He never recovered.

Moments after Jesus Montero’s solo home run against his former teammates put Seattle ahead, the New York Yankees rode a two-out, three-run home run by former Mariner Raul Ibañez to a two-run lead that became a 6-2 victory.

It wasn’t as if Hernandez was dominant one moment, lost the next – this one was a battle for him for most of his 62/3 innings. When he got to the sixth inning tied, it was as much a matter of will as control.

Though Hernandez may be one of those pitchers who can get away with subpar games like this – he allowed 11 hits in less than seven innings – he cannot do it without runs.

For five innings against New York and Hiroki Kuroda, the Mariners gave Felix one run, that coming on the first leadoff home run of Dustin Ackley’s career.

One batter. One swing. One run.

Six innings later, it was still all the Mariners had, and they would have trailed by then had left fielder Mike Carp not thrown out Alex Rodriguez at plate in the fourth inning.

“It was the first time I’ve really cut loose a throw since I got hurt in Jan,” Carp said. “I came up with the ball, tried to stay on top of it and made a pretty good throw.

“If nothing else, that’ll help my mindset from now on.”

That play was as much a matter of third base coach Rob Thomson’s poor decision as Carp’s arm. Had Thomson held up A-Rod, the Yankees would have had the bases loaded with no one out.

Instead, the game remained tied and a big inning was gutted.

So when Montero silenced Yankees fans with his fifth home run of the season, the Mariners had a 2-1 lead in the sixth inning.

Felix couldn’t hold it.

“I gave up a lot of singles but controlled it until that one pitch to Raul,” Hernandez said. “I started him each at-bat with a sinker but that pitch didn’t sink. That’s the one pitch tonight I want back.”

Hernandez uncharacteristically walked the first man he faced in the sixth, Rodriguez, and gave up one of Robinson Cano’s four hits to put two men on with no one out.

He rallied for a force out, then a strikeout – his seventh – to bring up Ibañez.

The man who came up through the Seattle organization is universally well-liked by those he has played with – the Mariners, Royals, Phillies and Yankees – and against.

After hitting his sixth home run into the right-field stands, Ibañez is still one of Hernandez’s favorite ex-teammates. He just didn’t like him quite as much for a few moments.

“One pitch, game over,” Hernandez said.

After six innings, it seemed that way. After nine, it was hard to argue, even though New York had tacked on two more against the Mariners’ bullpen.

“Maybe he wasn’t quite as sharp as we’ve seen Felix, but you have to remember, he was within a pitch in the sixth inning of taking a 2-1 lead into the seventh,” manager Eric Wedge said.

What beat the Mariners, Wedge said, were two innings filled with opportunity, none of them realized.

“One inning (the second), we had runners at first and second base, no one out; the other (the fifth), we had the bases loaded with one out, and we didn’t score either time,” Wedge said. “You get a run in each of those, different game.”

The Yankees wouldn’t argue.

In the second inning, the Mariners used a Kyle Seager single and walk to John Jaso to create a threat, but Kuroda retired Justin Smoak, Carp and Michael Saunders without allowing the runners to advance.

“I felt better tonight,” said Smoak, who had three hits. “But that first at-bat, I had a fastball over the plate, and I’ve got to do more with that.”

Again in the fifth, the Mariners rallied – singles by Smoak and Saunders, a walk to Ackley – this time with one out. Kuroda struck out Brendan Ryan, then got No. 3 hitter Ichiro Suzuki to ground into a force play at third base.

As a result, Hernandez had no margin to work with. After the sixth, he trailed 4-2, then was knocked flat on the mound by a Derek Jeter single up the middle.

“That was close,” Hernandez said, shaking his head. “I stayed down a minute on that one.”

It was Seattle’s seventh road loss in a row, and the trip gets no easier: two more against New York, then two in Boston, a pair in Cleveland and three in Colorado.

OOPS, IT’S A WINNER

Now it can be told: Saunders started the winning rally Wednesday at Safeco Field with an opposite-field double, scoring the winning run on a Jaso sacrifice fly.

The kicker?

“It was an excuse-me swing and I didn’t know where the ball was when I first hit it,” Saunders said Friday. “I thought maybe I’d fouled it off the other way. Then I saw it and took off.”

OLIVO REHABBING

Catcher Miguel Olivo isn’t on the trip, staying behind to rehab a strained groin muscle.

He’s far enough along he might catch a bullpen session or two with the Tacoma Rainiers. The team expects to re-evaluate him after the trip, then determine if he needs a stint in the minors before being activated.

