SEATTLE (AP) — Eric Haase hit two home runs, Casey Mize took a two-hit shutout into the eighth inning and the Detroit Tigers beat the Seattle Mariners 4-1 on Monday night.
The Tigers, who began the day 12 games under .500, have won six of eight. Seattle's three-game winning streak ended.
Mize (3-3) allowed just three hits and permitted only two runners past first base in a career-high 7 2/3 innings. It was his second straight win and fourth consecutive quality start.
“And all four starts could've been better, so I'm just trying to grow from that," Mize said.
Mize, the 24-year-old centerpiece of Detroit’s rebuild and the overall No. 1 pick in the 2018, struck out seven — that matched his career high, set in his debut last year.
After getting double plays from the defensively suspect Tigers to end the first and second innings, the right-hander retired 15 of 17 batters before Tom Murphy homered to lead off the eighth.
Michael Fulmer earned the save, his third.
Seattle starter Yusei Kikuchi (1-3) struggled early, needing 50 pitches to get out of the second inning. He walked two to load the bases in the first before getting out of the inning with a strikeout.
Haase, a catcher making his first career start in the left field, hit a leadoff homer in the second. And after Kikuchi walked Robbie Grossman with two outs, Jonathan Schoop also homered to make it 3-0.
“Strange ballgame tonight,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “Yusei's been so consistent coming out of the gate. Tonight it took a couple innings to get him going.”
Haase hit another solo homer in the ninth off reliever Brady Lail for a 4-1 lead. It was his first multihomer game.
“I've managed a lot of games here as the visiting manager,” said Hinch, formerly skipper of the AL West's Houston Astros. “To test both gaps like that, you've got to be a grown man.”
MENDING MARCO
Seattle lefty Marco Gonzales had a short session throwing off a mound for the first time on Monday as he continues to recover from a forearm strain. Gonzales said he made about 15 tosses with the goal to build up to a 25- to 30-pitch bullpen session toward the end of the week.
Gonzales has been on the injured list since April 29. He’s not putting a timetable on a potential return, knowing it’ll take several weeks to build up his arm strength after being limited in his throwing.
Gonzales did have a special throwing partner when Seattle was out on its road trip. Ichiro Suzuki came down to T-Mobile Park to throw with Gonzales one day.
“That was so special. He came in and threw with everybody that needed to throw here and rehab, and hung around, was flipping in the cage with (Jake) Fraley and working out,” Gonzales said. “I mean, the dude is unreal.”
TRAINER’S ROOM
Tigers: C/DH Wilson Ramos (lower back strain) returned to the lineup from the 10-day injured list, giving Detroit three catchers on the roster. All were in the lineup with Ramos at designated hitter, Haase in left field and Jake Rogers behind the plate. The Tigers optioned RHP Alex Lange to Triple-A Toledo to make room.
Mariners: Seattle selected Lail from Triple-A Tacoma to give needed depth to its overused bullpen. After a couple of bullpen days due to injuries in the starting rotation, the Mariners were left extremely thin and needed Lail to be available. “We’re still only six, seven weeks into the season. You’d be very cautious running a player three days in a row, four out of five things like that are things we would like to stay away from,” Servais said. Seattle optioned infielder Jack Mayfield to Tacoma and designated for assignment right-hander Domingo Tapia to clear a spot on the 40-man roster.
UP NEXT
Tigers: RHP Spencer Turnbull (2-2, 3.91) recorded a season-high seven strikeouts in his last start.
Mariners: RHP Justin Dunn (1-1, 3.72) returns to the mound six days after his first loss.
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