OK, this whole shaving-cream pie business has gotten a little tired, but there was a twist tonight that really made it memorable.

J.J. Putz, who is usually the mastermind of all pie capers in the Mariners' clubhouse, was talking to the press -- about 10 of us gathered around him in front of his locker -- after the game. It was a big night for Putz, of course, coming off the DL and earning the save in a 4-2 win by the Mariners.

Putz was in mid-sentence, talking about how nervous he had been, when all of a sudden, out of nowhere, Mark Lowe emerged from his locker and nailed him with a pie.

I've got to say, it was kind of frightening for a split second. I'm not the only one who felt that way. Turns out that Lowe had crawled behind the clothes hanging in Putz's locker -- a fairly large cubicle -- and was covered enough that no one could see him. The element of surprise was so absolute, for Putz and everyone else, that you had to think for just a second that it was some sort of intruder. But that passed quickly, and general hilarity ensued. Boys will be boys.

A very nice win for the Mariners. Felix has been bothered by the flu all week and really felt poorly -- dizzy, headaches, fatigue, In that light, his performance was excellent (7 ip, 6 h, 2 er, 3 bb, 7 ks). Arthur Rhodes got his first win since May 23, 2005 (while with Cleveland) and Yuniesky Betancourt led to two runs with his aggressive baserunning. Yes, he saw Sam Perlozzo's stop sign in the fifth. He just thought he could make it. And he was right -- as you had better be when you run through a stop sign.

Jose Vidro capped it with the game-winning hit in the eighth. He took a very long time coming out to his locker, so most, if not all, reporters didn't get a chance to talk to him. Deadlines, you know. I'd be interested in what he had to say after some people (ahem) advocated signing Frank Thomas to replace him.

It wasn't a great offensive night for Seattle -- just five hits off Jeremy Guthrie, who deserved a better fate. Brad Wilkerson remains a big concern. No word on the seriousness of the hamstring issue that knocked him out of the game in the fourth inning. His average is down to .178, and his struggles are getting more glaring.

Good night for now. I'll be back tomorrow night.