Mariners 'lingering' offensive struggles persist in shutout?

SEATTLE -- Off the bat, Cal Raleigh, Scott Servais and the rest of the ticketed 36,173 at T-Mobile Park on Tuesday night thought the demolished ball in the bottom of the ninth inning was going to be the latest “Big Dumper” Special.

But unfortunately for the Mariners’ catcher, manager and fans, the 430-foot blast that left his bat at 112.8 mph hooked just foul, smashing into windows of the Hit It Here Café -- a near carbon-copy of the monumental blast that sent Seattle to the 2022 postseason. But instead, Raleigh went back to the dish, where he struck out on the very next pitch.

Raleigh represented the tying run in a 2-0 loss to the Orioles, then after Jorge Polanco was hit by a pitch from Craig Kimbrel, Julio Rodríguez stepped to the plate as the winning run with two outs. But Rodríguez also punched out, bringing the Mariners’ total to 11 on the night, another double-digit showing in a season that’s been full of them.

Desperately seeking a late rally that they could hopefully springboard from after an increasingly frustrating two-week stretch, the Mariners were shut out for the fifth time and finished with a season-low two hits. Every batter except Josh Rojas -- who was pinch-hit for when Baltimore brought in lefty reliever Cionel Pérez in the eighth -- went a combined 0-for-26.

“It's known,” Raleigh said. “I feel like it's not a lack of trying or anything like that. It's just frustrating and kind of lingering a little bit. But it's how the season goes. We've just got to keep going. We can't give up now. You've got to keep digging through it and fight your way out of it.”

Creating traffic hasn’t been a problem. Cashing in, however, has been a calamity.

With just seven baserunners, the Mariners didn’t have nearly as many run-scoring opportunities as over the weekend, when they went 4-for-34 with runners in scoring position. And when they did, momentum-drowning moments manifested, spoiling a strong start from George Kirby in what’s been a six-week turnaround.

“We gave him zero run support,” Raleigh said. “But he pitched really well.”

When the Mariners put their first runner in scoring position in the fourth, after Ty France and Rodríguez drew consecutive walks, Polanco hit into an inning-ending double play. When they did so again in the sixth -- after Rojas singled and France walked again -- Luke Raley hit into a fielder’s choice that had France out at second, but only after a lengthy Orioles challenge.

Gunnar Henderson bobbled the relay throw from O’s starter Grayson Rodriguez on the comebacker, but the shortstop was able to barehand it in time, while on his back, to beat France by a half-step for the second out. Raleigh then punched out on a 97.4 mph fastball at the top rail, leaving Rojas on third and Raley on second, after he stole his sixth base of the season.

Seattle’s blemishes came on a night when its lineup featured a vastly different look and on the heels of just its third off-day at home without travel.

The headliner was Julio Rodríguez, who dropped to the No. 7 spot in the order, his lowest in a start since May 7, 2022. It wasn’t a punishment, but rather an effort to ease pressure off the talented center fielder on the heels of a 5-for-45 stretch with zero extra-base hits over the past two weeks.

Rodríguez has had his personal hitting coach, Osvaldo Diaz, in town during the homestand. But after their extended pregame work, Rodríguez went 0-for-4, capped by the final out on a fastball from Kimbrel way above the zone.

“We need everybody to pick it up and contribute offensively,” Servais said pregame. “It’s not just one guy. But Julio is the main guy.”

Kirby surrendered both runs, and all of Baltimore’s production came on the ground via choppers through the holes. It was obviously frustrating, given how masterfully he rebounded from a May 19 outing in Baltimore, when he was ambushed for five runs.

Servais even opted to leave Kirby in during a key jam in the seventh after a lengthy mound visit, when everybody -- including reliever Tayler Saucedo, who was walking down the bullpen steps -- thought his night was done. One batter later, and it was, after Cedric Mullins ripped Baltimore’s final knock up the middle, leaving Kirby on both knees on the grass in front of the mound.

His expression was towards a sour finish to an otherwise strong start. Yet the game might not have reached that point had Seattle’s bats been able to back him.