A few quick notes from the pregame media session and open clubhouse with the Mariners.

First of all, it’s important to note that John Jaso will be catching Felix Hernandez for the first time in a regular season game. Prior to that, Jaso has only caught Hernandez during one spring training game and a couple bullpen sessions.

We all know how much every one of Felix’s pitches move. It’s caused problems for any person that’s caught him in the past, particularly Kenji Johjima, Rob Johnson, Miguel Olivo and Jesus Montero (none of whom would be confused …

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Greetings from Safeco Field where the roof is closed thanks to a rainy gray day here in the Northwest. It’s not often that the national spotlight in baseball fall on Seattle …. well unless the Mariners get no-hit. But tonight, this is the marquee game on the lineup thanks to a pitching matchup featuring Yu Darvish and Felix Hernandez.

If you look back at the previous Darvish (no relation) starts, you will see the Mariners were the only team to score more than three earned runs against him this season. If you recall that was mostly in the …

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Twice on the verge of beating the Cleveland Indians today, the Seattle Mariners bullpen gave up leads of 4-1 in the eighth inning, then 5-4 in the 11th in what became a 6-5 loss that dropped the Mariners eight games under .500.

Put another way, they flew to Colorado two games behind the Los Angeles Angels in the American League West – a team that just fired it’s batting coach.

Forty games into the 2012 season, Seattle is 16-24, a game behind where they were last season at the same point. Given the expectations and promises of spring, this is …

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Manager Eric Wedge talked about it in April, tried it for an inning last night and today, Alex Liddi makes his major league starting debut in left field for the Seattle Mariners.

“Does he know where it is? joked Wedge.

Liddi does, and is anxious to see actiion. Put there last night in the ninth inning, he didn’t have a ball hit to him. Now, in a day game, he becomes the fourth Seattle left fielder of 2012.

“I’m sure it’s going to be different than in practice,” Liddi said. “Going back on a ball is the toughest part. I’m …

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Veteran Kevin Millwood hit a pitching milestone in New York – his 2,000^th career strike out – which led to a discussion today on what to do to commemorate the occasion.

“I saved the ball,” he said.

A baseball is nice, but didn’t seem enough for such a significant moment in a career. What else might Millwood do?

“Buy yourself that tractor,” reliever Shawn Kelley suggested.

Millwood beamed.

 “I’m going to buy a tractor,” he said.

Asked if his career had ended on 1,999 strikeouts what he might have done, Millwood didn’t hesitate.

 “I’d buy the tractor,” he said. “I need …

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Brendan Ryan isn’t starting at shortstop today – Munenori Kawasaki is – which means Ryan had time to turn his attention to other things before the game.

Sitting with teammates on a couch in front of a big-screen television in his uniform and socks, Ryan saw what he thought was a live ESPN shot from Fenway Park, a stand up with the Green Monster in the background.

Ryan leaped over the couch, scrambled to put his shoes on and raced down the tunnel toward the field.

“He wants to run thruogh the shot,” pitcher Blake Beavan explained – and all …

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Jon Lester held the young Seattle Mariners at arms length and the Boston Red Sox used their famed left field wall to advantage tonight for a 6-1 win that tested the patience of Mariners fans again.

Offense? Not when it mattered – Seattle had eight hits, Boston nine. The Red Sox hit when it mattered, the Mariners did not.

It’s a familiar theme: In 37 games this year, the Mariners have scored three runs or less 19 times, and gone 3-16 in those games.

“To a man, everyone in our lineup is working on something at the plate,” manager Eric …

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Pitcher Felix Hernandez has a hobby some of his Seattle Mariners teammates enjoy more than others – on every bus he rides, he likes to honk the horn.

When the team took a rare private train from New York to Boston on Sunday night, Brandon League inquired whether Felix was going to blow the whistle from the engine.

Not surprisingly, the Mariners ace found a way.

“I asked and when we had a quick stop, Hector (Noesi), Shawn (Kelley) and I got to go up to the engine,” Hernandez said today, still delighted.

“There weren’t that many dials and controls. …

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