ANGELS' LOSS GETS SCARY MARINERS' SORIANO HIT IN HEAD BY GUERRERO LINE DRIVE SEATTLE 6, ANGELS 4.

Byline: DOUG PADILLA Staff Writer

SEATTLE -- Every pitcher's greatest fear became a reality for the Seattle Mariners' Rafael Soriano, who was hit on the right side of his head by a Vladimir Guerrero comebacker.

The freak incident in the eighth inning cast a pall over the remainder of the game as the Angels went down 6-4 for their third consecutive defeat.

Soriano barely had time to react to Guerrero's blistering smash up the middle. He did turn his face away from the oncoming liner and tried to get his shoulder up to protect himself but could not.

The ball hit him just behind the right ear but he never lost consciousness.

``It's a terrible thing to have happen,'' Guerrero said in a statement read by Angels representative Tim Mead. ``As soon as I turned around and saw him on the ground, all I could do was to pray for him and his family that he would be OK.''

Mead said Guerrero was ``very shaken up'' and was not up for answering any further questions. Guerrero and Soriano are both natives of the Dominican Republic but it is not known how well they know each other.

Soriano fell to the ground clutching his head. Play was stopped for about 10 minutes until he was placed on a stretcher and taken off the field on a utility cart.

He was taken through a gate in the wall in right-center field, where an ambulance was waiting. The 26-year-old was diagnosed with a concussion and was given a CTscan, but the results were not available. He was being held overnight for observation.

``All we know right now is Rafael Soriano has a closed head injury and concussion,'' Mariners medical director Ed Khalfayan said. ``The initial information we have right now is reassuring. He will be observed overnight and more tests will be performed (today). He is currently being seen by a neurosurgeon.''

After first letting out a groan, the crowd of 29,059 was in silence for most of the time Soriano was being tended to. Guerrero looked stunned while standing at first base and later went into the dugout to wait out the delay. He, too, sat in silence.

``It's a tough part of the game and it's unfortunate,'' Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. ``A ball shoots back through the mound like that, and it's tough.''

Before Soriano was drilled in the head, the Angels were having a miserable night on the field. They committed three errors, and Jered Weaver was touched for four home runs in the worst start of his young career. Chris Snelling hit two of the four homers.

The defeat, combined with another Oakland Athletics victory, left the Angels 7 1/2 games out of first place with 29 games remaining.

Weaver gave up five runs on nine hits (both career highs) in 4 2/3 innings, the shortest outing in his 14 major-league starts.

``They came out hacking in the first inning and I had to battle all game,'' Weaver said. ``They got me a few times, and I think Snelling ended up winning the home-run derby, didn't he?''

Weaver seemed to be affected by an injury to his right thumb. He and Scioscia both said the injury happened when the nail on Weaver's index finger cut his thumb while throwing a fastball. Weaver said it is an injury he has experienced previously.

Unlike Monday, when the Angels had a runner thrown out at the plate in the first inning, they had some luck in pushing a run across in the opening inning Tuesday.

Orlando Cabrera ran through a Dino Ebel stop sign at third base after a Guerrero single. The throw from Snelling in right field arrived well ahead of Cabrera, but Mariners catcher Kenji Johjima inexplicably dropped the ball as he hurried to make the tag. The 1-0 lead was short-lived, however, as the first two Mariners batters against Weaver hit home runs. Ichiro Suzuki hit a home run to right field and Snelling hit one to left.

Weaver gave up the two home runs over his first five pitches after allowing a combined one run over the previous 14 innings he had pitched against the Mariners. He nearly allowed three straight homers to open the game, as Adrian Beltre hit a double off the left-field wall.

After winning the first nine decisions of his career, Weaver (9-2) now has lost two consecutive starts for his first losing streak.

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Photo:

Seattle pitcher Rafael Soriano holds his head after he was hit by a line drive from the Angels' Vladimir Guerrero, upper left, as Mariners first baseman Richie Sexson comes to Soriano's aid in the eighth inning.

Ted S. Warren/Associated Press

Box:

ANGELS at SEATTLE

- Doug Padilla