Mariners Blast Past Astros Behind 4-Run 8th Inning In 6-1 Victory
By Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA - Momentum can be a very powerful and beautiful thing to witness in sports, and a rising wave of it is currently carrying the Seattle Mariners baseball club. That seemed improbable following the series sweep that they suffered at the hands of the New York Yankees to begin the final road trip of the first half of this years MLB season, but a sweep of the Detroit Tigers, a showstopping performance by Cal Raleigh in the Home Run Derby, having four players represent the organization in the All-Star game, and tonight’s big time victory over the AL West leading Houston Astros has the Mariners surfing that wave of momentum as if they’ve been on it all season long. Seattle took hold of this series opening victory behind six and two thirds innings of shutout baseball from Luis Castillo, while a four-run bottom of the eighth helped bury Houston’s comeback hopes. It’s a crucial start to what could be a big-time series for the Mariners in the long run, considering that they’re still within reach of the Astros for the top spot in the division. There’s more work to be done for certain, but this is an assertive step in the right direction.
Things started out in shaky fashion for Seattle starter Luis Castillo, as he was already up to 23 pitches thrown through the top frame of the first inning as Houston leadoff hitter Isaac Paredes drew a walk on eight pitches and Christian Walker required eight pitches to go down for a fly ball that represented the third out. The damage was avoided but the pitch count was high quickly, and the Mariners certainly were hoping to avoid a situation where they’d have to use up their bullpen in their first game out of the break.
Castillo wouldn’t get much help early or at all for the most part from his offense, as Seattle’s lineup could only muster one base runner through the first four innings of the game in the form of a Mitch Garver single in the second inning with two outs, which was inevitably stranded as Astros left-handed starter Brandon Walter mowed down the Mariners batters without much resistance. Luis could’ve used a bit of support in the form of runs or even some innings that weren’t the minimum, but La Piedra didn’t show any signs of faltering without those things in this game as he matched Walter inning by inning.
“I thought he threw the ball really, really well, change speeds with seven punch outs. He set the tone and he threw really, really well…his deception makes him very unique and he’s a tough at bat. He’s got pitches that he can get hitters off balance, and he attacks the zone. He throws a ton of strikes. That’s exactly what we need, and, he’s done a really nice job.”
The third inning presented further trouble for Houston, as back-to-back singles led off the frame and immediately presented a dangerous situation that the Astros could’ve capitalized on. Cam Smith reached first on a fielders choice as Brice Matthews (Who had his contract selected from AAA Sugar Land back on July 11th) was thrown out at second, leaving runners on the corners with two outs. The closest base runner of the night was in striking distance for the Astros in the third, but Castillo didn’t crack under pressure and instead eviscerated Jose Altuve for his second strikeout of the night to end the inning, killing any hope of Houston striking first. That strikeout seemed to flip a switch for Seattle, both with Castillo and his efficiency while the offense started to show signs of life beginning in the next inning.
Castillo found his rhythm after that third inning, retiring the next ten batters that he faced. The Mariners lineup began to stir, albeit in unconventional fashion, as Seattle could’ve had a two-run lead with Randy Arozarena’s cannon shot of a home run to his teams bullpen, but Julio Rodríguez had been doubled up on a bizarre play. Julio had gotten a jump on Walter in an attempt to steal second base, sliding in feet first to the bag while not realizing that Cal Raleigh had hit a pop fly to foul territory. Instead of immediately running back to first or even getting half way when he saw that the ball was going to be caught in foul territory by Houston catcher Yainer Diaz, Rodríguez hesitated. That hesitation led to him scrambling back to first base once Diaz had completed the catch to retire Raleigh, resulting in a double play before Arozarena came to the plate. In a game against a divisional rival, especially when you’re chasing them for the top spot in that division, every run can count and this was an instance of a potential crucial blunder.
Things went quiet for the game following that fourth as Castillo went strong through the next few innings before he was lifted in the seventh after issuing a walk to Taylor Trammell with two outs that put two runners on as Victor Caratini had singled with one out. Seattle called to the bullpen for left-handed reliever Gabe Speier, who dispatched Mauricio Dubón with a fly out to Dylan Moore in right field. Following that escape of another jam, the Mariners were able to tack another run on just as they did after the potential danger in the third before the Arozarena homer. Two quick outs of Arozarena and Donovan Solano by Houston reliever Bennett Sousa seemed like it meant the inning was going to come and go without anything to show for it.
