ONE MISTAKE COSTS WASHBURN, ANGELS FOURTH-INNING HOMER DOOMS PITCHER'S 12-GAME WINNING STREAK SEATTLE 3, ANGELS 1.

Byline: Gabe Lacques Staff Writer

SEATTLE - After his major-league-best winning streak of 12 games ended in the Angels' 3-1 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Saturday, Jarrod Washburn gained a greater appreciation for being able to stretch it that far in the first place.

Washburn pitched a four-hitter for his first complete game of the season, gave up just one hit after the fourth inning and generally pitched as well or better than he did in the course of the streak, which started after an April 13 loss to Oakland.

But the streak was as much about Washburn's teammates picking him up as it was about him coming into his own as a No. 1 starter.

In front of 45,974 at Safeco Field on Saturday, one mistake by Washburn (12-3) was more than the Angels could overcome.

It was just their second loss in eight games, and it knocked them back into second place, a game behind the Mariners in the American League West.

The Angels stranded eight runners, grounded into two double plays, committed one rally-stifling baserunning gaffe and, needing two runs to tie the game in the ninth, opted to send a .198-hitting backup catcher to the plate to lead off the inning.

All that enabled Seattle starter Joel Pineiro (11-4) to escape with the victory despite yielding nine hits but just one run in 6 1/3 innings. Washburn's streak ended two games shy of Chuck Finley's club record of 14, but it was the longest Angels streak spanning one season.

``A game like today tells you just how hard that kind of streak is,'' Washburn said. ``It makes me appreciate the streak a little more. It doesn't feel good to lose. I remembered how it feels to lose, and now I remember it fresher.''

And he won't soon forget the cut fastball he threw to Edgar Martinez in the fourth inning.

Washburn threw the same pitch to Martinez in the second, and Martinez hit a towering fly ball that Garret Anderson caught at the fence.

With the game tied 1-1 in the fourth, Washburn fell behind 3-and-1 to Martinez and intended for the next pitch to cut away from Martinez.

Instead, it caught the heart of the plate, and Martinez didn't let this one get away, slamming the 87-mph offering over the wall in left for a 3-1 lead.

That was enough to beat Washburn, ironic given that he pitched one of his worst games of the year six days earlier at Anaheim, yet still beat the Mariners 7-5. Saturday, no such luck.

``He pitched as good as any time I've faced him,'' said Mariners second baseman Bret Boone, who beat out an infield single in the fourth and scored on Martinez's home run. ``But our guy matched him. Whenever (Pineiro) got in trouble, he managed to get out of it.''

With some help from the Angels, of course.

Anaheim (61-41) put the tying runs on base for a moment in the sixth, when Brad Fullmer led off with a single and Orlando Palmeiro hit a smash at Seattle shortstop Carlos Guillen, who slowed the ball down but couldn't glove it. It was ruled an error.

The Angels should have had two men on with no outs, but Fullmer either misread the play or got greedy. He tried advancing to third, but Guillen simply retrieved the ball and threw him out easily.

Adam Kennedy followed with a line drive at first baseman John Olerud, who leaped to spear the ball and then stepped on the base to double off Palmeiro and end the inning.

There were plenty of other chances early. Troy Glaus stranded four runners in his first two at-bats. The Angels pieced together three hits in the fourth but scored only once, as Darin Erstad flied out with runners on the corners to end the inning.

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Photo:

(color) Angels pitcher Jarrod Washburn hangs his head Saturday after allowing a home run to Edgar Martinez.

John Froschauer/Associated Press