DETROIT -- Lloyd McClendon spent last fall hoping to get a chance to manage in a pennant race at Comerica Park. He got his wish Friday night, even if it wasnt exactly the way he had envisioned things. McClendon had hoped to become the Tigers manager when Jim Leyland retired after winning three straight AL Central titles, but general manager Dave Dombrowski picked Brad Ausmus over Leylands longtime hitting coach. McClendon ended up managing the Mariners instead, and made his return to Comerica Park with a 7-2 victory. After the game, though, he didnt want to make a big deal out of his first game back or the fact that the win moved Seattle a half-game ahead of Detroit in the race for the second AL wild card. "This was the first win of the series," he said. "Other than that, no, it was no more significant than another game." Ladner, B.C., native James Paxton (3-0) was the star for Seattle, pitching six innings and allowing one run on five hits. Robinson Cano homered, and he and Logan Morrison each scored twice as Seattle won its fifth straight and ninth in 11 games. "That kid has a really nice downward angle on his fastball, and you end up hitting a lot of grounders and choppers off him," Ausmus said. "We actually hit some balls hard, but it seemed like they all went to the shortstop (Chris Taylor), and he just kept making play after play." The Tigers dropped 1 1/2 games behind first-place Kansas City in the AL Central, thanks to a 12-17 stretch since the All-Star break. "Obviously, wed rather be in first place by 15 games, but were not," Ausmus said. "Theres nothing we can do about what weve done up until now. You just go out tomorrow and try to start winning games again." Rick Porcello (13-8) struggled badly in his first appearance since pitching the final three innings of Detroits 19-inning loss in Toronto on Sunday. After a five-start stretch in which he had a 1.75 ERA, the 25-year-old righty gave up six runs -- five earned -- and 10 hits in six innings. He didnt walk a batter, but struck out only three. "The game in Toronto had nothing to do with what happened tonight," he said. "I had plenty of time to get ready for this start, and I prepared just like I always do. I just didnt pitch well." Seattle jumped out to a quick three-run lead in the second. Following a leadoff single and a hit batter, Morrison and Endy Chavez each hit an RBI single. Taylor bunted for a single, loading the bases with none out, but ex-Tiger Austin Jackson grounded into a double play, helping Porcello to escape only down 3-0. An inning earlier, Jackson received a long standing ovation when he led off his first game at Comerica Park since the trade-deadline deal that sent him to Seattle and brought ace pitcher David Price to the Tigers. "That was a special moment for me," said Jackson, a fan favourite in Detroit for his defence in centre field. "Once the game started, it was business as usual, but that was fun." Cano made it 4-0 with a long homer on the first pitch of the third. After the Tigers got on the board in the bottom half, Taylor restored the four-run lead with an RBI single in the fourth, and Detroit never threatened again. "The run in the fourth was the one that really frustrated me, because we were still within 4-1, and with this offence, thats manageable," Porcello said. "Our guys were battling out there, and I couldnt keep them in the game." MIXED-UP BOBBLEHEAD The Tigers gave away Miguel Cabrera bobbleheads that depict him holding his two MVP trophies. The only problem? The trophies say "Most Valuable Player, National League", which would be news to Buster Posey and Andrew McCutchen, who won the 2012 and 2013 NL MVP awards, respectively, while Cabrera was winning in the AL. UP NEXT The Tigers and Mariners square off again Saturday night with a marquee pitching matchup. Price (11-8) will make his third start for Detroit, and Seattle counters with Felix Hernandez (12-3). Hernandez, who made his major league debut at Comerica Park, is 9-0 in his last 11 starts against the Tigers, but will be facing Price for the first time. TRAINERS ROOM Mariners: With the big lead, Cano left in the eighth inning, partially as a precaution after fouling a pitch off his foot early in the game. He isnt expected to miss any time. ... OF Michael Saunders (oblique) resumed his rehab stint with Triple-A Tacoma after missing time for the birth of his child. In five games with Tacoma, he was hitting .353 with a .542 on-base percentage. Tigers: RHP Justin Verlander (shoulder) isnt scheduled to pick up a baseball until Tuesday, when he will try some short tossing. Ausmus said Verlanders schedule will be based entirely on how he feels then, but the hope is still that he will start next Friday in Minnesota. MAJOR LEAGUE DEBUT Tigers reliever Melvin Mercedes made his major league debut with two perfect innings, needing just 23 pitches. He became the 11th player to make his debut with the Tigers this season. Air Max Plus Noir Pas Cher . Then Klay Thompson put his foot on the gas. Thompson scored 19 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter and Harrison Barnes scored 14 points in his season debut to help the Golden State Warriors to a 106-93 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night. Air Max 270 Moins Cher . After not scoring 40 points in the opening quarter in the last five seasons, the Rockets have done it five times this season and twice in the last three games. http://www.airmaxpaschersite.fr/ . LOUIS -- Alexander Steen scored a power-play goal with 59. Nike Air Max Plus Soldes . Forsman closed with a 3-under 69 in windy conditions Sunday for his third Champions Tour title. He beat Jay Don Blake by two shots. Basket Air Max 90 Pas Cher . -- Slugger Jose Abreu, All-Star left-hander Chris Sale and closer Matt Lindstrom are on the disabled list.The St. Louis Blues remain at the top spot of the TSN.ca NHL Power Rankings, holding off the Chicago Blackhawks in both the rankings and the Central Division standings. The Minnesota Wild have continued their rise in the rankings, both by getting healthier and adding left winger Matt Moulson at the trade deadline. The Wild are up to 11, when they were ranked 20th prior to the Olympics. Even with an injury to starting goaltender Kari Lehtonen, the Dallas Stars have moved from 16 to 13, following the lead of centre Tyler Seguin, who is up to fifth in the NHL scoring race. The Toronto Maple Leafs and Washington Capitals each climbed three spots, to 17 and 18, respectively; the Leafs with one regulation loss in the past seven and the Capitals with some decent additions to the lineup, with goaltender Jaroslav Halak and left winger Dustin Penner added at the trade deadline as well as top prospect Evgeny Kuznetsov arriving from the KHL. It comes as no shock that the Montreal Canadiens miss injured goaltender Carey Price, but they havent recorded a regulation win ssince Price last started, a span of seven games.dddddddddddd So, even with the addition of Thomas Vanek, the Habs fall from nine to 14. Four wins in five games would normally be just fine for the Columbus Blue Jackets, but they are missing half of their defence corps due to injuries at the moment, which results in a fall from 11 to 16. The Winnipeg Jets have one regulation win in the past seven games and lost rookie centre Mark Scheifele to a knee injury, which knocks the Jets from 14 to 19. Among the rest of the Canadian teams, The Vancouver Canucks are down from 22 to 23 after dealing Roberto Luongo to Florida, the Ottawa Senators are also down a spot with left winger Clarke MacArthur sidelined. The Edmonton Oilers continue at 26, one spot ahead of the Calgary Flames. Both teams have respectable recent records, but they have created some big holes and moved out some productive players. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. ' ' 'eliver. Also See: F1 gossip column Every 2016 race live ' ' '