SEATTLE -- Seth Smith powered Seattle past Houston and put the Mariners closer in the wild card chase.He hit a pair of home runs and drove in four runs on Sunday to help the Mariners beat the Houston Astros 7-3. His effort backed up a strong performance by lefty Ariel Miranda as the Mariners remained in the thick of the congested wild-card race.The Mariners (79-70) are one game behind Toronto, which holds the second wild-card spot.Smith had a solo shot in the third and a three-run shot in the fourth, both on 3-1 pitches from Doug Fister (12-12). Smith had been 0-for-10 in his career against Fister but the eight-year veteran had a plan.Guys know what theyre doing when they are pitching and able to pitch to the corners, Smith said. You try to take the close ones, try to get into a good hitters count when they come after you.Smith, who now has 16 home runs on the season -- one short of his career high -- was patient enough to work both into hitters counts then connected on fastballs into the right-field seats.Youre constantly learning, how to approach at-bats, knowing what kind of swing you have going into a game, knowing what the pitcher is trying to do to you, Smith said. Over the course of a career you kind of fit the pieces a little better together.Fister said, I was just trying to attack with my sinker; he put a couple good swings on balls -- clearly.I just didnt execute today, thats what it comes down to. Balls down, balls up, all over the place. I let my team down.Miranda (5-1), acquired in a trade with Baltimore on July 31 for lefty Wade Miley, went seven innings -- his longest outing in 10 starts with Seattle -- allowing two runs on three hits. He walked one and struck out eight.Heck of an outing, Mariners manager Scott Servais said. Hes on a heck of a roll. We certainly needed it. Hes gained so much confidence. You can certainly can see it.Miranda has won all four of his starts in September. The Cuban defector said, through an interpreter, its been a dream of mine (to be in a playoff chase) but never been there. Its really great to get there. Im happy with the work Ive been doing and happy to help the team.Houston manager A.J. Hinch said Miranda has a good fastball and a good split-change thing that he throws. Our guys hadnt seen a ton of him. ..He did a good job challenging us, but just above the zone and we swung under today and hit a lot of pop-ups in the infield, a few balls to the outfield. A couple balls to the track that could have changed the game a little bit. He kept enticing us with fastballs.The Mariners have won nine of their last 11 games.RECORD WHIFFSWith Jandel Gustaves strikeout of Shawn OMalley in the sixth, the Astros staff established a club record for strikeouts with 1,283. Theyve done it without even a 200-strikeout pitcher. For the most part we have a few guys who can spin their breaking balls when they need to, manager A.J. Hinch said. and the changeup is a big component of our pitching staff.SLOW START; FAST FINISHNori Aoki, who was sent to the minors twice this season to work on his offense, has found his batting eye this month. Entering the game, he was hitting .387 in September, fifth best in the American League. He had been hitting .255 overall to start the month. For his career, he is a .324 hitting in September, fourth best among active players. He had two hits Sunday.TRAINERS ROOMMariners: 1B Adam Lind had not played since Sept. 12 with a sprained finger in his right hand but was back in the lineup Sunday, missing five games.UP NEXTAstros: RHP Brad Peacock (0-0, 2.70) will make his third start, seventh appearance, in his effort to win his first game since 2014. Last time ou, Sept. 13, he was solid, going six innings and allowing just three hits and one run in a 3-2 loss to Texas. Now the Astros are counting on him to step up at the most critical stage of the season. He is 1-4 with a 4.97 ERA in nine career appearances against Oakland.Mariners: RHP Taijuan Walker (6-10, 4.28) is coming off his best starting effort of his career (59 starts). He allowed just three hits and no runs -- first career shutout -- in an 8-0 win over the L.A. Angels. He had a no-hitter through 5 2/3 innings. He is 0-2 with a 3.66 ERA in three career starts against the Blue Jays but has not faced them this season. Nike Air Max Saldi . -- Charline Labonte couldnt have asked for a better homecoming. Air Max Outlet Italia . LOUIS -- Theres no telling how these wacky World Series games will end. http://www.airmaxoutlet.it/ .C. -- After