SEATTLE — For those who want to nitpick and find criticism in everything, including victories, the Seattle Mariners’ inability to add runs after the third inning and do more with their multitude of hits on the evening would be viable if not petty complaints.
But given their opponent, who came into the series as one of the top teams in the American League and the overall execution with which the Mariners displayed over nine innings in the field, on the mound and at the plate, well, Seattle’s 5-1 home victory over the Tampa Bay Rays felt like one of their better outcomes of the 2021 season.
With their second consecutive victory over Tampa, the Mariners will have two opportunities to take the four-game series against the AL East leaders. Seattle once again moved back to an even .500 at 36-36 and has won five of its past six games, while the Rays fell to 43-28.
The Mariners scored four runs off Rays starter Michael Wacha in the bottom of the first inning, erasing a 1-0 deficit, and scored another run off him in the third, which was more than enough run support for starter Yusei Kikuchi.
Kikuchi gave the Mariners seven solid innings, allowing one run on four hits with three walks and six strikeouts. He wasn’t dominant. All three walks visibly upset him, and he allowed base runners in five of his seven innings. But with the bullpen heavily taxed in the walk-off victory Thursday, Kikuchi provided a much-needed respite for many of the arms that have been used heavily this season.
His only run allowed came in the first inning following a leadoff single to Manuel Margot and a one-out single Austin Meadows. Margot scored on Yandy Diaz’s soft ground ball to shortstop that couldn’t be turned into an inning-ending double play.
The Mariners beat Wacha around T-Mobile Park, racking up 11 hits off him in 3 2/3 innings.
J.P. Crawford led off the game with a double to left field and then ran through the stop sign from third base coach Manny Acta to score on Kyle Seager’s one-out single to tie the game.
Ty France followed with a single that moved Seager to third and Jake Bauers looped a single into center off the end of his bat to make it 2-0. Seattle tacked on two more with two outs as Shed Long Jr. beat the shift with a RBI single left-center and Luis Torrens dumped a RBI single into right field.
The Mariners other run came in the third inning. France led off with a double, advanced to third on Bauers second hit of the game. France scored on an infield single to make it 5-1.
Although they put runners on base, the Rays never really threatened against Kikuchi, only advancing a runner to second base in his final inning of work when Taylor Walls doubled with one out. But Kikuchi left him at second base, getting Brett Phillips to flyout to left and Margot to ground out to shortstop to end his outing.
He threw 103 pitches on the evening with 66 strikes with 18 of 28 first-pitch strikes. He also had 13 swings and misses, including nine on his cutter. He allowed just one ball in play with an exit velocity of more than 100 mph – the Walls double.
