Randy Arozarena kept making the Red Sox pay all series, and Wednesday was no different.
In Seattle’s 8-3 win at Fenway Park, the Mariners left fielder put together his most complete game of the three-game set. He already had done damage with the bat in the first two contests, but in the finale it was his defense that stole the spotlight early and often.
Arozarena helped erase Boston’s best chance to strike first in the bottom of the first inning. After Wilyer Abreu punched a sharp single through the left side, Arozarena scooped it up and delivered a quick throw home, where catcher Jhonny Pereda finished the play with a diving tag on Mickey Gasper to prevent a run.
He wasn’t done there. With a runner on first and no outs in the fifth, Arozarena charged in and laid out for a tough diving catch on a sinking line drive off Gasper’s bat. Two batters later, Abreu doubled - a hit that would have driven in a run if not for Arozarena’s grab.
Then he chipped in at the plate, too. In the sixth, Arozarena lined an RBI single into left field to stretch Seattle’s lead to 7-1.
The outing capped a strong series for Arozarena, who homered in each of the first two games and was a triple shy of the cycle in Monday’s opener, when he went 4 for 4. Over the three games, he finished 6 for 15 with two home runs, eight RBIs and four runs scored.
Seattle improved to 66-74 with the victory.
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For Seattle, the move fits the sort of low-cost gamble contenders often make when they believe there is still something to unlock. Woods Richardson gives the organization another arm to evaluate in Tacoma, where the Mariners can keep a close eye on a pitcher who made his big-league debut in 2022 and is still young enough to factor if the stuff and command come together again. [Read more 🡒]
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With rotation depth thinned by an injury, the appeal here is less about where Woods Richardson has traditionally worked and more about where he might help most. Seattle can use pitching in just about any form right now, and his ability to cover innings gives the club another option if it wants to patch a game together out of the bullpen or lean on a bulk reliever while the roster sorts itself out. [Read more 🡒]