By Paul L. Taylor Posted on

Mariners finally show some signs of life and beat Rangers 7-3

The Mariners lean on the bottom of the lineup to snap a four-game losing skid and help George Kirby continue his winning ways against Texas.

For all the Mariners’ struggles so far in 2026, returning to Seattle after being swept by the Padres was meant to be a positive just in terms of their winning record at T-Mobile Park. So you can imagine how demoralizing it was when they began their latest homestand being blanked 5-0 by a Rangers team which seemed to have their number.

However, faced with losing a second straight series to their divisional rivals, the Mariners finally found some life on Saturday late afternoon and snapped a four-game losing streak with a 7-3 win. And that it was even that close was only because of a meltdown by Cole Wilcox in the top of the ninth, which admittedly had shades of Andrés Muñoz’s capitulation during the week in San Diego.

The Mariners started well when Julio Rodríguez brought J.P. Crawford home in the bottom of the first with an RBI single to make it 1-0. As much as Rodríguez is having his usual slow start to a season, he’s now reached base safely in 15 consecutive games, which is his longest streak since 17 consecutive games last season between Apr. 12-May 2.

Dominic Canzone increased the Mariners’ lead to 3-0 in the bottom of the fourth with a two-RBI single, on a day when he led the team with three hits. Looking to prove last season’s career year was a sign of things to come, this was the 10th three-hit game of his time in the majors and first since versus the Rockies last September.

George Kirby continues to show the Rangers who is boss

The Rangers finally got on the board with a solo blast in the top of the sixth to make it 3-1, but this didn’t take away from a fine outing by George Kirby. While he was pulled with one outing remaining in the half inning, he finished allowing seven hits, two walks and the aforementioned one run, while also striking out five.

It might not have been Kirby’s most dominant of outings, but he was still good enough as he continued his excellent overall form against the Rangers. In 12 career starts against them he’s now 9-1 with a 1.33 ERA, while striking out 60 versus just nine walks over 74.1 combined innings.

The red hot Luke Raley reestablished the three-run advantage in the bottom of the sixth with a solo homer. It was his fifth home run of the season to surpass his total for all of last season, while his .318 batting average, 1.011 OPS and 193 OPS+ all lead the club.

The Mariners seemed to put the game beyond doubt in the bottom of the eighth with a three-run salvo courtesy of a Cole Young two-RBI single and Leo Rivas’ sacrifice fly. However, even with a 7-1 lead and 99.7 percent win probability entering the ninth inning, it wasn’t quite over yet.

Cole Wilcox almost blows it for the Mariners

Things started off with a single for the Rangers, but when Wilcox followed this up with the first out it should have calmed the nerves. However, the Mariners reliever then proceeded to load the bases and the fans must have wondered what was going to go wrong this time.

Evan Carter pulled the visitors to within 7-2 on a sacrifice fly and when an Ezequiel Duran double made it 7-3 and a walk subsequently loaded the bases again, the Mariners knew they couldn’t rely on Wilcox to get that final out. So in came Muñoz, in need of some much-needed redemption after the disaster in San Diego and he got it with a strikeout to clinch the win.

The Mariners’ 11 hits represented just the third time this season they reached double-digits in this category, while it was interesting that six of their seven runs came from the bottom four in their batting order. You can only imagine just how scary this lineup will be when the likes of Cal Raleigh and Josh Naylor get going on a more consistent basis.

Dan Wilson happy for Andres Munoz

Speaking postgame, Mariners manager Dan Wilson was overall pleased with how the team performed on the day, save for the nervy ending. He said:

“An exciting one there at the end, but all in all, a really good ball game today. We’ve been talking about the offense and the at-bats, really good at-bats again today and particularly when we’re getting them in. I thought some really good approaches, using the middle of the field, getting the ball through the infield hard, and driving in runners, and it was huge.”

As much as Wilson would have preferred to avoid the angst caused by Wilcox in the top of the ninth, he still took the positive of Muñoz coming in to finish things off. He said:

“I think in some ways it was a good spot for him, and he got in there and did what he does, which was pound the zone, use his slider, use his heater. I thought the way he used his pitches was very effective and slammed the door. I think that’s definitely one where he’ll gain some confidence from and keep moving.”

M’s fans can’t blame Dan Wilson for latest bullpen decisions

There have already been plenty of times this season when Wilson has been criticized for his bullpen management, not helped by going 2-6 in one-run ball games. We don’t actually agree that all of the criticism has been fair or warranted, but such is the life of a Major League manager.

In any event, the Mariners used six relievers on Saturday and Wilson was asked about his aggressive bullpen management, including pulling Kirby after 5.2 innings. He said:

“Those are the things that you sort of try to walk through ahead of time and try to make a plan for. Sometimes it doesn’t go to plan, and you end up in a weird situation. But definitely it’s been a while for a couple of guys in the bullpen. Matty hadn’t been out there in a while, and Gabe really too. So nice to get those guys into the game, and I thought they threw the ball well. So good to get them rolling. But, you have to weigh all those things, when you’re making those decisions.”

The Mariners will now take aim at winning just their second series of the season in Sunday’s rubber match, with first pitch set for 1:10 pm PT at T-Mobile Park. Bryan Woo will look to continue his strong start, leading the rotation with a 2.16 ERA, 188 ERA+ and 2.24 FIP, while the Rangers will counter with southpaw MacKenzie Gore and his 3.00 ERA.

Photos court​‌esy of Tim Rogers Photography

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