Andres Chavez
The New York Yankees pitching staff did its part on Monday, but the bats were quiet all night, and they suffered a walk-off 2-1 loss to the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park. It was the Bombers’ first defeat of the season.
2025 AL MVP candidate Cal Raleigh, who entered the game as a pinch-hitter, hit the game-winning single against Paul Blackburn in the bottom of the ninth.
Starting pitcher Ryan Weathers wasn’t at his best on a cold West Coast night, yet still managed to keep the Yankees in the game. That’s all you can ask for a guy making his debut against the reigning AL West champs. The southpaw held the Mariners to one run on four hits and two walks, striking out seven in 4.1 innings of work.
Weathers Solid Effort Wasn’t Good Enough
The lone run Weathers allowed came on a broken-bat single by Cole Young in the bottom of the second frame, driving in Randy Arozarena.
Weathers touched 98.9 mph with his fastball but sat at 96.6 mph, excellent velocity given the 48 degrees on the night. He earned 11 swings and misses: five with his heater, three with the sweeper, two with the changeup, and one with his sinker. He will get better as he builds up arm strength to go five or six frames.
Fernando Cruz took the ball and bailed out Weathers in the bottom of the fifth with a pair of huge strikeouts with two men on base. Jake Bird then pitched a clean inning to take the game to the seventh.
The Yankees couldn’t touch Mariners starter Luis Castillo, though. If Weathers was good, the M’s veteran was magnificent on Monday night, pitching six scoreless frames with just two hits and two walks to his name. His seven strikeouts don’t do justice to how dominant he was, racking up 17 swings and misses.
The Yankees Fought, But Fell Short
The Yankees tied the game in the top of the seventh, with a sac fly from Amed Rosario that drove in Ben Rice.
Consecutive one-out singles by Cole Young and Brendan Donovan against lefty Brent Headrick put men on first and third base in the bottom of the seventh. The southpaw fanned Cal Raleigh, and at that point, Yankees manager Aaron Boone brought in Camilo Doval to face third-hole hitter Julio Rodriguez. The talented outfielder grounded out for the final out of the inning as New York dodged a bullet.
The eighth inning went by with no real threats from any team, but the ninth was far more interesting. The Yankees had the go-ahead run in scoring position after Giancarlo Stanton’s one-out double, but Jazz Chisholm Jr. grounded out to second, and Rosario struck out swinging to leave pinch-runner Randal Grichuk stranded at third.
Leo Rivas singled, but Blackburn got Cole Young to fly out. Donovan’s one-out single put men at the corners, setting up the scene for Raleigh’s first big hit of the season.
The exciting series will continue on Tuesday in a duel of aces: Max Fried, who won on Opening Day last Wednesday, will take the ball for the Yankees. Logan Gilbert will toe the rubber for the Mariners.
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