Mariners 8-1 Astros (September 25, 2024) Game Recap

HOUSTON – Mitch Garver and Julio Rodríguez hit home runs and the Seattle Mariners capitalized on five Houston errors in an 8-1 victory over the Astros on Wednesday.

Seattle (82-77) won for the fifth time in seven games and tried to clinch an AL wild card. It’s chasing Detroit and Kansas City for one of the final two spots.

“We have three more to go now and we just keep grinding,” manager Dan Wilson said. “We have everything right in front of us. Three games that we have to win and probably need help with that. But we just have to do what we do and not worry about anything else.”

The Mariners trailed 1-0 before rallying in the sixth. Dylan Moore reached on the first of four errors by rookie third baseman Shay Whitcomb entering the fourth. Victor Robles walked and Cal Raleigh hit a one-out single to load the bases.

Justin Turner then extended his on-base streak to 20 consecutive games with his single on a line drive to left field that scored two times.

Garver opened the seventh with his 14th home run on a line drive into the seats in left field. Thanks to three errors by the Astros, including two more by Whitcomb, the Mariners added two more runs in the inning.

“On offense, we had some breaks later on, we took advantage of some of their mistakes,” Wilson said. “We were able to improve further later in the game.”

A fourth error by Whitcomb allowed Moore to reach with no outs in the ninth, and he scored on a double by Robles. Rodríguez then hit his 20th home run of the season.

“I’ll have a conversation with (Whitcomb), but we’ll turn the tide,” Astros manager Joe Espada said. “This is a safe third baseman. He made it in the minor leagues.

Yusei Kikuchi (9-10) struck out eight hits in six innings in his first loss to Houston. He was charged with two unearned runs and four hits.

The Astros won Kikuchi’s first nine starts after he was acquired in a trade with Toronto on July 29. He went 5-0 with a 3.00 ERA in that stretch.

George Kirby (14-11) pitched six four-hit innings in his third straight win for Seattle. He struck out six and walked one.

Victor Caratini hit an RBI single in the third for the Astros, who played without many of their starters a day after winning their fourth straight AL West title.

There was a special moment for Alex Bregman in the fourth inning of what could be his final home game of the regular season at Minute Maid Park. He is eligible for free agency after this season.

Bregman trotted to third base, but Espada picked him up as a defensive replacement before the inning began. Bregman slowly walked to the dugout and received a standing ovation. Before entering the dugout, he paused and flashed his cap to the crowd.

He admitted he was overwhelmed by the moment.

“A little,” he said. “To be honest, I’m just trying to focus on the postseason. Maybe at the end of the year we can look back and think about it, but right now I’m focused on winning.”

Bregman was selected by Houston with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 amateur draft and has spent his entire career with the Astros.

TRAINER ROOM

Astros: OF/DH Yordan Alvarez will not travel on the team’s upcoming road trip but will remain in Houston to receive treatment for his sprained right knee. Espada said Alvarez improved Wednesday and some of the swelling had gone down since he was injured in a slide Sunday.

NEXT

Mariners: Open a three-game series against the Athletics on Friday night in Seattle.

Astros: We travel to Cleveland for a three-game series starting Friday night.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb