The Seattle Mariners had chances Monday night in Anaheim, but the big swings and the big outs kept slipping away in a 6-4 loss to the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium.
Seattle put together traffic, worked counts and even landed a few punches against Angels starter Reid Detmers. It just never found the knockout blow. The Mariners finished 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position and stranded six.
"I thought we came out exactly the way we wanted to," Seattle manager Dan Wilson said in a postgame interview Monday. "Put up some good at-bats early on. ...
Just not able to amount enough offense tonight. Thought we had some opportunities with traffic, just weren't able to convert."
The first inning offered an early opening. J.P.
Crawford started it with a lead-off single, then tried to score on Randy Arozarena’s double. Crawford was thrown out at the plate, and Seattle’s night of missed chances was underway.
The Mariners didn’t break through until the fourth, when they were already chasing the game. Arozarena and Dominic Canzone opened the inning with back-to-back singles, and Cal Raleigh followed with a three-run homer to right that pulled Seattle within 4-3.
That rally had more life in it. Detmers got two outs after Raleigh’s blast, then Michael Arroyo singled and stole second to put the tying run in scoring position. But Cole Young struck out swinging, ending the threat.
Crawford later delivered Seattle’s other run with a solo homer to right in the seventh, trimming the gap to 6-4.
The ninth inning gave the Mariners one last opening. Pinch-hitters Lazaro Montes and Taylor Ward both worked long at-bats and drew walks, putting runners at first and second with two outs. But Crawford lined out to Los Angeles first baseman Vaugh Grissom, and that was that.
"(Detmers) had the slider going early," Raleigh said after the game. "We were able to create some traffic in the big inning there, just couldn't do any more after that.
I thought the second time through, third time through was a little better. ... Just got to be able to get that run in (in the first)."
Seattle’s pitching staff was put under pressure early, too. Rookie starter Kade Anderson gave up a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first after Jose Siri drove in a run with a double and Grissom followed with a sacrifice fly.
The Angels stretched it to 4-0 in the third on Zach Neto’s RBI triple and Siri’s RBI single.
Anderson’s final line was 4.1 innings, five strikeouts, and five earned runs on seven hits. He was pulled with a runner on first and one out, and that runner later came around after Los Angeles loaded the bases and Denzer Guzman delivered a two-RBI single to push the Angels ahead 6-3.
"Just execution," Anderson said after the game. "Got to do a better job. ...
I think it was just an ongoing process of adjusting. Obviously didn't have it tonight but always work to be done."
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