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Sports

Morales homers twice, leads M's past Rangers

By Sports Network
Published | Updated

Arlington, TX – Kendrys Morales homered twice and drove in six runs to power the Seattle Mariners to a 9-2 win over the Texas Rangers to start a three-game series.

Raul Ibanez also went deep to back 6 2/3 strong innings from Joe Saunders (6-8), who allowed 10 hits and a pair of runs -- one earned -- while fanning five.

Justin Grimm (7-6) was charged with seven hits and six runs -- five earned -- over four-plus innings for the Rangers, who lost for just the third time in their last 12 contests.

Ibanez and Morales hit back-to-back homers to right field with two outs in the opening inning to stake the Mariners to a 2-0 lead and help the team end a two-game skid.

"Guys were swinging the bats good today, young and old," Mariners manager Eric Wedge said. "There were some balls hit hard today. I liked our approach."

Leonys Martin extended his hitting streak to a career-high 15 games with a bunt single in the bottom of the third. He had his 14th straight successful steal attempt ahead of Ian Kinsler's base hit, which snapped a personal 0- for-16 slump. Martin then scored on an Elvis Andrus line single to left field.

Dustin Ackley doubled to right to drive in Kyle Seager in the fourth inning before Saunders got out of a bases-loaded jam in the bottom half by retiring Andrus on a ground ball.

"We hit some balls hard off of him. He just did a good job of not giving in. When we did hit him it was at someone," Rangers manager Ron Washington said of Saunders.

The Mariners broke it open in the fifth thanks to Morales' three-run blast to right field. Nick Franklin singled and Ibanez reached on Kinsler's error. The homer spelled the end for Grimm, who was replaced by Ross Wolf.

Morales singled to left to drive in two more in the sixth and it became 9-1 in the seventh on Mike Zunino's RBI single.

The Rangers scored on a passed ball in the bottom of the seventh.

Game Notes

The Rangers recalled pitcher Josh Lindblom from Triple-A Round Rock and designated pitcher Kyle McClellan for assignment ... Saunders moved to 4-9 lifetime against the Rangers ... Tom Wilhelmsen had retired the last 11 batters he faced until Martin singled leading off the bottom of the ninth ... Seattle is 6-17 in its last 23 games in Arlington since the start of the 2011 season.