it 6-0.

"He (Guerrero) is one of the best hitters in the game and I made some mistakes to him out over the plate and he hit them," Batista said.

"Miguel just didn't have good command tonight of his pitches and missed in the zone early," Mariners manager Mike Hargrove said.

The Mariners four runs off reliever Hector Carrasco in the ninth, before Francisco Rodriguez (0-1) came in for the final two outs for his fifth save.

Adrian Beltre had two hits and an RBI for the Mariners.

Batista was rocked for six runs and 10 hits in six innings, for the Seattle, which has lost a season-high four straight.