The Seattle Mariners continued to add to the Minnesota Twins miserable stretch Monday in the first of four. Bailey Ober continued to struggle - in this case in one, bad inning - in an 11-2 victory for the Mariners at Target Field.
Twins starter Bailey Ober (4-5) had just one bad inning, but it was rocky enough to be the difference in the game. Julio Rodríguez and Luke Raley homered as part of a six-run third inning for Seattle with Raley's three-run shot doing the majority of the damage.
"Yeah, well, sometimes it's pretty frustrating," Ober after the game. "It feels like they are sitting on stuff or know what's coming just because of the types of swings I'm not used to. And some of my stuff, maybe they're adjusting and now it's my turn to try to adjust back. But I feel like it's just one inning every single time, and the rest of the game it's fine."
Ober was one out away from getting out of the third inning with just three runs allowed. But he left a fastball over the middle to Raley, who drove it an estimated 436 feet to right-center for a three-run homer that gave Seattle a 6-0 lead.
Ober allowed only two other baserunners and struck out seven in his seven-inning stint.
Brooks Lee, Trevor Larnach and Carlos Correa each had two hits. Larnach and Correa hit back-to-back homers in the sixth inning for Minnesota, which has lost 14 of its last 17 now and fell back to fourth in the very competitive AL Central, now 11.5 games behind Detroit.
The pitching has really struggled. The Twins have given up at least nine runs in four straight games and have given up double-digit runs in six of their last 17 games. Since losing starters Pablo López and Zebby Matthews to shoulder injuries in early June, the Twins have allowed 133 runs in 17 games, an average of 7.8 per game.
Manager Rocco Baldelli says the team needs to show some fight right now.
"(Ober's) in a tough stretch, but you know, as a team, we're in a tough stretch," says Baldelli. "And there's no way around it. We've talked about that. You have to continue to prepare and play the game with pride, with knowing that you're a good pitcher, a good player. You can make these plays, you can make these pitches. We have to continue that. Sometimes that's not the easiest thing to do when things aren't going the way you want."
Seattle Mariners (40-37, second in the AL West) vs. Minnesota Twins (37-41, fourth in the AL Central)
Minneapolis; Tuesday, 6:40 p.m. Pregame 6:00 p.m. on 830 WCCO and the Audacy app (in-market restrictions apply)
PITCHING PROBABLES: Mariners: Luis Castillo (4-5, 3.38 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, 72 strikeouts); Twins: Chris Paddack (3-6, 4.48 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 56 strikeouts)
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Twins -114, Mariners -105; over/under is 8 1/2 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Minnesota Twins host the Seattle Mariners looking to break their five-game home slide.
Minnesota has gone 20-16 at home and 37-41 overall. The Twins are 27-5 in games when they scored five or more runs.
Seattle is 20-18 on the road and 40-37 overall. The Mariners have the ninth-ranked team ERA in the AL at 4.00.
Tuesday's game is the fifth time these teams meet this season. The Mariners have a 3-1 advantage in the season series.
TOP PERFORMERS: Byron Buxton leads the Twins with 29 extra base hits (nine doubles, three triples and 17 home runs). Brooks Lee is 15 for 39 with a double, two home runs and six RBIs over the last 10 games.
Cal Raleigh leads the Mariners with 46 extra base hits (14 doubles and 32 home runs). Donovan Solano is 14 for 28 with a double, three home runs and 11 RBIs over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Twins: 1-9, .238 batting average, 7.43 ERA, outscored by 35 runs
Mariners: 7-3, .296 batting average, 3.24 ERA, outscored opponents by 35 runs
INJURIES: Twins: Willi Castro: day-to-day (wrist), Royce Lewis: 10-Day IL (hamstring), Pablo Lopez: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Zebby Matthews: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Luke Keaschall: 60-Day IL (forearm)
Mariners: Trent Thornton: day-to-day (heat illness), Bryce Miller: 15-Day IL (elbow), Collin Snider: 15-Day IL (forearm), Gregory Santos: 60-Day IL (knee), Victor Robles: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Ryan Bliss: 60-Day IL (biceps)