Logan Gilbert was nearly perfect as he pitched into the sixth inning, marking the best season of his career. Cal Raleigh hit a record-setting two-run homer, helping the Seattle Mariners defeat the Athletics 6-4 on Sunday in their last game representing Oakland.
This final game for the A’s in gray road uniforms almost turned into a historic outing for Gilbert. He dominated from the start, retiring the first 17 batters until Nick Allen got a soft single into left field with two outs in the sixth inning.
That single ended Gilbert’s streak, as he struck out seven batters and finished the season with 208 2/3 innings pitched, making him the first Seattle pitcher to lead all of baseball in innings for a season. Gilbert (9-12) ended the season with 220 strikeouts and an ERA of 3.23.
While Detroit’s Tarik Skubal is likely the favorite for the AL Cy Young Award, Gilbert is expected to place high in the voting.
“I know I get a lot of time off so I was just going to leave it all out there. I felt like I at least owed that to the fans and I know I’m going to be wishing on a random day in December or January I was at T-Mobile (Park) pitching against whoever,” Gilbert said.
Raleigh’s two-run homer capped a four-run fifth inning for Seattle and came on the final pitch from A’s starter Mitch Spence (8-10). It was Raleigh’s 34th homer of the season and the 93rd of his career, breaking Mike Piazza’s record for the most home runs by a catcher in their first four seasons.
The homer also marked Raleigh’s 100th RBI, making him the first catcher in franchise history to reach that milestone.
“That was a really cool moment. The past couple of days my phone’s been blowing up, ‘Got to get to 100, got to get to 100.’ I’d obviously trade it in a heartbeat for a spot in the playoffs but that’ll be a cool little feat to look back on one day,” Raleigh said.
Justin Turner contributed with a two-run single, while Victor Robles and Julio Rodríguez each had RBI hits to finish strong in September.
