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SEATTLE (Ticker) -- In his worst slump of the season, Japanese rookie sensation Ichiro Suzuki still is finding a way to contribute to the remarkable success of the Seattle Mariners. Suzuki walked twice, stole a base, scored a run and drove in another with a sacrifice fly and Freddy Garcia posted his fifth straight win as the Mariners built on the best start in team history with a 3-2 triumph over the San Francisco Giants. Mired in an 0-for-8 drought and just 10-for-41 in July, Suzuki also preserved a 3-1 lead by robbing Jeff Kent of a home run in the fourth inning. He scored Seattle's first run in the opening inning and put the Mariners ahead, 2-1, in the second with a sacrifice fly. "Hitting is not only my work," Suzuki said through an interpreter. "There are other things I got to do in a game situation. And I just did do one job at one time. Well most of the times the fly ball just straight at me is the most difficult fly ball, so I wasn't sure which way I should look." "When I saw him in Japan, he was a center fielder," Giants manager Dusty Baker said. "When you move to one of the corners, it makes you even better. He can run. This guy can do everything out there. He played the heck out of the ball Jeff hit out there. It was a game saving play when he took that home run away from Jeff." Garcia (11-1) helped Seattle take the rubber game of the three-game series. The 24-year-old righthander allowed two runs and three hits, including home runs by Rich Aurilia and Armando Rios, in seven innings. "The home runs happen," Garcia said. "That's just the way the game is. You can't always pitch a shutout." After Jeff Nelson and Arthur Rhodes combined to get through the eighth, closer Kazuhiro Sasaki struck out two in the ninth to notch his major league-leading 30th save. "They've been outstanding all year long," Garcia said of the bullpen. "I pitched seven innings, I was comfortable and the bullpen comes in and does their job. It gives you a lot of confidence because you know you have those guys in the bullpen who come and throw a lot of strikes and shut it down." Seattle has won 65 of 90 games, the eighth-best start in major league history. Over the last 57 years, only the 1998 New York Yankees (67-23) have had a better record through 90 games. San Francisco starter Shawn Estes (7-4) allowed three runs and six hits in six innings. He was hurt by a lack of control, walking seven and throwing only 53 of 115 pitches for strikes. "I felt I had a pretty good fastball today and a good bite on my curveball and my changeup," Estes said. "I was just real inconsistent in the strike zone. I had trouble getting my curveball over. I don't think I threw more than one or two for strikes." Aurilia homered with one out in the first inning. His 14th homer of the season staked San Francisco to a 1-0 lead but the Mariners countered with a run in the bottom of the inning. Suzuki walked and took second when Estes threw away a pickoff attempt. Edgar Martinez followed with an RBI single to knot the game. John Olerud and Bret Boone walked to load the bases but Mike Cameron bounced into an inning-ending double play. Ed Sprague opened the second for Seattle with a single and one out later Dan Wilson's base hit left runners at the corners. Suzuki followed with a sacrifice fly for a 2-1 lead. The Mariners tacked on a run in the third on a double by Boone, who took third when left fielder Marvin Benard threw away the ball. Cameron capitalized on the miscue with a long fly ball that scored Boone easily. With one out in the fourth, Kent launched a long fly ball to right that appeared headed for the stands. But Suzuki leaped over the wall and hauled the ball in to preserve the lead. The play proved pivotal when Rios followed with his 13th home run. "There's been other outfielders who have made great catches too," Kent said. "He just happened to make one. It turns the game when you take a home run away, because it's a run. It's a big run, especially when you aren't scoring a lot of runs." Seattle left the bases loaded again in the fourth but Garcia was in control until the seventh. Kent was hit by a pitch to open the inning and Rios singled to left but Garcia got the next three batters without the ball leaving the infield. San Francisco had an opportunity in the eighth when Calvin Murray walked with one out. But Nelson retired Aurilia and Rhodes threw one pitch and got major league home run leader Barry Bonds to fly out to the deepest part of the park. "Have I had a one-pitch inning yet? It's the first time ever,-- you can put that in the paper," Rhodes said. "It was a slider a little bit off the plate. Right location, down and away from him."
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