Cal Raleigh kept the power surge rolling Tuesday night, but the Mariners’ biggest lift came from George Kirby.
Seattle beat the Phillies 4-1 behind Kirby’s sharpest kind of outing: efficient, aggressive and almost impossible to square up when he’s at his best. Raleigh gave him support early with a solo shot in the second inning off Aaron Nola, continuing a blistering stretch that has produced four homers over his last two games and five during the homestand.
That latest blast was Raleigh’s fourth homer in a five-plate appearance span, and it followed his first career three-homer night in the series opener. He also went deep on Friday, bringing his homestand total to five. Before that run, he had 13 homers through the first four months of the season.
Still, the night belonged to Kirby. He worked 7 2/3 innings, allowing one earned run on six hits and one walk while striking out nine. The right-hander was rolling so efficiently that he reached the eighth inning at just 79 pitches, a number that says plenty about how clean his command was against a deep Phillies lineup.
The only real crack came when Bryce Harper punched a single past a diving Brock Rodden to end a stretch of 15 straight batters retired. Kirby’s pitch count had climbed to 92, and that was enough for manager Dan Wilson to make the move with two outs in the eighth and Seattle protecting a three-run lead.
Wilson went straight to José A. Ferrer for the left-on-left look against Luis Arraez, choosing the cleanest matchup available to finish off a game that was already in hand. Ferrer did his job immediately, getting a groundout from Arraez to escape the jam.
Dominic Canzone also helped widen the margin with a two-run single moments earlier, giving Wilson a little more comfort before he went to the bullpen. Andrés Muñoz then handled the ninth, appearing for the first time since Friday, when he gave up a game-tying homer to Alex Bregman in a Mariners win that eventually went to extras.
The result mattered plenty in the standings, too. Seattle has been under .500 since July 22, but the club keeps hanging around in both the American League West and Wild Card races. By taking its second straight series on this homestand, and doing it against another National League contender, the Mariners moved to within 2 1/2 games of both the division lead and the final Wild Card spot.
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Mariners Farm System Suddenly Has Three Names Fans Need To Watch
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Seattles system also has plenty going on elsewhere. Reese, the clubs 2026 first-round pick, has been productive in Single-A with a strong batting average and on-base profile, while High-A catcher Luke Stevenson has paired a lower batting average with real impact, including 18 home runs, 74 RBIs and a healthy walk rate. The three names give the Mariners a useful snapshot of why the prospect conversation has picked up again, even if each player still has a different next step to prove. [Read more 🡒]