Mariners notes: Rodriguez homers, Castillo deals six strong innings on Mother’s Day
Donning Mother’s Day pink on a beautiful, sunny afternoon at T-Mobile Park, Julio Rodriguez found and blistered a 109-mph laser-beam to center field for his second home run of the season — both a promising sign for the two-time All-Star and the punctuation of an early stampede.
Sunday’s home second inning seemingly checked each box on the Mariners’ season wish-list: consistent contact, a pair of old-school, small-ball-type sacrifices, and the mammoth swing from its cornerstone outfielder that capped a four-run frame. Rodriguez’s two-run homer pushed Seattle’s early lead to five in a rubber match with the Oakland Athletics, and Mariners starter Luis Castillo cruised through six strong innings of Sunday’s 8-4 win.
Don’t look now -- the Mariners are back in first place.
“(Julio) showed up yesterday for early work on the field. He was here before I was here today,” manager Scott Servais said. “(He was) in the batting cage. He knows it’s coming.”
Ty France led off the bottom of the second inning and reached on an infield error. Third baseman Luis Urias drew a walk, and catcher Seby Zavala dropped a perfect bunt that Seattle’s backstop nearly beat out.
Sam Haggerty singled -- Dylan Moore lifted a sacrifice fly to center -- and J-Rod cleaned up the base traffic.
The Mariners lifted three home runs Sunday, in total. Rodriguez was followed by Mitch Garver’s two-run blast that landed on a crowded center-field patio in the fifth inning, and backup catcher Seby Zavala muscled a sixth-inning blast into the left field corner in the sixth.
“It’s been a lot of work,” Rodriguez said in his on-field postgame interview, still in shades under the sun. “We’re going to continue to work every single day to keep producing results out here and keep winning ball games.”
And despite Castillo’s uncharacteristic start to the season in early April, ‘La Piedra’ has been rock solid of late. Castillo is 4-1 with a 1.67 ERA, 37 strikeouts, and seven walks in his last five starts. Per Mariners PR, his 31 quality starts since joining Seattle in 2022 are tied with New York’s Gerrit Cole and Houston’s Framber Valdez for most in the American League in that span.
Castillo painted edges of Sunday’s strike zone with a riding fastball, and fooled Oakland hitters with a slider that swerved down and away. Behind in counts more than desired, he surrendered two runs on a pair of solo homers, but fanned eight without a walk on seven hits, another quality outing for ‘La Piedra.’
“It starts with our starter,” Servais said. “And The Rock was really good out there today.”
Rodriguez went 2-for-3 with a walk and two RBI; he missed his second home run of the afternoon by inches in the fifth inning, and settled with a loud double to left-center.
The Mariners are 22-19. Seattle’s series win over the A’s regained first place of the AL West by 0.5 games after the Texas Rangers suffered a weekend sweep by the Colorado Rockies in Denver.
TWINS TAKE THREE OF FOUR IN MINNESOTA
No, these Mariners starting pitchers weren’t superhuman. They were mortal, after all.
The Minnesota Twins jolted Seattle pitching for 26 runs in four games earlier this week, and won three of them. It snapped the Mariners’ six-game series win streak abruptly, considering it arrived on the heels of an historic, 21-game stretch of two-or-fewer earned runs by standout Seattle starting pitching.
George Kirby allowed three early home runs on Wednesday, but Logan Gilbert was hit hardest in Thursday’s finale, an 11-1 loss. The Twins shelled him for nine hits and eight runs in four innings, including a five-run first – unseen by Seattle’s most dependable arm all season. Fresh off his eight-inning shutout over rival Houston last weekend, this was anything but.
“The Twins outplayed us,” Servais told reporters after the Mariners dropped three of four. “They did. They swung the bat better, they pitched better, they executed better.
“They got rolling, and we couldn’t stop it.”
Gilbert was “out of sync” from the jump, he said, issuing a four-pitch walk to leadoff hitter Edouard Julien and soon allowing Manuel Margot to lash a bases-clearing, three-run double down the left field line and into the corner of Target Field.
