SEATTLE — Logan Gilbert allowed three hits in 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball and Julio Rodríguez made two highlight defensive plays in the seventh inning to preserve Seattle’s lead, and the Mariners beat the Cincinnati Reds 3-1 on Tuesday night.
Jonatan Clase had an RBI double in his second major league game and Mitch Haniger added a key two-out RBI single. However, Gilbert was overpowering for most of the night and got help from Rodríguez in the field.
“Thank God for Julio. What he does out there is unbelievable and we've kind of come to expect that level of play,” Gilbert said.
Rodríguez ran down Spencer Steer’s drive to deep left-center on the warning track for the second out of the seventh inning. Gilbert then walked Jake Fraley and was pulled. Elly De La Cruz walked against reliever Andrés Muñoz, and Cincinnati looked like it was going to pull within one run after Nick Martini singled.
But Rodríguez quickly came up throwing and nailed De La Cruz at third base to end the inning before Fraley crossed the plate.
“Once I got it I just went straight up to third because I was expecting him to go,” Rodríguez said. “I mean he's one of the fastest in the league and I know he likes to run, too.”
Muñoz struck out the side in the eighth. Cincinnati loaded the bases in the ninth off Ryne Stanek after two walks sandwiched around an error. Taylor Saucedo got pinch-hitter Tyler Stephenson to fly out to end it, earning his first save.
Gilbert (1-0) retired 12 of the first 13 batters and faced and gave up an infield single to Fraley in the second inning and singles to Steer and De La Cruz in the fifth. Gilbert struck out six and the walk to Fraley on a 3-2 pitch ended Seattle’s franchise record-setting run of consecutive innings pitched without allowing a free pass at 35.
“I don't feel like tonight was super crisp, but my pitches I think were good enough to get outs, get strikeouts when I needed,” said Gilbert, who has pitched at least 6 2/3 innings and allowed one earned run in three of his four starts this season.
Stuart Fairchild had an RBI groundout in the fifth that scored Fraley for Cincinnati’s only run.
Clase got his first extra-base hit when he lined a two-out double off Cincinnati starter Hunter Greene in the fourth inning to score Mitch Garver from first base. De La Cruz’s relay throw beat Garver to the plate, but catcher Luke Maile couldn’t handle the throw near the dirt and get the tag on Garver cleanly.
Garver drove in a run with a bases-loaded walk from Emilio Pagán (1-1) and Haniger tacked on an important run with his two-out RBI single in the sixth.
Greene labored through four innings, needing 98 pitches to record 12 outs. He struck out eight and walked three but allowed only one run.
“Hunter was good," Reds manager David Bell said. "I thought he had good stuff, just too many foul balls and a lot of pitches in four innings. So, if it wasn’t for that it could have been a different night for Hunter."
TRAINER’S ROOM
Reds: Jeimer Candelario was scratched from the lineup due to an illness. Bell said Candelario felt well enough to play on Monday, but was sent back to the hotel from the ballpark on Tuesday with flulike symptoms.
UP NEXT
Reds: LHP Andrew Abbott (1-1, 2.60) allowed one run over seven innings against the White Sox in his last start.
Mariners: RHP Bryce Miller (2-1, 1.96) looks for another quality outing after throwing 6 1/3 innings in his last start. Miller has not allowed an earned run in his last 15 1/3 innings.
