Moore heroics: Seattle wins another in extras

It took nearly four hours for the Mariners to navigate through nine innings on Wednesday, but that wasn’t enough. No, the team that thrives on making things interesting late dished out another dose of the dramatic when Dylan Moore crushed a go-ahead, three-run homer in the 10th to lift Seattle to a 9-7 win that stunned the Blue Jays at Sahlen Field in Buffalo, N.Y.

Moore crushed a middle-in sinker from Patrick Murphy that caught way too much plate, and the second baseman sent it 405 feet beyond the deepest point of the park in left-center field. And it came with automatic runner Luis Torrens on third base and Shed Long Jr., who singled while pinch-hitting for Tom Murphy, on first.

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The Mariners advanced to 9-1 in extra-innings games and are back to three games above .500 (42-39).

“I've often said, you know, there's nothing more gratifying than seeing young players feel like they belong,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “They belong in this spot.”

In that sequence, Moore was cognizant that Murphy had high-90s sinking heat that he relied on more at the bottom of the zone. With two on and one out -- and with the meat of Toronto’s order looming in the bottom of the 10th -- Moore waited out a pitch more elevated in the zone that he could drive.

He also benefited from a minor mechanical adjustment that he installed pregame that helped his cause, opting for less leg kick in order to help his timing.

“I felt like maybe it was getting a little out of control, so I kind of just trimmed it down,” Moore said. “And I was able to see the ball up better tonight and make adjustments easier.”

That type of thinking in the 10th-inning sequence and Moore’s mental commitment to a mid-season swing tweak are reflective of a widespread approach that has pushed the Mariners to a winning record as they wrap their third month of play.

With contributions from Moore, J.P. Crawford’s All-Star caliber play, Mitch Haniger looking stronger than at any point in his career and more, the Mariners look like a completely different offense than the one that was no-hit for the second time on May 18 and was batting .199 for the season to that point.

“It had to get better,” Servais said. “We got off to such a horrific start offensively with so many guys struggling. We weren't gonna hit .200 all year. It was going to turn, but it takes a collective effort. It’s an adjustment to approach. It's young guys slowing it down, working through at-bats and having quality at-bats at big points in the game, and the experience that we're learning -- that this group is learning -- it's so important.”

Moore’s heroics came on a night where neither pitching staff had its sharpest stuff. Haniger hit a two-run shot in the fifth inning that broke a 4-4 tie, but that lead never felt too secure, even with Paul Sewald throwing a 1-2-3 sixth inning and Kendall Graveman throwing a hitless 1 2/3 innings.

Anthony Misiewicz gave up a towering solo homer to Lourdes Gurriel Jr. in the eighth that wiped away the lead Haniger had helped create. And starter Justus Sheffield was hit hard again, with an average exit velocity of 100.9 mph on the 15 balls in play against him -- but none left the yard, and he was able to work through four innings. Sheffield surrendered four runs on seven hits and three walks, with three strikeouts.

But the Mariners, as they’ve done regularly while punching above their weight at times this season, found a way to win late. Even with the win, their run differential only inched up to minus-47, further underscoring how thin their margins have been.

“I think we're a more complete lineup,” Moore said. “I think everyone's kind of finding their niche and what they're good at. And we're kind of picking each other up. If someone doesn't have a good game, there are people down the lineup, like you see a lot with Toronto as well. There's no break in their lineup. And that's what we're working towards, is everyone to have good ABs and play to their strengths. And I think we're doing that really well.”