Final, Mariners 11-4: That’ll do it.
The Red Sox put a pair of runners on in the ninth, but the outcome was never in jeopardy. A Ryan Lavarnway groundout put the bow on what was a rare display of power by the usually weak-hitting Mariners.
Felix Hernandez (9-4) picks up his ninth win of the season while Jon Lester takes the loss to fall to 8-5 on the season.
The teams will be back at in Tuesday night, with first pitch again scheduled for 10:10 p.m. ET.
Thanks for joining me, everyone. Now, get some sleep.
Mid 8th, Mariners 11-4: Poor Jason Bay.
Barring any extra-inning shenanigans, the former Red Sox outfielder will be the only starter from either team not to reach base tonight.
Bay struck out for the first out in the eighth, but that was about the only good fortune Jose De La Torre could find early in the inning. The reliever opened the inning by hitting Kendrys Morales and then sandwiched Bay’s strikeout between a pair of five-pitch walks.
De La Torre then slipped while trying to field a Mike Zunino ground ball, forcing second baseman Brock Holt to sprint over and cover first while Mike Napoli fielded the grounder. The throw to first arrived in time to retire Zunino, but Morales was able to score from third with Seattle’s 11th run of the night.
Michael Saunders struck out to end the inning, and we’re headed for the ninth. Brock Holt, Daniel Nava and Jonny Gomes are due up for Boston.
Mid 8th, Mariners 10-4: It’s strange to see in such a lopsided game, but all nine Red Sox starters have reached base safely tonight.
Dustin Pedroia, who had been 0-for-3 on the night, opened the eighth inning with a single to right and was replaced on the basepaths by Brandon Snyder.
Ryan Lavarnway, who was pinch-hitting for David Ortiz, then flied out to left field before Mike Napoli — also hitless entering the inning — doubled to center to score Snyder from first.
After Mike Carp grounded out to second base, Jarrod Saltalamacchia ripped a double of his own to get on base for the first time tonight. The two-bagger scored Napoli, but Salty appeared to be limping a bit as he strolled into second.
Jose Iglesias popped out to first to end the inning, and the Mariners will now come up for what they hope will be their final at-bats of the night.
End 7th, Mariners 10-2: This one got ugly in a hurry.
The Mariners unloaded on Jose De La Torre, scoring three more runs off the reliever before Raul Ibanez finally struck out to end the inning.
This type of offensive explosion is completely out of the ordinary for this Seattle team, which has now put up double-digit runs for just the second time this season.
The bottom of the Mariners order has been especially effective tonight. Justin Smoak, Mike Zunino and Michael Saunders have combined to go 7-for-10 with two walks, three doubles, five RBIs and five runs scored. That’s some serious production, especially considering that Zunino and Saunders were both sub-.210 hitters entering tonight.
Oliver Perez will take over pitching duties for Felix Hernandez, who retires after allowing two runs on seven hits over seven innings.
Bottom 7th, Mariners 7-2: Tonight was not Alex Wilson’s night.
After allowing two inherited runners to score in the sixth, Wilson walked Kyle Seager, threw a wild pitch and surrendered an RBI double to Justin Smoak in the seventh.
Jose De La Torre has now come on to face Mike Zunino.
Mid 7th, Mariners 6-2: Another 1-2-3 inning for Felix Hernandez, who has now retired his last seven batters.
Brock Holt grounded out to shortstop, Daniel Nava flied out to center and Jonny Gomes grounded to third to end the brief, seven-pitch inning.
Alex Wilson returns to the mound for the bottom of the seventh.
End 6th, Mariners 6-2: The Red Sox’ patchwork outfield may have come back to bite them in the sixth.
Facing his first batter since taking over for Jon Lester, Alex Wilson allowed a towering fly ball to Michael Saunders.
Daniel Nava — starting his first career game in center field — sprinted back but was unable to make the play as the ball bounced near the base of the wall. Justin Smoak came home easily on the double, and a bobbled relay throw allowed Mike Zunino to score, as well.
