SEATTLE — It is the type of play the Mariners’ new, more-athletic outfield is supposed to make.
It occurred with two out in the sixth inning Tuesday night when Houston had the bases loaded with the Mariners clinging to a one-run lead. Evan Gattis sliced a soft looper into right field.
A year ago, the Mariners don’t have a right fielder who can reached that ball. Not even close. Mitch Haniger sprinted in and reached the ball as he went into a slide. It kicked off his glove.
Three runs scored.
“A tough play,” Haniger said. “We’re trying to cover the gap. Gattis is more of a pull guy. It was a long run. I got a good jump. I just didn’t haul it in.”
The Astros added another run before the inning ended and went on to a 7-5 victory over the Mariners at Safeco Field.
The footnote is official scorer Darin Padur credited Gattis with a double. That’s hard to argue. It wasn’t a routine play. But Haniger reached the ball; he just didn’t catch it.
“I think Mitch would say it’s a ball he comes up with most times,” Seattle manager Scott Servais said. “Great effort. He went after it the way he should with the game kind of on the line there in the sixth with the bases loaded.
“He just didn’t come up with it. I’m sure he’d be the first to say he probably should have had that one.”
Asked that specifically, whether he thought he should have made the catch, Haniger said: “I don’t know. I just try to do my job. I try to get to everything I can. I don’t know. Maybe next time I get it.”
Taylor Motter’s third double of the game helped the Mariners make things interesting in the ninth inning. They scored against Houston closer Ken Giles but couldn’t complete the comeback.
“When he lost control of his fastball and started throwing off-speed a little bit more,” Motter said, “I thought we had something going for sure.”
The Mariners fell to 2-7.
Let’s reset:
Mariners starter Ariel Miranda carried a 3-2 lead into the decisive sixth and began the inning by getting two quick outs. Then he walked consecutive hitters, his first walks of the game.
Servais went to the bullpen for James Pazos, who gave up a high-chop single to Yuli Gurriel, which loaded the bases. Gattis then batted for Josh Reddick and … three runs.
Singles by George Springer and Alex Bregman stretched the lead to 6-3.
A base-running mistake by Kyle Seager stymied an opportunity for the Mariners to counterpunch later in the inning. Nelson Cruz led off with a single and went to third when Seager sent a liner to deep right.
But Seager got trapped between first and second for an out. Houston replaced starter Joe Musgrove with Will Harris, who struck out Danny Valencia and retired Leonys Martin on a fly to left.
Springer opened the game by jumping on a first-pitch fastball from Miranda for a 416-foot homer to center field.
The Astros added another run in the third inning on singles by Reddick, Bregman and Jose Altuve. The latter two came with two out.
The Mariners pulled even later in the inning thanks largely to Jarrod Dyson’s speed. First, he beat out a two-out swinging bunt. Then he scored from first on Haniger’s double off the left-field wall.
Robinson Cano followed by grounding an RBI single to left.
The Mariners took a 3-2 lead in the fifth after Carlos Ruiz led off and reached first when hit by a pitch. He went to third on Motter’s double to left and scored on Dyson’s sacrifice fly.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
