New York @ Seattle preview

Last Meeting ( Jul 23, 2012 ) NY Yankees 4, Seattle 1

The New York Yankees were thought to be in the market for a starting pitcher and an outfielder at the trade deadline. They went out and filled one of those holes on Monday, when they grabbed Ichiro Suzuki from the Seattle Mariners for a pair of minor league pitchers. Ichiro paid immediate dividends on Monday night, going 1-for-4 with a stolen base as the Yankees beat his old team in his old home park to snap a four-game slide.

New York’s four-game losing streak had some worried about the offense, which has been heavily reliant on the home run. Ichiro and his 439 career steals should solve that problem. The Mariners are firmly in rebuilding mode and have several pitchers on the block as well. One arm they are still reluctant to move is Felix Hernandez, who will start against his idol, Freddy Garcia, on Tuesday. Hernandez remains the type of building block Seattle needs, though he is also the only player left on the roster who could bring a big haul in trade. The Mariners could use one or two bats. Three hits on Monday dropped the team’s home average to .194.

TV: 10:10 p.m. ET, YES (New York), ROOT (Seattle)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Yankees RH Freddy Garcia (4-3, 5.37 ERA) vs. Mariners RH Felix Hernandez (8-5, 2.82)

Garcia suffered his first loss since moving into the rotation full time last week, when he was touched for four runs and nine hits over 5 2/3 innings at Oakland. The longtime Seattle right-hander had yielded three runs or less in each of his previous three starts. Garcia has struggled against his former team, posting a 5-3 record but a 5.23 ERA in 10 career starts against the Mariners.

Hernandez, who looked up to Garcia growing up in Venezuela, has found his Cy Young form of late, allowing one or no runs in six of his last seven starts. He has gone at least seven innings in each of those six turns. The 26-year-old has not lost since June 12 but did fall at New York on May 11, allowing four runs and a season-high 11 hits over 6 2/3 innings. Hernandez is 6-5 with a 3.45 ERA in 12 career starts against New York.

WALK-OFFS

1. The Mariners received minor league pitchers D.J. Mitchell and Danny Farquhar in the Ichiro deal.

2. Ichiro hit eighth in his New York debut. He never hit lower than No. 3 in the order with Seattle.

3. Yankees RF Nick Swisher (hip) could miss the rest of the series but is expected to take back his customary spot in right field when he returns, with Ichiro switching over to left.