By Morris Phillips

For the first time in 2014, the A’s are slumping, after dropping a second straight contest to the Mariners, 8-3, at the Coliseum on Tuesday.

The A’s have lost 4 of 5 but retain their spot atop the AL West with a two game lead over the Rangers. Texas fell 12-1 to the Rockies in Denver on Tuesday.

“Our approaches are fine we’re just not swinging the bats like we did those three days in Texas,” manager Bob Melvin said. “You’re going to go through good times and bad times over the course of the season. They’ve pitched us pretty tough.”

Starter Jesse Chavez fell into trouble immediately, allowing three runs in the first inning, on a wild pitch and two run-scoring hits by Dustin Ackley and Justin Smoak. Chavez would settle down after that, throwing 5 1/3 innings and departing with the A’s trailing 4-2.

The A’s responded in the bottom of the sixth as Yoenis Cespedes got a Roenis Elias pitch in his wheelhouse and deposited it beyond the left field wall to pull the A’s within 4-3. But that was it for the A’s offense as Elias and three Seattle relievers limited the A’s to a pair of hits over the final three innings.

The Mariners won their fourth straight, eight of 10, and moved over .500 after 30 games for the first time since the 2009 season. Seattle will look for the rare four-game sweep on Wednesday, when the teams play a doubleheader beginning at 12:35pm.

“We’re feeding off each other, picking each other up and we’re trusting each other. If we don’t get the job done, then the guy on deck will,” Seattle’s Michael Saunders said.

Chavez made just the ninth start of his career on Tuesday, and while it wasn’t near the standard he set in his first six starts this season, he battled and showed the variety of pitches he’s developed in converting from a reliever to a starter since being acquired by the A’s in 2012. In the middle innings, Chavez showed his newly-developed cut fastball and stayed out of trouble until the sixth. The 30-year old rail thin right hander allowed four runs on seven hits, with three strikeouts and two walks.

Reliever Jim Johnson ran into trouble in the ninth, allowing four runs on two hits and two walks. The rally put the game away for the Mariners and forced Melvin’s hand as he had to summon reliever Dan Otero to get the final out of the ninth.

Coco Crisp had a pair of hits in the leadoff spot, but the next two hitters, Jed Lowrie and Josh Donaldson were a combined 0 for 8 with a pair of strikeouts.

Dan Straily will face King Felix Hernandez in the doubleheader opener, and neither team had announced a pitcher for the nightcap at press time with the A’s likely to promote a starter from Sacramento to make the start.