5/7/25

(Sacramento, CA) With just three games to go in their stretch of eight consecutive division games, the Seattle Mariners would make their first trip to Sacramento to take on the second place Athletics. With eight consecutive series wins propelling the Mariners into the series, Seattle would be in control of themselves as they looked to widen their slim two game lead in the AL West.

It wasn’t going to be easy against a very feisty Athletics squad who entered the series playing their best baseball of the season. The two teams split a four-game series to begin the season in Seattle, but both would be quick to say that they are not even close to the same teams that they were to begin the season. Seattle was looking to solidify their spot as the team to beat in the AL West while it was a chance for the A’s to prove that they are a legit contender in 2025.

Athletics 7, Mariners 6 (11 Innings) (Game One, May 5th)

After suffering a blowout defeat to the Texas Rangers on Sunday, the Mariners would look to start this series on a high note with Bryce Miller on the mound but without Randy Arozarena in the lineup as he nursed his hamstring issue. For the Athletics, it would be their Opening Day starter Luis Severino on the mound, looking to make a statement against the 1st place Mariners.

Seattle would leave two men on in the top of the 1st but the Athletics weren’t so generous in the home half of the inning. Brent Rooker was hit by a pitch before Tyler Soderstrom singled and moved up to second on the throw to third to put two runners in scoring position with one out. Miguel Andujar would then take advantage of the RBI opportunity with a sacrifice fly to center to five the A’s a 1-0 lead. They would double that lead in the 2nd off of a double by JJ Bleday and an RBI single by Jacob Wilson to make it 2-0 early.

Leo Rivas made a highlight reel catch to end the A’s threat in the 2nd and that gave the M’s some momentum in the 3rd. Walks by Rhylan Thomas and J.P. Crawford began the inning before Seattle got on the board. Jorge Polanco once again came through with a single with runners in scoring position, scoring Thomas and making it 2-1. With two outs, runners remained on the corners and Rowdy Tellez came up clutch. Rowdy’s third double of the season squeaked down the right field line to tie the game at 2-2. Miles Mastrobuoni and Ben Williamson then both jumped on pitches early in the count for back-to-back RBI singles to give Seattle a 4-2 lead.

Bryce Miller would get through a scoreless 3rd but the 4th saw his pitch count continue to rise while the game was quickly turned around. Shea Langeliers began the inning with his seventh home run of the season to make it a 4-3 game. After retiring the next two batters, Miller couldn’t sit down rookie Nick Kurtz who would single to extend the inning. Luis Urías hurt his former team with a base hit to put runners on the corners. Lawrence Butler then smoked a grounder off of the glove of Rowdy Tellez and into right field to score Kurtz and tie the game at 4-4 before a Brent Rooker fly out ended the inning.

The game remained tied as the Seattle bullpen took over while Luis Severino put his one bad inning behind him. A double play in the top of the 7th gave the A’s some momentum after the 7th inning stretch. With Collin Snider on the mound, Brent Rooker led off the inning with his sixth double of the season to put the go-ahead run in scoring position. After Tyler Soderstrom was hit by a pitch, Miguel Andujar hit a sacrifice fly to put runners on the corners. Shea Langeliers hurt the M’s again with a sacrifice fly to right to bring in Rooker and put the A’s back out in front 5-4.

With Seattle down by one in the 8th, the Mariners once again used some dramatics to come back to life. A Cal Raleigh walk was followed by a Rowdy Tellez infield single to put runners at first and second with one out. Miles Mastrobuoni would strikeout against Grant Holman to bring rookie Ben Williamson to the plate. Like he has done since being called up, Williamson delivered yet again. A base hit to right sat down, allowing Cal Raleigh to score and tie the game back up at 5-5.

Both Mason Miller and Trent Thornton stranded two runners in the 9th to send the game to extra innings. Tyler Ferguson would start with Cal Raleigh at second base in the 10th and sacrifice flies by Donovan Solano and Miles Mastrobuoni got the Big Dumper in to make it 6-5. Andrés Muñoz saw that lead disappear on his first pitch, which Jacob Wilson sent to right center to score JJ Bleday and tie the game at 6-6. A Nick Kurtz walk and catcher’s interference loaded the bases with nobody out and things looked extremely bleak. However, Muñoz locked in and struck out Lawrence Butler, Brent Rooker, and Tyler Soderstrom to leave the bases loaded and send the game to the 11th.

