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Seattle Mariners

Out of Right Field: Recap, takeaways from the Seattle Mariners’ 9-7 loss against the Texas Rangers

Texas’ Willie Calhoun receives a face full of sports drink as he’s doused by Rougned Odor, not pictured, while Elvis Andrus, rear, laughs following the team’s 9-7 win over the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday in Arlington, Texas. (Tony Gutierrez / AP)
By Gene Warnick The Spokesman-Review

Willie Calhoun hit a go-ahead, three-run homer and the Texas Rangers held on for a 9-7 victory against the visiting Seattle Mariners on Wednesday night.

Shin-Soo Choo also homered for the Rangers, who snapped a three-game losing streak.

Austin Nola and Keon Broxton homered for the Mariners, who saw their six-game winning streak – which tied a season high – come to an end.

Rangers left-hander Mike Minor (9-6), who had been the subject of trade rumors leading up to Wednesday afternoon’s deadline, got the victory despite struggling with his command. Minor went five innings, allowing five runs on seven hits. He walked three and struck out five.

Rangers right-hander Jesse Chavez pitched the ninth for his first save of the season. He struck out All-Star Daniel Vogelbach with a runner on to end it.

Mariners left-hander Wade LeBlanc (6-4) gave up six runs on 10 hits in 4 1/3 innings. He walked one and struck out two.

Trailing 5-3 going into the bottom of the fifth, the Rangers’ Danny Santana led off by grounding a single into center field. An out later, Hunter Pence doubled to left and Calhoun hit the next pitch just over the 354-foot sign in the right-field corner to give Texas the lead. It was Calhoun’s seventh homer of the season.

The Rangers added three insurance runs in the seventh on a two-run single by Logan Forsythe and a fielding error, to make it 9-5.

Broxton hit a two-run shot in the eighth, his fifth of the season and first since being picked up by the Mariners earlier this week, to cap the scoring.

Both teams scored in each of the first two innings.

The Mariners took an early lead on Tim Beckham’s run-scoring single into the first. The Rangers scored twice in the bottom of the inning, on an RBI single by Hunter Pence and a double by Rougned Odor.

Nola and Choo traded solo shots in the second. It was Nola’s fourth and Choo’s 18th.

The Mariners scored three in the fourth to take a 5-3 lead on a run-scoring single by Mallex Smith and a two-run single by J.P. Crawford.

Of note

The Mariners made two deals for minor leaguers at the trading deadline, sending RHP Mike Leake to Arizona for IF Jose Caballero and LHP Roenis Elias and RHP Hunter Strickland to Washington for LHPs Aaron Fletcher and LHP Taylor Guilbeau and RHP Elvis Alvarado. … To fill out their bullpen, the M’s recalled RHP Gerson Bautista from Triple-A Tacoma and selected the contract of RHP Zac Grotz from Double-A Arkansas. … LF Tim Beckham left in the second inning with oblique tightness. Beckham was injured trying to make a throw to home plate in the first.

By the numbers

20: Number of players the M’s have placed on the injured list this season, not counting IF Tim Lopes who is on the seven-day concussion list.

Our take from Right Field

The M’s traded for Elvis! The other pitchers they got in the five-player trade with the Nationals might be more highly rated, but Alvarado is a converted OF with a live arm who is just learning how to pitch. Perhaps he can become the next Rafael Soriano.

Up next

The M’s have a day off Thursday before opening a three-game series at Houston at 5:10 p.m. Friday.