ARLINGTON, Texas — A road winning streak, well, that will have to wait for another time.
After finally putting together back-to-back road wins — something that shouldn’t have been so difficult — for the first time since the first two games of the 2022 season, the Mariners came into Saturday attempting to win three games in a row, which manager Scott Servais uses as a criteria to define as a winning streak.
But in a performance fitting of their season-long inconsistency, which seems to elevate away from T-Mobile Park, the Mariners failed in their quest, losing 3-2 to the Rangers.
Despite, Texas starting pitcher Glenn Otto walking five batters and hitting another, the Mariners never forced any of those free baserunners across home plate with a hit, a sacrifice fly or a fielder’s choice. In fact, they only mustered two hits off Otto in his five innings pitched. They both came in the fifth inning and produced the only two runs scored against him.
With a bullpen heavily taxed over the past two games and multiple relievers unavailable, Marco Gonzales gave the Mariners the quality start they needed. The veteran lefty tossed seven innings, allowing three runs on five hits with a walk and five strikeouts.
All the Rangers runs off Gonzales came in the fourth inning. Marcus Semien led off the fourth inning with a single up the middle. After retiring the always dangerous Corey Seager, Gonzales issued a rare four-pitch walk to Mitch Garver. The extra baserunner meant that Adolis Garcia’s flyball into the seats would be a three-run homer.
Garcia managed to stay on a first-pitch change-up at the bottom of the strike zone, using his pure strength to pull it over the wall in left field for his ninth homer of the season. From there, Gonzales recorded outs on nine of the next 11 batters he faced.
Cal Raleigh recorded the Mariners’ first hit with one out, sending a sharp single into right field. Jesse Winker, who walked in his previous two plate appearances, followed with a mammoth blast into the seats in deep right-center for his third homer of the season.
Down 3-2, the Mariners could never scratch out the run, despite having multiple opportunities. They finished the game 1 for 6 with runners in scoring position and stranding seven runners on base.