The deep fly was by no means a gimme, but it was one everyday center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury may have able to come up with.
Batting with a man on second, Brad Miller grounded out to Brock Holt. Holt’s throw to first retired Miller, but heads-up baserunning by Saunders allowed the No. 9 hitter to advance to third. Saunders’ hustle paid off, as, after a Nick Franklin strikeout, Raul Ibanez singled up the middle to bring him one with Seattle’s sixth run of the game.
Kendrys Morales popped out to shortstop to end the inning, and the Sox now have three innings to make up a four-run deficit.
Bottom 6th, Mariners 3-2: Jon Lester’s night is over.
Lester was given the hook after surrendering singles to Justin Smoak and Mike Zunino in the sixth, allowing the first two batters to reach for the second time in three innings.
Lester threw 112 pitches tonight, allowing nine hits and walking two. Alex Wilson now takes over on the mound for the Sox.
Mid 6th, Mariners 3-2: Felix Hernandez is really in the zone now.
Hernandez retired the side in order for the first time tonight, getting Mike Carp, Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Jose Iglesias all to fly out.
The Sox had put the leadoff batter on in each of the last four innings.
Justin Smoak, whose RBI double gave Seattle its first lead back in the fourth, will come to the plate first in the home half of the sixth.
End 5th, Mariners 3-2: Raul I-gone-ez.
Weak puns aside, the Mariners’ ageless wonder put Seattle on top again with a solo homer to lead off the fifth inning.
The bomb was the 22nd of the season for the 41-year-old, who began his third stint with the Mariners this season. That total — just 66 games into the season — is already fourth-highest in Ibanez’ 17-year MLB career.
Ibanez is also on pace to make history this season, as the Boston Herald’s Scott Lauber points out. The record for home runs among players 41 or older is 29, set by Ted Williams back in 1960.
Jon Lester retired the next three batters in order, sitting down Kendrys Morales, Kyle Seager and Jason Bay via flyout, groundout and strikeout, respectively.
Mid 5th, 2-2: The Red Sox’ response did not take long.
The first three batters for the Sox reached in the top of the fifth, with the bottom of the order coming up big for Boston.
Felix Hernandez plunked Jose Iglesias to open the inning, putting the speedy shortstop on base for the first time tonight.
No. 9 hitter Brock Holt then notched his second hit in a Red Sox uniform, singling to right field. Iglesias scampered to third without a throw on the play, and he came home with the Sox’ first run when Daniel Nava roped Hernandez’ first pitch straight back up the middle.
Jonny Gomes then struck out swinging, but Hernandez’s pitch skipped in the dirt and rolled all the way to the backstop, allowing Holt to score from third. It’s not every day you see a run-scoring, wild-pitch strikeout.
The Red Sox couldn’t take the lead — Dustin Pedroia grounded out to shortstop for the third time tonight, and Mike Napoli went down swinging — but we’re now back even halfway through this contest.
End 4th, Mariners 2-0: The M’s are on the board.
Normally, Jon Lester’s struggles have come in two-out situations. That hasn’t been the case tonight, though, as all six hits Lester has allowed have come with one out or fewer.
He opened the fourth by allowing the leadoff man to reach for the third consecutive inning, surrendering a base hit to Kendrys Morales. Kyle Seager followed with a single of his own.
After Jason Bay struck out looking for the first out, Justin Smoak ripped a double down the third base line, scoring Morales and sending Seager to third.
Lester then issued walks to Mike Zunino and Michael Saunders — Seattle’s No. 8 and 9 hitters — allowing Seager to trot home with the Mariners’ second run of the inning.
That lack of control marked a departure from Lester’s performance so far tonight. Though he allowed hits to three of the first four batters in the fourth, he had been keeping balls in the zone, throwing 11 of his 14 pitches for strikes prior to Zunino’s at-bat.
Brad Miller popped out to third base and Nick Franklin flied out to deep center to end the inning, but Felix Hernandez now has a two-run cushion to work with.
