"A wobbly outing from one of the Big Three would have been an uphill challenge for the Angels weeks ago.

They relied so heavily on Jered Weaver, Dan Haren and Ervin Santana that a less-than-stellar start made victory a challenge given their offense.

But a new mix of young talent and veteran savvy is taking form and pulled the Angels closer in their postseason drive with a 7-3 victory over the Seattle Mariners on Monday at Angel Stadium.

The Angels pulled to within 2 1/2 games of Texas in the American League West despite an atypical night from Haren.

But the offense clicked behind rookie Mark Trumbo's home run in the first and RBIs from veterans Torii Hunter and Vernon Wells to give Haren his 14th victory.

"We're swinging the bats well right now," Haren said. "Our pitching's been there all year. It's taken a little bit of a setback, but if we put those two things together for the last three weeks hopefully we'll win a lot of games."

Manager Mike Scioscia said the offense is the deepest it has been all season after the call-ups of younger players like Mike Trout and the re-awakening of Wells and Hunter.

Trumbo's run at rookie of the year honors helps, too. His 26th home run left him five behind Tim Salmon's 1993 club rookie record, and he racked up his team-leading 80th RBI. "