Rarely have Seattle arms pitched their team out of a game in 2024. Recent hitting woes compounded the issue.
After Thursday’s loss, Seattle’s 76 strikeouts throughout the previous week ranked last in MLB. Despite ranking 10th in runs scored over that span, they came in five- and 10-run spurts.
“It’s been inconsistent,” Haniger told the media Thursday. “For every guy, it’s a little bit different. Just individually, guys need to continue to grind and try to get better. … Just try to clean things up, and hopefully get all of us clicking at one point.”
RELIEVER SAUCEDO TO IL
In an attempt to cover first base and field an eighth-inning putout from Ty France in Minneapolis on Tuesday night, Mariners reliever Tayler Saucedo stretched and awkwardly planted on the bag. He collapsed to the dirt in a frightening moment at Target Field as Minnesota’s Max Kepler rounded third and scored the game-tying run on a live ball while Seattle infielders, naturally, tended to their teammate.
Saucedo soon limped off the diamond with assistance from trainers, but the 30-year-old will miss extended time. The Mariners placed Saucedo on the 15-day injured list with a right knee hyperextension.
The Mariners rallied in the ninth inning and won Tuesday night’s game, 10-6.
“We’re going to miss him,” Servais said Tuesday night. “Sauce has been so valuable for us in that utility role, left-handed. And his personality on top of it. He’ll be back.”
Saucedo posted on Twitter/X the following afternoon: “I appreciate all the (messages) and love from everyone. I’ll be okay! I’m already looking forward to being back.
“One thing I ask is to not be upset with anyone involved on the play. What happened last night was entirely on me and me alone. They did what they were supposed to do.”
Saucedo graduated from Tahoma High School in Maple Valley, and threw for Tacoma Community College in 2012. The southpaw made his MLB debut for Toronto in 2021, and has appeared in 66 games (61 innings) with the Mariners since 2023, going 4-2 with a 3.38 ERA and 56 strikeouts.
MATT BRASH OUT FOR SEASON
One of Seattle’s top relievers will miss all of 2024 and beyond.
Matt Brash, known league-wide for a “wipeout” slider with foolish secondary movement, recently underwent Tommy John surgery, announced by general manager Justin Hollander on Wednesday.
“He’s a great security blanket to have when you map out a plan each night,” manager Scott Servais told the media. “We’ve always tried to use him in the highest leverage spots, because we think he’s one of our best relievers.
“It’s a huge loss.”
Brash led MLB in 2023 with 78 appearances. The 26-year-old targeted a May return after initial arm discomfort in spring training, but was unable to rebound from full-strength bullpen sessions.
Less than two weeks ago, the Mariners shut down Brash indefinitely.
“What he did for us last year was unbelievable, how many times he came through for us,” Hollander said. “Probably one of the most popular players in our organization among his teammates, among our staff members.”
Brash’s surgery included a ligament repair and brace insertion by Dr. Keith Meister in Arlington, Texas. The Mariners anticipate a 12-month recovery timeline, which pegs the reliever’s return for June 2025.
“I’m crushed for Matt,” Hollander said.
SHORT HOPS
– Seattle reliever Kirby Snead made his Mariners debut and registered a 1-2-3 relief inning on Wednesday night, becoming the 1,000th player to appear in a game in franchise history.
– Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh is the only player in MLB with three go-ahead home runs in the seventh inning or later this season.
ON DECK
Seattle hosts Kansas City (25-17) for a three-game set, starting Monday. Once an afterthought in the American League postseason picture, the Royals’ hot start is one of baseball’s early surprises, still in the thick of contention.
George Kirby duels Kansas City’s Brady Singer at T-Mobile Park in Monday’s series opener. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 p.m.
This story was originally published May 12, 2024 at 4:20 PM with the headline "Mariners notes: Rodriguez homers, Castillo deals six strong innings on Mother’s Day."
