Ryan Johnson delivered six strong innings and Josh Lowe provided the decisive blow with a tiebreaking home run as the Los Angeles Angels edged the Seattle Mariners 2-1 on Tuesday night at Angel Stadium.
Johnson Earns Career-Milestone Victory
Johnson (5-8) allowed just one run on six hits while striking out seven and walking none. The right-hander secured consecutive starts for the first time in his career, lowering his season ERA in the process. Vaughn Grissom drove in the game’s first run with an RBI double in the fifth inning.
Gilbert Strong in Loss for Seattle
Logan Gilbert (12-10) matched Johnson inning for inning, surrendering two runs on six hits over six frames with seven strikeouts. The outing marked Gilbert’s first start since becoming the first Seattle pitcher to record double-digit strikeouts in consecutive starts since 2018.
Fifth-Inning Breakthrough Decides Pitchers’ Duel
The Angels broke a scoreless tie in the bottom of the fifth. Wade Meckler led off with a two-out single and came around to score on Grissom’s double to left field. Seattle answered immediately in the sixth when Dominic Canzone tripled to left and scored on Julio Rodríguez’s one-out double to left-center.
Lowe restored the Angels’ advantage in the bottom half, launching his 12th home run of the season — a one-out shot to right-center off Gilbert.
Bullpen Bridges Gap to Watson Save
Tayler Saucedo followed Johnson with a scoreless seventh. José Fermín navigated a dangerous eighth inning, escaping unscathed after taking a comebacker off the foot from Canzone that resulted in a groundout. Ryan Watson worked a clean ninth inning to notch his third save of the season and second since joining the Angels.
Mariners Clinch Losing Record
The defeat dropped Seattle to 70-82, guaranteeing the franchise’s first losing record in a full 162-game season since 2019. The Mariners also posted a sub-.500 mark during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign. After falling one win shy of the World Series last October, Seattle now sits on the brink of playoff elimination.
Series Finale Wednesday Night
The three-game set concludes Wednesday with a marquee pitching matchup: Mariners right-hander George Kirby (9-11, 4.25 ERA) opposes Angels lefty Yusei Kikuchi (1-5, 4.75). First pitch is scheduled for 9:38 p.m. ET.
