The Rangers notched their 89th loss this season after last night’s frenetic battle of 11 innings, 19 runs, and 25 hits. Texas fell short by one run, losing 10-9 to the Mariners, with only six games left in the regular season and no hope of a playoff spot.
Seattle improved their record to 85-70 on the night. Their record leaves them in second place in the AL West, 16.5 games behind Houston (102-54), who has long since clinched the AL West crown and assured them the top spot in the league playoffs.
The Mariners are currently in the number two (of three) wild card spot, half a game up on Tampa Bay (75-71) and two games behind Toronto (87-69). The Mariners seek to end a 21-year playoff drought; the win over Texas helped the cause along the tracks.
“I know that’s the goal for a lot of people in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest, to end the drought,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “The goal is to get in the playoffs and go deep and win this thing, get to the World Series.”
Explaining how the team will accomplish this goal, Servais said, “We have a team that can do that with the pitching depth we’ve got and kind of how we’re wired. So again, we’re trying to check the first box tomorrow night.”
The Rangers, on the other hand, sit near the bottom of the rankings of the AL. Their mark of 66-89 is the fourth worst (of 12) in the league. Texas started the season at 41-49, and though sub-.500, they sat in third place in the west at the All-Star break.
A 25-40 second-half tailspin ended Texas’ playoff pursuit early in August, and Thursday night’s loss resembles most of the team’s losses this year: close, but not close enough.
Sam Huff, Marcus Semien, and Adolis García each hit home runs in the third ending to take a 4-2 lead in the fourth.
A homerun-heavy race between the teams (belting a combined nine souvenirs for the seats) ended in the bottom of the 11th inning when the Mariners pushed three runs across home on three consecutive singles.
Rangers’ righty Jon Gray got the start in the game, lasted five innings — allowing six earned runs on eight hits — and wasn’t around long enough to factor in the decision.
Middle relievers Brock Burke, Matt Moore, and Jose Hernández combined to pitch one-run ball for four innings and keep Texas relevant in the game.
But late-inning hurlers Leclerc and John King each coughed up save opportunities — the second time this season Leclerc has blown a save and the fifth time for King. King notched his fourth loss of the season against a lone win.
The Rangers head to Anaheim on Friday to take on the Angels starting at 8:38 p.m. CDT.
Glenn Otto (6-9, 4.73) is scheduled for the Rangers’ start, and Reid Detmers (6-6, 3.88) will get the starting nod for Los Angeles.