Mid 4th, 0-0: Felix Hernandez has not looked untouchable tonight.
The Red Sox have put runners on in every inning tonight, accounting for four hits and a walk, but have not been able to push a run across against the Mariners ace.
Boston put the first batter on base for the third consecutive frame when David Ortiz roped a single to right field. Ortiz is the only player on either team with multiple hits thus far tonight.
Mike Napoli then sent a Hernandez offering deep to center, but Michael Saunders had plenty of time to settle under it for the first out. The inning ended with consecutive strikeouts to Mike Carp and Jarrod Saltalamacchia, and we head to the bottom of the fourth with nothing but goose eggs on the scoreboard.
End 3rd, 0-0: We’ve seen scoring chances tonight, but still no runs.
Jose Iglesias channeled his inner Nomar to get a glove on a Mike Zunino ground ball in the hole, but his throw to first was wide, allowing Zunino to reach with a leadoff single.
Michael Saunders worked a seven-pitch at-bat against Jon Lester but was called out on strikes, with the No. 9 hitter appearing very displeased with the umpire’s call.
Brad Miller then pushed Zunino to second with a base hit to center. It was the second time in as many innings Seattle has put a man in scoring position, but Lester, who has struggled with two outs this season, struck out Nick Franklin and got Raul Ibanez to fly out to the warning track in left to close out the inning.
David Ortiz will lead off the fourth inning for the Sox.
Mid 3rd, 0-0: Nothing doing again for the Sox in the third.
A rare four-pitch walk by Felix Hernandez to No. 9 hitter Brock Holt put the leadoff man on for the second time tonight.
Holt’s quick feet prevented second baseman Nick Franklin from turning a Daniel Nava ground ball into a double play, but Hernandez retired Jonny Gomes and Dustin Pedroia in order to strand the runner on second.
End 2nd, 0-0: The Mariners sent three balls deep into the outfield in the third, but only one fell for a hit.
That was Kendrys Morales’ leadoff double, which flew over Jonny Gomes’ head in right field. The other two resulted in deep outs, and Justin Smoak’s infield popup resulted in a not-so-deep one.
We’re headed to the third still scoreless in Seattle.
Mid 2nd, 0-0: The Sox knocked in two more base hits in the second, but King Felix shut the door.
David Ortiz roped a single over leaping shortstop Brad Miller to open the frame before Mike Napoli struck out swinging for the first out.
Napoli, a veteran of the AL West, has long struggled against Hernandez, carrying a .182 lifetime average (6-for-33) against the right-hander.
Mike Carp — playing left field in Boston’s unorthodox outfield tonight — then singled to left, advancing Ortiz to second.
Jarrod Saltalamacchia worked his count full before lining out to Raul Ibanez in left, and Hernandez sat down Jose Iglesias with an 89-mph fastball to close out the inning.
End 1st, 0-0: The Mariners have struggled at the plate all season, and they didn’t show much pop here in the first.
Jon Lester sandwiched a pair of strikeouts (Brad Miller looking and Raul Ibanez swinging) around a groundout by Nick Franklin to tie up a nice, 1-2-3 first inning.
Just how poor has Seattle been with the bats? The M’s rank 28th in the majors in runs, 27th in batting average and 24th in on-base percentage. Ibanez, 41, has been a bright spot, though, as he leads the team in both home runs (21) and RBIs (49).
Mid 1st, 0-0: The Red Sox put a man on, and Daniel Nava nearly left the yard, but Felix Hernandez was still able to retire the side in order.
Nava gave one a ride out of the leadoff spot, but Raul Ibanez settled under the ball along the warning track in left. Even with the recent renovations that brought the left field wall in by about 17 feet, this is still a very large outfield.
Jonny Gomes then reached on a ground ball between third base and shortstop, but Dustin Pedroia grounded into a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning.
Brad Miller, Nick Franklin and Ibanez are due up first for the home team.
10:10 p.m.: Daniel Nava takes strike one from Felix Hernandez, and we are underway. The roof is open on what looks to be a beautiful night at Safeco Field.
