Josh Rojas and Ty France both hit RBI singles in the ninth inning, helping the Seattle Mariners secure a 10-6 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday night.
Cal Raleigh slammed a pinch-hit grand slam in the seventh inning for Seattle, who have won three out of their last four games. Mitch Haniger hit a solo home run in the second inning and added a sacrifice fly in the ninth.
Ryne Stanek earned the win by getting two outs after reliever Tayler Saucedo got injured while covering first base. Andrés Muñoz pitched a scoreless ninth inning to seal the victory.
“We’ve been waiting for a game like this,” commented Mariners manager Scott Servais. “Sometimes you need to score a lot of runs to support your pitching staff, and we managed to do that tonight.”
Minnesota reliever Jorge Alcala allowed four runs on four hits, walked two batters, and threw a wild pitch during Seattle’s ninth-inning rally. The Twins have lost two out of their last three games after their 12-game winning streak.
“We didn’t play the type of baseball we’ve been playing,” said Minnesota manager Rocco Baldelli. “We didn’t play a complete game. It was more like pieces of a game.”
The game’s final three innings were eventful, with Raleigh’s homer standing out. Raleigh, who was not in the starting lineup, came in as a pinch hitter and delivered a powerful swing against left-hander Steven Okert, sending the ball to the third deck in left field at Target Field.
“When the game is on the line, Raleigh has a knack for coming through,” remarked Servais. “He has solid at-bats. They don’t always succeed, but when they do, it’s usually in a significant way.”
After Raleigh’s homer put Seattle ahead 6-4, Minnesota managed to score a run in the seventh inning and another one in the eighth inning. Kyle Farmer’s double followed Jose Miranda’s leadoff double in the seventh inning, and the tying run scored while Saucedo was on the ground injured in the eighth inning.