TODAY

Seattle (Hector Noesi: 2-3, 6.30 ERA) at New York Yankees (Phil Hughes: 2-4, 6.67), 1:05 p.m., Root Sports, 1240-AM, 1030-AM

larry.larue@thenewstribune.com blog.thenewstribune.com/mariners Twitter: @LarryLarue

The best efforts of one former New York Yankees prospect could not help the Seattle Mariners end their current road skid.

Another is ready to give it a shot.

Ex-Yankee Hector Noesi aims to earn his first win away from home and help the Mariners avoid an eighth straight road loss Saturday against the Yankees.

Catcher Jesus Montero, who had four homers and 13 RBIs in 19 regular season and playoff games with New York in 2011, hit one of Seattle’s two home runs in Friday’s 6-2 series-opening loss. The Yankees dealt Montero and Noesi to Seattle in a four-player offseason trade that brought All-Star pitcher Michael Pineda – now out for the season with a shoulder injury – to New York.

Montero is batting .267 with five home runs and 17 RBIs in 30 games, but his solo shot Friday is his only hit in eight at-bats over his last three contests.

Noesi (2-3, 6.30 ERA), who went 2-2 with a 4.47 ERA in 30 games – two starts – for the Yankees during his 2011 rookie season, has struggled with consistency in Seattle. The right-hander is 0-2 with a 9.22 ERA in three road starts, but is looking forward to taking the mound in the Bronx, where he went 1-1 with a 2.59 ERA in 14 pearances – one start – for the Yankees in 2011.

“It’s not like I’m really excited to come back because now I play for Seattle,” Noesi told the Mariners’ official website. “But (I’m) kind of a little excited.”

Noesi allowed a solo home run and three other hits Sunday while striking out five in seven innings of a 5-2 home win over major league-worst Minnesota.

“I felt like he just continued what we’d seen the last couple starts, doing a good job commanding his fastball, reaching out front and really finishing off his pitches and using all his secondary stuff,” manager Eric Wedge said.

Noesi will now try to help Seattle (15-19) end its longest losing streak away from home since a 13-game road skid that concluded with a 9-2 win at Yankee Stadium last July 27 – a victory that also snped a 17-game overall losing streak.

Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano had four hits Friday, improving to 11 for 21 with seven RBIs in his last five games against the Mariners. He’s batting .444 with eight RBIs in his last nine contests overall.

Former Mariners outfielder Raul Ibanez hit a three-run homer for New York in the series opener, giving him three home runs and six RBIs over his last three games.

Seeking their sixth win in eight games, the Yankees (18-14) hope scheduled starter Phil Hughes (2-4, 6.67) can build on his longest outing – and likely his best – of 2012.

The right-hander, who had allowed eight runs over 8 1-3 innings while losing his previous two starts, yielded three runs and struck out seven in 6 2-3 innings of a 10-4 victory at Kansas City on Sunday.

It marked only the second time Hughes allowed three runs or fewer this season, and the first time he lasted through the sixth inning. The effort was probably enough keep him in the rotation even after Andy Petttitte’s scheduled return to the mound Sunday.

“If I continue to pitch well and throw well, I’m sure I’ll gain more trust,” Hughes told the Yankees’ official website. “That’s what it’s all about.”

Hughes is 2-2 with a 3.52 ERA in five career starts versus Seattle.

