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Vargas goes for Mariners in Minnesota

May 23, 2011 - 2:28 PM (Sports Network) - A month ago, it looked like Seattle starter Jason Vargas might never win another game again. Now it is a question of when he will give up his next run.

Vargas takes the hill looking to extend a 16 scoreless-innings streak and continue an amazing run by Mariners starting pitching as the club opens a three-game series with the Minnesota Twins at Target Field.

It was a month ago when Vargas dropped his ninth straight decision dating back to August of last season. However, the lefty has turned things around in a big way, going 3-0 in four starts since, while allowing just one run over his past 26 2/3 innings.

After throwing nine shutout frames in a no-decision versus the Orioles on May 12, Vargas limited the Angels to four hits and two walks over seven scoreless frames of a 3-0 win, matching a career best with nine strikeouts.

"I felt good, I got ahead early in the game, cutter was good again," said Vargas, who has a 0.38 earned run average in three May starts. "It just felt good, just trying to build, stay where I'm at, just not really change anything."

The 28-year-old is now 3-2 with a 3.39 ERA on the season, and is 1-1 with a 3.14 ERA in his career when facing the Twins.

Vargas will be following yet another gem from reigning American League Cy Young Award winner Felix Hernandez, who matched a career high with 13 strikeouts in eight dominant innings of Sunday's 6-1 victory over San Diego.

Hernandez gave up just one run to help complete the sweep and run Seattle's current winning streak to a season high-tying five games. The Mariners have allowed just three runs in that span while posting two shutouts and have climbed to within 1 1/2 games of first place in the AL West.

"I felt good out there and the whole team has been playing good," said Hernandez. "Pitching, fielding, hitting, it's all coming together for us right now and it feels good."

Hernandez also became the ninth straight Seattle starter to pitch at least seven-plus innings and allow two runs or fewer. Vargas will look to extend that run tonight, the longest in the majors since the Giants did so in nine straight from July 1-10, 1988.

Though winless in his last four starts, tonight's starter for the Twins, Carl Pavano, has given up just one earned run over back-to-back no-decisions. His last outing came on Wednesday and he was charged with three runs -- one earned -- on six hits over seven innings of work against Oakland.

The 35-year-old right-hander is 2-4 with a 5.30 ERA in nine starts this season. In four career starts versus Seattle, Pavano is 1-2 with a 3.67 ERA.

Minnesota returns home after getting swept in three games in Phoenix by the Diamondbacks. Sunday's finale was decided by Ryan Roberts' seventh-inning sacrifice fly that brought home the go-ahead run for Arizona.

Delmon Young homered for the Twins, losers in 12 of their last 15, while starter Francisco Liriano gave up just two runs over six innings in a no- decision.

"I didn't do that good out there today," said Liriano. "I was getting into too many deep counts and just felt like I was constantly battling out there."

Minnesota will look to turn things around against a Seattle club it has bested in six of the past eight meetings. The two clubs split a two-game set last week in Seattle.

The Twins will have two healthy bodies back as they activated designated hitter Jim Thome and outfielder Jason Repko from the disabled list following Sunday's loss. Thome, who is nine homers away from 600 in his career, has missed the last 19 games with a left oblique strain, while Repko has been sidelined for 18 contests because of a right quad strain.

Minnesota will also be playing at home for the first time since Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew passed away on Tuesday from esophageal cancer at the age of 74. The Twins will honor Killebrew throughout Target Field, adding a black band to the display of his retired number in left field as well as adding his signature on the right-field wall.