Reunion Spoiled for Perez, Angels : Baseball: There’s no Griffey, and then no victory, when Mariners beat Finley, 2-1.

Angel third baseman Eduardo Perez couldn’t believe this day finally arrived.

It was a dream that he and his childhood friend shared since they could talk, vowing to one another that they would be just like their daddies, playing in the major leagues.

Perez breathlessly arrived at the Kingdome on Friday, only to learn that his buddy was home with a bad back.

“I kind of had a bad feeling right then,” Perez said, “what kind of night this would be.”

Sure enough, the Angels wound up losing, 2-1, in a dismal performance to the Seattle Mariners, spoiling the entire affair for Perez.

It was bad enough that Perez wasn’t able to go head-to-head with Mariner All-Star Ken Griffey Jr., but he then had to suffer the indignity with the rest of his teammates of losing to a Mariner team that looked as if it belonged in the Pacific Coast League.

The Mariners, with a lineup that included two players making their major league debuts and five that were in the minors at one point this season, defeated Angel starter Chuck Finley (13-9) for the first time since May 3, 1990.

Finley, who had defeated the Mariners eight consecutive times, was left shaking his head. Sure, he yielded only seven hits while completing his eighth game of the season, but this was hardly the Bronx Bombers.

Would you believe Brian Turang was the leadoff hitter in his major league debut? Or that Greg Pirkl of Los Alamitos High was batting fifth? With the exception of right fielder Jay Buhner, the entire Mariner lineup had combined for only 28 home runs.

Yet, there was Pirkl--Orange County’s player of the year in 1988--driving in the game’s first run in the fourth inning. There was Mike Blowers driving in the winning run with a two-out single in the eighth inning. And there was Finley, wondering what in the world happened to his offense.

The Angels produced only four hits off Erik Hanson and had difficulty hitting the ball out of the infield, much less scoring. The only time they reached second base was in the eighth inning, but with Perez on third base and Ty Van Burkleo on second with no outs, their only run came on Kurt Stillwell’s sacrifice fly.

“It was a shame, because I was really looking forward to this,” said Perez, who went one for two with a walk. “Kenny and I had talked about this for a long time. The first thing I heard when I came to the ballpark was his injury, and I said, ‘Oh man.’ ”

Griffey, the Mariners’ only marquee position player, strained his lower back Friday afternoon while carrying boxes downstairs for his new weight room. He slipped, fell, and his back went into spasms. Griffey limped into the Mariner clubhouse Friday, was treated and then sent home.

Incredibly, the Mariners have lost five players because of injuries in the last 10 days, and that doesn’t include Griffey. They’ve placed Rich Amaral, Mike Felder, Tino Martinez, Norm Charlton and Brad Holman on the disabled list this month, while Charlton and Martinez are out for the season. The Mariners now have used the disabled list 17 times this season, employing 44 players and 15 rookies.

“It’s been a disaster from day one,” Mariner Manager Lou Piniella said. “I hate to even look at the trainers’ room each day I come in because it just ruins my day.

“I don’t even make out the lineup cards any more, my trainers do.”