Sam Haggerty scored the tiebreaking run on a botched rundown in the ninth inning and the Seattle Mariners went on to defeat the Los Angeles Angels 6-2 on Monday night in Anaheim, Calif.
Jesse Winker homered for Seattle, which snapped a two-game losing streak.
Luis Rengifo hit a solo shot for the Angels, who had won five of their previous six games.
With the score 2-2 and one out in the ninth inning, Haggerty grounded a single into left field. Aaron Loup (0-4) threw a pitch in the dirt that got away from catcher Max Stassi. Haggerty decided to hold at first, but Stassi turned and fired the ball into center field, allowing the runner to advance on the error.
Haggerty stole third, and pinch hitter Carlos Santana walked.
With the infield in, Julio Rodriguez hit a liner off the glove of second baseman Rengifo, who picked up the ball and fired home to catch Haggerty in a rundown. However, nobody covered the plate after Stassi threw to third, allowing Haggerty to score and pinch runner Dylan Moore to take third.
Ty France hit a grounder to shortstop Andrew Velazquez, who threw home in plenty of time to nail Moore. But the ball popped out of Stassi’s glove as he made the tag and rolled to the backstop, allowing Moore to score and leaving runners at second and third.
Rodriguez scored on a groundout by Winker, and after an intentional walk to Mitch Haniger, J.P. Crawford lined a run-scoring single to left-center to make it 6-2.
Mariners reliever Andres Munoz (2-4) got the victory after throwing one scoreless inning.
Seattle starter Luis Castillo and Los Angeles starter Shohei Ohtani pitched well, producing nearly identical pitching lines. Both right-handers went six innings and allowed two runs and one walk. Castillo gave up six hits and struck out nine while Ohtani allowed seven hits and fanned eight.
Winker and Rengifo traded homers in the first inning, the latter off the glove of center fielder Rodriguez.
With two outs in the third, Winker hit a broken-bat single to shallow left, Haniger walked on 3-2 pitch and Crawford lined a run-scoring single up the middle to make it 2-1.
The Angels tied it in the fourth as Taylor Ward led off with a double into the left-field corner and Jared Walsh grounded a run-scoring single into right.
–Field Level Media
