Mound slip costs Miley as Mariners lose 2-0 to Blue Jays
TORONTO (AP) - Mariners left-hander Wade Miley paid a heavy price for putting a foot wrong against Blue Jays slugger Edwin Encarnacion.
J.A. Happ and three relievers combined on a one-hitter, Encarnacion hit a solo home run and Toronto Blue Jays beat Seattle 2-0 on Sunday, avoiding a three-game sweep.
Miley (6-8) lost his sixth straight decision, allowing two runs and four hits in six innings.
"Something to build off, keep going in the right direction," Miley said. "I felt like I wasn't quite as sharp as in my last outing, but I was able to make some pitches and get out of most of the jams."
Miley intended to throw a pitch up and away when facing Encarnacion with two outs in the fourth, but his landing foot slipped on the mound.
"I didn't think I was going to be able to throw it anywhere near the plate when it happened," Miley said. "Of course it went right down the middle."
Miley has allowed two earned runs or fewer in 12 of 18 starts this season.
"I thought Wade Miley threw the ball very well," Mariners manager Scott Servais said. "He made a mistake on the home run ball. Other than that it was a well-pitched game."
Happ (13-3) won his seventh straight decision and surpassed the 12 wins he had for Philadelphia in 2009.
"All over baseball there probably hasn't been a more consistent starter," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "He's a better pitcher than he's ever been. He's having a tremendous season."
Happ allowed Seattle's lone hit, a single by Leonys Martin in the third. He matched a season-high with four walks and struck out six.
"I wasn't the best with strike one today, but I stayed in there," Happ said. "As the game went on I got a little better getting ahead of guys, definitely."
Brett Cecil worked the seventh, Jason Grilli pitched the eighth and Roberto Osuna finished for his 20th save.
The shutout was Toronto's sixth. The Blue Jays won for the first time in 24 games when scoring two runs or fewer.
Happ made 21 appearances for the Mariners last season before being traded to Pittsburgh, but familiarity with the left-hander wasn't much help to Seattle's hitters.
"We had some good at-bats, but he did enough to keep us off the board," catcher Mike Zunino said. "When he's on, he's a tough guy to get to."
Seattle lost for the first time in seven meetings with AL East opponents. The Mariners are 15-7 against the East.
GRIFFEY GETS COOPERSTOWN CALL
Mariners great Ken Griffey Jr. was inducted into the Hall of Fame on Sunday afternoon. The first No. 1 draft pick to enshrined, Griffey played 22 big league seasons with Seattle, Cincinnati and the Chicago White Sox. A 13-time All-Star selection and 10-time Gold Glove Award winner, Griffey hit 630 home runs, sixth all-time, and drove in 1,836 runs.
FROM HIGH TO LOW
The Mariners matched a season high with 19 hits in Saturday's 14-5. On Sunday, they matched their season low.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Mariners: Franklin Gutierrez (sore neck) was scratched from the DH spot and replaced by Chris Iannetta.
Blue Jays: C Russell Martin (left knee) sat out for the third straight game. Martin has not played since injuring his knee after he passed out in the shower following an extended spell in the sauna last Thursday.
UP NEXT
Mariners: Seattle is off Monday before opening a two-game series at Pittsburgh on Tuesday. RHP Felix Hernandez (4-4, 3.23) starts for the Mariners. Hernandez allowed five runs in a July 20 game against the White Sox, his first since missing almost two months with a strained right calf. LHP Francisco Liriano (6-9, 4.96) starts for the Pirates.
Blue Jays: RHP Aaron Sanchez (10-1, 2.87) starts the opener of a three-game series against San Diego on Monday. Sanchez has won nine straight decisions and is unbeaten since April 22 against Oakland. RHP Colin Rea (5-4, 5.01) starts for the Padres, who are making their first visit to Toronto.