The hype of this game started before Marco even threw the first pitch. The hype began when Ichiro threw out the Ceremonial First Pitch, and the crowd just kept it going all night long. Ichiro wore his 2001 Mariners Jersey has he wanted to bring the players some positive vibes.
The Seattle Mariners have been on what some could classify as a difficult road trip. The weather in mid-April has not been friendly to the Mariners, between rainstorms and wind. They’ve seen and played in it all in the first seven games of the season. But in the Mariners’ home opener, the Mariners made a statement against the reigning AL West Champions, and that was that the Mariners are here to contend.
STARTS WITH MARCO
Though the Mariners’ pitching has been good to start the season, Marco Gonzales had a rough first outing. But he was not going to let that happen again. Marco wanted to bounce back in front of the home crowd and give the Mariners a chance to win. He did just that and more.
“Marco got after it and threw strike after strike like Marco does.”
Scott Servais
The Bullpen did its part as well, with Yohan Ramirez throwing a scoreless eighth, and Matt Koch, just selected from Tacoma, throwing a scoreless ninth.
TURN UP THE OFFENSE!
The Mariners’ offense has not been as good as everyone thought it would be in the first week, but that also goes back to the weather that the team had to conquer. It started with the top, Adam Frazier was just struggling and tonight had 4 hits and 4 RBIs.
The Mariners tallied up a total of 11 runs, and 13 hits. Up and down the lineup, every starter reached base at least once. Frazier, Ty France, and Eugenio Suarez all provided multiple RBIs for the team this season. The Mariners had some good contributions. The explosion of the offense was definitely needed.
With the win, the Mariners improved their record to 4-4. Getting back to .500 was important for the Mariners, who look to make the playoffs this season.
NEXT UP
Saturday night, the Mariners will continue their series against the Astros with the first pitch scheduled for 7:10 p.m. The starting pitching matchup will be Chris Flexen vs. Justin Verlander. After Sunday’s matchup (2:10 p.m. start, Matt Brash vs. Jose Urquidy) the Mariners will get their first off-day on Monday.
Northwest Sports Desk 