SoCal MLB AL Preview

Seattle (9-8) at LA Angels (9-8), 7:05 pm

ANAHEIM, California (Ticker) - The Seattle Mariners put their season-high winning streak to the test on Friday at a place where they rarely ever win. The Mariners eye their fourth straight win when they begin a three-game set with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

Seattle took two of three games at home last weekend, but have struggled mightily lately at Angel Stadium - a place where they have dropped 11 of its last 14 games. They will be entering this game with some momentum, however, as Raul Ibanez continued his torrid hitting stretch in the final game of a two-game sweep against Oakland - an 8-1 win. His second consecutive three-hit night lent support to starter Carlos Silva, who tossed seven strong frames.

However, the Mariners will test their streak as R.A. Dickey makes his first start with the Mariners in place of Erik Bedard, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Tuesday with left hip inflammation. The righthander, who pitched for Texas from 2001-06, tossed a scoreless frame of relief on Monday in his only appearance this season.

The Angels will counter with red-hot Joe Saunders (2-0, 1.27 ERA), who will attempt to defeat the Mariners for the second time in six days. The lefthander picked up the win against them on Sunday after allowing two runs and six hits over 5 1/3 innings.