Bryan Woo was unsure about his performance after his warmup, but he ended up nearly achieving perfection.
“I didn’t feel great during catch or in the bullpen; I was a bit off,” the Seattle pitcher said. “But once I got out there, everything just clicked.”
Woo carried a perfect game into the seventh inning, Luke Raley hit a two-run single, and the Mariners defeated the San Diego Padres 5-2 on Wednesday night.
J.P. Crawford also contributed with a two-run double, helping Seattle get closer to first-place Houston in the AL West by splitting their two-game series with the Padres.
Woo (8-2) retired the first 19 batters he faced before Fernando Tatis Jr. hit a home run to left field with one out in the seventh. The right-hander’s fastball was too centered, allowing Tatis to keep it fair and end Woo’s perfect game, no-hitter, and shutout.
“It was a good pitch and a good swing. You have to give credit,” Woo said.
Before that, Woo was dominant. Wearing special shoes featuring wrestling star Ric Flair, the second-year pitcher used his fastball effectively to overpower the Padres.
In six innings, Woo struck out four batters and never fell behind in the count. The closest the Padres came to a hit was Manny Machado’s line drive, which was caught by diving left fielder Randy Arozarena.
“His delivery is compact and his fastball jumps. The ball was reaching the hitters quickly,” Padres manager Mike Shildt said.
Woo was taken out in the seventh after allowing a double to Jurickson Profar and walking Jake Cronenworth. Xander Bogaerts then hit an RBI single to drive in Profar, but the Mariners prevented more runs.
Andrés Muñoz closed the game with his 20th save.