Nava, Jonny Gomes and Dustin Pedroia are due up in the first for the Sox.
9 p.m.: No Jacoby Ellsbury for the Sox tonight, as the center fielder will get the night off while he nurses a sore wrist. Shane Victorino is also not in the starting lineup for the second straight night (though he will be available for “emergency” purposes), giving Boston a rather unusual batting order against King Felix and the Mariners.
Taking Ellsbury’s spot will be Daniel Nava, who has never started a major league game in center field. Batting leadoff is also a rarity for Nava, though he has done so on occasion.
At the bottom of the order, Brock Holt gets the start at third base and bats ninth. It’ll be just the third start in a Red Sox uniform for the 25-year-old, who went 1-for-4 with a walk and an RBI in two games against the Angels over the weekend.
Check out the full starting lineups for both teams below.
Boston Red Sox (54-36)
Daniel Nava, CF
Jonny Gomes, RF
Dustin Pedroia, 2B
David Ortiz, DH
Mike Napoli, 1B
Mike Carp, LF
Jarrod Saltalamacchia, C
Jose Iglesias, SS
Brock Holt, 3B
Jon Lester, LHP
Seattle Mariners (39-49)
Brad Miller, SS
Nick Franklin, 2B
Raul Ibanez, LF
Kendrys Morales, DH
Kyle Seager, 3B
Jason Bay, RF
Justin Smoak, 1B
Mike Zunino, C
Michael Saunders, CF
Felix Hernandez, RHP
8:40 p.m.: The Red Sox already have three players on the AL All-Star roster (David Ortiz, Dustin Pedroia and Clay Buchholz), but a fourth may also be joining them at Citi Field.
Koji Uehara is one of five players — all relievers — contending for the AL’s Final Vote. He ranked second in voting behind Toronto’s Steve Delabar at last count, so if you want to see the high-fiving sensation take the field with baseball’s best, here’s what to do:
-Vote for Uehara by visiting redsox.com/vote or by texting A5 to 89269
-Join the campaign on Twitter by using the hashtag #HighFiveCiti
-Everyone who casts a vote will be entered to win a pair of Green Monster tickets and the chance to meet Koji before a future game. Pretty cool stuff.
Polls close Thursday at 4 p.m. ET, so hurry up and vote. Because honestly, who wouldn’t want to see this guy in the All-Star Game?
7:50 p.m.: The Boston bullpen was dealt another tough blow today, as manager John Farrell announced that Andrew Miller will undergo season-ending surgery to repair ligament damage in his foot.
Miller was reportedly optimistic after being placed on the 15-day disabled list Sunday, but his injuries proved to be more serious than the southpaw anticipated.
This puts the Sox in a bit of a bind, as Craig Breslow is now the only left-handed reliever on the active roster. Expect Ben Cherington & Co. to bring in another arm or two before the July 31 trade deadline.
7 p.m. ET: The Red Sox faced the Angels’ top two arms in C.J. Wilson and Jered Weaver over the weekend, and they’ll open the week against the best Seattle has to offer.
The Sox begin the second leg of their West Coast swing Monday night, visiting Safeco Field for the first time this season. It’s been another underwhelming season for the Mariners, who currently sit 12 1/2 games out of first place in the American League West, but they continue to employ one of the AL’s top hurlers in Felix Hernandez.
Hernandez, who will take the mound in the series opener opposite Jon Lester, has been erratic at times this season — he’s allowed four or more runs in six of his 18 starts — but he has also proven that he is still a lights-out starter. The right-hander was named to his fourth All-Star Game over the weekend, and he will pit his 8-4 record and 2.69 ERA against Boston’s top-ranked offense.
Lester enters the week with an identical 8-4 record, though his 4.41 ERA is the highest among Red Sox starters this season.
It’ll be another late night for Sox fans, as first pitch is scheduled for 10:10 p.m. ET. So grab yourself some caffeine and be sure to keep it tuned to NESN and NESN.com for all your updates.
