By Ryan Divish / The Seattle Times
SEATTLE — What happens when the hottest team in baseball — the Seattle Mariners — welcomes the team with the best record in the American League — the Baltimore Orioles — to town for a three-game series?
Well, at least for one game, the team with all the momentum prevailed in the collision Friday night at T-Mobile Park.
The Mariners roughed up Baltimore starter Kyle Gibson, scoring all nine of their runs off him, while their starter Luis Castillo delivered another outstanding outing, rolling to an easy 9-2 victory.
The Mariners have won eight straight games and improved to 63-52. With the Toronto Blue Jays losing to the Chicago Cubs earlier in the evening, the Mariners are a half game behind Toronto for the third wild card spot in the American League. The Mariners also have one fewer loss than the Blue Jays (65-53).
The Mariners jumped on Gibson in the first inning, setting the tone for the rest of the game.
With J.P. Crawford placed on the 7-day concussion injured list before the game, Julio Rodriguez returned to the leadoff spot that he once held.
In his first at-bat, Rodriguez hammered an 0-2 slider deep to right-center. The line drive was gloved when Cedric Mullins made a terrific leaping grab going into wall. But the 107 mph missile was a sign of things to come for Rodriguez and the Mariners.
Eugenio Suarez followed with a single and Cal Raleigh launched a towering a two-run homer to right field for a quick 2-0 lead.
Castillo pitched six innings, allowing one run on only two hits with two walks and eight strikeouts. Of his 101 pitches, he threw 61 strikes that included 16 swings and missed, 12 called strikes, 20 foul balls and 14 balls in play. He had only 12 first-pitch strikes to the 22 batters he faced.
His one run allowed came in the fourth inning with a 2-0 lead. Anthony Santander ambushed a first-pitch slider, sending a solo homer into the seats in deep right-center.
Seattle broke the game open in the bottom of the inning.
They loaded the bases with no outs against Gibson on three straight singles. Jose Caballero drove in a run with a sac fly and Josh Rojas notched his first hit as a member of the Mariners, sending a single to right.
Rodriguez punctuated the inning, slicing a fly ball over the wall in right field for a three-run homer and a 7-1 lead.
He would later add an RBI double off Gibson that ended the starter’s outing.
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