The five craziest one-run wins from the Mariners' storybook start
At the start of the season, the Astros were the prohibitive favorite in the AL West. Entering play on Monday, however, Houston found itself looking up at the Mariners, who sit in first place at 37-22.
Seattle has played its way into contention in just about the most heart-stopping, jaw-dropping way imaginable: The Mariners' 2-1 win over the Rays on Sunday marked the team's 27th one-run game already this year -- including 16 of their last 24 (!) -- and the team has gone 18-9 in those contests. Choosing just five to celebrate here wasn't easy, but we did it anyway. (A quick note: some antacids may come in handy.)
March 29: Mariners 2, Indians 1
It didn't take long for Seattle to get the party started. Opening Day pitted
Cleveland rallied in the final frame:
May 5: Mariners 9, Angels 8 (11 inn.)
This game had more twists and turns than a full season of television, so please try to follow along: First, Seattle stormed back with two in the sixth and four in the eighth, capped by a go-ahead two-run homer from
The Mariners took a 6-4 lead into the ninth, and things looked relatively settled ... until
May 15: Mariners 9, Rangers 8 (11 inn.)
If you thought that game was back and forth, wait until you get a load of this win probability chart:
This time it was Seattle that blew the lead, going from 6-3 up to 7-6 down after a
Of course, the other team can't rally if you come up with a walk-off, and
May 18: Mariners 5, Tigers 4
For a while, this game seemed pretty ordinary:
In every inning but the seventh, the Mariners managed two hits and no walks. In the seventh, they put up three hits, two walks and five runs.
May 20: Mariners 3, Tigers 2 (11 inn.)
Just two days later, they did it to the poor Tigers again. This time it was particularly cruel: Detroit entered the bottom of the ninth with a two-run lead, until Mitch Haniger stepped to the plate.
From there, it was only a matter of time before Jean Segura sent everybody home.