Sometimes, the decision to buy or sell at the trade deadline comes down to a single game.
Whether that’s the case with the Seattle Mariners might not be decided until Monday afternoon.
All-Star Randy Arozarena, whose name reportedly has come up should the Mariners sell, made a case against that Saturday. He recorded a double, home run and scored three times — including the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning — in a 4-3 victory against the Minnesota Twins.
The three-game series wraps up Sunday afternoon in Seattle.
The Mariners, who are chasing both Houston and Texas in the American League West race, snapped a three-game skid and won for just the third time in 11 games.
“It’s huge. It really is,” said Mariners starter Logan Gilbert, who didn’t get a decision despite pitching seven solid innings.
“I know we say that all the time, but like today was big. This series is big. That’s a good team over there. We’re at that point when it’s like you’ve just got to find a way, find a way to win, find a way to get it done, whatever it takes.”
The Mariners took a 3-0 lead in the first two innings before their bats went quiet.
Luke Keaschall and Trevor Larnach went deep as the Twins rallied to tie it.
Arozarena led off the bottom of the ninth inning with a double down the left-field line off Twins reliever Andrew Morris and advanced to third as Dominic Canzone flew out to the warning track in left. The Twins intentionally walked Julio Rodriguez to set up a potential inning-ending double play with Cal Raleigh at the plate.
Raleigh hit a chopper to first baseman Royce Lewis, who stepped on the bag and turned toward second to try to throw out Rodriguez, who had stopped midway between the bases to get into a rundown. Arozarena took off for the plate and slid around the tag of catcher Victor Caratini to score the winning run.
“Once (Lewis) tags first then it’s a situation, even if Julio gets in a rundown, then Randy’s going to score,” Twins manager Derek Shelton said. “So, it’s got to be one of those ones that goes to second. We got to get the force first to come back. One of the reasons we walked Julio there was because we thought we had a chance to double up Cal if he put the ball on the ground and we just were not able to finish the play.”
The Mariners used closer Andres Munoz for 1 1/3 innings, and he ended up with the victory.
“When you’re close like this, everything, every win now has a greater importance,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said.
The Twins are set to send Taj Bradley (9-4, 3.65 ERA) to the mound Sunday in the series finale.
George Kirby (8-9, 3.98), whose name also has been mentioned in trade reports, is scheduled to start for Seattle in a matchup of right-handers.
Bradley has received no-decisions in his past two starts against Cleveland and Kansas City despite giving up three runs on five hits over 13 innings with 15 strikeouts. He’s 0-0 with a 4.91 ERA in four career starts against Seattle.
Kirby gave up a season-high seven runs over four innings in a 7-3 loss July 27 at Texas. He’s 1-2 with a 3.90 ERA in five previous starts against the Twins.
This will be the second time this season Bradley and Kirby have squared off. Neither got a decision April 29 in Minneapolis in a game the Mariners rallied to win 5-3 on Cole Young’s two-run single that put Seattle ahead in the top of the ninth.
Bradley went seven innings and allowed two runs on four hits, with two walks and seven strikeouts. Kirby gave up two runs on eight hits over 5 2/3 innings, with two walks and five strikeouts.
–Field Level Media
