Phillies hand Mariners demoralizing loss in Bryce Miller’s return

PHILADELPHIA – As ominous as things have been out here on the East Coast for them, and as particularly demoralizing as Tuesday’s 6-4 loss to the Phillies was for Seattle, give the Mariners this: They don’t sound like a team that’s lost hope.

They’ve lost just about everything else lately. But hope they still have.

“We have a really good lineup, and everybody knows we’re not gonna give up, no matter who we face,” third baseman Eugenio Suárez said in a quiet visitors clubhouse at Citizens Bank Park. “We’re ready to compete and we show up every day like that.”

With Phillies ace Cristopher Sánchez out of the game, the Mariners finally showed some signs of life in the seventh inning, rallying to tie the score 4-4 on Suárez’s two-out, two-run double.

It didn’t last.

The Phillies retook the lead in the eighth inning when J.T. Realmuto ambushed a first-pitch fastball from Matt Brash and sent it 431 feet out to left field for a two-run home run. Mariners left fielder Randy Arozarena didn’t move an inch as the ball sailed over his head.

Phillies closer Jhoan Duran, acquired from Minnesota in a blockbuster deal at the trade deadline, pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning to earn his sixth save in six tries for Philly, sending the Mariners (68-59) to their fourth straight loss.

They’re 2-6 on this East Coast trip, with a quick turnaround – rain in the forecast – for Wednesday’s finale against the NL East-leading Phillies (73-53). The Mariners will turn to Luis Castillo to try to avoid a series sweep before finally, mercifully, flying back home for an off-day Thursday.

“A road trip’s a road trip. You know, it is what it is,” M’s manager Dan Wilson said. “I think we anticipated that it was going to be a long one. It’s been a long one. But there’s nothing out of the ordinary here for us. We’ve just got to continue to come out each day ready to play. And tonight, these guys were ready to fight. They fought and it just didn’t go our way.”

If you want more positive spin, there’s this: As bad as things have been for the Mariners, they’ve been equally rough for the Houston Astros, the team the M’s are chasing in the AL West.

The Astros have been shut out four times in five games, and the Mariners haven’t lost any ground in the division race over the past week. They’re still 11/2 games back with 35 games left to play.

“This is where we’re at. This is time of the year, time of the season, and we’ve got to put this one behind us and come out tomorrow and be ready to play,” Wilson said. “Quick turnaround, but we’ve been here before.”

Bryce Miller, activated off the injured list earlier in the day, threw 85 pitches over five innings Tuesday night, allowing four runs on four hits.

Kyle Schwarber hit his NL-leading 44th home run off Miller in the first inning, turning on a 97.2-mph fastball just up and out of the strike zone.

Sánchez, a National League Cy Young contender, matched his career high with 12 strikeouts, holding the Mariners to only one run over six-plus innings.

Sánchez was pulled after walking Dylan Moore, the Mariners’ No. 9 hitter, with one out in the seventh inning.

The Phillies called on Orion Kerkering, one of their best leverage relievers, who promptly threw eight straight balls to walk Randy Arozarena and Cal Raleigh, loading the bases.

Julio Rodriguez’s broken-bat groundout brought in Moore to cut the Mariners’ deficit to 4-2.

Suárez followed with his most significant swing since returning to Seattle, sending a groundball just fair down the left-field line to tie it up.