August was majestic for the Mariners, a month in which they fully rectified their season and inserted themselves wholeheartedly into the playoff race.
Ah, but now comes the very best part of the season. The nerve-wracking part. The ulcer-inducing madness that, for fans, is the well-earned payoff for the five months that preceded it.
The fun part, in other words.
Now comes September, when hearts will soar and be broken — sometimes in the same game. When legends can be born and history can, and no doubt will, be made. Just ask catcher Cal Raleigh, whose drought-busting home run last September will live on forever in Mariner annals.
The Mariners ended August in style Wednesday with their 21st win, a 5-4 comeback over Oakland that established a club record for victories in one month and averted the inevitable panic in the streets that would have greeted a series loss to the lowly A's.
And now they glide into the September maelstrom that couldn't be better set up for more delicious drama, with the Mariners, Rangers and Astros all jockeying for supremacy in the AL West, and the Blue Jays lurking just behind in the concurrent wild-card race.
Not since 2001 have the Mariners entered September in first place. But they are assured of that status Friday, Sept. 1, when they take on the Mets in New York after an off day Thursday — one they ushered in with high spirits, wearing matching Run DMC track suits supplied by outfielder Julio Rodriguez, on to the charter.
And they know full well what draining yet exhilarating madness lies ahead, especially in the final 10 days, when the Mariners close out the regular season with 10 consecutive games against Texas, Houston and Texas again.
"It will just get everybody ready for a playoff," said outfielder Teoscar Hernandez, who delivered a huge three-run home run in the third inning Wednesday after Seattle fell behind 3-0. "As soon as September comes, every game is going to feel like that, and we're ready for it."
These season-ending melodramas have been precious and few for the Mariners, who more often than not have used September to showcase youngsters and ride out the string, hopelessly out of contention. So each time it happens is an occasion to savor. But last year, when the Mariners clinched the second wild-card berth to make the playoffs for the first time since 2001, merely whetted their appetite for more.
Mariners manager Scott Servais joked after Wednesday's win that he wished August lasted for 60 days. But he relishes the proving ground of September, when each win will be celebrated and each loss will seem like the end of the world. The fact that the Mariners began August in fourth place in the division after a loss to Boston on Aug. 1 only makes it more precious.
"What excites me about our team going forward is the confidence, the energy," Servais said. "From our team, from our fan base, and everybody here in the building. We have a good team — the pitching, the clutch hitting. We've got a superstar, and we have to get him back in the lineup, of course, but there's a lot of things that line up. That all looks great on paper. I said it early in the season: We look good on paper, but you have to go out and do it."
The superstar to whom Servais is alluding, of course, is Rodriguez, who missed his second consecutive game because of a foot injury. Considering that Julio's epic performance in August was the biggest reason for the Mariners' surge, it will be a worrisome topic until he recovers.
But the Mariners are playing with increasing confidence and showing they have offensive weapons beyond Rodriguez to augment a rotation that is as strong as any in the league. And Andres Muñoz's dominant closing effort was more cause for comfort.
One would think that a win over an A's team desperately trying to avoid 120 losses would hardly be something to dwell on. But throughout baseball history, down-and-out teams with all the pressure removed have invariably proven pesky foes, and the A's and Royals were no exceptions in August.
That's why Servais raved about what he called "the little things" that spurred the Mariners' win (not to be confused with the big things, such as Hernandez's home run and J.P. Crawford's go-ahead, two-run single in the seventh).
Like Eugenio Suarez starting a huge step-on-third, throw-to-second double play to defuse an Oakland rally, and drawing a two-out walk preceding Hernandez's homer. Like Hernandez throwing out speedster Esteury Ruiz trying to score from third on a medium fly. Like Jose Caballero getting a huge jump to allow him to score on Crawford's single. Like Bryce Miller rebounding from a rocky second inning to work through the sixth and save the Mariners' beleaguered bullpen.
"Our guys love competing," Servais said. "You saw that today. We're down 3-0, Julio's not in there. It would be easy to say we just don't quite have it. But we don't quit. We keep fighting, fighting and then finding a way for somebody to step up big, and we did today.
"So there's lots to be excited about. There will be ups and downs. It will not be a smooth ride. It will be a roller coaster. We'll be upside-down certain days, and then you've just got to keep riding it out. Hope you're in a good spot at the end, which I think we will be."
Added Hernandez: "We know it's not going to be easy. And we have to put every single bit of energy that we have into not making mistakes. If you make mistakes with the teams that are ahead in the next month, that's when they make you pay."
In other words, all the edge-of-the-seat, hide-your-eyes-but-peek-anyway baseball drama you could hope for awaits us, in what should be the most exciting, exhausting month of the season.
Until October, anyway.
