Out of Right Field: Recap, takeaways from the Mariners’ 6-2 loss to the Oakland Athletics

Matt Olson and Mark Canha hit back-to-back home runs as the Oakland Athletics defeated the visiting Mariners 6-2 Friday night for their seventh consecutive victory.

Stephen Piscotty also homered for the A’s.

Lou Trivino (2-0) earned the victory with a 1 1/3 perfect innings of relief of fellow right-hander Daniel Mengden, who threw 99 pitches in four innings. Mengden allowed one run on five hits in four innings, with five walks and four strikeouts. He got out of several jams, stranding nine runners on base.

Mariners left-hander Wade LeBlanc (2-2) faced the minimum of nine batters through the first three innings but ran into trouble in the fourth.

Marcus Semien led off with a walk, although LeBlanc seemed to regain his momentum by retiring the next two batters. Piscotty then lined a single to left, sending Semien to second. Olson launched the next pitch into the second deck in right-center field, giving the A’s a 3-1 lead. Canha followed by lining a 1-0 pitch over the wall in the left-field corner.

LeBlanc went five innings, allowing four runs on five hits. He walked one and struck out four. LeBlanc dropped to 0-2 since returning from a month on the injured list with a strained right oblique.

The Mariners, who suffered their fourth consecutive defeat, left 15 runners on base.

Seattle scored off Mengden in the first. With one out, Daniel Vogelbach walked and, an out later, Omar Narvaez lined a single to left. Domingo Santana followed by lining a run-scoring single to center.

The Mariners left two runners on in each of the first two innings. Mengden caught Mallex Smith looking at a called third strike to end the third with the bases loaded.

Seattle pulled within 4-2 in the seventh on Tim Beckham’s run-scoring double, but the A’s got the run back in the bottom of the inning on a throwing error by Narvaez, the Mariners’ catcher.

Piscotty went deep in the eighth, a solo shot off Seattle right-hander Connor Sadzeck.

The Mariners loaded the bases in the ninth against A’s closer Blake Treinen, but Shed Long lined out to first to end the game.

Of note

Bullpen move of the day: RHP Ryan Garton, who was designated for assignment earlier in the week, was outrighted to Triple-A Tacoma. … C Omar Narvaez returned to the lineup after leaving Wednesday’s game at Texas in the third inning after getting hit on the left knee with a foul tip. … 3B Kyle Seager is set to make his second debut Saturday after suffering a hand injury in spring training.

By the numbers

4-1: The Mariners’ record against Oakland this season after suffering their first loss to the A’s on Friday night.

Our take from Right Field

LeBlanc, making his second start since spending a month on the injured list with a strained right oblique, pitched well except for the two mistakes in the fourth inning. The A’s altered their approach in that inning, with four straight batters swinging at the first pitch. Only one batter had done that through the first three innings. If the M’s don’t hit it out of the park, they struggle to score. Manufacturing runs isn’t their forte.

Up next

The series continues with a scheduled 1:07 p.m. first pitch Saturday. LHP Yusei Kikuchi (3-1, 3.43 ERA) is set to take the mound against Oakland RHP Mike Fiers (3-3, 5.05), who earlier this month threw the second no-hitter of his career.