The Mariners refused to lose, and it’s time to get excited

It could’ve been done after 1-0, or 3-0, or certainly 5-0. Nobody would’ve faulted  the Mariners, a team that hadn’t won a series on the south side of Chicago in their last 11 tries, for taking 2 of 3, and just dropping the third game, because that’s how this season has gone, and 2-out-of-3 isn’t even that bad after all.

But the Mariners didn’t accept that. They didn’t sit by and take a loss that would’ve been overlooked because of their Friday and Saturday wins. They trailed 5-0, but then Kyle Seager’s second homer in as many day’s made it 5-1.

Things weren’t exactly interesting then, but seeing Seager who had a tougher first half hit another homer seemed like a possible “moral victory” that could be taken away from an otherwise lackluster game.

Then the Mariners loaded the bases with no outs, and Jean Segura stepped up to the plate.

More from Mariners News

• Winter Meetings Wrap Up: Checking where the Mariners stand
• A Farewell to Mitch Haniger as he signs with the San Francisco Giants
• Julio Rodríguez Racks Up the Accolades
• Thank you, Carlos Santana: All the best with the Pirates!
• Mariners offseason roundup in advance of Winter Meetings

Now this seems like the ideal situation for the M’s. Jean, Jean the Hitting Machine up with no outs in a position to do some serious damage.

And what did he do? He flew out.

But it was deep enough to score a run and at least make you feel a little better about the Mariners hitting with RISP. The problem was, with Haniger out of the lineup, the Mariners were hitting Danny Valencia behind Segura.

Don’t get me wrong, Danny Valencia’s .271 batting average is very serviceable, especially paired with his defense. I just wasn’t exactly stoked that he was up in a critical situation and not someone I trust more. Yet the thought lingered in my head that maybe he would come up ultra clutch.

Well he did.

Just like that it was 5-5. The Mariners had battled all the way back, and one inning later, they found themselves leading 6-5.

Now this seems like the spot to talk briefly about how Andrew Moore finally had a bad start, and we just need to remember he’s still very young, and bad days just come with putting the ball in his hand.

Fortunately for the Seattle Mariners, their bullpen is pitching very well at the moment. They have been plagued by overexertion all season due to poor starts from the rotation. Yet Sunday they were able to pick up the slack and throw seven innings of one-run ball en route to the win. That puts their final line for the weekend series at 14 innings, one run, 19 strikeouts, five walks, and five hits. That leads to an ERA of 0.64 and a WHIP of 0.74.

Edwin Diaz was also a merciless monster who showed no regard for human life in his inning of work. The fastball was fast and the slider was untouchable. The Sunday Diaz was the Diaz the Mariners fans have come to know and love over the last year.

He wouldn’t have gotten to pitch though, had it not been for Nelson Cruz coming up yet again. In the tenth, he muscled a pitch deep over the wall in left (I guess extra inning, go-ahead homers are a thing now). His fifth homer in eight days would wind up being the game-winning run, and the Mariners would crawl back to just one game under.

Next: The Mariners bullpen is starting the second half brilliantly

Coming out of this series with three more wins is huge for this team, especially as they begin a series in Houston tonight. This Mariners team is good, and when they are healthy, play to their potential, and aren’t being inhibited by poor managerial decisions, they are one of the best teams in the majors.

If they can continue their winning ways with a two-of-three performance in Texas, that will go a long ways toward sparking a second half run. So let’s just enjoy the effort and grit this team showed this weekend and hope it can continue over the next series and even the next few weeks.