Showalter on position players pitching (O's lose 5-2 at Seattle)

SEATTLE - In the clubhouse this afternoon, Orioles players were watching the Cleveland-Toronto game with great interest. The Indians ended up winning 2-1 in 19 innings.

The losing pitcher was Toronto infielder Darwin Barney. That led Orioles manager Buck Showalter to tell reporters he knew which position player he would use on the mound in a similar situation, but he wasn't volunteering any names. Of course, Chris Davis once took the mound and got a win for the Orioles.

"I'll never tell, hope it doesn't happen," Showalter said. "Sometimes there is a residual thing. We kind of took off after that (17-inning) game in Boston (in 2012)."

Cleveland has now won 14 in a row, the longest winning streak in the American League since Oakland won 20 in a row in 2002. But back to the Orioles.

Left fielder Hyun Soo Kim is starting tonight against a left-handed pitcher for the first time this season. He enters tonight batting .344. But Showalter said Kim's defense has also gotten better as the season has gone on.

How is he better?

"Just familiarity for us," Showalter said."He had one play early in the spring that everybody wanted to....one of the worst times to judge outfielders is in spring training. You have sun, you have wind, unfamiliar ballparks. I remember how much better he played at Fenway (Park) the second time in there. Joey (Rickard) and Kim some too, first time you played in a ballpark with a third deck, the depth perception is so hard. I think he's a pretty sure-handed guy, he throws accurately and he gets rid of the ball quick. He's really engaged in defense. I've been, not surprised, just happy with it compared to what people thought early on in the spring."

O's get early lead: As for tonight's game, the Orioles lead the Mariners 2-1 after three frames. Seattle's Seth Smith connected off Kevin Gausman in the bottom of the first. It was Smith's eighth home run this year and second in two nights in this series. Smith blasted a 96 mph Gausman fastball off the facing of the second deck in right field.

But Davis matched that when he homered off lefty Wade LeBlanc in the top of the second. It was No. 20 for Davis, who hit a 3-2 pitch out to center field. It was Davis' fourth homer in six games.

The O's then broke the 1-1 tie in the third. Batting ninth, Joey Rickard doubled to left off the glove of third baseman Kyle Seager, who has made a few nice plays in this series. With two outs, Jonathan Schoop singled to left for the 2-1 lead. It was Schoop's 47th RBI. The O's second baseman had an 11-game hitting streak snapped last night and perhaps started a new one tonight.

Gausman kept them ahead by stranding two runners in the third. He fanned both Robinson Cano and Nelson Cruz with two on. He has had some deep counts tonight and is at 62 pitches through three innings.

Seager socks one: Seattle moved ahead 3-2 in the last of the sixth on Seager's two-run homer to right. After Nelson Cruz led off the sixth with a double, Seager smoked an 0-2 Gausman fastball at 96 mph. He tried to elevate a pitch and Seager didn't miss it for his 16^th homer and the lead.

O's fall again to Seattle: Two games at Safeco Field and two losses by the Orioles against the Mariners. The Orioles fall tonight 5-2 in front of 33,006. Boston won to move within four games of the first-place Orioles, who are 47-32.

This road trip started with the O's winning two games in San Diego and scoring 23 runs. But they've lost two here scoring five total runs. The Mariners, the only team to beat the Orioles in a series in Baltimore this season, are 4-1 versus the Orioles.

Gausman gave up three runs over eight innings to take the loss and is 1-6 with an ERA of 3.97. The O's led 2-1 in the third but didn't score after that third inning. They've scored 12 runs total against Seattle pitching in the season series.

Seattle led 3-2 when Dae-Ho Lee hit a two-run shot off Chaz Roe in the eighth for the final margin. The Mariners have out-homered the Orioles 4-2 in the series.

An entry with clubhouse quotes is still to come here tonight/this morning.