Mariners recover from 7-run deficit to win playoff series in Toronto

Seattle Mariners produce a wild comeback versus the Blue Jays, to win 10-9 and advance to the AL Division Series against AL West rivals the Houston Astros.

All season long, we’ve written that the Mariners never, ever, give up. Saturday afternoon in Toronto provided the ultimate example of this.

Down 8-1 entering the sixth inning inside a deafening Rogers Centre, it seemed certain we were headed to a Game Three on Sunday. Instead, the Mariners stunned the Blue Jays in a comeback for the ages, to win 10-9 and clinch their Wild Card series.

As has often been the case during 2022, the unfazed Cal Raleigh came up big in a pressure-packed moment. The catcher doubled with one out in the top of the ninth, to get on base.

This was subsequently followed by Adam Frazier hitting a double of his own, to bring Raleigh home. For the first time in the game, the score gave the Mariners the only lead they would need.

Manager Scott Servais then made the decision to bring George Kirby in for the bottom of the ninth. Nothing has been too much for Kirby during his rookie season and this proved to be the case again, getting the three outs needed to secure the victory.

To say the Mariners’ comeback was unlikely would be an understatement, as it represented the second-largest in postseason history. It was also the largest for a team on the road and Seattle’s name now goes into the record books.

Ray struggles against his former team

You can make the argument the Mariners should never have been in such a hole in the first place. Fairly or not, a major portion of the blame for this goes squarely on the shoulders of Robbie Ray.

No one will ever criticize the Mariners for making the deal to sign Ray to a five-year contract. The pitcher was in demand following a sensational campaign last year with the Blue Jays.

However, the 2021 AL Cy Young Award winner has been inconsistent this year in Seattle. In fact, heading into the playoffs he had a 5.27 ERA and 5.89 FIP, while allowing eight homers and nine walks in his last 27.1 innings.

Further, there was just a general concern Ray would implode against his former team. This is not the nervous vibe you want — or expect — surrounding one of your top pitchers.

Unfortunately for the Mariners and their fans alike, an implosion was essentially what happened. Ray gave up a trio of runs in the first three innings, to put Seattle in an early 3-0 hole.

However, it was not until Teoscar Hernandez’s second homer in the top of the fourth, that Servais decided to make a change on the mound. Giving up six hits and four earned runs in just three official innings simply isn’t good enough.

In fairness to Ray, he wasn’t the only Mariners pitcher who struggled significantly. After getting a run back in the top of the fifth to make it 4-1, Seattle turned to the usually reliable Paul Sewald.

Sewald similarly fell apart however, and didn’t even make it out of the fifth inning. He allowed three hits, two walks and four earned runs, to put the Mariners down and seemingly out at 8-1.

No quit

As mentioned earlier though, this team will not quit and often displays superior mental fortitude. Consider that for the second consecutive year, Seattle led the Majors in one-run wins.

The away side began to climb their way back into the game during the top of the sixth, with a four-run explosion of their own. Raleigh was involved once more (of course), but the key hit was Carlos Santana’s three-run homer, to pull to within 8-5.

Even at this stage, it still seemed likely to most that the Blue Jays would hold on for the win. It wasn’t until the top of the eighth when Toronto fans really started to panic, as Seattle once more had a four-run inning.

Raleigh again was involved, with an RBI single. He finished the game with three hits, one RBI, a walk and three runs. (He leads the Mariners in batting average and OPS in two games this postseason.)

J.P. Crawford had the clutch two-out hit, which resulted in three runs. This tied the game at 9-9 and set the stage for Frazier’s and Kirby’s heroics.

Afterwards, Servais spoke to the media about the mindset of his players when they were down 8-1. He said:

“When you’re in that moment, you have to realize you’re in that moment. How do you flip it the other way? … It’s going to happen. That’s the beauty of playoff baseball.”

Servais went further, explaining how it is important to chip away at any deficit, rather than attempt to do everything all at once. He said:

“I think when you get in trouble is when you try to flip the momentum and you say, ‘OK, I’m going to be the guy that hits a home run here,’ or, ‘I’m going to be the guy that strikes out the side here’. Do the little things. Have a good at-bat. Figure out how to get on base. Create a rally and pass the baton to the next guy. If you focus on the little things, sometimes big things happen.”

As a result of the series win, the Mariners will now move on to play their divisional rivals, the Houston Astros. It won’t be easy, but at least Seattle is guaranteed its first home playoff game since 2001.

Servais appreciates how special this is for Mariners fans. He said:

“To have an opportunity to play in front of all the fans in the Pacific Northwest and how long they’ve been (waiting). They’re starving for this.”

A tough decision for the Mariners

While this is a time for celebration, there is the question of if Ray should be in the rotation for the five-game series? Aside from his struggles on Saturday and in general of late, he hasn’t done well this year against the Astros.

The thinking is Logan Gilbert and Luis Castillo will start Game One and Two respectively. However, there is a strong argument Kirby should start Game Three at T-Mobile Park, with Ray going in the bullpen.

This is something for Servais to think about in the coming days however, with the current focus on dreaming about what can happen. As Mitch Haniger said:

“I don’t think about winning one series. I think about winning the World Series a lot. Like, every day.”

As much as this may be unlikely for the Mariners — at least this year — you never know. Certainly, if nothing else, we know this is a team that will keep fighting until the very last out.

How much of a chance do you believe the Mariners have against the Astros? In addition, are you starting Ray in Game Three, given his recent struggles and overall problems he has had versus Houston? Let us know in the comments section below.