Poor Pitching Allows Mariners To Sink Jays

In the infamous reality, it was Casey on the mound, and he didn’t strike out enough.

Rookie Casey Janssen was hit early and often as the Jays began a long western swing with a 7-3 loss to the Seattle Mariners Monday night.

The newcomer was shelled for four runs in the second inning and left the mound in the fourth with a deficit not even the best hitting team in the majors could overcome.

Kenji Johjima was his biggest nemesis, driving in four runs – including a two run single in the second and a two run homer in the fourth – to put this one away. Pitcher Joel Pineiro was a solid presence on the mound for the Mariners and walked off it with the win.

“Those guys make you work,” he noted. “Having those runs behind me early was huge.”

The only bright spot for the Jays came from Eric Hinske, who swatted two round trippers. But those were the only mistakes Pineiro made, and while Toronto had its chances against him, they couldn’t deliver.

He struck out Troy Glaus with a runner on second to end the first, then fanned Aaron Hill to end the second with a runner on third. In the fifth, Lyle Overbay and Glaus hit consecutive singles with one out, but the Seattle hurler fanned Gregg Zaun and got a grounder from Bengie Molina to end the threat.

Janssen took the blame after the lights went out. “It seemed like it happened so fast,” he recalled. “You look up and it’s 4-0 and your back is against the wall. I put myself into some trouble and couldn’t make the big pitch to get out of it.”

Janssen has won only one game since June 7th, and his future with the team appears to be in question.

It was a costly loss for the Jays – both the Yankees and the Red Sox won their contests on Monday, leaving Toronto 5½ games behind the A.L. East leaders and 2½ behind the Bronx Bombers.

• One of the most potent bats in the Jays line-up didn’t get a swing in this one. Vernon Wells took the night off with a twinge in his back. He’s expected to return for the rest of the series.