Sabathia beats Mariners, 7-1

SEATTLE -- With their bullpen fried and the team off to a horrendous start on a nine-game West Coast trip, the Yankees got exactly what they needed Sunday afternoon. From their ace and from their offense.

CC Sabathia, backed by an 11-hit attack, helped the Yankees to an important 7-1 victory over the Mariners in front of 37,290 at Safeco Field. Said Joe Girardi, "We needed that badly.''

One start after a complete-game victory over the Blue Jays, Sabathia (6-3, 2.98) allowed one run, five hits and three walks in eight innings. He struck out five and threw 118 pitches.

"[Sabathia] takes it upon himself to say, 'I'm going to go out and do it for you,' ''Girardi said.

The bullpen had been burned the previous two nights because A.J. Burnett lasted only five innings Friday and Ivan Nova only 32/3 innings Saturday. Relievers had thrown 102/3 innings for the Yankees in the two games, one-run losses in which the Yankees had held three-run and two-run leads.

"I don't think about it,'' Sabathia said of how much Girardi needed distance from him. "I don't try and put any extra pressure on myself. That's what I try and do every time out.''

Mariners starter Jason Vargas (3-3) was out after three innings and 82 pitches. He allowed six runs, five hits and four walks.

The Yankees took the lead for good in the second inning on Nick Swisher's first righthanded home run of the season, his first homer since May 7 and third overall. "A step in the right direction,'' said Swisher, who has been in a slump much of the season. "I feel like I'm starting to get back into form.''

The Yankees expanded their lead in a five-run third in which they scored all of the runs with two outs. They had been 2-for-17 with runners in scoring position in the series to that point, then picked up three quick hits with RISP -- a two-out RBI single by Robinson Cano, a three-run double by Andruw Jones and an RBI triple by Eduardo Nuñez.

Jones homered twice May 25 against Toronto and has seven RBIs in his last two starts. "I'm feeling good the last two games, for sure,'' said Jones, hitting .236 after going 1-for-3 with a walk.

Mark Teixeira got another key hit in the fourth, following Curtis Granderson's double with an RBI single that made it 7-0.

Granderson had two doubles among his three hits. Derek Jeter had a single and two walks and is 20 hits short of 3,000.

Sabathia shut out Seattle on two hits for the first five innings before Justin Smoak homered to make it 7-1 in the sixth.

Sabathia came up big twice in the first five innings. The Mariners put runners on second and third with one out in the second, but he struck out Jack Wilson on four pitches and got Michael Saunders on a fly to left. Seattle loaded the bases with one out in the fifth, but Sabathia got Ichiro Suzuki to hit into a 1-2-3 double play. Suzuki came in hitting .362 against him but was 0-for-4 Sunday and 1-for-14 in the series.

With runners on second and third and one out in the third, the Yankees continued to encounter frustration with runners in scoring position when Alex Rodriguez hit a ground smash to third. Chone Figgins' throw home was high, but Chris Gimenez went up to get it and blocked a sliding Jeter from touching the plate for the second out.

But Cano -- 7-for-10 against Vargas entering the game -- lined a single to right to drive in Granderson for a 2-0 lead. Swisher walked to load the bases and Jones sliced a three-run double down the rightfield line. Gimenez actually tagged Swisher on the left elbow before his left hand touched the plate, but umpire Gerry Davis missed the call.

Nuñez then rifled a drive into the gap in left-center for his first career triple and a 6-0 lead, stumbling into third with a headfirst dive and getting a faceful of dirt in the process.

Sabathia said he doesn't pitch any differently with a big lead, and he's had plenty of them this year. The Yankees are averaging 6.8 runs in his starts and scored 52 runs in four of his wins, but he said they have yet to rib him for all the support they've been providing. "No complaints,'' he said with a smile. "I don't think anyone realizes it yet, but I do."