Seattle, April 14: After a sluggish start to the season, the Seattle Mariners have found their rhythm. They completed a sweep of the injury-plagued Houston Astros with a 6-2 victory on Monday, thanks in large part to two early home runs from first baseman Josh Naylor.
Naylor, like many of Seattle’s key players, struggled at the beginning of the season and had not scored a run until this past weekend. However, on Monday, he hit back-to-back homers in his first two at-bats, rejuvenating the Mariners’ offense.
His first home run of the year came off the second pitch of his first at-bat, sailing just over the right field wall for a three-run shot. Naylor’s second homer followed in the third inning, as he launched the ball deep into center field, bringing both himself and Cal Raleigh home.
Among the happiest for Naylor was Julio Rodriguez, who scored on Naylor’s first homer. The trio of Naylor, Raleigh, and Rodriguez, who form the core of the Mariners’ batting order, had all faced slow starts this season. Naylor’s struggles were particularly pronounced; he went 44 at-bats without scoring, the longest streak of any scoreless player in the league, before the series against the Astros.
After finally scoring his first run on Friday, Naylor now has four runs for the season following this weekend’s games. The Mariners entered this season with high hopes after last year’s historic playoff run, but they stumbled to a 4-9 record before sweeping the Astros. This slump was largely attributed to the early struggles of their star players; the breaking of the bat on Ichiro’s statue during its unveiling felt like a fitting metaphor for their challenges.
However, things have since improved. Raleigh, who led the league with 60 home runs last year, hit his first of the season only last week. Rodriguez, who finished with 32 homers last season, finally connected for his first of the year on Saturday in the Mariners’ thrilling 8-7 walk-off win over Houston.
Before this series, Raleigh and Rodriguez had combined for just six runs (alongside Naylor’s zero). Now, the trio has collectively scored 18 runs after all three contributed four runs over the weekend.
With the Mariners’ stars heating up, the rest of the lineup has also stepped up. Leadoff hitter Brendan Donovan and utility outfielder Luke Raley lead the team with three home runs each. Raley also contributed the only non-Naylor run on Monday, hitting an RBI single in the fifth that sent Rodriguez home. Randy Arozarena leads the team in hits (16) and runs (12), while 22-year-old second baseman Cole Young follows closely with 14 hits, 11 runs, and two homers.
As Rodriguez, Raleigh, and Naylor find their form, the Mariners will look to maintain this momentum and achieve consistent production from their entire lineup.
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