3/28/25

(Seattle, WA) Game two of the season is where players and coaches really begin to start their long journey into the season as the bells and whistles that come with Opening Day are in the past. The second game of the season is where the routine really begins for the 162-game schedule but for the Seattle Mariners they were hoping game two would be a lot like game one. After a late comeback win over the Athletics to begin the season, the Mariners would hope to get the bats going a little bit earlier to help Luis Castillo as he took the mound in his season debut.

Athletics 7, Mariners 0 (Game 2, March 28th)

Again we were treated to a pitchers duel early on in this game as the A’s had three baserunners in the first four innings while the Mariners only mustered a Cal Raleigh walk in the 1st. Luis Castillo was in a nice groove despite needing to throw some extra pitches due to the A’s not chasing pitches out of the zone. In the top of the 5th, Castillo retired the first two batters before facing the top of the order for the third time. Lawrence Butler cashed in on a mistake by Castillo and sent his first double of the season to center. Brent Rooker wasn’t as kind as he got his hands inside a fastball up and in and sent it out to deep center. The ball would hit off the yellow line at the top of the wall and bounce out for his first home run of the season. The two-run blast was the only blemish on Castillo’s season debut but it gave the A’s a 2-0 lead.

Strikeouts were once again a big issue for the Mariners on Friday night. Jeffrey Springs was rolling until the Mariners put some pressure on the lefty in the bottom of the 5th. Singles by Mitch Garver and Jorge Polanco put runners on first and second with nobody out. After Donovan Solano went down on strikes, Dylan Moore served a soft line drive into center field for a base hit. New third base coach Kristopher Negrón got aggressive and sent Garver home which turned out to be a mistake. JJ Bleday would throw out Garver at the plater for the second out, keeping the Mariners off the board in the process. With runners on first and second and two outs, J.P. Crawford would square up a line drive into left center, but Bleday would run it down to make a sliding catch to end the inning. Seattle wasted a scoring opportunity and continued to trail 2-0.

After a scoreless inning spun by Gregory Santos, Eduard Bazardo ran into some trouble in the top of the 7th. A couple one-out baserunners reached as Jacob Wilson singled and Lawrence Butler walked to start a threat for the A’s. Bazardo would strike out Brent Rooker for a big second out before Dan Wilson called upon Tayler Saucedo to try to get out of the inning. JJ Bleday would hit a soft chopper over Saucedo’s head and Jorge Polanco couldn’t pick it cleanly. Nobody tried to go pick up the ball which allowed Wilson to score all the way from second to make it 3-0. Shea Langeliers would drive in another run with a single before Tyler Soderstrom added one more with a ground-rule double. Things quickly spiraled out of control as the A’s opened up a 5-0 lead.

After Seattle left runners stranded on the corners, the Athletics continued to blow this one open. Max Muncy would record his first career hit with a solo home run before former Mariner, Luis Urías did the same in the 9th. Both Julio Rodríguez and Miles Mastrobuoni would record their first hits of the season, but there was not anything to cheer about down the stretch. Seattle let it get way out of hand and the Athletics cruised to the 7-0 win.

Notable Performances

Athletics

Mariners

• Luis Castillo (L, 0-1)- 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 SO
• Mitch Garver- 1-3, BB
• Miles Mastrobuoni- 1-1

What’s Next

With still two games left in the season opening four-game series with the Athletics, the Mariners will have to flush the tough night at the plate rather quickly as the two teams meet again in a pivotal game three on Saturday at 6:40pm. Seattle will continue their first turn through the order as Bryce Miller will get the start for the Mariners. In his career against the A’s, Miller is 1-1 with a 2.25 ERA with 30 strikeouts and just three walks in 24 innings. It will be Osvaldo Bido on the mound for the A’s in his second season with the club. Bido only appeared in 16 games last season, making nine starts but finished with a respectable 3.41 ERA.

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