Mariners’ bats go cold in loss to White Sox on chilly night in Chicago

CHICAGO – The wait wasn’t worth it for the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday night.

In a game that began after a 1 hour, 35-minute rain delay, the Mariners suffered one of their most frustrating losses of the season, a 1-0 defeat to a Chicago White Sox team that last year lost 121 games and doesn’t look a whole lot better this year.

Worse, the game was there for the taking with the Mariners loading the bases with one out in the eighth and the meat of the order coming up.

But White Sox lefty reliever Cam Booser struck out Mitch Garver – who pinch-hit for Jorge Polanco with the team still not using Polanco to bat from the right side.

That brought up Julio Rodriguez, who hit a grand slam off Booser – a Fife (Washington) High grad – in the eighth inning to clinch a 5-1 win Monday night.

That was as far as the déjà vu went as Rodriguez fell behind 0-2 on two foul balls, then fouled off another before flying out to center to end the threat.

The loss snapped a four-game winning streak for Seattle and was the Mariners’ first loss on their 10-game road trip. It also meant Seattle couldn’t build on its 2 ½-game lead in the American League West despite a loss from second-place Houston, which blew a late lead to fall 3-2 against Tampa Bay.

The Mariners will try to win the series on Wednesday, though rain is again in the forecast.

It was only the second time the M’s have been shut out all season, the first coming in the second game of the season, a 7-0 home loss to the A’s.

It was the fifth straight game in which Seattle allowed just one run.

Due to injuries that continue to sideline three starting pitchers, the M’s went with a bullpen game, using reliever Casey Legumina (Gonzaga University) as an opener with the plan to give way to Casey Lawrence as the “bulk pitcher.”

It was the first start for Legumina after 32 appearances over the past three years and 15 for the Mariners this season in middle relief.

Legumina gave up a single to Chase Meidroth on his second pitch then walked Josh Rojas.

That got Lawrence already warming in the bullpen.

But Legumina settled down and got the next three batters out, capping the inning with a swinging strikeout of Luis Robert Jr.

The 37-year-old Lawrence, who was selected off Tacoma’s roster before the game after having pitched in four games for Seattle in April and then released and pitched in one game with Toronto and then released and re-signed by the Mariners, took over to start the second.

The Mariners got all they could have asked for out of Lawrence, who gave up just one run on six hits with no walks in five innings.

The White Sox had a base runner in each of the first five innings.

But they got just one run in that time as the Mariners continued their stingy pitching with runners in scoring position.

The White Sox scratched across one in the third when Meidroth led off with a single, stole second and came home on a single by Joshua Palacios.

That, though, proved to be enough.

Steven Wilson came on to start the eighth for the White Sox and gave up a leadoff double to Leody Taveras on a 3-1 pitch.

After a flyout by pinch-hitter Miles Masrobuoni, Leo Rivas hit for Ben Williamson. After fouling off a 2-2 pitch he was then hit in the foot, putting runners at first and second.

That brought on lefty Booser, who this time got his revenge on his hometown team. After a four-pitch walk to JP Crawford to load the bases, he retired Garver and Rodriguez to get a measure or revenge.

The Mariners got no runs and just three hits off Chicago starter Adrian Houser, who was signed to a one-year deal earlier in the day after requesting his release from Texas last week and hadn’t pitched in a major-league game since last July 24.

Houser, who hadn’t started a game since last May 21, allowed only two hits and five base runners, aided by some good White Sox fielding – twice his own on hard shots back to the mound – also benefiting from two double plays.

Four relievers then finished it up with Jordan Leasure getting Cal Raleigh, Randy Arozarena (striking out swinging on a 3-2 pitch that appeared out of the strike zone) for the first two outs in the ninth.

Donovan Solano then doubled to left to keep the hope alive.

But it ended there as Taveras worked the count to 3-2 and then fouled off one pitch before striking out swinging.

An announced crowd of 11,993 appeared to measure maybe half that by first pitch and the lengthy delay.

It at least stayed dry the rest of the way allowing the Mariners to get in a game that would have been difficult to make up since Seattle is scheduled to fly to Houston directly after Wednesday afternoon’s game to begin a four-game set with the Astros.

The Mariners will go with Logan Evans against White Sox right-hander Shane Smith Wednesday to try to win the series.