NEW YORK — The Seattle Mariners looked like the winners of the Jesus Montero-Michael Pineda trade when Pineda underwent season-ending right shoulder surgery before he threw a regular season pitch for the New York Yankees. But Raul Ibanez — the player signed to at least partially fill the vacancy at designated hitter created by the trade of Montero — made sure the Yankees won the first meeting of the season between the two teams Friday. Ibanez hit a go-ahead three-run homer in the sixth inning, Robinson Cano continued his torrid hitting by going 4-for-4 and Hiroki Kuroda threw seven solid innings as the New York Yankees beat the Seattle Mariners,6-2, Friday night in front of 37,226 at Yankee Stadium. Ibanez was signed as a free agent Feb. 21, 29 days after Montero and Hector Noesi were sent to Seattle in exchange for Pineda and minor league pitcher Jose Campos. The 39-year-old, who has made more starts in left(nine) than at DH (eight) because of Brett Gardner’s elbow injury, has six homers, including three that have given the Yankees the lead. “I try not to think about it too much,” Ibanez said of his penchant for homering in the clutch. “I’m just trying to have a good at-bat and try to hit the ball solidly.” Mariners starter Felix Hernandez bent but didn’t break until Ibanez’ homer, which was the ninth of the Yankees’ 11 hits off Hernandez but their lone for extra bases. The Yankees had runners on against Hernandez in every inning except the third but ran into outs in the first and fourth. “We had an opportunity and didn’t score earlier, then we seemed to put it together,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. “I thought our guys put good at-bats on him tonight.” Montero’s solo homer in the sixth put the Mariners up 2-1 before the Yankees broke through in the bottom half. Alex Rodriguez drew a leadoff walk, went to second on Cano’s single and advanced to third on Mark Teixeira’s fielder’s choice grounder. After Nick Swisher struck out, Ibanez crushed Hernandez’ next pitch over the right field fence. Andruw Jones hit a pinch-hit two-run homer in the eighth for the final margin. Every starter except Russell Martin had at least one hit for the Yankees. The four hits by Cano give him 14 hits in his last 26 at-bats while his seventh-inning double extended his streak of games with an extra-base hit to five. Prior to this current hot stretch, Cano went 10 straight games without an extra-base hit. “When I was watching him and he was struggling, he didn’t really look any different to me,” Girardi said. “(Hitting coach) Kevin (Long) will talk about guys just a tick early or a tick late sometimes. You go through that in your at-bats and he just found his timing. He’s squaring balls up against everybody.” Kuroda (3-4) allowed two runs-including a homer leading off the first by Dustin Ackley-on six hits and three walks while striking out two. The Mariners put two runners on in the second and loaded the bases in the fifth but didn’t score either time. “We had a first and second situation with nobody out and a bases loaded situation with one out and we don’t score a run,” Mariners manager Eric Wedge said. “It could have been the difference right there.” Hernandez (3-2) entered Friday 3-0 with a 0.38 ERA in three starts at the new Yankee Stadium but gave up the four runs and issued two walks while striking out seven in 6 2/3 innings. Justin Smoak had three singles for the Mariners. NOTES: The Eduardo Nunez Experiment pears to be over after the Yankees optioned the shortstop-turned-utilityman to Class AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in order to make room for Eric Chavez, who returned from the 7-day disabled list. Nunez, who mostly played shortstop as a minor leaguer, started at five different positions for the Yankees this year (second base, third base, shortstop, left field and designated hitter) but struggled in the field with four errors — including two Thursday night at third base that led to unearned runs — and several near-misses in left field. Joe Girardi said Nunez will play six days a week at shortstop and another day at second base at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. “We asked Nunez to do some things that you usually ask more of a veteran player to do,” Girardi said. “When I look at ‘Nuney’ and ‘Nuney’s’ future, I don’t see ‘Nuney’ as a utility guy. I see him as an everyday player. So we made this move.” … Girardi said Friday was day two of outfielder Brett Gardner’s 10-day break from hitting as he recovers from aggravating a strained muscle in his elbow during a rehab assignment this week. Gardner went on the DL with the elbow injury ril 18. … Mariners manager Eric Wedge said right-handed pitcher Blake Beaven, who left his start against the Tigers Monday after he was hit on the right elbow by a line drive, will start against the Red Sox Tuesday. … Montero played his first game against the Yankees since the January trade that sent him to Seattle in exchange for pitcher Michael Pineda. While Pineda underwent season-ending right shoulder surgery before ever throwing a regular season pitch for the Yankees, Montero has settled in as the Mariners’ cleanup hitter and is splitting time between catcher and designated hitter. “I was surprised (by the trade) but after that I was hpy, because I’m here with more opportunity to play,” Montero said.

Read more: NY Yankees, Seattle Mariners, Robinson Cano, Raul Ibanez, Local Pro

() — NEW YORK () – Raul Ibanez hit a go-ahead, three-run homer off former Seattle teammate Felix Hernandez with two outs in the sixth inning, Robinson Cano had four hits and the New York Yankees overcame a home run by Jesus Montero to beat the Mariners 6-2 Friday night.

Hernandez (3-2) lost for the first time at new Yankee Stadium, where the 2010 AL Cy Young Award winner had allowed just one earned run in 24 innings coming in.

Hiroki Kuroda (3-4) improved to 3-1 at home, allowing a solo homer to Dustin Ackley leading off the game and another in the sixth to Montero, acquired by the Mariners in the January trade that sent Michael Pineda to New York.

