Franklin staying positive despite sore knee

SEATTLE -- Rookie second baseman Nick Franklin on Monday was still feeling soreness in his right knee, where he'd fouled a bunt off his leg on Friday night in Cincinnati. But it's full speed again for the youngster, who played through the pain on Sunday and hit a first-inning home run that helped catapult the Mariners to a 3-1 victory.

"Compared to yesterday, it's doing a lot better," Franklin said before batting practice on Monday prior to the series opener with the Red Sox. "I know it's not going to injure me more, therefore if I'm going to run, I might as well run it. As long as I know it's not going to injure me more, I'll play on it."

Franklin has been one of the young catalysts for some positive momentum over the past few weeks. He's hit .302 with two home runs and eight RBIs over his last 13 games going into Monday, giving him six homers and 18 RBIs with a .287 average in his first 31 outings in the Majors.

After winning series against quality clubs in Texas and Cincinnati, the Mariners are feeling some positive mojo and Franklin is right in the middle of it.

"It was a good road trip," he said. "We were on top of it. When chances arose, guys came through with clutch hits. When we were up, we were continuing to put runs on the board. So that was good. Things are going pretty well.

"I think we're having fun and having fun can lead to playing good baseball sometimes. If you're in that phase of losing, it's more kind of down and nobody is joking around. The more you win, the more fun you have."