a listless first half, the Washington Wizards used a big third quarter run to beat the Charlotte Bobcats Bradley Beal scored 21 points and the Wizards used a 17-0 run in the third quarter to take control of what had been a close game and beat the Bobcats 97-83 on Tuesday night. Nike Air Max Offerta .C. -- When North Carolina freshman Ryan Switzer reported to training camp in August he was a little miffed to learn he was third on the depth chart at punt returner. Air Max Scontate . They had already blown a double-digit lead, fans were hitting the exits, and a long seven-game road trip waited at the end. INDIANAPOLIS -- Klay Thompson kept his shooting touch in sync Monday night.All he needed was a trip to his second home.The All-Star guard again dazzled Indiana Pacers fans with a knockout performance. He scored 25 points in 26 minutes and took the entire fourth quarter off, leading the Golden State Warriors to a 120-83 rout for their eighth consecutive victory.It was the worst home loss for Indiana in its NBA history.Breakout games at Bankers Life Fieldhouse are becoming the norm for Thompson. He scored 16 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter and made a last-second shot to beat the division-leading Pacers 98-96 in March 2014. The next two times he came to town, Thompson scored 39 points in each game.This time, he went 10 of 18 from the field and 4 of 10 on 3-pointers.Hes a professional shooter, teammate and two-time NBA MVP Stephen Curry said. Theres no two ways around it. Its the same process -- getting in the gym, getting shots up, never losing confidence and sticking with it.Especially when Thompson plays in Indiana.Curry finished with 22 points. Kevin Durant, the 2013-14 MVP, had 14 points, 11 rebounds and six assists for the Warriors.Indiana (7-8) looked tired after earning its first road win Sunday night in overtime at Oklahoma City. The Pacers also played short-handed, with three-time All-Star Paul George, starting center Myles Turner and backup forward C.J. Miles all out with injuries.The difference showed in Indianas most lopsided home defeat as an NBA franchise, breaking the previous mark set by the Los Angeles Clippers in a 102-68 rout.Rodney Stuckey led the Pacers with 21 points, Thaddeus Young had 14 and Indiana was never close after the first quarter.Tonight we just didnt have it, Pacers coach Nate McMillan said. It seemed like our legs were gone and we basically couldnt keep up with them.Golden State took control with an early 15-4 run, pulled away with a 13-4 spurt late in the second quarter and extended its 61-42 halftime lead to 100-71 after three. All the Warriors starters stayed on the bench in the fourth.ddddddddddddTHE HALFTIME SHOWAfter starting the game with four consecutive misses, Curry put on quite a show. He scored 12 in the first half and the rest of his points in the third quarter. But it was the 3-pointer that didnt count that drew the loudest roars from the crowd. A 70-footer dropped through the net as the buzzer sounded at the end of the first half. The shot prompted a replay review that showed the original call was correct -- the ball left Currys hands after the horn.UNWELCOME WAGONA couple of Pacers fans provided a not-so-warm welcome to the Warriors -- with some help from Reggie Miller. As one person held a sign using an altered version of Millers No. 31 jersey, which read Yall blew a 3-1 lead (hash)Dudnation, the fan next to him gave the choke sign Miller popularized during one of the Pacers memorable playoff series against the New York Knicks.TIP-INSWarriors: Finished 13 of 36 on 3-pointers, with six players making at least one. ... Golden State had 31 assists on 40 baskets. ... The Warriors grabbed a season-high 60 rebounds. ... Former Pacers forward David West drew a few boos when he made his first basket, early in the second quarter.Pacers: Point guard Jeff Teague left in the third with a sprained right ankle. McMillan said Teague could have played but the team opted to hold him out. ... Al Jefferson had four points and Glenn Robinson III added eight as the replacements for Turner and George, respectively. ... Indiana is 6-3 at home, where it will play its next three games.UP NEXTWarriors: Return home Wednesday for the first of two straight games against the Lakers. Earlier this month, Los Angeles won the first of four meetings this season.Pacers: Host Atlanta on Wednesday. It will be the first time Teague faces his former team since being traded to Indiana this summer. ' ' '