The past few weeks haven't been going very smoothly for the Seattle Mariners. They were swept by the Tampa Bay Rays in a three-game set to begin the month, and they followed that up with a loss to the Atlanta Braves in their series opener back on Friday. With the Mariners still on the bubble in the AL Wild Card hunt, they have to get it together — which is exactly what they've done by scoring 28 runs over their past two games, with 18 of those coming on Sunday in an 18-2 win over the Braves.
Something just clicked for the Mariners starting on Saturday, when they scored 10 against the Braves to get back to winning ways with a 10-2 victory. If there's a time for their offense to click, it's now, especially when the Texas Rangers are putting so much pressure on them in the Wild Card chase.
For Mariners star Cal Raleigh, it was only about getting back to their usual level of play all year and reminding themselves just how capable they are of destroying the opposition.
“At some point, you just say, ‘Screw it. Go out and play like we have been all year,' and that's kind of the mentality you've got to take,” Raleigh said, per Daniel Kramer of MLB.com.
For Raleigh, his banner year continued on Sunday when he hit his 53rd home run of the season — the biggest highlight of his 2-6, three RBI night. He's been doing so much damage for the Mariners' lineup all year, with his slash line of .241/.351/.581 having him in MVP conversations.
But their Sunday night thwacking of the Braves came from an incredible team effort. Deadline pickup Eugenio Suarez blasted two home runs and drove in three, Josh Naylor and Jorge Polanco each hit long balls of their own, and a total of five hitters drove in three runs apiece in a thorough dismantling of their opponents.
Mariners look to hold off the Rangers in AL Wild Card race
With the Mariners' 18-2 win over the Braves, they were able to hold the Rangers, a team that won over the Houston Astros on Sunday, at bay — with their lead over them in the Wild Card picture remaining at 1.5 games.
The good news for the Mariners is that the Rangers will be facing the best team in MLB at present in the Milwaukee Brewers in a three-game set beginning on Monday, while Seattle will be hosting the St. Louis Cardinals.
