It was a rough day for the Seattle Mariners as the Texas Rangers completed a series sweep with a 7-3 win in Arlington. Fielding errors proved costly, putting starter Felix Hernandez in a hole after the Mariners took an early 1-0 lead. Back-to-back throwing errors by Jack Wilson allowed three runs to come around to score in the third, and sent Wilson to the bench with a lower-leg injury. Adam Moore joined Wilson in the training room in the sixth injury with what appeared to be a serious leg injury.
The Mariners did rally back to tie the game in the sixth, getting one run back in the sixth on a Michael Saunders fielder’s choice to score Luis Rodriguez and another in the seventh after Jack Cust drove Milton Bradley home following a lead-off double.
But it all fell apart for the Mariners in the late innings as Hernandez was tagged for another run in the seventh on a Mitch Morehead double. Chris Ray came on for Hernandez in the eighth and failed to impress again, putting runners on the corners before manager Eric Wedge turned to Brandon League. The pitching change didn’t work, however, and League got off to a rocky start, allowing a two-run double to Nelson Cruz, the first batter he faced.
Yorvit Torrealba added another insurance run on a throwing error by League, bring Cruz in from third. Arthur Rhodes slammed the door with a 1-2-3 ninth inning as Texas remained perfect on the year.
The Mariners head back to Seattle for their home opener on Friday as the Cleveland Indians come to town. Seattle fell to 2-4 on the year with the loss, and may have to find a solution at catcher and second base should Moore and Wilson remain out for an extended period of time.
For more on the game, check out SB Nation’s Lookout Landing.