Seattle Mariners Outfielder Comments on Brush-Up With Texas Rangers
SEATTLE — The Seattle Mariners went into their off day on Monday with one of the most impressive series wins of the year.
The Mariners won three straight against the Texas Rangers to earn the series and stay within 4.5 games of first-place in the American League West and 2.5 games of the AL Wild Card spot.
They don't hand out MVP awards for regular season series. But if they did, there's a good argument to that it would go to Seattle outfielder Randy Arozarena.
Arozarena had a walk-off, bases-loaded RBI single to give the Mariners a 5-4 win on Saturday and hit a solo home run to help lead Seattle to a 7-0 win on Sunday.
That home run in the bottom of the seventh made Arozarena just the second active player with four consecutive seasons of 20 steals and 20 home runs since 2021. And the only player in MLB history to be in the 20/20 club in each of his first four seasons.
No. 20 was crushed. #TridentsUp pic.twitter.com/jOrP1wvrBX
— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) September 16, 2024
Arozarena's heroics earned him praise from fans and his Seattle coaches and teammates. But not everyone was a fan of Arozarena's history-making home run.
Texas catcher Jonah Heim took exception to Arozarena's celebration and the time he took running the base paths.
Arozarena was up to bat again one inning later and got plunked by the same pitcher he hit his home run against — Gerson Garabito.
Arozarena's teammates took exception to him getting hit and all stood up in the dugout prepared to defend him.
Arozarena, who usually is one of the most irritated players in the league when it comes to getting hit by pitches, motioned that it was fine, which probably avoided a potential benches-clearing incident.
Randy Arozarena plays peacemaker after a hit-by-pitch in his first at-bat after his big homer, when he clearly irked Rangers catcher Jonah Heim with his celebration.
— Daniel Kramer (@DKramer_) September 15, 2024
Julio Rodríguez and J.P. Crawford immediately went to the dugout's top step, but Arozarena calmed things down. pic.twitter.com/bJp5siGzYC
Arozarena commented after the game on the incident and what it meant to have his teammates immediately come to his aid like they did.
"It means a lot that they were ready to defend me," Arozarena said via a translator. "It was a tense moment. I got hit right after a home run. But I think I'm one of the top guys that have been hit with the ball this season. But it means a lot. You get hit, and I think right there it was just all experience of trying to stay in the game. I know how important I am for the lineup. So just keep it cool, and I'm glad nothing was able to start from there."
Arozarena has been one of the most clutch players in the postseason since his major league debut in 2019 and has made the playoffs every single season of his six-year career.
Hopefully for the Mariners, Arozarena can continue that streak with his new team.
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