Felix Hernandez won his fourth straight decision, Jesus Montero homered and drove in four runs as the Seattle Mariners defeated the Kansas City Royals 6-1 Thursday.

Hernandez (8-5) is 4-0 with a 1.37 ERA in his past seven starts
since a loss to San Diego on June 12. While he leads the majors
with 143 strikeouts, Hernandez struck out only three, tying his
season low. He allowed one run and eight hits, throwing only 89
pitches in eight innings.

Hernandez worked out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the
eighth, striking out Alcides Escobar and retiring Billy Butler on a
grounder.

Will Smith (1-3), just recalled from Triple-A Omaha, gave up
four runs on eight hits in 6 1-3 innings, while walking two and
striking out five