Seattle couldn’t get Ben Williamson in against Hogan Harris and Tyler Soderstrom started the bottom of the 11th as the winning run at second against Casey Legumina. Gio Urshela’s sacrifice bunt moved the winning run to third and then Dan Wilson made a questionable call. He elected to intentionally walk Shea Langeliers and JJ Bleday to load the bases for the contact hitter Jacob Wilson. It turned out to be a mistake. Wilson slapped a base hit right back up the middle for a walk-off base hit. The Mariners comeback was denied as the A’s walked the Mariners off for a 7-6 win.

Notable Performances

Mariners

Athletics

• Jacob Wilson- 3-6, 3 RBI
• Shea Langeliers- 1-3, HR, 2 RBI, R, 2 BB
• Luis Severino (ND)- 6 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 4 BB, 5 SO

Mariners 5, Athletics 3 (Game Two, May 6th)

Flushing the heartbreaking loss in the opener the night before would not be easy for the Seattle Mariners but they would send Emerson Hancock to the mound who has been on a roll since getting called back up a few weeks ago. Opposite him would be lefty Jeffrey Springs who shutdown the Mariners when he faced them back on March 4th in the second game of the season.

Seattle did more damage to Jeffrey Springs in the 1st inning this time around than they did in his entire last outing against the M’s. After two quick outs, Julio Rodríguez would step to the plate and stayed aggressive as he ambushed a first pitch fastball in the middle of the plate. J-Rod drove it just to the right of the batter’s eye for a solo blast and his sixth home run of the season. Three batters in and the Mariners had taken a 1-0 lead.

The Athletics were ready to respond immediately and erased the Mariner lead quickly. A seemingly harmless walk to Brent Rooker turned into a little bit more when he stole second with two outs for his first stolen base of the season. Miguel Andújar would then for the second consecutive game, record a 1st inning RBI as he sent a base hit to right. Rooker would score but the Mariners would cut down Andújar trying to move up to second and the game was even after an inning, 1-1.

Springs looked like he would settle in to begin the 2nd after recording back-to-back strikeouts of the returning Dylan Moore and Donovan Solano. Ben Williamson wouldn’t let him off so easy as he singled to extend the inning for Miles Mastrobuoni. The utility man chased a fastball above the zone but drove it to the wall in left field. Williamson was able to score from first as Mastrobuoni recorded his second double of the season to make it 2-1.

While that lead did last longer, it wasn’t by much. The Athletics remained extremely aggressive at the plate against Emerson Hancock and in the bottom of the 3rd, that approach paid off. Nick Kurtz would move to third on a walk, stolen base, and groundout and represented the tying run but with two outs. Once again, Hancock was one out away from escaping trouble but the pesky A’s clutched up again. Brent Rooker sent a grounder right back up the middle for a two-out RBI single. He would then move up to third, but a pop up by Tyler Soderstrom ended the inning with the score back even at 2-2.

Both starters would then settle in and despite getting into some jams, turned the game over to their bullpens with the score still 2-2. Seattle would put some serious pressure on T.J. McFarland in the 7th after Mastrobuoni doubled again to begin the inning. A J.P. Crawford walk led to a bunt attempt by Jorge Polanco, but McFarland would catch the popped up bunt for the first out. Justin Sterner would then come into the game and hit Julio Rodríguez to load the bases. It was all for not however as neither Randy Arozarena or Mitch Garver could get the job done and the game remained tied at 2-2.

Matt Brash came in to pitch in another high leverage situation but looked smooth as he got a couple of groundouts for a quick two outs. Then things got a little hairy. A Jacob Wilson single would be followed by a walk to Nick Kurtz. Then, Brash hit Luis Urías to load the bases with two outs. Gabe Speier would have to come in to face Lawrence Butler and try to escape the jam and made quick work of the lefty, striking him out on three pitches to strand the bases loaded for the A’s.

