The Seattle Mariners just finished a sweep of the Chicago White Sox, ending a very successful stop in the Windy City. The Sunday game (July 16) was particularly important for the momentum of the team, especially after they fell behind 5-0 early in the day. Putting this one in the win column certainly has Mariners fans excited on social media.
After catching up to the White Sox, the game went into extra innings for the Mariners on Sunday. That was where Nelson Cruz decided to be the hero again, connecting on a 10th inning homer that put the Mariners ahead for good.
Edwin Diaz then came in to slam the door in the ninth inning and give the Mariners a 7-6 victory.
Nelson Cruz in MVP race for American League
Nelson Cruz now has 19 home runs and a league-leading 73 RBIs on his 2017 resume. Cruz is also sporting a .292 batting average that ranks him among the best in the American League. While the favorite to win the AL MVP is still Aaron Judge, it is clear that Cruz is taking a spot in that conversation. He may have a tough time winning the award as a designated hitter, but he is well on his way to a Silver Slugger Award.
There were other heroes in this game, including Kyle Seager and Danny Valencia, who both hit home runs to get the team back in the game. Seager hit his 12th homer of the season during the fourth inning and then Valencia hit his 10th with two runners on base in the fifth inning.
It was enough to give the Mariners a lead at that point of the game and give Cruz the chance to finish it off in extra innings.
Impressive bullpen from Seattle Mariners again
Steve Cishek, Nick Vincent, and Edwin Diaz shut down the Chicago White Sox over the final three innings. This was nearly identical to what the bullpen did on Saturday night (July 15) as well, showing how important this facet of the roster has become.
Vincent ended up getting the win to move to 3-1 on the season, while Diaz posted his 16th save of the year. Diaz is definitely starting to find a rhythm during the ninth inning.
The Mariners are now 46-47 on the season and have won four straight games. The team took back second place in the American League West with the victory, moving slightly ahead of the Texas Rangers due to tiebreakers.
The team didn’t gain any ground in the Wild Card standings, though, as the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays each won earlier in the day. This game might just quiet any Seattle Mariners rumors about trading Nelson Cruz over the next few weeks.
