Mariner Bats Go Cold in Loss to Halos

The force was not with the Mariners on Star Wars night in Seattle as the offense went cold and failed to score a run.

The Mariners began their three-game series tonight with the Los Angeles Angels and the last series of their current homestand before they travel to face Toronto, Detroit, and Minnesota to complete a make-up game.

Both Mike Leake of the Mariners and Garrett Richards of the Angels were solid as starters for their respective teams until the fourth inning when Leake gave up a single that plated a run. Later in the inning, a bases-loaded double play provided the first two outs of the inning for the Mariners. But a run came in to score, extending the Angels’ lead to two.

The Angels were able to tack on another run in the fifth inning to expand their lead to three. But the biggest story of the night was Albert Pujols. With a two-out blooper into RF, Pujols became just the 32nd player to reach 3,000 career hits in history.

The Mariners accumulated just five hits throughout the ballgame and were unable to plate a run throughout the contest. Even worse, they were 0-8 with runners in scoring position, which helped Los Angeles secure the victory.

Dee Gordon grounded into a double play to end the eighth inning with 2 runners on. After that, the Angels were able to add insurance in the top of the ninth. Albert Pujols singled into left field which scored two and increased the Halos’ lead to five.

A 1-2-3 bottom of the ninth for Seattle ended the ballgame in an offensive shutout. The Mariners fell to 18-13 after the loss. However, they are still just 1.5 games behind Houston and Los Angeles.

Next: Mitchell Evan Haniger: All-Star

The Mariners look to bounce back in game two of their three-game stint with the Halos as Marco  Gonzales will take the mound to face Tyler Skaggs. First pitch on Saturday is scheduled for 6:10.