Mariners’ bullpen hangs on in tense 4-3 win over Angels

ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Wolfpack returned Wednesday with a vengeance and drama. A lot of drama

One day after the Seattle Mariners’ potent bullpen let two leads slip away in a one-run loss, a five-reliever relay worked through 4 2/3 tense innings Wednesday night in a 4-3 victory over the Los Angeles Angels.

Rookie closer Edwin Diaz gave up one run in the ninth inning before escaping a bases-loaded jam. He is now perfect in eight save opportunities.

The victory, fittingly, went to Drew Storen, who retired Mike Trout and Albert Pujols with the bases loaded in the fifth inning after replacing Cody Martin, who started one day after getting recalled from Triple-A Tacoma.

But, brother, it wasn’t a smooth ride to the end.

Diaz started the ninth inning by sandwiching a wild pitch between singles by Cliff Pennington and Yunel Escobar. That scored Pennington. Diaz struck out Kole Calhoun, but Trout punched a single into center.

Escobar raced to third, and Trout took second on the throw.

It marked the first time that Diaz surrendered three hits in an inning.

An intentional walk to Pujols loaded the bases with one out but set up a better double-play situation.

Diaz struck out Jefry Marte on three pitches — and then escaped when third baseman Kyle Seager made a sparkling defensive play to retire Andrelton Simmons.

Whew!

That wasn’t all.

Arquimedes Caminero worked himself into a two-out jam in the seventh inning by allowing two singles but escaped by striking out Trout on a 100-mph fastball.

Tom Wilhelmsen did the same in the eighth inning in yielding a pair of two-out singles before retiring pinch-hitter Jett Bandy on a fly to center.

But the Mariners held on and won for the 12th time in 15 games. They erased a 2-0 deficit by scoring two runs in the second inning before knocking out LA starter Tyler Skaggs (1-2) with a two-run fourth.

Chris Iannetta started the decisive fourth with a double to deep center. Iannetta went to third on Leonys Martin’s single and scored on Ketel Marte’s sacrifice fly to deep left.

Martin stole second prior to Marte’s sacrifice fly — and scored all the way from second on Shawn O’Malley’s bunt single.

First baseman Jefry Marte missed O’Malley with a sweep tag and then threw behind Martin to third. Martin kept running and scored for a 4-2 lead.

That finished Skaggs, who was making his fifth start since returning from a two-year absence while recovering from Tommy John surgery. He gave up four runs and six hits in 3 1/3 innings.

Cody Martin survived a two-run first inning and carried that 4-2 lead into the fifth but couldn’t make it through as the Angels loaded the bases with one out on two singles and a walk.

The Mariners called on Storen, who struck out Trout with a killer slider before retiring Pujols on a drive to deep center. Storen (2-0) then got two outs in the sixth before Vidal Nuno closed the inning.

Then Caminero. Then Wilhelmsen. Then Diaz. Then handshakes.

Cody Martin had a rocky start.

Yunel Escobar opened the LA first inning with a bad-hop single that handcuffed first baseman Dae-Ho Lee. Kole Calhoun followed with a double to center, but Escobar got a bad break and stopped at third.

After Martin loaded the bases by hitting Trout, Pujols flicked an RBI single into left for a 1-0 lead.

Jefry Marte sent a sacrifice fly to center. Leonys Martin’s throw to third was too late to get Trout, but Kyle Seager made a snap throw to second that nabbed Pujols’ belated attempt to advance.

Second baseman Robinson Cano then saved a run by ranging far to his right to grab an Andrelton Simmons grounder and turn it into the third out.

The inning ended with the Mariners trailing 2-0. It could have been much worse. Then, the Mariners answered by pulling even with a two-run second inning.

Nelson Cruz led off with a walk and went to second on Seager’s single before Skaggs loaded the bases by hitting Lee. Iannetta’s hard grounder skipped off Escobar’s glove at third for an RBI single.

Leonys Martin then tied the game with a sacrifice fly to center, but the Mariners left runners at first and third when Marte and O’Malley struck out.