3 Up, 3 Down: Good Vibes All Around as Mariners Survive Absences to Shut Twins Out, 5-0
Despite being down both J.P. Crawford (flu-like symptoms) and Jesse Winker (rest), the Mariners had their best offensive performance of the last three days on Tuesday night.
Twins right-handed starter Joe Ryan, who was making his first start since being placed on the COVID-19 list on May 25, started the night sporting a 2.28 ERA and 3.28 FIP. But after tossing three hitless innings to begin the game, Ryan was jumped for six hits, including a pair of two-run home runs, and three walks as his outing came to an end just 4.2 innings into it.
Boosted by an insurance run in the seventh inning and some strong pitching performances throughout, the Mariners cruised to a 5-0 shutout victory over the Twins. It's their first win since Saturday and their first shutout since May 31 against the Orioles.
Now 2-3 on their 11-game homestand, the Mariners sit at an overall record of 28-34 and half a game behind the Angels for third place in the American League West. Next comes a rubber match between the Twins and M's on Wednesday afternoon, in which the winner will not only walk away with a series in hand, but the head-to-head tiebreaker as well after the two clubs split a four-game set in Minnesota to open the season.
But before left-handed pitcher Marco Gonzales and right-hander Sonny Gray do battle at T-Mobile Park, let's dive a bit deeper into Tuesday night's action and go over the three best and worst performances from Seattle's big win.
3 Up
RHP Logan Gilbert
Coming off a forgettable performance down in Houston, Gilbert responded nicely against a difficult Twins lineup. Despite serving up nine hard-hit balls on the night, he tossed 6.0 scoreless innings, striking out six, walking one and surrendering just four hits. Interestingly, 30 percent of his 90 pitches resulted in a called strike or whiff, though he only induced nine of the latter. Nevertheless, it was a strong day for the Stetson product, who helped spearhead a feel-good shutout win for Seattle.
3B Eugenio Suárez
Sunday and Monday weren't too kind to Suárez, but he was able to break out of his miniature slump in a big way on Tuesday. The veteran third baseman broke the ice with a two-run blast over the sign in Edgar's Cantina, getting the Mariners out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth. That would prove to be his only hit of the night, though he recorded another hard-hit ball on a 105.5 MPH lineout to the center field warning track his next time through the order.
SS Dylan Moore and LF Sam Haggerty
Both impacted by Crawford's absence, Moore and Haggerty played a substantial role in the Mariners' scoring efforts on Tuesday night. Moore checked in with a single and a walk, stealing second and scoring on both occasions. Haggerty drove him in the second time around, ripping an RBI double off Twins right-handed reliever Jovani Morán with an impressive exit velocity of 104.7 MPH. That put the exclamation point on Seattle's win, extending its lead to 5-0 in the seventh inning and capping off a big night from its No. 8 and No. 9 hitters.
3 Down
2B Adam Frazier
Frazier's recent woes at the plate continued, resulting in an 0-for-4 for the Mariners' emergency leadoff hitter. He's now 5 for his last 42 with four singles, a double, five walks and five strikeouts.
RF Taylor Trammell
Trammell went 0 for 3 and was in visible discomfort with what looked to be an ailing shoulder. He finished the game, but it wouldn't come as a surprise if he winds up not being in the lineup on Wednesday afternoon with the quick turnaround.
DH Abraham Toro
Following a three-strikeout performance on Monday, Toro posted another 0-fer. He struck out just once this time around, but outside of his late-inning heroics against the Red Sox on Saturday night, he's really struggling to make a positive impact at the plate.
