Mariners beat Royals 2-0 with Luis Castillo and a rare challenge

It wasn’t pretty in the rubber match, but the main thing is the Mariners got the victory to set up the biggest series of the year in Houston.

Houston we have a problem, but whether it turns out to be for the Mariners or Astros remains to be seen. What we do know at this stage is that this is the most important series of the year for the M’s, as they now face three games that will likely determine their fate this season.

At least the Mariners head to Houston on a level footing with identical 84-69 records, after scraping by the Royals in one of those ugly games that highlights it doesn’t matter how you get past a team as long as you win. And a major part of the reason the M’s won 2-0, was down to a sublime outing from Luis Castillo.

Luis Castillo continues to look like his old self

After a horrific four-game stretch which saw Castillo produce an unsightly 10.06 ERA, he has turned things around with two tremendous performances in Atlanta and then at home to the Los Angeles Angels. He continued his fine form on Thursday, as he allowed just three hits and no walks or runs in 6.0 innings, while also striking out three.

Postgame, Mariners manager Dan Wilson discussed Castillo’s outing. He said:

“A great job by The Rock today giving us six really strong innings. I thought he threw the ball very well, ahead of the count almost all day long. A great changeup to really keep them at bay. Just made good pitches all day long and really controlled the game for us, for the first six.”

For many, Castillo’s changeup was as good as it’s been all season. Speaking through an interpreter about this, he said:

“From the last few starts I’ve put a little bit more on some of the breaking balls, specifically on the changeup. I’ve got to the point where I’m confident of throwing it no matter what the count is. I’m just going to continue doing what I’m doing and hoping to continue getting more confident and throw more of those pitches out there.”

Despite Castillo’s quality start the Mariners still found themselves in a dog fight and clinging to a 1-0 lead through seven innings, due to hitting being at a premium on both sides. Their one score came thanks to a RBI double by Jorge Polanco in the top of the second, which represented just one of five hits on the day for the visitors.

The rarest of challenges by the Mariners

The key moment of the game came in the top of the eighth, thanks to a rare and smart challenge by the Mariners. The Royals had seemingly got the second out of the half inning, but Wilson requested a replay review to see if second baseman Michael Massey’s heel was touching the grass when Dominic Canzone’s grounder was hit to him.

After the umpires reviewed the play it was overturned and Canzone was awarded first base, with Massey charged with an error on a shift violation. Victor Robles then came in as a pinch-runner for Canzone and subsequently managed to score from first thanks to the combination of his steal attempt and J.P. Crawford hitting a double to right field.

The second run proved crucial in giving the Mariners a little extra breathing space and a big portion of the reason comes down to Andy Bissell. The M’s replay coordinator had noticed earlier in the game that Massey was repeatedly standing on the grass with his heels before pitches, and was just waiting for the right moment to take advantage of this violation.

The player in violation has to be the first one to make a play on the ball after a hit, so when Massey did this on Canzone’s grounder, Bissell was able to call the Mariners dugout and tell Wilson to challenge. The M’s manager was effusive in his praise afterwards, as he said:

“Bissell’s play at the end was huge. To be able to have everything align in the right spot to get an extra out so to speak, and then for J.P. to come up with a huge knock to get (Robles) in. Just a huge play for us.”

A total team effort by the Mariners including by Bissell

Bissell downplayed the part he played, telling the media the potential violation is something they always look for and it’s usually the second baseman, depending on where the cameras are pointing. However, it doesn’t change the reality he was instrumental in helping the M’s.

Not that the job was completed quite yet, but at least the Mariners could turn the ball over to a bullpen which has been mostly tremendous of late and with an additional one-run cushion. The combo of Eduard Bazardo, Gabe Speier and Andrés Muñoz pitched one scoreless inning each to secure the 2-0 win.

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Houston series one of the biggest in franchise history

Now, it’s onto Houston for a series which has so much at stake, with the potential for a first division title since 2001 and the homefield advantage which accompanies it. In addition, the Mariners are now within one game of the Tigers and hold the tie-breaker over them, which could result in the second AL seed and a precious first round bye.

Castillo knows how important it was to get a series win in Kansas City and how the Mariners need to approach the series against the Astros. He said:

“It’s fantastic, because we’re now coming with a positive mentality going to Houston, knowing we just won the series here and (following) the great wins we had at home. All we can continue doing is work and continue doing what we’ve been doing, (have a) positive mentality and just going to Houston and battle as we’ve been doing.”

Wilson has plenty of experience contending for the playoffs, division titles and more, as part of four Mariners teams which went to the postseason. As such he’s embracing the challenge ahead, as he said:

“This is going to be fun and to get some momentum today is big. We’ve got to be prepared and we will be. This is why you play and it’s exciting. I think everybody in there is ready to go … and now it’s game on in Houston.”

It won’t be easy, as evidenced by the Mariners’ 36-42 record on the road this season including 1-3 in Houston specifically. However, for what it’s worth the M’s do have a combined 10-3 record at Daikan Park during the previous two seasons and there’s little doubt this year’s roster is better than the ones from the 2023 and 2024 campaigns.

As Wilson says these are exciting times for the Mariners and there’s plenty of confidence in them outside the organization including by FanGraphs, who actually give them the best odds out of all AL teams to win the World Series, at 13.3 percent. Houston we have a problem, and it turns out it might be for the Astros.

Photos court​‌esy of Tim Rodgers Photography

So here we go – it’s all set up for the most important series of the season for the Mariners and one of their biggest in years with so much on the line. How does this all play out? Do they win the series in Houston, do they win their first division title since 2001 and do they catch the Tigers for the number two seed in the AL? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.