"Chone Figgins didn't stay around to talk to the media, but there was a lot of talk about what a hot Figgins can mean for the Mariners' lineup. Don Wakamatsu noted that he's been working a lot with new hitting coach Alonzo Powell, especially on his mechanics from the left side, where he's struggled all season.

Tonight, hitting left-handed, Figgins was on base three times with a single, double and walk. He drove in a run and scored a run after stealing a base in the seventh and moving up to third on a bad throw by Joe Mauer.

"Even when he's not swinging the bat, he has the ability to get on base a few times,'' Wakamatsu said. "It complements everyone around him."

Figgins is hitting .308 over his last 14 games to raise his average from .182 to .217.

"Everyone wants to talk about moving lineups and changing here or there,'' Wakamatsu said. "But Figgy has a track record, and we know he's going to come out of it. It's a matter of when.''

Wakamatsu noted that Figgins had a .354 average in the No. 2 hole, albeit in a small sample.

"You can point the finger all over the place, but eventually the guy is going to hit. We can juggle a little when we can, but he's a guy that's going to be part of this organization for a long time. He's going to have to hit in that (No. 2) spot as long as Ichi is here.''"