Mariners walk off the Guardians to take game two of the series, first game of Ichiro weekend
By Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA – In game two of their four games series, the Seattle Mariners and Cleveland Guardians had to take matters into the eleventh inning to settle things. A solid pitching duel between Shane Bieber and Logan Gilbert saw little offense, and the bullpens carried that on. It was the Mariners who ultimately pulled through, as Mitch Haniger singled to right field, and Guardians right fielder Oscar Gonzales made a horrible throw. The throw allowed Dylan Moore to score, and the Mariners collected their 69th win of the season.
Mitch Haniger has been excellent since his return from the injury list (Photo by Birdzeyeviewvisuals)
Haniger continues his stellar performance
Seattle right fielder Mitch Haniger has really shown his worth since returning from the 60-day IL, whether it’s on the diamond or off of it. Since his return from the injured list, Haniger has hit safely in 16 of 17 games. As a whole, Haniger has hit safely in 19 of 21 games. He has carried the Seattle offensive production as of late, and was able to win the game outright for the Mariners tonight.
Haniger looked like he could have helped Seattle get the win in the bottom of the 9th, as he hit a walk off double. It wasn’t just any double, as Haniger would have been easily thrown out at second, but a swim move like maneuver avoided the tag and Haniger was safe. Making sure that Mitch is a Mariner for the near future would be ideal, which brings up something else that happened today...
Center fielder Julio Rodriguez signed a long-term contract extension prior to game time (Photo by Birdzeyeviewvisuals)
“Show me the money”
Earlier in the day, the Mariners agreed to a massive contract extension with superstar 21-year-old center fielder Julio Rodriguez. Details were hazy initially, but as the day went on one thing was clear: Julio Rodriguez will be a Seattle Mariner for many years to come. Here are some of the full details of the contract.
The deal is an extension of seven years, spanning from the 2023-2029 seasons. There is a team option that can extend the deal through the 2039 season, and a player option that Julio can choose to pick up that would guarantee his contract through the 2034 season. That initial guaranteed money is $210 million, but with certain incentives could double that amount. I’ll leave you with a quote from Julio in regards to the extension
“This is a great day for my family and me. I have always wanted to spend my whole career here, in Seattle, with this team and with these fans. I want to win here, in Seattle. That was what I told my agents, and what I told Jerry. I am so happy to be here.”
Logan Gilbert pitched a quality start for the Mariners in the game (Photo by Birdzeyeviewvisuals)
Gilbert grinds out good outing
Mariners sophomore starter Logan Gilbert has had a rough beginning of August after a phenomenal start to his 2022 season. Two starts against the Yankees saw Gilbert give up 13 earned runs and just overall not look like himself. Following those two rough starts against New York, Gilbert has locked back in and provided Seattle with quality outings, and tonight was one of them.
There were some bumps along the way for Gilbert, but he was able to manage them and get out of jams when needed. Cleveland was limited to some small ball, getting their only earned runs off of Gilbert with sacrifice fly outs. While Gilbert didn’t walk anybody, he only recorded two strikeouts, which is a little concerning. Overall, seeing Gilbert get back to quality starts is a good sign.
Mike Cameron and Jesse Winker hug for the camera (Photo by Birdzeyeviewvisuals)
Quick notes
Seattle has 8 walk-off wins from 8 different players this season (Winker, France, Moore, Toro, Suárez, Santana, Torrens, Haniger), most in the Majors.
Mariners reliever Erik Swanson is the MLB leader in ERA, amongst those with at least 40 innings pitched. His ERA sits at 0.88.
Logan Gilbert made his 50th career start tonight
In their last 18 series’, the Mariners own a 12-4-2 series record. With this win, the Mariners are guaranteed to add another win or draw to that total.
Tonight’s win ties the Mariners with Toronto in the Wild Card race, and puts Seattle a half game back of the Tampa Bay Rays.
What’s next?
Tomorrow’s game, Saturday, August 27th against the Guardians, is a special day. On top of being game three in the series, the Mariners will induct legendary right fielder Ichiro Suzuki into the franchise's hall of fame. The ceremony itself of Ichiro’s induction will be live streamed, starting at 6:25PM PST.