winner Felix Hernandez. The Mariners havent been to the post-season

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Texas Rangers manager Ron Washington decided it was time to shake up his lineup a bit. With a few switches in the batting order, and an impressive performance by young starter Nick Tepesch, the Rangers ended their longest losing streak in nearly nine years. Adrian Beltre homered and Shin-Soo Choo had three hits in his return to the leadoff spot while Tepesch allowed only three singles over 7 1-3 scoreless innings, and the Rangers beat the Minnesota Twins 5-4 on Friday night. "He was outstanding. We needed a well-pitched game and he gave it to us," said Washington, who liked his lineup. "Well run the same one out there tomorrow and see what happens." The Rangers went into the opener of the weekend series mired in its first eight-game losing streak since August 2005. "Its nice to end any negative streak," said Beltre, who added a sacrifice fly in the eighth that proved to be the margin of victory. "Its one of those things, you dont want to throw any at-bat away." Minnesota has lost its last nine road games, including a three-game sweep at the Los Angeles Angels before getting to Texas. The Twins came up short after scoring four runs in the ninth off Texas closer Joakim Soria, making only his second appearance since June 14. Choo led off for the first time in 18 games while Carlos Pena, in only his fourth game back with the Rangers, took over the No. 3 spot where Choo had hit .149 (10 for 67) since June 7. And Washingtons change paid off immediately when Choo had a leadoff single in the first and scored on Beltres ninth homer, which just cleared the fence and landed in the Rangers bullpen in right-centre field. "I said earlier that doesnt make a difference. I knew this would happen after the game and I was sure people would ask me about it, but its not ... I dont think anything changed as far as approach," Choo said about leading off, though he acknowledged that, "Im a little more comfortable there, Ive done it for the last two years." Tepesch (3-3) struck out five, walked two and hit two batters, while matching his longest major league start. He has won all three of his career starts against the Twins, allowing only three earned runs in 20 2-3 innings. "Just able to command all four of my pitches, and just commanding them in the zone and out of the zone," Tepesch said. Kevin Correia (4-9) allowed four runs and six hits over six innings. The right-hander, who struck out three and walked two, had given up only two earned runs over 18 innings his previous three starts. Jason Frasor and Neal Cotts each got an out in the eighth after Tepesch gave up a one-out hit to Minnesota leadoff hitter Brian Dozer. Jorge Polancos two-run triple in the ninth for his first major league hit that made it 5-4. Soria, who had given up just one earned over 20 2-3 innings his previous 22 games, then got a strikeout and grounder to end the game. Luis Sardinas and Choo had RBI doubles in the fifth, both on balls that left fielder Josh Willingham tried to catch. Sardinas hit a sinking liner down the left-field line that rolled into the corner after Willingham made a diving attempt to catch it. Choo hit a flyball that glanced off Willinghams glove when he ran into the 14-foot fence. "Diving full out down the line, diving up against the wall in left field," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "What cant you like about that? Hes trying to make a play." NOTES: Rangers ace Yu Darvish (7-4, 2.62 ERA) is scheduled to start Saturday. He lost his last two starts, allowing 12 runs (eight earned) over 11 innings. ... Phil Hughes (8-3) pitches the middle game for the Twins. ... 1B/OF Brad Snyder declined an outright assignment to Triple-A Round Rock and took free agency Friday, three days after the Rangers designated him for assignment. 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Robertson posted two saves in three games as the replacement for retired Yankees closer Mariano Rivera before getting hurt.SEATTLE -- Lloyd McClendon was hired as manager of the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday, taking over a rebuilding job that Eric Wedge walked away from. McClendon becomes the third manager hired by general manager Jack Zduriencik. Wedge quit at the end of the Mariners fourth straight losing season, citing differences with the front office on how to move forward with improving the team. Wedges three-year contract expired after the season. The 54-year-old McClendon is the 16th full-time manager in club history. He takes over a club that went 71-91 last year. He will be formally introduced by the team on Thursday. "I am extremely excited about the opportunity to manage the Seattle Mariners," McClendon said in a statement. "Seattle has a tremendous group of talented players and the fans and city should be excited about the clubs future. Im looking for this group to take a big step forward." Seattle is the fourth club to fill its managerial vacancy. The Washington Nationals hired Matt Williams to replace Davey Johnson. The Cincinnati Reds, who fired Dusty Baker after a 90-win season, went with pitching coach Bryan Price as their new manager and Detroit chose Brad Ausmus to take over for Jim Leyland -- a job McClendon interviewed for. The Chicago Cubs are still looking for a manager. McClendon was the manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates from 2001-05, going 336-446 during the Pirates 20-year stretch of losing seasons. Pittsburgh never won more than 75 games or finished higher than fourth in the NL Central during his tenure and he was fired in early September of the 2005 season. After Pittsburgh, McClendon settled into a stable role Leylands staff in Detroit. For eight seasons, McClendon was a coach for the Tigers, including the last seven as hitting coach. He interviewed for managerial positions in Seattle and Miami during that stretch, but never got an offer. "Lloyd is a bright and articulate guy," Zduriencik said in the statement. "He has major league managerial experience and has served in a vital capacity in Detroit under one of the games best managers. He is a tireless worker and is very respected by the players with whom he has worked.dddddddddddd We look forward to Lloyd embracing our players as we move the Mariners forward." Zduriencik didnt expect to be in this position. As of late September, Zduriencik was preparing for Wedge to be around to continue to rebuild Seattle into a contender. Instead Wedge left and Zduriencik was tasked with hiring the eighth manager or interim manager for the franchise since 2002. McClendon was one of five reported finalists for the Mariners job, a list that included Joey Cora, Oakland bench coach Chip Hale, Dodgers third base coach Tim Wallach and San Diego bench coach Rick Renteria. McClendon was the only one of the group with previous major league managerial experience. Cora had ties to the Mariners franchise from his time as a player in Seattle. McClendon spent eight seasons in the majors as a player with Cincinnati, Pittsburgh and the Chicago Cubs. He immediately transitioned from a playing career into coaching, serving as a hitting coach for the Pirates in 1995 until he accepted their managerial position before the 2001 season. McClendon will likely need time to build a winner in Seattle even with a starting rotation anchored by AL Cy Young award finalist Hisashi Iwakuma and 2010 Cy Young winner Felix Hernandez. The Mariners havent been to the post-season since 2001, and there are numerous roster questions for the club playing in one of baseballs toughest divisions. Seattle has high hopes for young catcher Mike Zunino, shortstop Brad Miller and second baseman Nick Franklin. Justin Smoak solidified himself at first base after showing some consistency at the plate last season and third baseman Kyle Seager was the Mariners most reliable everyday player. But even with making a qualifying offer, it seems unlikely slugging designated hitter Kendrys Morales will accept a $14.1 million, one-year deal when there could be a bigger pot in free agency. Raul Ibanez hit 29 homers at age 41, but there its unclear if Seattle wants to bring him back, and hes not a long-term solution. The rest of the Mariners outfield is unproven and their bullpen struggled for stretches of the season. ' ' '