Boston Red Sox Blitz Seattle Mariners With Monster Third Inning
The Seattle Mariners 14-7 loss against the Boston Red Sox on Monday at Fenway Park bore a strong resemblance to a snowball rolling down a mountain.
The Red Sox put up seven runs in the third inning and had 10 multi-base hits in total (three home runs, seven doubles) and added to its lead over the Mariners in the Wild Card race. The loss dropped the visitors to 56-52 on the season.
"I don't often see that happening with our pitching staff," Mariners manager Scott Servais said in a postgame interview Monday. "We're usually pretty good at controlling those type of innings. Got away from us tonight. But it happens. It happens in this park. It's a very offensive park — we know that."
Boston did something that very few squads have been able to this this season — it got to Seattle starter Logan Gilbert.
The snowball began its descent with Boston right fielder Wilyer Abreu's at-bat in the bottom of the third inning. The Red Sox led 1-0 after a wild pitch earlier in the inning and had runners on second and third with one out. The count was 1-2 four pitches into the at-bat.
Gilbert caught the bottom outside corner with his fifth pitch for what should have been strike three. It was called a ball. After that, things spiraled out of control. Abreu worked the count and got 12 pitches out of Gilbert before hitting an RBI single to make the score 2-0 Boston.
Masataka Yoshida followed with a two-run home run, Rafael Devers hit a double, Tyler O'Neil had an RBI double, Dominic Smith hit an RBI double and Connor Wong wrapped up the third with an RBI double. Wong was caught stealing third to (mercifully) get the Mariners out of the inning. The Red Sox led 7-0.
Masa Man! pic.twitter.com/x3WfcX8pr8
— Red Sox (@RedSox) July 30, 2024
Gilbert was pulled after Smith's hit. He threw 43 pitches in the third — the most out in a single inning in his career. He pitched 2.2 innings — tied for the second-quickest pull of his career and he allowed seven earned runs — tied for the third-most in a single game for Gilbert, all according to MLB.com.
The Mariners bullpen had to carry the load after that but any hope of a rally quickly evaporated. The Red Sox put up three more runs in the fourth, two more in the fifth and two more in the sixth for their final total of 14. Smith and Romy Gonzalez both homered for the Red Sox in the bottom of the fifth and sixth innings, respectively.
Jorge Polanco had an RBI sac fly in the top of the fourth to get Seattle on the board. Randy Arozarena and Cal Raleigh both had solo home runs in the top of the sixth to give the Mariners three runs through that point. It was Arozarena's first home run with Seattle and Raleigh's third home run in three consecutive games.
Randy Arozarena has his first bomb as a Mariner! pic.twitter.com/1SiWzGSNck
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) July 30, 2024
The Mariners weren't totally devoid of life and put up four runs in the top of the eighth. Dylan Moore had a two-run double, Leo Rivas scored on a wild pitch and Jason Vosler brought a run in with an RBI ground out. Those runs resulted in the final score of 14-7.
The loss dropped Seattle to 3-12 at Fenway Park in its last 15 games according to the NESN broadcast.
The good news is the Houston Astros lost on Monday. The Mariners are still tied with the Astros for first in the American League West
New trade acquisition Justin Turner is set to join Seattle on Tuesday for Game 2 of the series. Turner has some experience playing at Fenway from his time with the Red Sox in 2023.
Maybe that experience can give Seattle the extra push it needs to get the win. Luis Castillo will get the start for the Mariners. First pitch is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. PST on Tuesday.
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