On a night Felix Hernandez was inducted into the Seattle Mariners’ Hall of Fame, George Kirby pitched nine scoreless innings.
And he ended up “getting Felixed.”
The Mariners failed offensively in a 1-0 loss to the visiting Baltimore Orioles in 10 innings Saturday night. The setback ended the Mariners’ eight-game winning streak and prevented them from moving past the Toronto Blue Jays for the American League’s third and final wild-card playoff spot.
The AL East-leading Orioles and Mariners are scheduled to wrap up their three-game series Sunday afternoon in Seattle.
The phrase “getting Felixed” was coined in Seattle due to the Mariners’ penchant for spoiling Hernandez’s strong starts with a lack of run support.
The same happened to Kirby, who allowed just three hits.
“It was a Felix kind of game,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “It’s crazy, isn’t it? The baseball gods are there.”
Despite the loss, Servais remained upbeat.
“A heck of a ballgame, it really was,” he said. “It was a 0-0 game, all the excitement and a full house. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the big hit, but we’re playing really good. I can’t fault anybody’s effort or anything like that, absolutely not. They just beat us. They got one big hit, and we weren’t able to come up with one.”
Baltimore’s Ryan Mountcastle drove in the lone run with a one-out single up the middle against a drawn-in infield, scoring Cedric Mullins from third.
It was Hernandez’s namesake, Orioles closer Felix Bautista, who got the victory with two innings of relief. He struck out the side in the 10th inning.
“The whole staff, Felix was unbelievable, and for them Kirby was dominant,” Mountcastle said. “It just felt like whoever scored first was going to win.”
Orioles manager Brandon Hyde praised Bautista.
“What he’s done this entire season is unbelievable. There are no other closers that are doing that,” Hyde said. “Five-out save in Toronto. Ninth, 10th innings (Saturday) … and then doing it in the fashion he is, too, we are just so fortunate to have him.”
Sunday’s series finale is scheduled to feature a pair of right-handers in Baltimore’s Kyle Bradish (7-6, 3.19 ERA) against Seattle’s Bryce Miller (7-4, 4.20).
Bradish is 1-0 with a 3.09 ERA in two career starts against the Mariners. He beat them 3-2 on June 25 in Baltimore, as he pitched seven innings and allowed two runs on two hits, with seven strikeouts.
Bradish didn’t get a decision in a 2-0 victory against the visiting New York Mets last Sunday as he struggled with his command and was unable to qualify for the win. He allowed three hits in 4 2/3 innings but walked five and hit a batter with a pitch.
Miller, a rookie, didn’t get a decision June 24 at Baltimore in a game the Orioles won 6-4 in 10 innings. He allowed three runs on six hits in 4 1/3 innings.
Last Sunday against the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim, Calif., Miller matched a career high with 10 strikeouts in just five innings in a game the Mariners won 3-2 in 10 frames. Miller allowed one run on five hits.
–Field Level Media