Mitch Garver ensured that Seattle was going to add to their miniscule lead despite the two out situation, as he hammered a 94.5MPH fastball in the heart of the plate and sent it to straightaway center field for a solo shot that doubled the Mariners lead. Solo home runs and great pitching aren’t the most convenient options for winning ballgames consistently, but the low scoring affairs and squeaking by in them are something that Seattle has excelled at in recent memory. That was tested in the very next top half inning as the Astros weren’t ready to go down quietly.
With Matt Brash in for the Mariners to pitch the eighth, it felt like Seattle was going to be able to turn things right back over to their lineup given how well Brash has pitched so far this year. That wasn’t the case, as Brash walked nine-hole hitter Brice Matthews and gave up a double to Isaac Paredes, a ball that sailed over the head of Randy Arozarena in left field to score Matthews easily from first base. Brash was able to lock back in and retire the next three batters to end the inning, limiting the damage to just the one run, but now things were uncomfortably close as the Astros could tie this ballgame up with one swing of the bat. The Mariners needed insurance, and they’d get just enough of that in the bottom of the eighth.
Astros reliever Steven Okert came in to replace Bennett Sousa in the bottom of the frame, and was immediately greeted with the Seattle offenses main staple: taking plenty of pitches. Cole Young drew a walk before Ben Williamson pushed him over with a sacrifice bunt, before J.P. Crawford laced a single into left field to score Young from second and give the Mariners a third run on the night. Seattle continued to roll as Julio Rodríguez walked, putting runners on first and second for American League MVP candidate Cal Raleigh who had been quiet leading up to this point in the game. Raleigh worked the count against new reliever Héctor Neris, who has an unbecoming history against the Mariners, getting to the seventh pitch of his plate appearance which became an RBI single to right field. Raleigh’s single pushed the fourth run on the night across for Seattle, before he stole second base and was followed up by a Randy Arozarena intentional walk to load the bases. A sacrifice fly from first baseman Donovan Solano scored Julio easily from third as the throw from Jose Altuve proved to be too weak, and a wild pitch from Neris scored Raleigh. The Mariners had completed a four-run bottom of the eighth to give them a nice cushion, not needing to use All-Star closer Andrés Muñoz.
Eduard Bazardo come into the game in the top of the ninth to close this game out, and the Mariners right-handed reliever did just that as he retired the side in order to cap off a strong start to this important series against the AL West leading Astros.
“We got a long way to go in the second half, but, good to get off on the right foot for sure. This was the team that’s ahead of us right now, and we want to do what we can to narrow that gap a little bit. Tonight’s a good start again, with the help of the crowd. I thought the crowd was awesome and kept us in that game, kept us rolling, and really picked up the energy when we kind of opened it up. Just got to approach them like we say one at a time. And tonight was just a good one to get started.”
Quick Mariners notes, from Mariners PR
41,834 was the announced paid attendance at T-Mobile Park for this series opener of a weekend set between the visiting Houston Astros and our Seattle Mariners.
“Sockeye” the Salmon won tonight’s Mariners “Salmon Run,” using a late burst of speed to beat “Silver” in the first race coming out of the All-Star break.
2025 standings, so far
King the Salmon: 19 wins
Silver the Salmon: 15 wins
Sockeye the Salmon: 13 wins
Humpy: 0 wins
The Green Muckleshoot Casino Resort boat won tonight’s Mariners “Hydro Challenge” in the first race coming out of the All-Star break and giving itself a two-win lead atop the standings.
2025 standings, so far
Green boat: 17 wins
Red boat: 15 wins
Yellow boat: 15 wins
The Mariners are now 52-45 this season and have won 4 straight games, tying a season high win streak (also: 5/16-5/19)…Seattle has won 7 out of the last 10 games.
Seattle moves to 18-11 (.621) against the American League West this season.
Starter Luis Castillo threw 6.2 scoreless innings, allowing 3 hits with 7 strikeouts and 2 walks in his 20th start of the season…he threw 100 pitches (66 strikes).
In his last 2 home starts, he has thrown 13.2 scoreless innings, allowing 5 hit with 15 strikeouts and just 2 walks.
In 50 career starts at T-Mobile Park, he is 21-13 with a 2.70 ERA (90 ER, 299.1 IP), 340 strikeouts and 75 walks.
In 14 games started in the month of July with the Mariners, he holds a 8-2 record with a 2.26 ERA (22 ER, 87.1 IP) with 89 strikeouts and 17 walks.
Castillo recorded his 12th quality start this season, and his 100th career start throwing 100+ pitches.
