Luke Raley and J.P. Crawford homered in a five-run sixth inning as the Seattle Mariners rallied to defeat the visiting Atlanta Braves 5-4 on Monday in the opener of a three-game interleague series.
The Mariners snapped a three-game skid and halted Atlanta’s three-game winning streak on a night all nine runs scored via the long ball. The major-league-leading Braves lost for just the fourth time in the past 19 games.
Mariners starter Logan Gilbert (2-3) got the victory despite allowing four solo home runs. The right-hander gave up four runs on six hits over six innings, with two walks and four strikeouts.
Seattle relievers Jose A. Ferrer and Eduard Bazardo combined for two scoreless innings, and closer Andres Munoz worked the ninth for his seventh save of the season.
Braves reliever Tyler Kinley (3-2) was charged with two runs in his lone inning.
Matt Olson hit his 300th career homer for the Braves, and teammates Drake Baldwin, Ozzie Albies and Austin Riley also went deep.
Baldwin led off the game with a homer to center field.
It remained 1-0 until the sixth, when Albies and Olson began the inning with homers to center. An out later, Riley went deep to left-center for a 4-0 advantage.
Braves rookie right-hander JR Ritchie, who grew up on nearby Bainbridge Island, cruised through the first five innings before walking the first two batters he faced in the sixth. Raley hit a three-run shot to right-center, pulling the Mariners within 4-3 and ending Ritchie’s night.
Kinley issued a one-out walk to Mitch Garver, and with two outs, Crawford homered to right to put Seattle ahead.
Ritchie, making his third major league start, allowed three runs on four hits in five-plus innings. He walked six and struck out two.
Braves catcher Sean Murphy, making his season debut after recovering from hip surgery performed last September, challenged two ball-strike calls in the first inning and lost both, exhausting his team’s limit. He went 0-for-3 at the plate.
Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh sat out his third consecutive game due to discomfort in his right side.
–Field Level Media