AMERICAN LEAGUE: INSIDE THE A.L.: MARINERS' SHIP TAKING ON WATER AGAIN.

Byline: Gabe Lacques Staff Writer

SEATTLE - Maybe it's because some of their top players are closer to Social Security than teenage insecurity. Or that their best player is more accustomed to the shorter season in Japan. Or that their manager still is feeling his way around the job.

Whatever the reason, the Seattle Mariners are fading again just as the American League race heats up.

After making the playoffs in both 2000 and 2001, the Mariners have spent the past two seasons retreating in August and September. They went 14-14 in August this year while the Oakland Athletics won 10 in a row and blew by them in the AL West. They're following that with an uninspiring 5-5 start to September.

This comes on the heels of Seattle's gradual fade last season, when it went 12-15 in August and 13-12 in September to blow the division lead and the wild card. Catalytic right fielder Ichiro Suzuki hit .248 last September and is struggling late again this year, hitting .242 in August and .225 so far in September.

Now Seattle is 2 1/2 games behind the A's, whom it faces six times in the final nine games, and 1 1/2 games behind the Red Sox in the wild-card chase, with Boston facing a gentler September schedule.

This year could shape up as these Mariners' last gasp. Center fielder Mike Cameron, utilityman Mark McLemore and reliever Arthur Rhodes' contracts are up, and Seattle faces a delicate decision as to whether to offer ace Freddy Garcia arbitration.

Also, 40-year-old designated hitter Edgar Martinez finally might retire, weakening a lineup subject to the hot and cold runs of Suzuki and power- hitting Bret Boone.

``We just have to remember what we went through last year,'' Cameron told the Seattle Times. ``I can still hear those people, when we went to Anaheim (to finish the season) saying we choked and stuff like that. We don't want to go through that any more.''

--Looks like Twins, White Sox: The middling AL Central race in all likelihood will be a two-team battle after Minnesota pulled even with Chicago and Kansas City dropped 3 1/2 back. And the Twins-White Sox battle spiced up this week when Twins outfielder Dustan Mohr took exception to the relaxed home run trots of Chicago's Magglio Ordonez and Carlos Lee.

``Those guys are having a lot of fun,'' Mohr said. ``Every time they hit a home run, they stand in the box for 10 seconds and watch it. I'm kind of getting tired of seeing it.''

Countered Ordonez: ``I don't really pay attention to that. Last year they won and we don't say anything. Now they're offended because they're losing? I don't understand that.''

The teams meet for the final time this week, with a three-game series beginning Tuesday in Minneapolis.

Gabe Lacques, [phone]

gabe.lacques(at)sgvn.com