Randy Arozarena hit a solo home run in the 4th inning, his 18th home run of the season, and his 10th home run since June 30…during that span, he is batting (17x53) with 14 runs, an MLB-leading 10 home runs, and 16 RBI.
Arozarena is 1 of 2 players in the MLB this season to hit 10 home runs in a span of 14 games (also: Cal Raleigh, 5/23-6/7)…he also becomes the 7th player in franchise history to hit 7 home runs in an 8-game span at home (last: Cal Raleigh, 5/30-6/7).
Arozarena’s 445 ft. home run is the 2nd longest home run by the Mariners this season (highest: Dominic Canzone, 450 ft on 6/9 at ARI)
J.P. Crawford went 1-for-4 with 1 run and a single RBI in the 8th inning, extending his 15-game hitting streak (6/29-c), the 2nd longest active streak in the MLB behind only Chandler Simpson-TB (17 G).
It is the 2nd longest hit streak of Crawford’s career (highest: 16 G, 4/19-5/9)…he becomes the first Mariners player with multiple 15+ game hitting streaks within the same season since Ben Gamel in 2017.
Mitch Garver went 2-for-4 with a home run and a single, hitting his 6th home run of the season…he has now hit safely in each of his last 3 games (7/11-c).
Cal Raleigh scored 1 run, recorded an RBI single and stole his 11th base of the season in the 9th inning…entering today, Raleigh’s 82 RBI led the Majors.
Raleigh became the first AL catcher to record 11+ stolen bases in a season since Jason Kendall-KCR in 2010.
Cole Young went 1-for-2 with 1 run, a single and 1 walk to extend a career-high 6-game hitting streak (7/8-c)…during that span, Young is batting .400 (8x20) with 5 runs, 1 double, 2 home runs, 4 RBI, and 4 walks.
In 30 games played since June 7, Young is batting .297 (30x101) with 5 doubles, 2 home runs, 10 RBI, and 7 walks.
Julio Rodríguez scored 1 run and walked twice in his 2nd straight game for his 4th multi-walk game this season…he has reached base safely in 10 of 13 games this month.
Donovan Solano hit a sacrifice fly in the 9th inning to earn his 20th RBI of the season and the 299th RBI of his career.
The Mariners bullpen (Gabe Speier, Matt Brash, and Eduard Bazardo) combined for 2.1 innings of relief, allowing 1 run on 1 hit, with 1 strikeout and 1 walk.
What’s next?
Following tonight’s home win over the Houston Astros to begin a three-game weekend set and six-game homestand, our Seattle Mariners are back in action tomorrow night with a first pitch time of 6:40PM PDT. This game will be broadcast live on ROOT Sports Northwest and MLB Network (Out-of-market only) as well as going over the radio airwaves on Seattle Sports (710 AM) to provide a few different options to tune in for those who won’t be able to join us in person here at T-Mobile Park. The Astros will have right-handed pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. on the mound, who hasn’t quite been able to find a steady form this season and especially not lately as he’s given up earned run totals of five or more in two of his last three outings. The Mariners will combat him with a right-handed pitcher of their own in Logan Evans, making his third start since being recalled by Seattle on July 3rd and seeking a bounce back effort following a rough outing against the Yankees in his last appearance before the All-Star break.
Off the field and in the stands, there are a few different promotions and group nights taking place at T-Mobile Park set for this game on Saturday, July 19th against the Astros. It was Oregon Ducks night at the ballpark for this game, and tomorrow it will be “WSU Cougs night” as those who bought a special ticket through the group nights link will be able to take home a “Mariners-themed” WSU jacket in addition to their ticket to the game as $5 from each ticket sold will benefit the WSU alumni association. To celebrate the night and WSU, Cougar football coach Jimmy Rogers is throwing out the ceremonial first pitch. Additionally there will be two promotions benefiting cancer research: it’s “Teal The Field” night and “Strike Out Brain Cancer at the Ballpark” night. Tickets bought through the “Teal The Field” night promotion will benefit the Powell-Drescher Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation, while every ticket bought through the “Strike Out Brain Cancer at the Ballpark” night link will benefit the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center while also granting the buyer of the ticket a “Mariners-themed” Strike Out Brain Cancer T-Shirt. To round out the promotions for the night, it’s “Mariners Care Broadcast Auction and Mystery Bags” night as Mariners wives will be at section 128 selling Mystery Bags where fans can donate $75 to Mariners Care for a chance to secure their favorite player’s autographed baseball. In addition, ROOT Sports broadcast will showcase unique items from Mariners players and exclusive experiences fans can big on that can’t be found anywhere else. Jacqueline Media will perform that national anthem.
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