Bats can't back Gilbert's nearly perfect night

SEATTLE -- Just as the Mariners took one big step forward after a strong series win over Houston, they seemingly took a big step back on Monday with a 2-1 loss to Texas on a night when Logan Gilbert carried a perfect game into the seventh inning.

Gilbert looked as dominant as any Seattle starter all season, coming one shy of his career-high 11 strikeouts while tying a franchise record with seven punchouts in a row at one point (all swinging). His fastball had elite life and precise location. The effectiveness of his curveball led to more blossoming trust. He located the slider masterfully at the bottom of the zone.

Yet, lingering all night was the one-run lead he was staked to, via a solo homer from Ty France in the first inning, the first baseman’s first since Opening Day. The Mariners mustered just three hits, all singles, and two additional baserunners the rest of the way, both via hit-by-pitches to Kolten Wong.

“With that kind of pitching performance, you certainly expect to win the ballgame,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “You can't ask for anything more than what Logan Gilbert did tonight. That's about as good as we've seen him at any point all season long. He absolutely dominated.”

The Mariners struck out 13 times to bring their season total to 342, second most in MLB, and their K rate to 26%, the second highest percentage in the league. They went down swinging in order in the bottom of the ninth from their Nos. 4-6 hitters -- Eugenio Suárez, Cal Raleigh and Teoscar Hernández. For the season, they’re hitting .223/.304/.375, with a .679 OPS that ranks sixth lowest.

Seattle is tied for 20th with 149 runs scored this year in 35 games, but a sizable 46 of those were in a combined five games, all wins other than an April 11 loss in which the club blew a 7-0 to the Cubs. That leaves 103 runs in the Mariners' other 30 games, an average of 3.43 per contest.

The lowest-scoring offense in runs per game belongs to the Marlins, who are averaging 3.28.

Mariners offense, 2023

In wins: .253/.337/.447 (.784 OPS), 5.35 runs/game
In losses: .196/.273/.308 (.581 OPS), 3.22 runs/game

“I feel like everybody’s got to hold themselves to a higher standard because if we’re losing, if we’re not doing good and we keep doing the same thing, we’re going to keep losing if we don’t have a good process,” Julio Rodríguez said. “Everybody in that clubhouse holds themselves to a higher standard when things are not going our way. We have to stay committed to our plan and just know that we’re putting in the right effort into what matters.”

Seattle’s offensive struggles become far more illuminated on nights like Monday, when they get a dominant starting pitching performance but are tethered to a tight lead or deficit. Moreover, the Mariners dropped to 4-10 in one-run games, further pushing them away from the late-inning magic they showed after leading MLB in such wins each of the past two years.

“At a certain time, we're too easy to pitch to, being frank with it,” Servais said. “You have to take something away. Whether they're getting after us with the breaking ball or certain parts of the plate, they're attacking it. It's been a common theme. I often talk about this game is about adjustments at this level. Once you are struggling a certain way, every team is watching video, they all jump on the wagon at the same time. Now you have to adjust back.”

The upside is that if the offense can find more consistency, it’ll be balanced with a pitching staff that’s been among MLB’s most elite, thanks to efforts like Gilbert’s on Monday.

The towering right-hander lost the perfecto on a leadoff single to Marcus Semien in the seventh up the middle, after which Texas built momentum into a two-run swing via another single from Nathaniel Lowe, a walk to Adolis García, a sacrifice fly from Josh Jung and the go-ahead knock from Jonah Heim. But that blip proved decisive.

“When it's a day like today, and you feel like you got your stuff, you don't want to,” Gilbert said, cutting himself short when asked about escaping the seventh. “Credit to them. They found a way to put up a couple runs. But it's just something that I want to shut it down and get out of there with the lead.”