3 Up, 3 Down: Eugenio Suárez Stays Hot to Lead Mariners to 6-5 Comeback Win Over Rangers
In all three games of their weekend series with the Rangers, the Mariners have found themselves down 3-2 with six or fewer outs to go. They overcame that deficit to steal game one on Friday night and, after being unable to recapture the magic on Saturday, managed to claw their way back up from an even deeper hole on Sunday.
Seattle squandered some opportunities on the offensive end, but it succeeded in its overall goal to survive left-handed pitcher and ERA leader Martín Pérez, whose afternoon ended after 6.0 solid innings with the game tied at two runs apiece. Unfortunately, the team's bullpen issues in high-leverage situations cropped once again, resulting in a pair of what initially seemed to be backbreaking Texas home runs in the seventh and eighth.
Instead, it turns out the Rangers failed to afford their own struggling bullpen enough of a cushion. The Mariners rattled off three runs in the top of the ninth to send the game to extras, then pushed across the go-ahead, game-winning run on a wild pitch the following frame.
Right-handed reliever Paul Sewald shut the door in the bottom half of the 10th, keeping the Rangers' automatic runner glued to second base for the entire inning. With that, the Mariners escaped Globe Life Field with a stunning 6-5 come-from-behind victory to notch their third consecutive series win.
Now it's time to play "3 Up, 3 Down" and go over the Mariners' three best and worst performances from the Sunday afternoon action.
3 Up
RHP George Kirby
Completing 6.0 innings for the third time in six starts, Kirby put together an impressive showing despite not having his very best stuff. He generated just seven swings and misses—four on his fastball, three on his slider and one on his changeup—and tallied a modest 20 called strikes plus whiffs on 90 pitches, but he limited the Rangers to a pair of solo home runs and nothing else on the day. He'll have better and worse outings, to be sure, but he gave the Mariners exactly what they needed for two-thirds of this game and that's all that matters.
3B Eugenio Suárez
After playing the hero in Friday night's comeback win, Suárez broke out the cape and tights again on Sunday. He drove in four of the Mariners' six runs, including a game-tying two-run double in the top of the ninth off Rangers right-handed pitcher Matt Bush, and also cranked his team-leading 11th home run of the season earlier in the afternoon. Truly, it was good vibes only for Seattle's third baseman this weekend.
OF Dylan Moore
Heading into Sunday's win, Moore was running a 66 wRC+ over his last 49 plate appearances. That number, however, took a big jump as the 29-year old utility man went 3 for 4 with a double and a walk. His contributions ultimately didn't play a large role in the game's final result, but it was a good day for him on a personal level.
3 Down
RHP Andrés Muñoz and Sergio Romo
As mentioned, Seattle's lack of dependability in the bullpen showed up again. Muñoz surrendered his fourth home run of the season on a 99.5 MPH fastball to rookie third baseman Ezequiel Duran, which broke the 2-2 tie in the bottom of the seventh. Then, an inning later, Romo's long ball issues followed him down from Baltimore as Texas designated hitter Mitch Garver took the veteran righty's 85.3 MPH sinker 357 feet down the left field line for a two-run shot. It really looks as if manager Scott Servais can only put his full trust in two relievers at the moment: Sewald and Diego Castillo, who both tossed scoreless innings on Sunday.
C Luis Torrens and Cal Raleigh
The Mariners didn't get any offensive production out of their catchers. Hitting in the No. 6 hole, Torrens started the game 0 for 3 with a strikeout before Raleigh pinch-hit for him in the eighth. From there, Raleigh manufactured a pair of outs with his two at-bats, including a flyout with one away and the go-ahead run on second in the top of the ninth.
OF Jesse Winker
One step forward, two steps back continues to the be story for Winker this season. After being the Mariners' only source of offensive production on Saturday, the veteran outfielder went 0 for 6 with a pair of strikeouts. Seattle would really benefit from him getting on a roll and staying on it.
