Considering how the first game of Thursday's doubleheader was lost with the frustrating familiarity of yet another bullpen failure being taken to a new and more painful level, the idea of the Mariners showing up stagnant for the second of two 7-inning games and getting swept wasn't without expectation.
When you blow a four-run lead in the final inning, giving up seven runs, including a three-run walk-off homer, there has to be some carry over of the defeat, particularly when the first pitch of that next game took place roughly 30 minutes after the Padres were done celebrating their crazy comeback victory.
But in a testament to short memories and the old adage that momentum is the next game's starting pitcher, the Mariners salvaged a split of the doubleheader that was made necessary when they opted not to play Thursday night's game vs. Padres as a form of protest.
Jose Marmolejos, who was added to the roster as the 29th player for the doubleheader, crushed a grand slam off of Padres starter Garrett Richards to highlight a six-run first inning that propelled the Mariners to a 8-3 win in the nightcap.
"Heck of a response from our team," manager Scott Servais said in a postgame video conference.
Depending on the health of Evan White's shoulder, Marmolejos could be headed back to the taxi squad after a day in which he also turned a key bases-loaded double play to end the sixth inning and rescue the Mariners' bullpen from further misery. He also hit a two-run homer in the first game of the doubleheader.
.jpg?w=600)
