Mariners make the wrong kind of history in Milwaukee

It was a rough night all around for the Mariners, as they suffered the worst loss in franchise history after a 22-0 beatdown by the Brewers.

As is often said, you win as a team and you lose as a team. And there’s no doubt the Mariners lost as a team on Tuesday evening in Milwaukee, with everyone contributing to an embarrassing 22-0 defeat by the Brewers. The final scoreline represented the worst loss in M’s history, not exactly the kind of record they were looking to set in the same season as their 50th anniversary celebrations.

The 22 runs also tied the record for the most allowed in Mariners history, with a 2015 loss in Boston versus the Red Sox. For the Brewers, it was their largest margin of victory in franchise history, with the scoreline also tying for the most lopsided shutout win in the majors since 1888. About the only positive for the M’s was that the AL West-leading Astros also lost on the night, keeping the gap at 4.0 games.

We can absolutely appreciate that all defeats only represent a single ‘L’ in the loss column. As Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times pointed out on social media, the losses count the same whether it’s one run or 22 runs. Still, the demoralizing nature of the defeat on Tuesday night’s at American Family Field is hard to shake off within a fanbase trying to cling onto hopes of a playoff spot.

A controversial call goes against the Mariners and starts the nightmare

The Mariners kept things close through the first four innings and only trailed 1-0, with the argument that it should have still been a scoreless game. William Contreras hit a two-out single which Randy Arozarena fielded and threw directly to Cal Raleigh at the plate and seemingly in plenty of time. However, when Raleigh went to tag Jake Bauers, the Brewers’ first baseman swatted at the catcher’s glove and knocked the ball loose, allowing him to score in the ensuing scramble.

The Mariners expected the home plate umpire Adrian Johnson to nullify the run, but it stood and the Brewers had the 1-0 lead. We’re not going to go as far as suggesting that a different call would have changed the game, but at that time it was a critical decision. In any event, things finally fell apart for M’s starter Bryce Miller in the bottom of the fifth, as the nightmare began for the visitors.

Miller notched the first out, but then the Brewers got the next two batters on base and a subsequent double steal put them both into scoring position. Another single doubled the Brewers’ advantage to 2-0, and following a walk they loaded the bases. Contreras then got his second RBI to make it 3-0, and the hosts were now threatening to blow the game wide open.

Dan Wilson admits he should have taken Bryce Miller out sooner

It was at this moment Miller should have been taken out, something which Mariners manager Dan Wilson admirably admitted postgame. Instead the righty stayed in and the M’s were punished, as Christian Yelich blasted a three-run bomb to right center field to make it 6-0 and all but end the game. Miller was finally and mercifully pulled from the game, but the damage was done.

Miller’s night ended with allowing seven hits, two walks and six runs (five earned) in 4.2 innings, while producing three strikeouts. Afterwards, he spoke to the media about the back-breaking three-run homer. As per Zach Sweet of MLB.com, he said:

“If I make a pitch there, get out of it, we’re still in the game. Left the splitter up a little bit, and he got to it. … We get out of that inning and it’s 3-0 instead of 6-0. It’s a big difference.”

The Brewers just keep piling the runs on

In fairness to Miller, his replacement Josh Simpson fared no better. After getting the final out of the fifth inning, he allowed three hits, two walks and five earned runs himself in the bottom of the sixth, to increase the Brewers’ lead to 11-0. Simpson only managed to get one out in the inning, before having to be replaced by Nick Davila.

Davila lasted 1.2 innings, in the process allowing two more runs to make it 13-0. However, if Mariners fans thought (hoped) it couldn’t get any worse, they were sadly mistaken. Leo Rivas came in to pitch the eighth inning, and the Brewers didn’t go easy on him, bludgeoning him for nine hits, a walk and nine runs to complete the scoring.

Perhaps best highlighting the embarrassing nature of the night, came when the score was 19-0 and Julio Rodríguez caught a fly ball from Yelich. The Mariners’ center fielder then casually threw the ball into the stands, but the problem was this was only the second out. The bases were loaded and as per Major League rules, each runner can advance two bases, thus Rodríguez’s mistake increased the lead to 21-0.

There was just nothing to like about this game at all, from a Mariners’ perspective. After an excellent offensive showing during the three-game series in Houston, the lineup only managed five hits on Tuesday night. They also had four errors, to further encapsulate what was a sloppy display all around.

Even now, there’s still hope for the Mariners’ playoff chances

It really is almost surreal that the Mariners are still only 3.0 games out of an AL wild card spot, despite now being eight games under .500 at 59-67. This only adds further credence to Divish’s aforementioned point about losses. But boy, this sure was an ugly one, which saw the Mariners go from the sixth-best run differential in the AL, to the fifth-worst.

One of Wilson’s best skills is his ability to always remain even-keeled, no matter how good or bad a situation looks. This was the ultimate test of that mindset, but he still did his damn best, as he looked ahead to bouncing back on Wednesday evening. He said:

“We’ve played a lot of good baseball the last several games. We need to get back to that. This one, sometimes it goes this way. … We’ve got to come back tomorrow and be ready to find a way.”

Photos court​‌esy of Tim Rogers Photography

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