ARLINGTON, Texas — This is how win streaks turn from five to eight, and from 10 games to historical.
And it’s another example of how the Mariners put together this recent run of success, dating to after the abysmal 3-8 homestand where the season seemed over, well beyond the brawl in Anaheim and the current double-digit win streak.
With a relatively late/early morning arrival into the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex providing inconvenience, J.P. Crawford out of the lineup as a late scratch and a sluggish start from Marco Gonzales and their own failures with bases loaded leading to a four-run deficit after two innings, it would have been easy for the Mariners to slog their way through a nondescript defeat with fatigue as an excuse and the promise to finish strong over the final three games of the series before the All-Star break.
Instead, the Mariners didn’t want to end this ride of wins that started back on July 2. Seattle scored two runs in the seventh and three runs in the eighth inning, punctuated with by Tr France’s bases-loaded two run single to rally for an eventual 6-5 victory.
It was the Mariners’ biggest come-from-behind win of the season and extending their winning streak to 11 games.
It’s now the second-longest win streak in club history, trailing only the 15-game win streak put together by the 2001 Mariners. The Mariners also joined the Astros and Yankees with 11-game winning streaks this season, which are second only to the Braves’ 14-game win streak.
The Mariners improved to 48-42 — their highest number of games above .500 this season. With Boston and Toronto losing, Seattle moved into the second wild card spot.
After Gonzales gave up three runs in the first inning and another in the second, the Mariners seemed destined to have a position player pitch to save their bullpen arms.
However, understanding the situation, Gonzales understood that an exit after three innings just couldn’t happen. He reeled in his outing and started getting outs.
Facing Rangers starter Martin Perez, who was named to the AL All-Star team this season, the Mariners seemed to have squandered two serious scoring opportunities to aid Gonzales’ outing.
Perez, who had has nasty movement on his fastball and a difficult changeup, had plenty of movement but minimal command.
His second inning:
— Walk to Eugenio Suarez
— Strikeout looking of Jesse Winker
— Walk to Cal Raleigh
— Strikeout looking of Dylan Moore
— Walk to Abraham Toro
— Strikeout of Sam Haggerty
The Mariners loaded the bases again in the third inning against Perez. But Raleigh popped up with the bases loaded to end the inning
Seattle finally broke through in the fourth inning in the unique of ways. Sam Haggerty hit a hard sinking liner to center field that Leody Taveras couldn’t make a shoestring catch on. The ball went past him all the way to the wall. Haggerty, one of the fastest players in baseball, never stopped running. He circled the bases for the Mariners first inside-the-park homer since Willie Bloomquist on June 15, 2007 at Houston.
Gonzales would give up one more run, but still pitched six complete innings, which will be critical for the Mariners in days ahead.
