Moyer Is in a Zone Against the Angels

It wasn’t quite the equivalent of starting a game of “horse” against Michael Jordan with H-O-R-S, but when home plate umpire Larry Vanover punched out Troy Glaus on a second-inning pitch that was about six inches outside and two or three inches above Glaus’ ankles, the Angels knew they had no chance Friday night.

Seattle left-hander Jamie Moyer lives on the fringes of the strike zone, baffling hitters with an array of tissue-soft pitches that tickle the corners. Give him an extra inch or three off the plate and he can be devastating.

Taking full advantage of the liberal strike zone, Moyer blanked the Angels on seven hits over seven innings, striking out four and walking two, to lead the Mariners to an 8-2 victory before 34,658 in Edison Field.

Seattle second baseman Bret Boone had three hits, including a three-run home run in the fifth and an RBI single in the ninth.

Moyer extended his string of scoreless innings this season against the Angels to 14. He also threw seven shutout innings in a 5-0 win over the Angels in Safeco Field on April 8.

“He’s always tough to hit when he’s hitting the corners,” Angel right fielder Tim Salmon said. “And as tough as he is for the hitters to lay off, he’s just as tough on the umpires. His pitches have that screw-ball action, and sometimes it looks like a strike before diving and falling off the plate. It’s tough for those guys, too.”

The Angels had hits against Moyer (2-1) in six of the seven innings he pitched but only once, in the third inning, were they able to push a runner past first base against him.

No player illustrated Angel frustrations better than Salmon, who was hitless in three at-bats against Moyer. Salmon grounded into a 6-4-3 double play in the first inning, and with the Angels trailing, 2-0, he came to bat with the bases loaded and two out in the third.

Salmon battled Moyer, fouling off three full-count pitches, two of which landed a foot or two wide of the left-field line, but he swung and missed at an 80-mph back-door cut fastball -- the 10th pitch of the at-bat -- for strike three. That ended the inning and any real chance the Angels had of challenging the Mariners.

“I felt so good in that at-bat, and everything was just foul,” Salmon said. “That last pitch, I thought I was right on it. There must have been a hole in my bat. He’s just slow enough to get you a little out front. Two of those balls I hit were a couple inches foul. Then he threw the back-door cutter. I was ready for it. I swung and it was like, ‘How did I miss that?’ But that’s how it goes against him.”

After flying to left against Moyer in the sixth, Salmon was so frustrated he tossed his batting gloves into the seats behind the Angel dugout.

No doubt relieved to see Moyer depart after seven, the Angels greeted reliever Arthur Rhodes with singles by Darin Erstad and Salmon to start the eighth, and RBI singles by Shawn Wooten and Brad Fullmer off right-hander Jeff Nelson pulled the Angels to within 6-2.

But with two on and a chance to cut the lead to one, Bengie Molina flied to deep center to end the inning, and the Mariners added two insurance runs off relievers Scott Schoeneweis and Ben Weber in the ninth.

On Moyer’s flip side was a choppy start by Angel right-hander Ramon Ortiz, who was tagged for six runs and six hits in 7 2/3 innings, continuing a disturbing trend for an Angel rotation that has combined for a 6-8 record and 5.77 earned-run average in 17 games and given up 16 homers in 96 2/3 innings. Of the five starters, only Jarrod Washburn has a sub-5.00 ERA.

Ortiz retired the side in order in five of the innings he pitched, but a two-run second, three-run fifth and one-run eighth prevented him from keeping pace with Moyer.

“It doesn’t matter what the strike zone is, with Moyer it’s the same old story,” Erstad said. “He’s the master of taking a little off, turning the ball over, cutting it. It doesn’t matter how hard he throws. If he puts it where he wants, he’s effective.”