SEATTLE — The sheer volume of games — usually six per week — over the course of a 162-game season leads to a randomness in results for baseball different from most sports. It is not uncommon for the worst team in Major League Baseball to beat the best team on more than one occasion.
But there was nothing random or unexpected in the outcome Monday night at T-Mobile Park.
The Seattle Mariners — the hottest team in baseball since July 1 — did exactly what they were supposed to do to the Oakland A’s, the worst team in baseball by record and talent.
In one of their most complete performances, showcasing the shutdown pitching that’s been so strong all season and a relentless offense that has stopped performing to expectations and is now exceeding them, the Mariners drubbed the A’s, 7-0, in a game that felt more lopsided than the score.
It was the Mariners’ 20th win in August, which tied a club record.
With all three teams fighting for the AL West title prevailing in their respective games, the standings stayed the same for a day. The Mariners (75-56) remained alone atop the AL West standings, a game ahead of Texas (74-57) and Houston (75-58), who stayed tied for the second wild-card spot as well.
Down a run going into the top of the ninth inning, the Rangers scored two runs off former Mariners’ reliever Trevor Gott for an eventual 4-3 win at CitiField. In Boston, Jose Altuve hit for the cycle in the Astros’ decisive 13-5 win over the Red Sox.
Playing in front of an announced crowd of 37,434, which is a product of a 37-14 record since July 1, the Mariners scored six runs in the first four innings. J.P. Crawford gave his team a lead two pitches into the game. Crawford crushed 1-0 fastball from Oakland starter Kyle Muller into the seats in deep right-center for his fifth leadoff homer of the season.
Seattle added three more in the third inning. Crawford led off with a single and scored on Julio Rodriguez’s line drive into the right-center gap that went for a double. Teoscar Hernandez added an RBI single in the inning and Dylan Moore plated a run on a fielder’s choice.
Rodriguez, who will almost certainly be the American League player of the month for August, continued his torrid run that has ignited Seattle’s offense. After Crawford worked a one-out walk in the fourth inning, Rodriguez crushed a towering fly ball into the The ‘Pen for his 24th homer of the season. He’s now homered in three consecutive games.
Rodriguez would add a pair of infield singles to finish with four hits. He now has 153 hits on the season, which is the most in the American League.
Working under strict pitch limits, Woo found a way to work longer in the game and factor in the decision — pitch with ruthless efficiency.
Making his second start since coming off the injured list, Woo fired six scoreless innings, allowing just three hits with a walk and five strikeouts. More impressive, he did it while throwing a total of 69 pitches. It helps when you fire first-pitch strikes to 15 of the 20 batters you face and only get to three balls in a count once in your outing.
But with Woo coming back from a forearm strain and minimal starting pitching depth due to injuries, the Mariners are even more cognizant and cautious concerning his overall usage in terms of innings pitched and leverage pitches thrown. It means cutting this outing short now so he’s available to pitch in the final weeks of the season and possibly in some role in the postseason.
