Neshek laments error, vows to put it in past

HOUSTON -- Pat Neshek hadn't made an error in his nine-year Major League career when he delivered a 1-0 pitch to Jesus Sucre in the bottom of the eighth inning of a tie ballgame on Wednesday night.

Sucre laid down a sacrifice bunt just up the first-base line, and Neshek fielded and threw wildly to Jose Altuve covering at first, putting runners at first and second with nobody out and setting the stage for a bullpen collapse in the Mariners' 8-3 win.

"It was the worst play I've ever made in my life," Neshek said. "It happens. It got away from me. [That play has] got to get made, that changes the game a lot."

One pitch later, Mariners center fielder Shawn O'Malley singled to right to push the go-ahead run across. Seth Smith added an RBI fielder's choice two batters later, but by then, the damage was done and the Astros were on their way to their first home-series loss since dropping two of three to the White Sox from May 29-31.

It was a second consecutive rough eighth inning for Neshek, who surrendered a two-out, two-run homer to pinch-hitter Logan Morrison in Tuesday's 7-5 loss that would turn out to be the game-winning shot.

Morrison pinch-hit again on Wednesday to lead off the eighth, drawing a nine-pitch walk against Neshek before Sucre's sacrifice bunt.

"For the most part, I don't feel like I'm getting hit [hard], besides the home run yesterday. I feel like I've got pretty good stuff," Neshek said. "That's the job I signed up for, every night you're going to come out and pitch a tie game or pitch a game up by one or two, and no matter what the outcome is, you toughen up and come back the next night. I've done it for many years, and I'm going to be ready when we play the Twins here again on Friday."