Kyle Lewis and Jarred Kelenic homer as Mariners top A’s 4-2 to end six-game skid
OAKLAND, Calif. — Kyle Lewis homered and made a diving catch in center field, Yusei Kikuchi pitched six smooth innings before his back cramped up, and the Seattle Mariners ended a six-game losing streak by beating the Oakland Athletics 4-2 on Monday night.
Jarred Kelenic also went deep for Seattle, playing its sixth of 12 straight road games in California covering separate trips. And this is a long haul for the club, with Monday marking the fourth game of a stretch with 30 in 31 days.
Ty France doubled in his return from the injured list. Mitch Haniger added two hits, including an RBI double.
“It was cool for us to have a good day, go out there and hit a couple balls hard,” Lewis said. “Hopefully we get some momentum and see what we can do.”
Mark Canha hit his 10th home run for Oakland.
Lewis struck out swinging in his first at-bat before hitting a two-out drive to left field off starter Frankie Montas in the third.
“He got all of that one,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “That’s vintage Kyle Lewis. You usually don’t see him hit that far to the pull side.”
The reigning AL Rookie of the Year also robbed Chad Pinder of extra bases with a diving grab in right-center in the bottom of the inning.
Kikuchi (2-3) scattered four hits and allowed one run — Canha’s homer in the third. The lefty didn’t permit another runner past first base but paused when Jed Lowrie reached on an infield single leading off the seventh.
Kikuchi grabbed at his lower back as Servais went to the mound followed by a team trainer and translator, and was escorted off the field.
“My last few pitches my back started to cramp up pretty good,” Kikuchi said through a translator. “I had an experience very similar to this in Japan before. That led to an injury. Today I wanted to play it safe.”
Rafael Montero and Erik Swanson got three outs apiece. Keynan Middleton pitched the ninth for his third save.
Montas (5-4) had a season-high 11 strikeouts in six innings but allowed four runs and six hits.
“I made one mistake and that was the fastball to Kyle Lewis,” Montas said. “He’s a fastball hitter. I made a mistake and he made me pay the price.”
The A’s are 14-14 since winning 13 straight.
Rookie’s confidence pays off
Kelenic’s home run in the fifth snapped an 0-for-10 drought. Before the game, the rookie said he was frustrated but pleased because he had been making good contact.
“I want to come in and help the team win and it’s hard to do that when you hit a ground ball right at somebody every time,” Kelenic said. “But it’s baseball, and the older I get and the more that I am around older guys, the more you start to realize that it comes in waves.”
Roster move
The Mariners claimed INF Travis Blankenhorn off waivers from the Dodgers and optioned him to Triple-A Tacoma.
Trainer’s room
Mariners: INF/OF Sam Haggerty was placed on the injured list with right shoulder inflammation. … LHP Marco Gonzales (forearm strain) is scheduled to throw a simulated game this week of about 40-45 pitches.
Up next
Mariners RHP Logan Gilbert (0-2, 9.45 ERA) makes his third career start. Oakland LHP Cole Irvin (3-5, 3.59) faces Seattle for the first time and looks to bounce back from a loss to Houston.