SEATTLE MARINERS NEWS

Mariners walk Ohtani in 9th, hold off Angels to keep pace

Ty France homered, Jake Fraley scored the go-ahead run on a throwing error and the streaking Seattle Mariners held off the Los Angeles Angels 6-5 to keep pace in the AL wild-card c...

SEPTEMBER 25, 2021 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Diego Castillo - Succeeding in set-up role Castillo, who secured his 10th hold against the Athletics on Thursday with a scoreless eighth inning during which he allowed a walk and a strikeout, has three holds overall in the...

Impact The big right-hander is just 2-for-5 in save opportunities since joining the Mariners at the trade deadline, and with more reliable ninth-inning options on hand for manager Scott Servais, Castillo has primarily transitioned back into the seventh- and eighth-inning role he often filled during his time with the Rays. The return to a healthy dose of set-up work has mostly agreed with Castillo, who's posted a 2-0 record, 1.93 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 11:2 K:BB and five holds over 9.1 innings in September.

SEPTEMBER 25, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Casey Sadler - Approaching franchise record Sadler, who secured his 14th hold in a win over the Athletics on Thursday, now has 24 straight scoreless appearances, just one shy of Shigetoshi Hasegawa's franchise record, the As...

Impact Sadler fired two scoreless innings during which he allowed a hit and struck out two, extending his stretch of unblemished frames to 22.2. The right-hander has lowered his ERA and WHIP all the way down to 0.76 and 0.82, respectively, elite figures completely unprecedented for a 31-year-old reliever who'd produced ERAs of between 3.60 and 8.31 in four of his first five seasons heading into 2021.

SEPTEMBER 25, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Joe Smith - Three straight scoreless efforts Smith, who improved his record to 3-4 with a win over the Athletics on Thursday, has three straight scoreless appearances and six in his last seven outings overall.

Impact Smith fired a perfect fifth inning Thursday on an efficient eight pitches and then became the pitcher of record when the Mariners rallied to take the lead for good in the top half of the sixth. The veteran right-hander's recent strong stretch is essentially an extension of the solid form he's demonstrated since arriving from the Astros shortly before the trade deadline -- he's allowed multiple earned runs in just one of 21 appearances with the Mariners after doing so in six of 27 outings with Houston.

SEPTEMBER 25, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Dylan Moore - Picking up offense, playing time Moore is hitting .300 with a triple, three RBI, two walks, a stolen base and four runs across the 22 plate appearances he's logged over his last six games heading into Friday night...

Impact The versatile Moore has endured a disappointing season at the plate encapsulated in an abysmal .182/.277/.340 slash line across 361 plate appearances, although he's continued a career-long trend of lacing an above-average number of his hits for extra bases (24 XBH out of 58 hits in 2021). A .230 BABIP has helped lead to Moore's undoing at the plate this season, but he's had some better fortune of late when putting the ball in play while also drawing starts in each of the contests constituting the aforementioned six-game sample.

SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Jake Fraley - On bench against left-hander Fraley is not starting Friday against the Angels and left-hander Jose Suarez.

Impact Fraley will sit for the third time in five games against a lefty starter after going 0-for-2 in Thursday's win over Oakland. Dylan Moore will start in left field and bat ninth Friday.

SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

How Mariners could approach Kikuchi's spot OAKLAND -- Has Yusei Kikuchi made his final start of the 2021 season? After three tough innings that his offense bounced back from on Thursd...

SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 • MLB.COM

Gilbert, Mariners to face Suarez, Angels

The Angels will roll out Jose Suarez to the mound Friday and the Mariners plan to give Logan Gilbert the start

SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Cal Raleigh - Smacks second home run Raleigh went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run Thursday against the Athletics.

Impact Raleigh took James Kaprielian yard in the fifth inning to record the second home run of his career. He drew a start for the first time in three games, with Tom Murphy remaining the team's primary catcher. Across the first 138 plate appearances of his career in the majors, Raleigh is hitting .177.217/.308 while striking out at a 36.2 percent clip.

SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Luis Torrens - Homers as pinch hitter Torrens hit a two-run home run in his only at-bat Thursday against the Athletics.

Impact Torrens wasn't in the starting lineup Thursday, though he took advantage of his opportunity as a pinch hitter. He went yard against Jake Diekman in the sixth inning to record his 15th homer of the season. Prior to this long ball, Torrens had failed to go deep across his last 80 at-bats since Aug. 17. Overall, Torrens is hitting .236/.299/.431 across 345 plate appearances for the season.

SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Mitch Haniger - Records 35th homer Haniger went 1-for-4 with a solo home run Thursday against the Athletics.

