Kade Anderson threw seven scoreless innings Sunday, Sept. 20, and the Seattle Mariners beat the Colorado Rockies 2-1 at Coors Field to avoid elimination from the American League West race for at least one more day.
The win came at a cost. Closer Andrés Muñoz left the ninth inning with a right knee injury and is scheduled for imaging Monday, Sept. 21, in Seattle. The Mariners' tragic number in the division race sits at two with six games remaining, all at T-Mobile Park.
Anderson, the 22-year-old rookie drafted third overall in 2025 out of Louisiana State University, allowed three hits, walked nobody and struck out seven. He threw 84 pitches. Sixty-one were strikes. He recorded first-pitch strikes against 18 of the 24 batters he faced.
It was a sharp turnaround. In his previous start Sept. 14 in Anaheim, Anderson allowed five earned runs over 4⅓ innings in a loss to the Angels. After that game, he told the Seattle Times: "Just execution … I've got to do a better job."
Six days later, he delivered.
"That's what I was doing so well throughout the minor leagues … I was getting ahead of dudes, so I could put dudes away quicker, and that's the new standard," Anderson said after Sunday's game, per the Seattle Times.
Manager Dan Wilson said he and Anderson had discussed adjustments after the Anaheim outing. Wilson also credited catcher Cal Raleigh, who caught Sunday's game after playing the night before, for building a plan that took advantage of Colorado's aggressive approach with fastballs up and off-speed pitches down.
The Mariners scratched out both runs off Dominic Canzone's bat. In the fourth, Canzone singled to right-center to score Randy Arozarena, who had walked and was running on the pitch. Arozarena kept going through third-base coach Carlos Cardoza's stop sign and scored. In the sixth, Canzone doubled just inside the right-field line to plate J.P. Crawford.
Rookie third baseman Brock Rodden made a diving stop on Jordan Beck's hard grounder down the line in the second inning, scrambled to his feet and fired to first to end a Colorado threat with runners at first and second.
Then came the ninth. Muñoz gave up a solo homer to Hunter Goodman, Goodman's 39th of the season. He then walked TJ Rumfield on five pitches, none of the four balls close to the zone. On the final pitch, Muñoz winced and grabbed his right knee. Wilson and athletic trainer Kevin Orloski came to the mound, and Muñoz was removed.
Eduard Bazardo replaced him, walked Adael Amador to put the winning run on base, then struck out Brett Sullivan on three pitches to earn his first career save.
The Mariners (73-83) got help from Toronto, which beat the Rangers (78-78) on Sunday. Both clubs are off Monday, Sept. 21. Seattle opens a six-game homestand Tuesday, Sept. 22, against the Houston Astros, with Logan Gilbert (12-10, 3.69 ERA) on the mound, per KOMO/AP.
Muñoz's imaging results have not been reported as of Monday morning.
Seattle sports and recreation week ahead
Tuesday, Sept. 22 — Mariners vs. Houston Astros, T-Mobile Park, SoDo. Logan Gilbert (12-10, 3.69 ERA) starts the first game of a six-game homestand that closes the regular season.
