Rays understand their task vs. M's

BALTIMORE -- He paused, buffed the lenses of his sunglasses as methodically as one could without being too obvious, and thought of the most diplomatic answer to the question.

"I think the nine times we play Seattle is perfect," Rays second baseman Brent Abernathy said with a grin. "Because if we have to play them any more we'd have to make another West Coast road trip."

The Rays open their first three-game series against the Mariners today and haven't won a series against Seattle since May 1998.

"They're one of the most solid clubs in the league," Abernathy said.

Seattle outscored the Rays 50-36 and won seven of the nine games it played against Tampa Bay last season. The Rays shut out the Mariners 6-0 on Aug. 28 at Tropicana Field and won 8-3 in 10 innings at Safeco Field on Sept. 4.

"Top to bottom pitching, they're going to be tough," Abernathy said. "And they've got some serious depth in the batting order.

"Any time you've got a guy at the top of the order that does what Ichiro (Suzuki) does as far as getting on base along with the guys they've got in the middle of the order, you'll be hard pressed to keep them from scoring a lot."

BRING 'EM ON: Coming off a victory against the Yankees on Wednesday, Joe Kennedy will make his first career start against the Mariners today.

That lack of exposure, he believes, could give him a bit of an advantage.

"They haven't seen me, and I haven't seen them," Kennedy said. "I think the ball is in my court."

The left-hander has experience facing the league's best.

Of the eight starts Kennedy has made this season, six have come against first- or second-place teams. He is 2-3 with a 3.79 ERA, 31 strikeouts and 10 walks in games against the Red Sox, Twins and Yankees.

"The bigger the better," Kennedy said. "The higher paid, the first-place teams are more fun to me. I get the opportunity to go out there and try to prove myself."

TAKING ADVANTAGE: Though he has played in just 11 games, backup catcher John Flaherty is batting .324 with five doubles and 4 RBIs.

He had 17 doubles in 78 games last season.

Even more impressive is that Flaherty is batting .400 with runners on and .571 with runners in scoring position.

"I'm not even putting a whole lot of stock into the offensive side of it," he said. "That has made me relax a little bit more. I also think I'm doing a pretty good job preparing myself with extra hitting and extra work at the plate."

Flaherty is expected to start the next three games so Toby Hall can heal a bruised thumb and ankle and also work on defensive fundamentals with bullpen coach Glenn Ezell.

"It helps that (Flaherty's) a veteran and he's been an everyday player," said manager Hal McRae, who indicated Sunday that Hall remains the starter. "He has an idea how to prepare himself physically and mentally. ... It's tough when you're not playing everyday."

ODDS AND ENDS: Third baseman Jared Sandberg ended an 0-for-14 streak with a single in the seventh inning Sunday. It was his first hit of the six-game road trip. ... Recalled from Triple-A Durham on Friday, Lee Gardner warmed up Sunday but still is looking to make his major-league debut. He hasn't pitched since Thursday. ... As of Monday afternoon, 56 percent of people who voted in a poll posted on the Rays' Web site thought Greg Vaughn's home run binge would not only lead the Rays back to .500 ball but spark the offense overall and enliven the middle of the order. ... Mariners rookie Rafael Soriano may start in place of James Baldwin on Thursday. Soriano has allowed two hits and struck out six in five innings of relief.