Giants let another game slip away late in walk-off loss

SEATTLE -- The Giants’ lineup flexed its power by slugging three homers, including one from hometown kid Michael Conforto, but it wasn’t enough to overcome a late barrage of singles from the Mariners.

San Francisco blew a four-run lead after the Mariners led off the eighth inning with six consecutive singles off Tyler Rogers, leading to an eventual 6-5, 10-inning loss in Friday night’s series opener at T-Mobile Park.

It marked the second straight bullpen collapse for the Giants (65-65), who slipped back to .500 after dropping the opening game of this challenging six-game road trip through Seattle and Milwaukee.

“We felt like we had it in our hand,” manager Bob Melvin said. “We had our two best pitchers coming in the game in the eighth and ninth. It just got away from Tyler a little bit.”

The Giants took a 5-1 lead into the eighth after LaMonte Wade Jr., Heliot Ramos and Conforto each went deep against Seattle right-hander Luis Castillo. But they saw their advantage disappear in the span of 17 pitches from Rogers, who hadn’t allowed a run in his previous 11 outings.

Luke Raley capped the Mariners’ four-run rally with a game-tying blooper to left field, making Rogers the first pitcher in Giants history to allow six hits without recording an out.

“Not a good feeling,” Rogers said. “I kind of feel unlucky, I guess. But you don’t want to ever sit here and have that victim mentality. It’s a round ball, round bat. It is what it is. I wouldn’t have done anything different, so nothing really to be upset about.”

The situation unraveled so quickly that Melvin didn’t start getting closer Ryan Walker loose until three batters into the inning. Walker appeared to signal that he was ready to come in after Leo Rivas sent a flip shot to right to pull the Mariners within one, but Melvin decided to let Rogers face Raley, who also put Seattle on the board with a solo shot in the fifth.

“I figured Tyler is going to get at least an out,” Melvin said. “He’s never had an inning like that before for us. I don’t get anybody up until at least three hits there. Unfortunately, [Rogers] didn’t get an out.”

Walker was eventually brought in with runners on first and second with no outs, but he managed to preserve the 5-5 tie by striking out Julio Rodríguez swinging on a slider, retiring Cal Raleigh on a popup in foul territory and then freezing Randy Arozarena with a slider on the outside corner to end the inning.

Walker, who hails from nearby Arlington, Wash., and went to college at Washington State, came back out for the bottom of the ninth and struck out the side to force extra innings, pumping his fist as he walked off the mound after completing his second two-inning appearance this week. The 28-year-old right-hander lowered his ERA to 2.00 over 64 outings this season, second only to Rogers for the most in the Majors, which could keep him in the closing role even after his predecessor, Camilo Doval, is recalled from the Minors.

“He’s fantastic, isn’t he?” Rogers said of Walker. “I can’t say enough about his outing today, the whole season and last season. It’s been great.”

The Giants ultimately couldn’t reward Walker’s dominant Seattle debut, as they failed to score their automatic runner in the top of the 10th. The Mariners intentionally walked Wade to put runners on first and second with one out, but Collin Snider struck out Ramos and Conforto swinging to end the inning.

Rivas then ended the game with a walk-off single against rookie Erik Miller in the bottom of the 10th, giving the Mariners a win in manager Dan Wilson's first game at the helm.

“We’ve got to get our timing right,” Melvin said. “Usually the eighth and ninth is pretty well locked down for us, and that just didn’t happen tonight. We did score some runs off a really good starter. But we didn’t do much after that.”