Seattle survives!

Good Morning! I realized last night that this truly spectacular baseball game wouldn’t get its fair shine if I waited to write about it until Monday morning. So if you missed it, I’ve gathered all the highlights from last night’s elimination game between Seattle and Detroit. You’re gonna want to watch this:

We start in the second inning, when Mariners first baseman Josh Naylor poked a double up the line. Naylor then caught everyone by surprise when he stole third base. That led to a sac fly, and the home team held an early 1-0 lead:

But each starter was locked in from the first pitch. George Kirby of the Mariners went five shutout innings with six strikeouts. And Tigers ace Tarik Skubal set all sorts of postseason records. He even struck out seven batters in a row as part of his 13 K dominance. Skubal allowed two hits and just one run over six remarkable innings:

With lefty slugger Kerry Carpenter coming to the plate, Mariners manager Dan Wilson pulled Kirby in the sixth inning. But the move to the bullpen didn’t stop Detroit’s clutch hitter from producing in a big moment:

That set the stage for the birthday boy, Leo Rivas. The switch-hitting infielder spent nine years in the minors. He’s played less than 100 major league games, with 17 career RBIs. None of that matters in October…

That was the bottom of the seventh… and it turns out, the halfway point of the game! This one fell into madness as both teams deployed stellar relievers, called upon starting pitchers to escape jams, and despite a few great chances, failed to score any runs! But just look at the fans at T-Mobile Park enjoying every minute of the win-or-go-home atmosphere:

But eventually, in the bottom of the 15th inning, there was a breakthrough:

For the first time since 2001, the Seattle Mariners have advanced to the American League Championship Series. They’ll take on the Toronto Blue Jays for the chance to appear in the World Series for the first time in franchise history, with Game One scheduled for Sunday at 8:00 PM. A birthday that Leo Rivas will never forget and a baseball game that will go down in history.

Congratulations to the Mariners! Hope everyone enjoys this fantastic day of college football. I’ll see you on Monday