Mariners Game Recap: M’s Power Past A’s

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Final. 5. 96. 9. 62

The Seattle Mariners (37-43) annihilated the Oakland A’s (37-46) on Friday night, winning 9-3 and evening the series at a game apiece. The Mariners’ bats lit up the east bay en route to picking up the victory. J.A. Happ (4-5, 3.93 ERA) was not perfect, but he did enough to secure his 4th win of the season. Jesse Chavez (4-8, 3.20 ERA) was saddled with the loss after getting touched up for 4 runs tonight.

After a string of rough outings, J.A. Happ got the job done on Friday night in Oakland. Happ allowed 3 runs on 8 hits across 6 innings. The 32-year-old southpaw struck out 5 A’s and walked none. Happ’s command was pretty good, as 65 of his 101 pitches found the strike zone. I would not describe Happ as effective tonight, but at the end of the day, he earned the W.

The M’s knocked around veteran right-hander Jesse Chavez tonight. Chavez allowed 4 runs on 9 hits across 6.1 innings of work. The 31-year-old struck out 4 and walked none, however he did surrender a pair of home runs. The dingers proved costly, and the A’s bullpen fared even worse than their beleaguered starter.

Jul 3, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Seattle Mariners shortstop Brad Miller (5) high fives left fielder Dustin Ackley (13) after a two run home run against the Oakland Athletics during the eighth inning at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

The Mariners’ bats could not be stopped tonight, as the M’s plated 9 runs and combined to tally 4 home runs. Logan Morrison got the party started by launching a 2-run home run to right-center field in the top of the 3rd. Seth Smith clubbed a 2-run dinger of his own in the 6th to give Seattle a 1-run lead. The Mariners broke it wide open in the 8th, scoring 5 runs with Nelson Cruz and Brad Miller both going yard.

The A’s took 3-0 lead in the home half of the 2nd, but they failed to do anything else all night. Mark Canha continues to cause problems for the M’s this season. The rookie left fielder got the A’s on the board with an RBI single, and went 2 for 4 with a double and 3 runs batted in. Marcus Semien doubled the Athletics’ lead with an RBI groundout, and Billy Burns added to the lead with an RBI double to right field. Burns had himself a nice game, finishing 2 for 4. Brett Lawrie also did a nice job at the plate for the A’s, going 2 for 3 with a run scored.

It appears the long awaited turnaround is finally happening for Robinson Cano. The All Star second baseman started the season with the worst 3 month stretch of his career, but he is beginning to show signs of life at the plate. Cano went 3 for 5 with a run scored on Friday. Robby had 4 hits on Wednesday in San Diego, and is now hitting .500 over the last 3 games. He was hit by a ball in the head recently, and it seems to shaken the cobwebs out. I don’t want to get my hopes up, but if Cano can keep it going, Seattle has a real chance to get back in the race.

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The huge win tonight helped with the Mariners’ confidence and their standing in the American League Wildcard. Seattle remains 10 games back of the AL West leading Houston Astros, but they have closed the gap to 5 games in the wildcard race.

The Seattle Mariners (37-43) will take on the Oakland A’s (37-46) again on Saturday afternoon. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 pm from the O.co Colosseum in the East Bay. The M’s will have a great opportunity to take a 2-1 series lead with Felix Hernandez (10-4, 3.05 ERA) going tomorrow. Kendall Graveman (5-4, 3.47 ERA) will toe the rubber for Oakland on Saturday. Root Sports Northwest will carry the game live locally, and MLB.tv subscribers can watch worldwide on connected devices.

Next: So Long Willie Bloomquist, You Will Be Missed

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