SEATTLE — Randy Arozarena smacked a three-run homer against his former team, Bryce Miller allowed two hits and tied a career high with 10 strikeouts over seven innings, and the Seattle Mariners beat the Tampa Bay Rays 5-1 on Monday night.
Jorge Polanco added a solo home run, his 13th longball of the season, and backup infielder Leo Rivas added a two-out RBI single as the Mariners improved to 3-1 under new manager Dan Wilson.
Miller’s 10 strikeouts matched the mark he’s reached four times in his career, the last coming in April against the Braves. Miller (10-7) retired the side in order in five of his seven innings.
“I love the fact he just throws strikes,” Wilson said. “He gets ahead, he dominates the zone. We talk about that a lot. He seems like he’s always in control of the at-bat.”
Josh Lowe had the only success against Miller with a solo homer in the second inning and a single in the fifth.
It was Miller’s sixth outing this season pitching seven complete innings. In those six starts, he’s thrown 42 innings, allowed two runs and struck out 49. Miller wasn’t thrilled with his fastball command, but his other pitches were working.
“All the secondaries felt really good,” he said. “So I was able to on the counts where I got ahead put them away.”
Arozarena was acquired from the Rays in late July ahead of the trade deadline with the hope of adding length to Seattle’s batting order. After a solid start, he had struggled lately and was in a 4-for-39 slump with just one extra-base hit and one RBI in his previous 11 games entering Monday.
Perhaps seeing old friends helped. Arozarena spent some time in the Rays clubhouse before the game catching up with former teammates and Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash.
Then he delivered the blow that broke open the game.
With two outs in the third, Julio Rodríguez’s routine grounder bounded under the glove of former Mariner Jose Caballero at third base. Cal Raleigh followed with a cue shot off the end of his bat that hit third base for an infield single.
“(Caballero), the defensive run he’s been on is just amazing. Not that it was bound to happen that a ball gets by him, but he’s played elite defence,” Cash said. “Unfortunate in the moment. And then probably the wrong guy in Randy coming up.”
Fans were still chuckling at Raleigh’s hit when Rays starter Ryan Pepiot (7-6) left a cutter on the outer half of the plate and Arozarena drove it out to right field. It was just his second home run since being traded to Seattle and his first since July 29 — his third game with the Mariners.
“Something I’m not going to ever do is lose my confidence, but when something like that happens it just boosts your confidence a little more,” Arozarena said through an interpreter.
Pepiot pitched six innings and only two of the five runs he allowed were earned.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Rays: RHP Shane Baz, scratched from Sunday’s scheduled start due to flu-like symptoms, returned to the Tampa area. The Rays hope he’ll be able to start later this week when the team returns home.
Mariners: SS J.P. Crawford (broken finger) went through a simulated game and full pregame workout and is expected to do the same Tuesday. There’s a chance he could be activated from the injured list midweek. … RHPs Yimi García (elbow) and Gregory Santos (biceps) are both throwing in Arizona, but there is no timeline on when either could return.
UP NEXT
Rays: LHP Jeffrey Springs (1-2, 4.50 ERA) will make his sixth start of the season. He lasted only 3 1/3 innings last time out against Oakland.
Mariners: RHP Logan Gilbert (7-10, 3.21) was knocked around for six earned runs over 4 2/3 innings in his last start against the Dodgers.