(Copyright ©2012 by The . All Rights Reserved.)

NEW YORK — Raul Ibanez hit a go-ahead three-run homer in the sixth inning, Robinson Cano continued his torrid hitting by going 4-for-4 and Hiroki Kuroda threw seven solid innings as the New York Yankees defeated the Seattle Mariners, 6-2, Friday night in front of 37,226 at Yankee Stadium. Mariners starter Felix Hernandez (3-2) bent but didn’t break until Ibanez’s homer, the ninth of the Yankees‘ 11 hits off Hernandez but their only one for extra bases. The Yankees had runners on against Hernandez in every inning except the third but ran into outs in the first and fourth before breaking through in the sixth, when, with the Yankees down 2-1, Alex Rodriguez drew a leadoff walk, went to second on Cano’s single and advanced to third on Mark Teixeira’s fielder’s choice grounder. After Nick Swisher struck out, Ibanez crushed Hernandez’s next pitch over the right-field fence. Andruw Jones hit a pinch-hit two-run homer in the eighth for the final margin. Every starter except Russell Martin had at least one hit for the Yankees. The four hits by Cano gave him 14 hits in his last 26 at-bats (.538), and his seventh-inning double extended his streak of games with an extra-base hit to five. Rodriguez and Teixeira each had two singles. Kuroda (3-4) allowed two runs — solo homers by Dustin Ackley and former Yankees prospect Jesus Montero, whose trade to the Mariners in January opened up a spot for Ibanez — on six hits and three walks while striking out two. Hernandez entered Friday 3-0 with a 0.38 ERA in three starts at the new Yankee Stadium but gave up the four runs and issued two walks while striking out seven in 6 2/3 innings. Justin Smoak had three singles for the Mariners. Hernandez and Kuroda each danced out of trouble in the first five innings. Ackley’s first career leadoff homer gave the Mariners a quick lead, but the Yankees tied it in the bottom half of the first when Curtis Granderson singled, stole second and scored on Robinson Cano’s single. Kiroda allowed the first two batters to reach in the second but retired the next nine in a row. The Mariners then loaded the bases with one out in the fifth via two singles, a fielder’s choice and a walk before Kiroda wriggled out of the jam by striking out Brendan Ryan and getting Ichiro Suzuki to hit into a fielder’s choice. The Yankees chipped away at Hernandez, who entered the game 3-0 with a 0.38 ERA in three career starts at the new Yankee Stadium, and recorded six singles in the first four innings, including three in a row to open the fourth. But Rodriguez was thrown out at home on Teixeira’s single and Hernandez retired Swisher and Ibanez to get out of the inning. “The thing about Felix is he’s not going to make a lot of mistakes,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. “He’s got an outstanding fastball, a very good curveball, a good changeup, good slider. He’s going to throw everything at you. So every opportunity you have to score a run, you better take advantage.” NOTES: The Eduardo Nunez Experiment pears to be over after the Yankees optioned the shortstop turned utilityman to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in order to make room for Eric Chavez, who returned from the seven-day disabled list. Nunez, who mostly played shortstop as a minor-leaguer, started at five different positions for the Yankees this year (second base, third base, shortstop, left field and designated hitter) but struggled in the field with four errors — including two Thursday night at third base that led to unearned runs — and several near misses in left field. Manager Joe Girardi said Nunez will play six days a week at shortstop and another day at second base at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. “We asked Nunez to do some things that you usually ask more of a veteran player to do,” Girardi said. “When I look at ‘Nuney’ and ‘Nuney’s” future, I don’t see ‘Nuney’ as a utility guy. I see him as an everyday player. So we made this move.” –Girardi said Friday was day two of outfielder Brett Gardner’s 10-day break from hitting as he recovers from aggravating a strained muscle in his elbow during a rehab assignment this week. Gardner went on the DL with the elbow injury ril 18. –Mariners manager Eric Wedge said right-handed pitcher Blake Beaven, who left his start against the Tigers on Monday after he was hit on the right elbow by a line drive, will start against the Red Sox Tuesday. –Mariners catcher Jesus Montero played his first game against the Yankees since the January trade that sent him to Seattle in exchange for pitcher Michael Pineda. While Pineda underwent season-ending right shoulder surgery before ever throwing a regular-season pitch for the Yankees, Montero has settled in as the Mariners’ cleanup hitter and is splitting time between catcher and designated hitter. “I was surprised (by the trade), but after that I was hpy because I’m here with more opportunity to play,” Montero said.

