George Kirby pitched for 6 and two-thirds innings, allowing only two hits and striking out eight batters. J.P. Crawford hit a home run, helping the Seattle Mariners win 1-0 against the Boston Red Sox on Friday night.
Kirby, who won his first game of the season, had a strong performance following his successful 2023 season. Last year, he pitched at least six innings in 23 out of 31 games.
Seattle manager Scott Servais praised Kirby’s dominance in the game, saying he has the potential for a great season.
Red Sox pitcher Nick Pivetta almost matched Kirby’s performance, allowing only one run on three hits over six innings. He struck out 10 batters without giving up a walk. It was his second career game with at least 10 strikeouts and no walks, with the first also happening in Seattle on July 31 last year.
Andrés Muñoz secured the final four outs of the game to earn the save, marking the second time in his career he achieved a four-out save.
The game remained scoreless for the first five innings until Crawford broke the tie with his home run in the sixth inning.
Kirby faced some challenges early in the game, walking two batters in the first inning and allowing a runner to advance to third on a wild pitch. However, he settled in afterward, retiring 19 of the next 20 batters.
Boston had scoring opportunities in the seventh and eighth innings, but they couldn’t capitalize on them. The Mariners also loaded the bases in the eighth inning but couldn’t score, it was a tightly contested game with strong pitching performances from both teams.