Mariners at Tigers
The Seattle Mariners have won five of six series to remain in contention in the American League West and will go for another when they open a three-game set at the Detroit Tigers on Friday night. Seattle took two of three at Toronto to open its seven-game road trip, rolling to a 9-3 victory in the series finale to improve to 13-7 away from home.
Kyle Seager belted a first-inning grand slam and added a solo shot for the Mariners, who have alternated wins and losses over their past eight games. Ryon Healy continued his power surge with his sixth homer in 11 games, giving him 12 RBIs in that span. Detroit lost 5-4 in 10 innings at Texas on Wednesday to wrap up a 2-5 road trip that saw the team lose four players to the disabled list. "Look at what we've done with a depleted lineup. ... You go look at our losses and you could very easily flip-flop our win-loss record based on games that we've been in," Tigers catcher James McCann said.
TV: 7:10 p.m. ET, ROOT Northwest (Seattle), FS Detroit
PITCHING MATCHUP: Mariners LH Marco Gonzales (3-2, 5.19 ERA) vs. Tigers LH Matthew Boyd (1-3, 3.00)
After failing to get through five innings for three straight outings, Gonzales pitched six frames for the third consecutive start in a no-decision Saturday versus the Los Angeles Angels, giving up four runs on nine hits. He won his previous two turns by allowing a combined two runs and 11 hits in road victories at Cleveland and the Chicago White Sox. Gonzales has walked only six batters against 38 strikeouts.
Boyd matched his season high with seven innings but took the loss Sunday at Kansas City after permitting four runs on six hits. While two of his three losses have come on the road, the 27-year-old has been outstanding in three starts at Comerica Park this season, posting a 1-1 mark and 1.47 ERA. Boyd has pitched at least six innings in five of his six starts and allowed one run four times.
WALK-OFFS
1. Mariners SS Jean Segura was 7-for-11 over the last two games.
2. Tigers CF JaCoby Jones was 5-for-31 on the seven-game road trip.
3. Mariners RF Mitch Haniger has RBIs in three straight games to boost his team-leading total to 30.