SEATTLE () — Consider the Detroit Tigers thrilled to be done with seeing Seattle for the remainder of the 2012 season. Whether it was back in Detroit or out in the Pacific Northwest, the Tigers could not solve the Mariners.

John Jaso got the best of Detroit’s bullpen for the second time in three games with a RBI single to score Michael Saunders with the tiebreaking run in the eighth inning, and the Mariners beat the Tigers 2-1 on Wednesday night.

Seattle took five of six from the Tigers this season, including a three-game sweep in Detroit. Even the one game Detroit pulled out — a 6-4 win on Tuesday night — came down to the final at-bat and needed Don Kelly’s catch as he crashed into the stands to end the game with the bases loaded.

At the rate it was going, the Tigers are fortunate they were scheduled just six games against Seattle this season. It helped that Seattle caught Detroit at a time when the Tigers’ potentially potent offense is scuffling.

“It’s pretty much a broken record now, we’re just not scoring any runs and that was the case tonight,” Detroit manager Jim Leyland said. “I don’t think we were bad at swinging the bat at pitches tonight, we just didn’t center the ball very good. Throughout the lineup tonight we just didn’t do much.”

And it’s Detroit’s best players that are in a funk. Miguel Cabrera was 0 for 13 in the three-game series in Seattle. Delmon Young was 2 for 11. Prince Fielder, who homered Tuesday night, was hitless on Wednesday in three at-bats.

Detroit’s only run off Seattle starter Jason Vargas came in the sixth when Gerald Laird led off with a double to deep left-center. Danny Worth attempted twice to get a bunt down and failed, only to sl a 1-2 pitch from Vargas into right for a single, and put runners on the corners. Austin Jackson followed with a fly ball to center deep enough for the lumbering Laird to score easily from third. Brennan Boesch had a broken-bat single to keep the rally going, but Cabrera’s one-hop smash was gloved by Kyle Seager at second and started an inning-ending double play.

Otherwise the hits were scares as Vargas cruised through eight innings, throwing just 90 pitches and striking out six. Outside of the sixth, Vargas allowed just a single to Jhonny Peralta in the third and single to Young in the fifth.

“We are just missing that one hit. We’re getting some guys on, but we can’t get that one big hit to get us going,” Laird said.

Even though Vargas was rolling, Seattle manager Eric Wedge went to closer Brandon League in the ninth. League immediately fell behind Jackson 3-0 and walked him on a 3-2 pitch. However, Jackson was quickly erased when shortstop Brendan Ryan made his third strong defensive play in the game, this one starting a 6-4-3 double play off the bat of Boesch. League then got Cabrera to end it for his eighth save in 10 chances this season.

Earlier in the game, Ryan had made a barehanded grab and throw to get Jackson and stole a base hit from Fielder leading off the seventh.

“Brendan Ryan had an unbelievable game,” Wedge said. “We talk about it time and time again, that’s why we’re really working to try and get his bat going because he is so valuable to us.”

Seattle didn’t get its first hit off Detroit starter Drew Smyly until one out in the fourth inning when Ichiro Suzuki softly served a single into left-center field. Suzuki stole second and scored when Seager lined Smyly’s pitch off the wall down the right-field line, missing a home run by just a couple of feet. It was Seager’s ninth RBI during the Mariners’ six-game homestand and his 10th two-out RBI over the past eight games.

Then it was Jaso’s turn for more heroics.

Saunders led off the eighth inning with a double down the left-field line off Detroit reliever Luke Putkonen (0-1) in just his second major league pearance. Saunders advanced to third after Chone Figgins’ sacrifice bunt. That was it for Putkonen, who was replaced by Duane Below to face Jaso.

Below got the count to 2-2 on Jaso before he lined a single over Peralta and into left-center field to score Saunders. Jaso got greedy and was thrown out trying to advance to second on the hit. Jaso had the game-winning RBI in Monday’s series opener against the Tigers.

“I don’t think I thrive. I don’t think I get more energy from it. It’s just the way I am I guess,” Jaso said of the late-inning heroics.

NOTES: Detroit C Alex Avila’s sore patella tendon was feeling better on Wednesday and he’ll be re-examined before the Tigers open a four-game series Thursday in Oakland. … Seattle 2B Dustin Ackley was given his second day off of the season on Wednesday. Ackley has struggled hitting just .238. … Jaso became just the second Seattle catcher to bat leadoff and the first since 1978.