Randy Arozarena hit a single with one out and the bases loaded in the ninth inning to give the Seattle Mariners a 5-4 win over the Texas Rangers on Saturday night.
Victor Robles doubled and stole third base, while Julio Rodríguez and Cal Raleigh walked. Arozarena then hit a sharp ground ball off José Leclerc (6-5) that slipped past shortstop Josh Smith, bringing Robles home.
Arozarena now has four career walk-off hits, including three singles and one home run. His game-winning single came after an 0-2 count.
“The first two pitches, I was really just trying to hit a home run,” Arozarena said through interpreter Juan Rodriguez. “I took some big swings, but then I adjusted for the third pitch, focusing on making contact, and it worked.”
With Houston winning against the Los Angeles Angels, the Mariners remain 4 1/2 games behind in the AL West and are 2 1/2 games short of the Minnesota Twins for the last AL wild-card spot.
“We’ve played many close games lately and won a lot of them,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “It’s nice to come out on top in these close games. It helps prepare us for the future, but we just take it one game at a time.”
Andrés Muñoz (3-6) pitched a scoreless ninth inning to earn the win.
Josh Rojas gave the Mariners the lead with a sacrifice fly in the second inning, but Leody Taveras put the Rangers ahead with a two-run home run off Logan Gilbert in the third.
Rodríguez hit a 446-foot home run to left field off Max Scherzer in the third to tie the game. It was his sixth straight hit and second home run over 400 feet in as many games. Rodríguez had two hits on the night and now has seven hits in the Mariners’ last three games.
