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Final 1 2 3   4 5 6   7 8 9   R H E San Francisco 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 4 11 0 Seattle 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 2 5 1

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  W: R. Vogelsong (6-2)   L: J. Vargas (7-6)   S: S. Casilla (18)

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Giants-Mariners Preview

By JEFF BARTL

(AP) -- Over the last week, the San Francisco Giants and Seattle Mariners had two of baseball's best pitching performances of 2012.

How they've followed those historic efforts has been a concern.

San Francisco hopes to regain focus after following the euphoria of Matt Cain's perfect game with a loss, while Seattle looks to avoid a sixth consecutive defeat since its no-hitter in Friday night's series opener at Safeco Field.

Cain pitched the first perfect game in Giants history in Wednesday's 10-0 win against Houston, striking out 14 as the offense scored its most runs since plating 14 against Miami on May 24.

San Francisco, though, seemed lethargic in Thursday's 6-3 loss to the Astros, trailing 5-0 through three innings before Brandon Belt's two-run homer in the fourth.

"It was hard to get any sleep, and I think it was the same for everybody," Belt told the team's official website. "It might have played into today, but we'll get them tomorrow."

Manager Bruce Bochy said the Giants (36-28), who have lost nine of their last 11 meetings with the Mariners, need to keep moving forward no matter the previous day's result.

"You have to put the really good games, just like the tough ones, behind you," Bochy said.

It's something Seattle has had even more trouble doing.

The Mariners (27-37) had six pitchers combine to hold the Los Angeles Dodgers hitless in a 1-0 win last Friday, marking the team's first no-hitter since Chris Bosio beat Boston on April 22, 1993.

Seattle, though, has dropped five straight since after falling 6-2 to San Diego on Thursday. It has been outscored 28-11 during its skid.

"We've got to get out of this funk here at home," manager Eric Wedge told the Mariners' official website. "We've got a lot of home games here. Obviously we know what we're capable of doing offensively, that hasn't left us. But we've got to get over that hump here at home and break out. I think once we do, we'll hit the ground running from there."

The Mariners' offensive struggles may not get any better with the Giants sending Ryan Vogelsong to the hill.

Vogelsong (5-2, 2.26 ERA) had another outstanding performance Saturday, allowing one run and three hits in 7 2-3 innings of a 5-2 win over Texas. He's allowed more than two runs only once as the Giants have won his last seven starts, with Vogelsong going 5-0 with a 1.64 ERA in that stretch.

"He's got a maniacal focus that you love," Bochy said.

The right-hander has pitched at least into the seventh inning in 10 of his 11 starts, and his ERA is the fifth-best in baseball. Vogelsong is 3-0 with a 1.05 ERA in his five starts against the AL as a member of the Giants, though he hasn't faced the Mariners since 2004 with Pittsburgh.

Seattle will counter with Jason Vargas, who has struggled since posting a 2.79 ERA in his first eight outings.

Vargas (7-5, 3.90) has a 5.40 ERA in his last six, and tied a season worst by allowing five runs in six innings of an 8-3 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday.

The left-hander allowed one run and two hits in seven innings of Seattle's 2-1 win in 12 innings May 22, 2009, his only start against the Giants.

This will mark the fourth consecutive series between the teams that has taken place at Safeco Field. They haven't met in San Francisco since 2000 - AT&T Park's first year - meaning the Giants are the lone major league team Ichiro Suzuki has never faced on the road.

Updated June 15, 2012