The Seattle Mariners know that if they want to end their 17-year postseason drought, they need to pull off quality wins down the stretch. They have two of them in their back pocket from these last two days, beginning on Thursday night, when they rocked Justin Verlander early on. Verlander allowed six runs in just two innings, falling short of his 200th career win, as the Mariners earned an 8-6 victory at Minute Maid Park.
Mitch Haniger, Jean Segura, and Denard Span all went deep in the first two innings, helping Seattle hand Verlander his seventh loss of the season. That trio of hitters combined for 10 hits and seven RBI on the night. The Astros' ace set a season high in runs allowed, but was ejected after the second inning for arguing with the home plate umpire about a late balk call. He continued to complain about it after the game saying "I've never been called for that."
The right-hander has been inconsistent as of late, allowing 15 runs, including 10 home runs in his last four outings.
Conversely, James Paxton allowed four runs on seven hits to earn his 10th win of the year, and continuing his success against Houston. Paxton is now 4-0 this season against the defending World Series champions. Edwin Diaz came on for the ninth, allowed a home run to Tyler White, but earned his 43rd save of the season.
The M's road success continued on Friday night, as they scored three times in the eighth inning to break a tie and top the Astros again, 5-2. Nelson Cruz had the tiebreaking, two-run double, giving the Mariners their second straight win in Houston, and improving them to five games over .500 on the road. Mitch Haniger and Denard Span scored on Cruz's double after they knocked Gerrit Cole out of the game with a couple of hits.
Cole lasted 7.1 innings and allowed four runs in his fifth loss of the season. He got off to a quick start by retiring 15 of the first 16 batters he faced. Ryan Pressly took over in the inning, allowing the rally that was capped off by Cruz's double.
Adam Warren did not allow a run and stranded a hit in the seventh inning, earning his first win out of the bullpen. Edwin Diaz came on for the ninth to record his 44th save and second in as many days. Mike Leake pitched well in the start, allowing two runs on eight hits over six innings. The Mariners are now 2.5 games behind the Oakland Athletics for the final American League Wild Card spot, and six games back in the AL West. These two teams will play two more times this weekend.
Mitch Haniger, Jean Segura, and Denard Span all went deep in the first two innings, helping Seattle hand Verlander his seventh loss of the season. That trio of hitters combined for 10 hits and seven RBI on the night. The Astros' ace set a season high in runs allowed, but was ejected after the second inning for arguing with the home plate umpire about a late balk call. He continued to complain about it after the game saying "I've never been called for that."
The right-hander has been inconsistent as of late, allowing 15 runs, including 10 home runs in his last four outings.
Conversely, James Paxton allowed four runs on seven hits to earn his 10th win of the year, and continuing his success against Houston. Paxton is now 4-0 this season against the defending World Series champions. Edwin Diaz came on for the ninth, allowed a home run to Tyler White, but earned his 43rd save of the season.
The M's road success continued on Friday night, as they scored three times in the eighth inning to break a tie and top the Astros again, 5-2. Nelson Cruz had the tiebreaking, two-run double, giving the Mariners their second straight win in Houston, and improving them to five games over .500 on the road. Mitch Haniger and Denard Span scored on Cruz's double after they knocked Gerrit Cole out of the game with a couple of hits.
Cole lasted 7.1 innings and allowed four runs in his fifth loss of the season. He got off to a quick start by retiring 15 of the first 16 batters he faced. Ryan Pressly took over in the inning, allowing the rally that was capped off by Cruz's double.
Adam Warren did not allow a run and stranded a hit in the seventh inning, earning his first win out of the bullpen. Edwin Diaz came on for the ninth to record his 44th save and second in as many days. Mike Leake pitched well in the start, allowing two runs on eight hits over six innings. The Mariners are now 2.5 games behind the Oakland Athletics for the final American League Wild Card spot, and six games back in the AL West. These two teams will play two more times this weekend.