Impact Haniger slugged his 35th home run of the season against Jake Diekman in the sixth inning. He now has five home runs in his last 12 games, while also adding nine RBI and seven runs scored in that span. For the season, Haniger is hitting .250/.318/.475 across 651 plate appearances.

SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Paul Sewald - Tallies 10th save Sewald allowed one earned run on one hit and struck out two Thursday against the Athletics to earn the save.

Impact Sewald entered the game with a two-run lead. He surrendered a solo home run to Matt Olson to cut the lead in half, but he ultimately shut the door to earn to his 10th save. Sewald and Drew Steckenrider have split saves evenly for much of September, with Sewald collecting three and Steckenrider four.

SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

How sweep it is: Surging Mariners push past A's, gain ground in AL wild card The Mariners, to be clear, are having all sorts of fun.

SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 • THEATHLETIC.COM

Yusei Kikuchi - Next start in question Kikuchi may not take his next turn through the rotation, which is currently projected for Tuesday against the Athletics, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

Impact Kikuchi allowed three earned runs on three hits and four walks across just three innings in his start Thursday against the Athletics. Manager Scott Servais was asked after the game if Kikuchi would make his next start as the team vies for a spot in the wild-card game, though the skipper did not tip his hand regarding the decision. Kikuchi has failed to complete more than three innings in three of his last four starts and allowed 11 earned runs across 12.2 frames in that four-start stretch, which has inflated his ERA to 4.41 on the season.

SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Bassitt returns but Mariners beat A's 6-5 for 4-game sweep

Chris Bassitt pitched three scoreless innings less than a month after surgery to repair facial fractures, but the Seattle Mariners rallied against Oakland’s bullpen for a 6-5 victo...

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Mariners claw back from early deficit to sweep A's and stay in the wild-card hunt After falling behind 3-0 early to the A's, the Mariners came back, using six strong innings from their bullpen and timely offense to complet...

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 • SEATTLETIMES.COM

This Date in Baseball

This Date in Baseball Sept. 24

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

This Date in Baseball-Week Ahead

This Date in Baseball for Sept. 24-30

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Luis Torrens - Not starting Thursday Torrens will sit Thursday against Oakland.

Impact Torrens sits for the third time in the Mariners' last four games. He's been the Mariners' primary designated hitter throughout the second half despite his modest .234/.297/.420 slash line. Kyle Seager will fill that role Thursday, with Dylan Moore taking Seager's usual spot at third base.

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Tom Murphy - On bench Thursday Murphy will sit Thursday against Oakland.

Impact Murphy has settled in as the Mariners' primary catcher down the stretch and owns a .294/.375/.471 slash line over his last 12 games. He'll sit here after starting three straight games behind the plate, with Cal Raleigh set to catch Yusei Kikuchi.

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Bassitt expected to start for the Athletics against the Mariners

The Athletics will roll out Chris Bassitt to the mound Thursday and the Mariners plan to give Yusei Kikuchi the start

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Mariners veteran Kyle Seager savoring team's late-season postseason chase "These are uncharted waters that I haven't been able to experience very often, so I'm definitely soaking it up," Kyle Seager said.

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 • THEATHLETIC.COM

Ty France - Pops long ball in win France went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and an additional run scored in a 4-1 win over the Athletics on Wednesday.

Impact France's third-inning long ball was his first since Aug. 23 and gave Seattle a 3-0 lead. He then scored the team's final run after reaching on a hit-by-pitch in the seventh. The 27-year-old has emerged as a solid fantasy asset this season, slashing .293/.366/.446 with 17 homers, 65 RBI and 77 runs across 142 games.

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Kyle Seager - Slugs 35th homer Seager went 3-for-5 with a solo home run and a double Wednesday in 4-1 win over Oakland.

Impact The veteran third baseman put Seattle on the board in the fourth inning with a 406-foot solo shot to center field. The long ball gave him 100 RBI on the season, marking the first time he has reached that milestone in his big-league career. Seager's .216 batting average isn't appealing, but he has provided solid output with 35 homers, 71 runs and three stolen bases in 149 games.

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Drew Steckenrider - Garners 11th save Steckenrider pitching a scoreless inning, allowing one hit while striking out one to earn the save over the Athletics on Wednesday.

Impact The right-hander entered in the ninth inning staked to a three-run lead and allowed a leadoff double, but Oakland was unable to muster any additional hits against him. Steckenrider earned his second save in as many days, marking the first time all season he has accomplished that feat. He appears to have ascended to the top of Seattle's closer depth chart as a result of registering 18 scoreless outings over his past 20 appearances.

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 • ROTOWIRE