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Angels turn to Weaver in meeting with Mariners

Aug 5, 2011 - 2:46 PM (Sports Network) - Set to appeal a six-game suspension issued earlier this week, LA Angels of Anaheim ace Jered Weaver looks to put a rough start behind him when he takes center stage tonight in the opener of a three-game series versus the Seattle Mariners at Angel Stadium.

Weaver was handed his ban on Tuesday for his actions during Sunday's 3-2 loss against Detroit in which he threw a pitch over the head of Tigers catcher Alex Avila. Weaver was agitated with how Carlos Guillen and Magglio Ordonez admired their home runs in that game and is expected to have his appeal reviewed next week.

"I knew that there was going to be [some sort of punishment]," Weaver said on the club's website. "It is what it is. ... I kind of wanted my voice heard a little bit in the situation -- see how they feel about it -- and then go from there."

The right-hander, who leads the majors with a 1.88 earned run average, had been 8-0 with a 1.28 ERA in his previous 12 starts before losing for the first time since May 18 at Seattle. He allowed three runs and four hits in 6 2/3 innings against the Tigers, falling to 14-5 in 23 starts. Weaver is 2-1 with a 1.50 ERA in three starts against the Mariners this season and 12-4 with a 3.28 ERA in 21 career starts in this series.

Anaheim is fighting for the top spot in the American League West Division and sits just one game behind the front-running Texas Rangers. It recently won two of three games versus Minnesota and is coming off Thursday's 7-1 win behind Dan Haren's eight innings of one-run ball and six strikeouts. Scott Downs took care of the Twins in the ninth to preserve the win, while Mark Trumbo finished 2-for-4 with a home run and four RBI for the Angels, winners in 10 of 15 games. Torii Hunter had three hits in a winning effort.

"We pressured those guys tonight and Mark had the big three-run homer," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "Dan had four solid pitches and his command was terrific."

Seattle is still last in the AL West, but has won three straight and five of seven games since a franchise-record 17-game slide. It just swept the Oakland Athletics in three games from Safeco Field and will begin a six-game road trip against the Angels and Rangers tonight.

The Mariners solidified the sweep of the A's with a 7-4 victory on Wednesday, as Ichiro Suzuki and Mike Carp backed a 14-hit attack with three hits apiece. Carp, Casper Wells and Josh Bard had two RBI apiece for Seattle, which needed six pitchers to prevail. Charlie Furbush threw five innings of one-run ball for the win in his first start for Seattle and Brandon League posted his 26th save by getting the final two outs of the game.

"He was efficient," Mariners manager Eric Wedge said of Furbush, who was acquired from Detroit on July 30. "He used all of his pitches. He trusted his fastball and trusted his stuff in general."

The Mariners earned their first sweep since winning three straight over the Padres from May 20-22. First baseman Justin Smoak is still bothered by a thumb injury and is listed as day-to-day.

Jason Vargas gets the call for Wedge's club tonight and hopes to end a lengthy losing streak in the process. Vargas is 0-5 with a 6.84 ERA in his previous five starts and last pitched in Sunday's 8-1 setback versus Tampa Bay. He was roughed up for six runs -- four earned -- and nine hits in 5 1/3 innings to drop to 6-10 in 22 starts to go along with a 4.19 ERA.

"I haven't really pitched good since coming back from the [All-Star] break," Vargas said. "I'm not making those big pitches when I need to, and [I'm] kind of getting that pitch count up early in the first couple of innings."

Vargas, a left-hander, is 1-1 with a 3.21 ERA in two starts against the Angels this season and 3-3 in nine career appearances, eight of which have been starts, in this series.

The Angels swept a four-game series from Seattle from July 7-10 this season at the Big A and are 16-2 in the past 18 home games in this matchup. They are 6-3 overall against the Mariners this season and own 58 wins versus Seattle since the 2007 campaign (58-26). Anaheim has not lost a season series to the Mariners since 2003.