Randy Arozarena doubled, homered and scored three times, including the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning as the Seattle Mariners defeated the visiting Minnesota Twins 4-3 Saturday afternoon.
Closer Andres Munoz (4-4) pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings as the Mariners snapped a three-game losing streak and won for just the third time in their past 11 games.
Luke Keaschall and Trevor Larnach went deep for the Twins, who overcame a 3-0 deficit. Minnesota lost for just the third time in its past 10 games.
Arozarena led off the bottom of the ninth with a double down the left-field line off Twins reliever Andrew Morris (4-3) and advanced to third as Dominic Canzone flew out to the warning track in left field.
The Twins intentionally walked Julio Rodriguez to set up a potential inning-ending double play with Cal Raleigh at the plate. Raleigh hit a chopper to first baseman Royce Lewis, who stepped on the bag and turned toward second to try to throw out Rodriguez. But Lewis struggled to get the ball out of his mitt and instead decided to throw home, where Arozarena slid around the tag of catcher Victor Caratini to score the winning run.
The Mariners scored two runs in the first inning for the second straight day after having not done so in their previous 30 games dating to June 24.
Cole Young led off with a double to right and Arozarena and Canzone walked to load the bases. Rodriguez reached on an infield single — Twins shortstop Ryan Kreidler made a diving stop to his left but had no play — to score one run. Twins starter Connor Prielipp struck out Raleigh and Josh Naylor and got ahead in the count 0-2 on Mitch Garver before issuing his third walk of the inning to make it 2-0. Prielipp needed 35 pitches to get through the frame.
The Mariners made it 3-0 in the second on Arozarena’s two-out homer to left.
The Twins got on the scoreboard in the fifth on Keaschall’s one-out blast into the Minnesota bullpen in left field off Mariners starter Logan Gilbert.
Larnach hit a solo shot to right-center with one out in the sixth to pull the Twins within 3-2.
Minnesota tied it in the seventh. Brooks Lee led off by grounding a double down the right-field line. Keaschall dropped down and sacrifice bunt to move Lee to third and he scored on Caratini’s soft chopper down the third-base line off the end of his bat.
Prielipp, a rookie left-hander, overcame his early struggles to last 5 1/3 innings. He allowed three runs on four hits, with four walks and five strikeouts.
Gilbert went seven innings and gave up three runs on five hits. The right-hander walked one and fanned six.
