Mariners vs. Padres: Dumper dongs, All-Star Logan, & Gregory Santos struts his stuff

Even though the series was just two games, a sweep is a sweep. With three home series losses in a row and the Astros continuously gaining ground, the Mariners need all the wins that they can get. What was different about performing in Petco Park? The team's superstars showed up at the plate, showing off just how good the team could be if it's able to fire on all cylinders.

Best Hitter: Cal Raleigh

9 PA, .375/.444/1.250, 3 H, 1 2B, 2 HR, 4 HR, 4 RBI, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 SB

In this series against the Padres, Raleigh reminded me of the old adage "everything I do, yeah, I do it big." He needed just three hits to accumulate 10 bases and did it all in the first game of the series. He also managed to hit a home run on each side of the plate, batting lefty against Adam Mazur and righty against Yuki Matsui. His four RBI helped the Mariners cruise to an 8-3 win over San Diego to kick things off.

Honorable Mention: Julio Rodríguez

8 PA, 4 H, 1 2B, 1 HR, 3 R, 2 RBI, 4 K

Julio is finally having a good month, at least so far. He has slashed .333/.360/.667 over 25 plate appearances in July, a huge improvement over his sobering .206/.270/.304 slash line in June. He also had a great first game of the series, going 4-for-4 with three runs, two RBI, and a home run to boot.

July is also when he started to warm up in 2023 before reaching otherworldly levels in August, so maybe he's just trying to remain consistent.