M’s clinch postseason berth with Naylor’s double, late magic
Published 8:30 am Wednesday, September 24, 2025
SEATTLE – The Seattle Mariners acquired Josh Naylor in the first of three aggressive deals made before July’s MLB trade deadline, and the fiery, competitive first baseman has exceeded every expectation — but Tuesday night’s 4-3 win over the Colorado Rockies provided a signature moment the Pacific Northwest will replay for years.
With a postseason berth hanging in the balance, Naylor stepped into the batter’s box at T-Mobile Park with two outs, loaded bases, and the chance to make a near-sellout crowd erupt. Trailing the 113-loss Colorado Rockies by two runs in the eighth inning, Naylor provided three — a go-ahead, bases-clearing double stung to the left-center gap that scored Julio Rodriguez from first base and prompted All-Star closer Andres Munoz to warm.
Naylor screamed. Fans hugged. And the Mariners are popping champagne.
A three-year wait is over: Seattle will return to the postseason.
The Mariners struck out 15 times until their eighth-inning breakthrough, when leadoff hitter Luke Raley was hit by a pitch, J.P. Crawford drew a six-pitch walk, and Rodriguez took a 98-mph fastball to his left elbow guard that loaded the bases with two outs. Naylor’s double ignited the crowd and Munoz delivered a 1-2-3 ninth inning that lifted the Mariners into October for the first time since 2022.
“It’s not over until it’s over,” Naylor told ROOT Sports above the dugout steps. “We play hard until the last out.
“We just want to win for these fans. They’re amazing.”
For more than two decades, Seattle filled every seat at T-Mobile Park without the reward of October baseball. Sold-out crowds remained when the 21-year postseason drought chugged on, when magic numbers annually dwindled, and when a late-2010s rebuild birthed the “Sea Us Rise” mantra.
The city never wavered in its devotion to a team they knew could be great with bold acquisitions and a farm system perennially ranked among the best. And in 2022, postseason baseball finally returned to the Emerald City — but near-misses in ‘23 and ‘24 begged the question: Was that roster a consistent winner, or the anomaly in a sea of almosts?
Seattle doesn’t have to wonder anymore.
The Mariners have their best chance to win it all since 2001.
They possess baseball’s best catcher, a Platinum Glove winner behind the dish and a nightmare matchup on either side of the plate. Their lineup is one of the deepest in the American League. And their pitching staff remains one of the sport’s most dependable, a vital component of October success.
Cal Raleigh grabbed the microphone near home plate as a raucous crowd refused to leave: “We love you. We might as well go win the whole f–ing thing.”
The Mariners, winners in 15 of their last 16 games, clinched their postseason berth Tuesday night with a win over the Rockies, plus a New York Yankees win over the Chicago White Sox.
New York trailed, 2-1, in the bottom of the ninth inning before a two-run rally, capped by former Mariners infielder Jose Caballero’s walk-off single to center field at Yankee Stadium. A wild pitch by Chicago’s Brandon Eisert scored Cody Bellinger, tying the game at two, before Caballero’s single scored an intentionally walked Aaron Judge from second base.
New York’s win also clinched their own playoff berth, joining the Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays as the three American League clubs to punch their October tickets.
The Houston Astros lost to the Athletics on Tuesday night, 5-1, dropping Seattle’s magic number to win the AL West to one. The Mariners can win their first division title since 2001 with a win over the Rockies or another Astros loss.
“I’m glad we got Naylor at the deadline,” Mariners starter Bryce Miller smiled. “We need him next year, too. We’ve got to start working on that.”
