Associated Press
MIAMI — Jesús Luzardo allowed one run and two hits in six innings and the Miami Marlins won their seventh straight game, beating the Seattle Mariners 3-1 on Saturday night.
Brian Anderson had two hits for the Marlins, whose last seven-game win streak ran from April 24-30, 2016.
Luzardo (2-1) struck out five and walked one in his longest outing of the season.
“I just wanted to get ahead and attack the hitters,” Luzardo said. “I feel that’s the biggest adjustment I’ve made this year. My stuff was working in the zone. I didn’t want to fall behind in the count and give the hitters the edge.”
Mariners starter Robbie Ray cruised through the first four innings before running into trouble in a 36-pitch fifth inning. The reigning AL Cy Young Award winner allowed RBI singles to Bryan De La Cruz and Jon Berti and walked three, including Garrett Cooper with the bases loaded.
“(Ray) was unbelievable tonight,” said Anderson, who began the fifth-inning rally with a double. “He didn’t make many mistakes and when he did, we were ready. The way our pitching has been going, any offense that we can put together it seems to give us a whole lot of confidence.”
Ray (1-2) was lifted after five innings. He gave up three runs, four hits, struck out eight and walked four.
“I felt really good, command was really good, fastball was good, slider was good,” Ray said. “It’s the best I felt all year. I came up short and lost a little of my focus. Self-inflicted.”
De La Cruz and Berti were part of the all right-handed hitting lineup Marlins manager Don Mattingly used against the left-handed Ray.
“Everybody’s got a role on our club, and I think that’s better for me and our staff when the pieces fit,” Mattingly said. “Everybody has something that we expect from them and they know over time they’re all part of it.”
Miami relievers Anthony Bass and Cole Sulser each threw a scoreless inning and Anthony Bender pitched around two singles in the ninth for his sixth save.
J. P. Crawford had three of the Mariners’ five hits.
“Playing these tight games against really good pitching ,you have to find a way to get it done,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “We’re fine. It goes in streaks like that. It’s just a matter of getting through it now.”
Seattle struck first on Dylan Moore’s leadoff homer in the third. Moore drove Luzardo’s fastball over the wall in left-center for his first home run of the season.
DOUBLE SWITCH
Mariners’ catcher Luis Torrens began the game as the designated hitter, but when Adam Frazier pinch hit for catcher Tom Murphy in the seventh, Torrens took over the position in the bottom half. The move cost Seattle its designated hitter.
CLOSE CALL
Jesús Aguilar hit a line drive that bounced off the leg of Marlins third base coach Al Pedrique in the fifth. Pedrique, who was positioned toward base runner De La Cruz at second, fell to the ground but quickly reached his feet.
MARINERS MOVES
IF Mike Ford was traded to the San Francisco Giants for cash considerations. The 29-year-old Ford signed a minor league deal with Seattle last month and began the season at Triple-A Tacoma. The Mariners promoted Ford to the major league club April 19 before he was designated for assignment Monday. … OF Stuart Fairchild was recalled from Triple-A Tacoma.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Mariners: OF Mitch Haniger (high right ankle sprain) was placed on the 10-day injured list. Haniger underwent an MRI Saturday, and manager Scott Servais said he did not have an update on the results.
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