In the 8th, the Athletics got to Speier. A double by Brent Rooker to leadoff the inning but the go-ahead run in scoring position immediately. A bloop single by Tyler Soderstrom then put runners on the corners and Miguel Andújar untied the game with an RBI single to center to make it 3-2 A’s. With still nobody out, Shea Langeliers smoked a line drive to J-Rod in center to move Soderstrom to third with one out. JJ Bleday then took a called strike three before Nick Kurtz went down swinging to send the game to the 9th with the A’s up 3-2 and the Mariners series winning streak in jeopardy.

Mason Miller was unavailable for the A’s which meant Tyler Ferguson would pitch the 9th instead. He retired J.P. Crawford to begin the inning before walking Jorge Polanco to put the tying run on. Julio Rodríguez then singled to put runners on first and second with still just one out. Randy Arozarena then got hit by a pitch to load the bases and Dan Wilson would go to his bench. Leo Rivas entered to run for Arozarena while Cal Raleigh came to the plate to pinch hit for Mitch Garver. It was the perfect storm and Cal came through yet again. A base hit down the right field line not only scored Polanco to tie the game, but drove in Julio as well to give the Mariners a 4-3 lead. A sacrifice fly by Dylan Moore added some breathing room as the game went to the bottom of the 9th with Seattle up 5-3.

Andrés Muñoz was also unavailable for the Mariners so Carlos Vargas would be tasked with getting the final three outs. Back-to-back strikeouts of Luis Urías and Lawrence Butler thanks to a generous call got Vargas off to a tremendous start. It wouldn’t be all calm seas however as Brent Rooker singled to bring the tying run to the plate in Tyler Soderstrom. He would also single and that would make things very interesting as Seth Brown pinch hit and represented the winning run. However, Vargas would record his first MLB save as Brown hit a harmless fly ball to Dylan Moore in right for the final out. Seattle had pulled off a comeback win to force a rubber game as they defeated the A’s, 5-3.

Notable Performances

Mariners

Athletics

• Brent Rooker- 3-4, 2B, RBI, 2 R, BB
• Miguel Andújar- 2-4, 2 RBI
• Jeffrey Springs (ND)- 5 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 SO

Mariners 6, Athletics 5 (Game Three, May 7th)

A beautiful day in Sacramento set the scene for the series finale and rubber game between the Mariners and Athletics on Wednesday afternoon. After dominating the A’s throughout his first two seasons, Bryan Woo would look to continue that trend when he got the ball for Seattle in the finale. For the A’s it would be Gunnar Hoglund making his second career start after a very impressive MLB debut last week.

Woo entered the game giving up only three runs total in seven career starts against the A’s. They would tag him for three in the 1st inning alone on Wednesday. Singles by Jacob Wilson and Tyler Soderstrom set the table for Miguel Andújar to drive in a run in the 1st with an RBI single, giving him a 1st inning RBI in every game in the series. JJ Bleday would deal the big blow however as he sent his ninth double of the season to right field to drive in two. In the blink of an eye the A’s had struck and taken an early 3-0 lead.

Woo struggled to settle in but did throw a scoreless 2nd and 3rd while the Mariner offense struggled to string hits together. In the bottom of the 4th, the Athletics would add on to their lead. Lawrence Butler dropped out of the leadoff spot and it paid off as he hammered the first pitch of the inning 417-feet for his sixth home run of the season, making it 4-0. Seth Brown would single and move up to second with two outs when Jacob Wilson recorded his third hit of the game with a double off the glove of Rowdy Tellez. Seattle saw their deficit continue to grow as all of a sudden they trailed 5-0.

A one-out single by Dylan Moore would look to get the Mariners going in the 5th. He would steal second right before Ben Williamson sent his fourth double of the season to center to get Seattle on the board. The 6th would be a big inning for Seattle. Cal Raleigh walked with one out which ended the day for Gunnar Hoglund. Mitch Spence came in and struggled with his command, walking Randy Arozarena and falling behind Rowdy Tellez 3-0. Spence worked the count back full against Rowdy and then threw a cutter at the very bottom of the zone. Rowdy would drop the barrel on it. Tellez smoked a liner out to right field for his fifth home run of the season. The three-run blast had brought Seattle back to life and cut the deficit to one at 5-4.

