Cole Young homers twice, George Kirby tosses 8 brilliant innings as Mariners top Angels
SEATTLE – Not even Jo Adell in a cape could catch these.
Cole Young clobbered two home runs for the first multihomer game of his career, Dom Canzone belted his 13th of the season in a rare left-on-left matchup, George Kirby was brilliant over eight strong innings and the Mariners opened a six-game home stand with a 6-2 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Monday night.
The last time these two teams met, down in Anaheim, California, in early April, Adell robbed three home runs in a single game in the Angels 1-0 victory over the Mariners.
The Angels’ right fielder had no chance Monday night.
Young’s first home run off Angels starter Ryan Johnson was a 412-foot blast over Adell’s head, a 104.6-mph rocket off the bat to cut the Mariners’ deficit to 2-1 in the third inning.
The Mariners broke it open in the sixth inning off Angels lefty reliever Mitch Farris.
Canzone turned on a fastball and launched it 428 feet out to right-center for his 13th home run of the season.
A left-handed slugger playing through a nagging right hamstring strain, Canzone hit his first 11 home runs this season off right-handed pitchers.
His last two have come against left-handed pitchers, a clear sign that the M’s designated hitter has moved beyond a strict left-vs.-right platoon. The most consistent power hitter on the team, Canzone has earned a full-time role, and his climb to the No. 3 spot in the lineup the past two games is another strong indicator of his value to an offense that has struggled the past two weeks.
Young added his second homer off Farris later in the sixth inning – another left-on-left blast – and it was one of the most impressive in the 22-year-old second baseman’s young career. This hit off the facing of the second deck in right field, a two-run homer measured at 406 feet with a 106.5 mph exit velocity.
Kirby matched his season high with eight strong innings pitched as the Mariners (43-43) climbed back to .500 after a closing out a dreadful road trip Sunday in Cleveland.
Kirby allowed just two runs on seven hits, with one walk and seven strikeouts.
Kirby threw his fastest fastball in the eighth inning – 97.8 mph – to strike out Denzer Guzman looking at a perfectly placed 3-2 pitch.
The next batter, Nolan Schanuel, swung over a 2-2 knuckle curveball in the dirt to end the eighth inning and strand two Angels runners. As Cal Raleigh threw to first base to complete the 2-3 putout, Kirby streamed a profanity as he strutted off the mound, then was greeted by a standing ovation from the crowd of 37,100 at T-Mobile Park on his way back to the dugout.
Raleigh had given the M’s the lead in the fourth inning when he dumped a two-run single the other way, after Guzman’s error at third base extended the inning for the M’s with two outs.
Refsnyder lands on IL
The consternation over Rob Refsnyder’s rare appearances in the starting lineup, pinch-hit at-bats or his place on the roster can be put on hold. On Monday, the Mariners placed Refsnyder on the 10-day injured list before their game against the Los Angeles Angels.
Refsnyder has been dealing with discomfort in both knees at varying points of the season. He had injections in both last week.
“Last week, he wanted to keep trying to play through this,” general manager Justin Hollander said. “He got the injections and said, ‘I feel good enough to go.’ ”
But Refsnyder felt unstable at the plate and told the Mariners that an IL stint might be needed.
“He feels like it’s affecting his foundation and mechanics,” Hollander said. “He can’t repeat anything with any consistency, because he doesn’t have the kind of leg strength and stability that he needs to have to have the kind of mechanics that he’s had his whole career.”
In 119 plate appearances this season, Refsnyder had posted a .133/203/.209 slash line with three homers and nine RBIs.