The Seattle Mariners visited the Texas Rangers in Arlington on Monday to kick off the first game of a three-game series. In the opener, things didn't quite go Seattle's way, as they ended up on the wrong end of a 4-2 loss.
The Mariners opened the scoring in the top of the first inning (as they do) on a two-out RBI single by Jesus Montero. The Rangers tied things up with a Nelson Cruz home run in the bottom of the second, but the deciding blow came in the sixth inning.
Steve Delabar came into the game in relief of starter Kevin Millwood. He gave up a walk and a single to start the inning. After striking out Cruz, he gave up a big three-run homer to Mike Napoli that sealed the win for the Rangers. Although the Mariners were able to pick up another run in the top of the eighth on an RBI triple by Brendan Ryan, that was as close as they got. In fact, Ryan was thrown out at home attempting to stretch the hit into an inside-the-park home run. Had he remained at third, he may have been able to score on either of the two groundouts that followed, or perhaps could have extended a longer Mariners rally.
Millwood was solid, allowing just four hits and two walks in five innings of work. Delabar took the loss. The Mariners managed seven hits in the game, but did not draw a single walk.
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