By Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA – Following their electric victory last night to clinch their first playoff berth in 21 years, the Seattle Mariners took game two and the series against the Oakland Athletics. Seattle had ace pitcher Luis Castillo on the mound, and he delivered in one of his first starts since signing his big contract extension. The Mariners collect their 87th win of the season, and continue to battle for seeding in the American League Wild Card.
Luis Torrens avoided a tag and slid home to score (Photo by Liv Lyons)
Castillo’s first start since extension is class
Starting pitcher Luis Castillo has been a great trade acquisition for the Mariners, and he was rewarded with a five-year extension. In one of his first starts since the extension, Castillo faced early trouble but was able to minimize it to one run in the first inning. The electric starter with nasty stuff and a new contract continues to deliver for Seattle, and remains to be the team's best starting pitcher. As the focus will soon shift to the playoffs, Castillo will surely be tapped for some key starts.
Castillo pitched six innings for Seattle, and arguably could have gone longer as he only threw 77 pitches. The two hits that Castillo allowed were both in the first inning, along with the only run that he allowed. Seattle manager Scott Servais said pregame that he told Castillo last night that he was “gonna pitch tomorrow, and you’re gonna pitch well.” Looking back, Castillo absolutely did pitch well.
Luis Castillo pitched six innings of one-run ball (Photo by Liv Lyons)
Mariners don’t rely on long ball, score when they need it
A main issue for the Mariners has been their offensive inconsistency (as I have stated time and time again), and a subplot of that has been the reliance on the long ball. Manager Scott Servais has mentioned on numerous occasions that “homers are fun,” but he also states that being a very homer or bust team is a very dangerous thing. Today, the Mariners were able to generate runs in a more organic way.
The game began with a response to the Athletics, who had struck first in the top of the inning. The Mariners were able to string some hits together, and even took advantage of the bases loaded. Carlos Santana slapped a single right back up the middle to score Dylan Moore. Shortly after, Sam Haggerty whacked a single on a rope into right field, scoring two. Seattle pulled some runs across with the bases loaded, and built a lead they never lost. The Mariners remained silent until the bottom of the eighth, when the team used a Luis Torrens double and a Sam Haggerty sac fly to score two more runs.
Dylan Moore doubled in the bottom of the first inning (Photo by Liv Lyons)
Taking the series with a “relaxed” lineup
Considering the huge party thrown postgame last night, it only made sense that several starters were not going to start the day game after it. JP Crawford, Mitch Haniger, Eugenio Suarez, Ty France, and Cal Raleigh were all notably in the dugout for this one. Perhaps the most notable of all the starters in this game, though, was Brian O’Keefe in the designated hitter spot. The recent Tacoma Rainiers call up recorded a single in the bottom of the fifth, notching his first major league hit.
Jarred Kelenic stares down Oakland reliever JP Sears (Photo by Liv Lyons)
Quick notes
Mariner relievers Matthew Boyd, Diego Castillo, and Matt Festa combined for 3 innings pitched and allowed 0 hits and 1 walk while striking out 3.
The Mariners have 4 players (Sam Haggerty, Dylan Moore, Julio Rodríguez, Adam Frazier) with 10+ stolen bases this season, tied for 4th-most in the Majors.
Since joining the Mariners Castillo has a 3.17 ERA (23 ER, 65.1 IP) with 17 walks and 77 strikeouts.
Brian O'Keefe is the 53rd Mariners player to record a base hit in his MLB debut and the first since Dillon Thomas on June 9, 2021 at Detroit.
What’s next?
The Mariners will aim for the sweep of the Athletics, as they meet Oakland for the series finale tomorrow, Sunday the 2nd of October. First pitch time for the third game of the series is at 1:10PM PST, as Robbie Ray gets the ball on the mound for the Mariners. James Kaprielian will start across the way for Oakland.
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