SEATTLE — They are the faces of the franchise and on whose shoulders the Mariners have staked their present and future. Players who are already on their way to superstardom and who could reach heights of perpetuity in this region if this playoff run ends with a parade.
Cal Raleigh and Julio Rodríguez, the blue-collar catcher who crushes 60 homers and the five-tool center fielder who loves the spotlight. They make a dynamic duo at the top of the Mariners†lineup, and they delivered in a huge way on Sunday night.
Raleigh yanked a double into the right-field corner with one out in the eighth inning, then RodrÃguez positioned him to race home by going full alley-oop with a double of his own, this one into left. Those back-to-back knocks answered a tense Tigers rally a half-inning prior and lifted Seattle to a 3-2 victory in Game 2 of this American League Division Series that, by all measures, was in must-win territory.
“This was a bounce-back game for us,†Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “And they did just that.â€
On an emotional level, it was the Mariners†first postseason win at T-Mobile Park since Game 5 of the 2001 ALDS — the longevity of which quite literally brought fans to tears.
RodrÃguez has embraced that emotion, speaking loftily on the Mariners†ambitions despite their organizational lack of experience on this stage. And he could be the perfect embodiment to changing that narrative — a player whoâ€s been in the big leagues for four years now, whoâ€s off to a promising career but also whoâ€s mostly been defined by potential rather than proven.
Which made Sunday arguably his biggest moment yet.
“This has to be No. 1,†RodrÃguez said. “We haven’t had a time like this here in a while, so being able to deliver a win tonight as a team I think was really special for me. Just to see the fans and the way they got going, it was very special. I’m always going to hold that memory in my heart.â€
After taking a gut-punch defeat in Game 1, the Mariners have evened this series as it shifts to Detroit — and more critically, they did do so against Detroitâ€s Tarik Skubal, making them the first team to defeat the all-world ace three times in the same season.
Had they gone down 2-0, even in a best-case scenario, they wouldâ€ve had to win both Games 3 and 4 at Comerica Park just to force a winner-take-all Game 5 back in Seattle, where theyâ€d again face Skubal. That possibility still looms, even with a split in Detroit. But the Mariners proved to both the Tigers — and themselves — that they can punch back.
“More importantly, to come and answer back as a team,†RodrÃguez said. “I felt like Cal got it going right there, and I was really happy to be able to follow through on that.â€
Essentially, Rodriguez and the Mariners landed the final blow in Game 2.
Seattle held Detroit scoreless all night until the eighth inning, when the Tigers tied the game with a two-run, inside-out double that Spencer Torkelson sliced down the right-field line, off the wall in foul territory and into No Manâ€s Land. That came immediately after Matt Brash walked leadoff man Gleyber Torres then had to work around an uncharacteristic error from first baseman Josh Naylor that put the tying run on base.
With momentum fleeting, the Mariners were cognizant — and confident — when it was their turn to respond, having knocked Skubal out of the game at that point. And when the Tigers called on reliever Kyle Finnegan, Raleigh and RodrÃguez immediately answered.
“It’s not difficult,†RodrÃguez said. “I feel like we’re in it to win it, you know? And it doesn’t matter what really happened — if they take the lead or anything like that, they tie it up. We know what the goal is about the game, and there is not really time to feel sorry about what happens. … Just stay in the moment.â€
Among five arms, the Mariners surrendered just three hits — their fewest in franchise history in a postseason game — and were anchored by their Rock, whose nickname is attached to that moniker.
Luis Castillo labored early, needing 51 pitches to clear the second inning, but settled in after, with just nine pitches in the third and fourth each. His task wasnâ€t necessarily to out-pitch or even outlast Skubal, but rather, keep Seattleâ€s offense within striking distance. And he delivered, surrendering zero hits through his first 18 batters, before Torres punched an opposite-field single off him with two outs in the fifth.
That knock, which came after Castilloâ€s fourth walk, put runners on the corners and Wilson in a nearly identical spot to the decision that proved his most costly in Game 1 — with his starter at a palatable pitch count (85), but power threat Kerry Carpenter on deck.
This time, however, Wilson turned to leverage lefty Gabe Speier, who was warming the night prior when George Kirby served up a decisive, two-run homer. And this time, Speier bailed the Mariners out of the jam with a massive strikeout.
Just after, Castillo was seen on the dugoutâ€s top step clenching his right fist — the gesture synonymous with his nickname, La Piedra, which is Spanish for the rock.
“When Speier came out there, I stayed because I wanted to show my support, and especially in these moments right now,†Castillo said through an interpreter. “That’s the best you can do, is try and show your support. And it doesn’t matter who comes out there, you kind of know they’re going to get the job done.â€
Speier was the first in another extended line of relief, the caboose of which was Andrés Muñoz, who — one day after pitching two innings, his most in his Mariners career — locked down his first postseason save.
The two-time All-Star ensured that there would be no counter act, and that if the Mariners eventually face elimination in this ALDS, it wouldnâ€t happen on a night when their backs were against the wall.
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