In the 8th with Seattle still down by one, Randy Arozarena again drew a walk before being lifted for Miles Mastrobuoni. A quick stolen base for Mastrobuoni put the tying run in scoring position with two outs. Noah Murdock would be one pitch away from stranding that runner as the newest Mariner Leody Taveras found himself behind at 1-2. He picked the perfect moment for his first hit as a Mariner. Taveras just slapped a grounder the other way into right field for a base hit. Mastrobuoni scored easily to tie the game at 5-5 but they weren’t done. After Taveras stole second, Dylan Moore lined one the other way to the wall in right center. Taveras scored easily on Moore’s second double of the year and Seattle had comeback to take a late lead once again, 6-5.

Great defense by Dylan Moore all game long continued in the 8th as Seattle maintained their lead with three outs to go. Andrés Muñoz would be available this time but gave up a leadoff single to Luis Urías to bring the winning run to the plate. Seth Brown went down on strikes for the first out before Shea Langeliers came in to pinch hit. He sent a harmless fly ball to Mastrobuoni in left for the second out, leaving it all up to Jacob Wilson. The rookie was 4-4 on the day but he couldn’t solve Muñoz. A nasty 1-2 slider dropped into the zone for a called strike three to put the game away. Two comebacks in a row kept the good vibes rolling as Seattle made it nine consecutive series wins with a 6-5 win over the Athletics.

Notable Performances

Mariners

Athletics

• Jacob Wilson- 4-5, 2 2Bs, RBI, R
• JJ Bleday- 1-4, 2B, 2 RBI
• Gunnar Hoglund (ND)- 5.1 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 3 SO

Roster Moves

• UTI Dylan Moore activated from 10-day IL. Option 2B Samad Taylor to Triple A Tacoma.
• Claim OF Leody Taveras from the Texas Rangers. Option OF Rhylan Thomas to Triple A Tacoma.
• Mariners trade Luis F. Castillo (Not La Piedra) to Baltimore Orioles for cash considerations.

What’s Next

Seattle (22-14) completes their six-game road trip with a 4-2 record and the Mariners went 6-2 against the AL West to improve to 13-5 against division foes this season. The series win opened the Mariners division lead to three games over the Athletics, four games over Houston, 4 1/2 ahead of Texas, and 7 1/2 ahead of the Los Angeles Angels.

The Mariners will now come home for a six-game homestand against a couple of teams from the AL East. Before a marquee series with the New York Yankees, the Mariners will host their biggest rivals outside of the division in the Toronto Blue Jays. Toronto (16-20) will enter T-Mobile Park with waves of fans from British Columbia as they try to take over Seattle once again. Toronto has only won one of their last six series after dropping the first two to the Angels and will try to avoid being swept in Anaheim on Thursday. The Mariners and Blue Jays met last month in Toronto where the Mariners took two out of three thanks to a home run barrage by former Blue Jay, Rowdy Tellez.

We overlooked George Springer for the last player spotlight due to Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s contract extension, but the former Houston Astro has continued his hot start to the season. In fact, George Springer is not just getting base hits anymore. He is doing serious damage. Springer only hit two home runs in March and April and has already matched that in just 13 at-bats in May. In May, Springer is slugging .923 with an OPS of 1.423 and has more extra base hits than singles. He can still fall victim to the strikeout and is not the same every day player he was in Houston. In the first series with Toronto, Springer just went 3-13 with two doubles and one RBI. However he is hitting the ball with a lot more authority now and while they might only see him twice in the series, he is the guy to look out for in a lineup with a number of dangerous hitters.

• Game 1, Friday 6:40pm- Kevin Gausman (2-3, 3.83 ERA) vs. Luis Castillo (3-2, 3.29 ERA)
• Game 2, Saturday 6:40pm- Bowden Francis (2-5, 5.66 ERA) vs. Logan Evans (1-1, 7.20 ERA)
• Game 3, Sunday 1:10pm- José Ureña (0-0, 8.59 ERA) vs. Bryce Miller (2-3, 4.15 ERA)

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