Mariners fail to capitalize in 4-2 loss to Athletics

Ryan Divish, The Seattle Times on Mar 30, 2025

Published in Baseball

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SEATTLE — The path to a second straight defeat that once again featured a paucity of runs scored was slightly different this time.

Unlike their loss in the previous game, where base runners and the possibility of scoring runs was largely nonexistent, the Seattle Mariners had traffic on the bases, runners in scoring position and plenty of opportunities to do something more than they did.

Seattle put the leadoff runner on base in four of the first six innings. The Mariners had a runner on base in six of the first seven innings and seven innings total, and the A’s aided their chances by walking six hitters, hitting two batters and committing two errors.

And yet the Mariners managed to do relatively nothing with all those chances, barely scratching out a couple of runs in a 4-2 loss Saturday night at T-Mobile Park in front of 35,264 in attendance.

If it feels a lot like last year, that’s because it is in many ways, including a roster largely unchanged, and with 12 strikeouts, including eight with a runner on base.

Despite walking four batters, giving up three hits and hitting two batters with pitches, A’s starting pitcher Osvaldo Bido somehow managed to allow only a pair of runs (one earned) while pitching into the sixth inning. He was aided by four timely strikeouts and a double play.

The two runs were the first the Mariners had scored against an Athletics starting pitcher in the series.

Bryce Miller gave the Mariners a somewhat uneven outing in his first start of the season. But was a strike away from giving Seattle a quality start of six or more innings pitched, three runs or fewer allowed.

After holding the Athletics scoreless over the first three innings, allowing just one base runner and facing the minimum number of hitters, the A’s got to Miller in the fourth inning.

With one out, Brent Rooker singled to right field. The second out came when Rowdy Tellez made a lunging stop on a groundball near the first-base bag, falling onto it. But his off-balance throw to second to try and get the final out was unsuccessful. With two outs, Miller fired an elevated fastball to Shea Langeliers with an 0-1 count. The pitch either needed to be an inch higher or have a few ticks more than the 94-mph velocity. Langeliers was able to get on top of it, sending it over the wall in left field, just out of the reach of Randy Arozarena’s leaping attempt, for a two-run homer.

Miller came back to strike out Tyler Soderstrom to end the fourth and somehow worked a scoreless fifth despite loading the bases with two outs. But he couldn’t finish the sixth inning. He issued a leadoff walk to J.J. Bleday and later moved him into scoring position with a wild pitch. With two outs, Miller fired a 1-2 curveball to Miguel Andujar, hoping for a strikeout. Despite the pitch breaking well below the strike zone, Andujar was able to get it on the barrel of his bat, sending a groundball up the middle to score Bleday for a 3-1 lead.

Miller could only shake his head in frustration. His final line: 5 2/3 innings pitched, three runs allowed on six hits with two walks and four strikeouts.

Seattle answered with a run in the bottom of the sixth. Randy Arozarena worked leadoff walk that ended Bido’s outing. A’s manager Mark Kotsay brought in lefty Hogan Harris to face Luke Raley. With pinch-hitter Mitch Garver at the plate, Harris made wayward pickoff throw to first base that rocketed into foul territory and bounced off the wall toward right field. Arozarena raced all the way to third on the plate. He scored moments later on Jorge Polanco’s single to left field to cut the lead to 3-2.

The A’s were able to tack on a big run in the seventh inning thanks to some miscommunication from the Mariners. With one out, Jacob Wilson hit a pop up on the field off reliever Collin Snider. The ball was going to land somewhere near the third baseline close to the plate. Snider, catcher Cal Raleigh and third baseman Jorge Polanco all converged on the ball. Snider and Raleigh seemed ready to catch it. Snider bumped Raleigh out of the way and reached above his catcher’s glove to make the play. He did not. The ball bounced out of his glove and into fair territory. Wilson hustled on the plate and was standing on second when Raleigh grabbed the dropped ball off the turf.

The error on Snider loomed costly when Lawrence Butler’s groundout to second moved Bleday to third and Brent Rooker’s hustling infield single on slow bouncer to third baseman Polanco, beating out the throw.