Mariners blank Braves for 5th straight victory

Hisashi Iwakuma combined with two relievers on a six-hit shutout and the streaking Seattle Mariners beat the Atlanta Braves 2-0 on Wednesday to complete a two-game sweep.

Cole Gillespie and Kyle Seager hit run-scoring singles. Seattle has won five straight, matching its longest winning streak of the season.

Iwakuma (4-2) gave up only six hits with seven strikeouts and no walks in seven innings. The righthander was sharp, throwing 71 of his 96 pitches for strikes.

Mike Minor (2-4) allowed only one run in seven innings, but the Braves fell to 0-6 in interleague games.

Yoervis Medina pitched a perfect eighth before Fernando Rodney earned his 16th save with three straight outs in the ninth.

The Braves were held scoreless in the final seven innings of Tuesday night’s 7-5 loss to Seattle. The streak of consecutive scoreless innings reached 16 on Wednesday.

Gillespie’s RBI single in the fourth gave Seattle a 1-0 lead that held until the eighth, when Stefen Romero tripled off Luis Avilan. Pinch-runner James Jones scored on Seager’s single to right field.

— The Associated Press