Angels Lose Again, 16-6

As tempting as it might be for disgruntled Angel fans to storm the Angel Stadium press box and demolish the temporary seating recently added in anticipation of a possible playoff berth, they probably should restrain themselves for at least a few more days.

That’s because as listlessly as the Angels played during a 16-6 loss to the Seattle Mariners in front of 37,015 at Angel Stadium on Wednesday night, they remained in striking distance of the Oakland Athletics, whose late-season stumble has reached similarly incredible proportions.

Even after their most humiliating defeat of the season, the Angels still found themselves only 2 1/2 games behind the first-place A’s in the American League West, with six of their remaining 10 games against the team they’re chasing. The Angels and A’s open a pivotal three-game series Friday at Angel Stadium.

“If we’re going to make it,” Angel left fielder Jose Guillen said, “that’s the team we need to beat.”

The fact that the Angels still control their own destiny made it somewhat easier to stomach the embarrassment of yielding 23 runs and 42 hits in consecutive losses to the last-place Mariners, whose 16 runs Wednesday were the most by an Angel opponent this season.

“It seems like we’ve been moonwalking for 10 games now, and we’re still in this thing,” Angel Manager Mike Scioscia said after the loss.

“If we’re the club we think we are, we’re going to go out there and play our game.

But there is no escaping the fact that the Angels are stuck in a deep rut, having lost four of five games and six of nine at a time when a .500 record might have propelled them into first place.

The only saving grace for the Angels is that the A’s have lost five of seven.

“That’s going to happen with every club, and it happens to be happening now,” Scioscia said before the game. “The reality of it is, just to get to this point both teams had to play terrific baseball, and we have.”

Desperate times may call for desperate measures, but the Angels appeared practically hopeless when they brought in their infielders in the second inning of a scoreless game. Jeremy Reed, who had reached third on a double and a sacrifice fly, eventually scored on a groundout after the Angel infielders returned to their normal depth.

But that was the least of the Angels’ concerns on a night their ace was shelled for six hits and six runs -- in one inning.

Jolbert Cabrera’s run-scoring single off the mound capped a fourth inning in which the Mariners batted around against Bartolo Colon (16-12), who gave up 10 hits and seven runs in 3 2/3 innings. Normally reliable reliever Scot Shields fared little better, giving up two runs in 1 1/3 innings, and Kevin Gregg was tagged for four runs in two-thirds of an inning.

“We’re going to bounce back on Friday and try and take out Oakland,” Shields said.

The Mariners’ 24-hit onslaught, which included a club-record 21 singles, rendered Angel third baseman Dallas McPherson’s first major league homer, a three-run blast in the sixth, as little more than a footnote. Troy Glaus and Vladimir Guerrero also homered for the Angels.

Raul Ibanez set a franchise record with six hits and drove in a career-high five runs for the Mariners.

The Angels tried several different approaches with Ichiro Suzuki, walking him intentionally in the fourth to load the bases and pitching to him in the sixth with runners on first and third. Neither worked, as Suzuki drove home a run in the sixth and came around to score each time.

Suzuki finished with four hits and is 11 shy of breaking George Sisler’s season record of 257 hits.

Suzuki, who was five for five Tuesday, set a club record with nine hits in two games.

The Angels played the ninth with a lineup that included Casey Kotchman at first base, Alfredo Amezaga at shortstop, Adam Riggs at second base, Curtis Pride in right field and Josh Paul in left field.

“We’re still in this thing,” Scioscia said.

“I think you have to look toward the next game and turn the page on this one.”