By Bel Garcia
Seattle, WA - A rubber match at T-Mobile Park against the Twins resulted in a series loss for the Mariners. With a brutal 5-0 shutout loss in a game that felt in reach, Seattle has now lost their second series in a row. While they were able to get on base, Seattle was not able to convert any of those hits into runs and it was only a matter of time before the Twins started having their way. The Mariners have only won two games in six games played so far this homestand.
Many Seattle batters have struggled lately, including Julio Rodriguez, who is 3-22 (Photo Henry Wei)
The man on the mound
Marco Gonzales had a great performance, but it was simply not enough as the offense struggled. The Twins did not score while Gonzales was pitching, but his time on the mound came to an end at the top of the seventh. It was then that Gary Sanchez would sway the momentum in the Twins direction by plating the Twins first run, off a Ryan Jeffers hit that bounced off the center field wall. Gonzales ended his night after six innings with three hits allowed, one earned run, two walks, two strikeouts, and his ERA now sits at 3.41.
Marco Gonzales had a quality start, but it would not matter for the Mariners (Photo Henry Wei)
Minnesota runs up the scoreboard
Seattle had many moments in the game where they had one or two players on base, but were not able to turn those into runs. Jesse Winker had singles twice in the game, but was left on base as the hits just were not coming for the Mariners. In the bottom of the third, Taylor Trammell set himself up in the best position as he doubled, and due to a throwing error by Max Kepler, advanced to third base. The plate appearances that followed just were not enough as the Twins were able to respond on defense. All the offense for the Mariners just felt too short and the last three innings went Minnesota’s way. In the top of the eighth, Luis Arraez just about sealed the win with a tw9-run single that gave the Twins a 4-0 lead.
Twins center fielder Byron Buxton has been extremely valuable for Minnesota (Photo Henry Wei)
Looking ahead, the Mariners will face the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in their next five games. Seattle has a possibility to turn this homestand around, and take third place in the AL West from the Angels. Baseball superstars Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout will come to town, and their struggling bullpen will join them. It remains to be seen, but can Seattle’s slumping offense break out against the bad Angels pitching?
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