The lefty who came to the Northwest last winter amidst tons of fanfare wasn't the best lefty at Safeco Field Tuesday. That distinction belonged to Joe Saunders, a lefty with minimal fanfare surrounding him entering this season.

Not anymore. By allowed just one earned run in seven innings while striking out five, Saunders notched his ninth win, tops in the American League and lowered his ERA to 2.63, tied for third in the league.

What would he have thought back in spring training when he was battling for the fifth spot in the rotation had he been told that?

"I wouldn't have believed you, that's for sure," Saunders said. "I don't know what's going on."

Saunders' only hiccup, really, came on Jose Lopez's fourth-inning solo home run, just an inning before the Mariners scored three two-out runs on errors by Howie Kendrick and Robb Quinlan.

By "digging down deep and battling" Saunders may have punched a ticket to the All-Star Game, mere months after not being sure if he'd even be in the majors. Behind only Arizona's Brandon Webb in major-league wins, Saunders has gone at least seven innings in half of his 12 starts, it verifies Torii Hunter's claim that "right now, he's one of the best lefties in the game."

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