Teoscar Hernandez, Jarred Kelenic provide power as Mariners start trip with victory over Phillies

PHILADELPHIA – While the Mariners’ rules and guidelines surrounding their celebratory home run trident are organic, ever-changing and apparently not open to the public, it’s unclear if they decided that the player with the most homers on the season gets to keep it.

But right now, Jarred Kelenic and Teoscar Hernandez are smashing homers like the trident is made of pure gold and one of them might get to keep it.

The corner outfield duo blasted home runs – their third each since the acquisition of the trident – to carry the Mariners to a 5-3 victory Tuesday over the Philadelphia Phillies.

Seattle has won three out of its past four games, scoring five runs in each of the victories.

The game didn’t lack for late drama. Brought in with a three-run lead, Mariners reliever Paul Sewald gave up a run in the ninth and had the tying run come to the plate with two outs. But he struck out Bryson Stott swinging to end the game.

“Great way to start the trip, obviously,” manager Scott Servais said. “Anytime you go on a three-city trip, you want to get off on a good start.”

Kelenic isn’t off to a just a good start this season. It’s a tremendous start. He’s on a hitting tear that rivals even the lofty expectations set for him during his days as one of baseball’s top prospects. Over his past 15 games, Kelenic has a .389/.443/.870 slash line with five doubles, seven homer and 14 RBIs.

“Everybody goes through one,” Kelenic said. “I’m just trying to simplify things, and it’s working right now. I’m going to enjoy this one tonight and try to do it again tomorrow.”

Facing Philly starter Bailey Falter, a lanky lefty, Kelenic doubled in the second inning and hit a solo homer on a 2-2 breaking ball into the visiting bullpen deep in right-center in the fifth inning for his team-high seventh homer. It was just the second homer from a left-handed hitter allowed by Falter in his MLB career.

“Jarred Kelenic does it again,” Servais said. “Jarred’s in such a good spot. Left-handed pitching? On it with homers and doubles.

He has homered in his past three games and driven in a run in five consecutive games. Kelenic had three hits in the game – all off left-handed pitchers.

“It doesn’t matter who’s out on the mound right now,” Servais said. “He is so locked in on his approach and what he’s doing. I’m really excited that he’s gained the confidence he has. He knows he belongs. The talent, we’ve always seen it, but now it’s playing out at the big league level. Teams know he’s hot. They’re pitching him tough. He’s laying off the close pitches. He ain’t missing his pitch.”

It probably should have been four hits, but left fielder Christian Pache made an outstanding diving catch on Kelenic’s line drive to the left-center gap in the sixth.

“I played against Pache in the minor leagues and I know he’s super athletic,” Kelenic said. “I wasn’t surprised he made that catch.”

Seattle added another run in the inning when Jose Caballero singled to left, stole second, advanced to third on a throwing error on the play and scored on J.P. Crawford’s infield single.

Hernandez provided some much-needed cushion in the sixth. With Eugenio Suarez on second, Hernandez hit a hanging curveball into the left-field seats for his sixth homer of the season. The line drive had an exit velocity of 109 mph.

“He just flicks his bat,” Kelenic said of Hernandez’s power.

Sitting in the clubhouse Hernandez was surprised to see media standing by his locker.

“Were you waiting for me?” he said.

“We have to talk to you when you hit homers,” he was told.

“Well, you are going to be talking to me a lot,” he joked.

As for keeping the trident as a prize for the having the most homers, Hernandez was intrigued.

“We didn’t think about that, but now that you mention it, we might have to talk about it at one of our meetings,” he said.

As he rounded the bases, a chorus of boos reigned down from the crowd of more than 42,000, who expected more from the Phillies than just $1 hot dogs on the night.

Pitching a day earlier than initially scheduled, Marco Gonzales gave the Mariners a solid and workable start.

He pitched five innings, allowing one run on four hits with a walk and two strikeouts.

He held the Phillies lineup through the first four innings as his teammates build the 2-0 lead. In the fifth inning, Edmundo Sosa took advantage of a mistake changeup that stayed in the middle of the plate, launching a solo homer into the left-field seats to cut Seattle’s lead to 2-1. The Phillies threatened to score more, but Gonzales struck out Stott with a runner on first.

“The changeup has been really good been a consistent weapon for me and just trying to set that up in certain count,” Gonzales said. “Stott hadn’t seen a changeup yet. We were trying to go and find a situation to do it and it was a big pitch right there with a guy on base. It was good call by Cal (Raleigh), knowing it’s been a weapon for us.”

With a rested bullpen following the off day and Gonzales scheduled to face the top of the lineup for a third time after a high-stress fifth inning, Servais went to his bullpen with a 4-1 lead.

Matt Brash gave up a run in a pitch-filled inning where the Phillies loaded the bases with one out. Ty France made a nice lunging stop on Alec Bohm’s hard ground ball to the right side, firing to second for a force-out. It allowed a run to score, but the out loomed large when Brash was able to strike out Sosa to end the inning.

The Mariners got the run back in the seventh. Cal Raleigh led off with a triple off the wall in right field and scored on Caballero’s sac fly to center.