Final, Mariners 1-0: And it took some heroics from Casper Wells and John Jaso to end the duel.
Wells ripped a one-out double while Jaso smacked Scott Atchison's slider, allowing Wells to score past Jarrod Saltalamacchia.
But it was an outstanding pitcher's duel between Franklin Morales and Felix Hernandez. Strong defense preserved the tie for some time, but something had to give.
Atchison is usually dependable, but Jaso capitalized on that slider.
Mid 9th, 0-0: The Red Sox had their chances to win this one in the ninth, but blew it.
With two men aboard, Adrian Gonzalez put good contact, but flew out to deep center field. Will Middlebrooks, meanwhile, popped up and ended the threat.
This could've been Gonzalez's chance to atone for some of his lack of production. Instead, not so much.
End 8th, 0-0: After throwing 109 pitches, Franklin Morales exited, giving way for Andrew Miller.
Morales was marvelous, allowing just three hits while striking out seven batters. He's making his case to stay in the rotation.
As for Miller, he continued the stretch of remarkable pitching with a quick inning.
Mid 8th, 0-0: Mike Aviles is the only one that hasn't been victimized via strikeout. He lined a fly ball in that one for an out, however.
The 12 strikeouts by Felix Hernandez matches a season for the hurler. The Red Sox haven't been this dominated by a pitcher since they went up against Stephen Strasburg.
End 7th, 0-0: Franklin Morales lucked out in the seventh.
First, the umpire mistakenly ruled Miguel Olivo out on a strikeout, even though the last pitch bounced off the ground and was a foul tip.
Then Dustin Ackley reached when Adrian Gonzalez missed a catch at first base. Either way, Morales made it through.
This is the most pitches he's thrown in a game since 2009, when he was with the Rockies.
Mid 7th, 0-0: For the first time all game, there was a runner in scoring position — gasp. Adrian Gonzalez collected a single and advanced to second on a wild pitch.
Even with the adversity, Felix Hernandez stayed with it, striking out Middlebrooks and Cody Ross on successive at-bats.
Like Morales, Hernandez has kept up his velocity and mixing his pitches to the tee.
End 6th, 0-0: Franklin Morales didn't register any strikeouts there, but collected the necessary outs.
By pitching the sixth and extending his pitch count, it appears that Bobby Valentine may look to be keeping him in the rotation.
Valentine already hinted at a six-man rotation, but the way that Morales has been pitching could solidify his status for longer.
Mid 6th, 0-0: Felix Hernandez has now retired eight batters in a row and has struck out every Red Sox hitter in the order, except Mike Aviles.
He also halted David Ortiz's third attempt for No. 400. Ortiz grounded out to first base, missing another chance at history.
Ironically, Manny Ramirez ripped No. 400 in Seattle as well. That would be interesting company.
End 5th, 0-0: That's 77 pitches for Franklin Morales through five frames of work.
I think he may be done here, but Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine may be inclined to stretch him out a little further. This next decision could show what the future holds for Morales moving forward.
Morales walked another batter, but has maintained his velocity — hitting 94 to 95 miles per hour.
Mid 5th, 0-0: There's a reason that Felix Hernandez is a perennial, All-Star.
He may not have the wins to back it up — because of the lack of run support — but his ERA continues to be miniscule. With that clean inning, Hernandez lowers his ERA to 3.21.
He's registered eight strikeouts three five innings. That's impressive.
End 4th, 0-0: Franklin Morales finally yielded his first hit, a single to Franklin Gutierrez.
Gutierrez was removed after an errant pickoff throw by Morales nailed him in the face. That was a pretty painful sight to see.
But in that inning, Morales exhausted his pitch count — unlike the first three frames. He's not at 59 pitches.
Mid 4th, 0-0: David Ortiz missed out on his second chance in this game to unload No. 400.
This time around, he struck out against Hernandez, who tossed four different pitches in that at-bat to collect the K.
Adrian Gonzalez suffered the same fate, with Hernandez needing to use three different pitches to get him swinging. That's six strikeouts for King Felix.
End 3rd, 0-0: That was a rare walk for Franklin Morales and a rare inning that went by without a strikeout.
But he still hasn't allowed a hit through three innings. Morales has pitched pretty efficiently, so if he maintains this pace, it'll be interesting to see if he can go seven innings.
Mid 3rd, 0-0: There goes the dueling perfect games. Felix Hernandez surrendered a single to Mike Aviles and then Daniel Nava
Aviles almost got himself fired out at second base, but he managed to get back on time. On occasion, he's been victimized for spotty base running.
But it seems like Aviles is starting to come around. We've learned he can be a streaky hitter.
End 2nd, 0-0: Franklin Morales is still on fire, getting Justin Smoak to strike out swinging.
Give credit to Bobby Valentine for being a good talent evaluator. In the spring, he wasn't too huge on having Daniel Bard start in the rotation.
Meanwhile, he saw this potential in Morales and is giving the Venezuelan a pitcher a shot. Morales is making the most of it.
Mid 2nd, 0-0: This has the makings of a pitcher's duel. Through two innings, Felix Hernandez has racked up three strikeouts.
He relied on some offspeed stuff to get Jarrod Saltalamacchia swinging for a strikeout. A good combo of curveballs and cutters helped him mow down Will Middlebrooks.
This guy certainly doesn't want to be known for yielding David Ortiz's 400th career shot.
End 1st, 0-0: During his first two starts — which wound up being 11 innings — Morales fanned 17 batters.
He started off on that pace again, striking out Ichiro Suzuki on four pitches. That changeup got Suzuki swinging to cap it off.
Then he made quick work of Seager with an array of fastballs to get two strikeouts.
Mid 1st, 0-0: Felix Hernandez is starting off sharp against the Red Sox, collecting a 1-2-3 inning.
His fastball ranged in between 93 to 94 miles per hour and he was able to flummox Daniel Nava with it en route to racking up a strikeout.
It's a strong start for the ace of the Mariners staff.
9:15 p.m.: Here are tonight's starting lineups.
Red Sox (40-35)
Daniel Nava LF
Dustin Pedroia 2B
David Ortiz DH
Jarrod Saltalamacchia C
Adrian Gonzalez 1B
Will Middlebrooks 3B
Cody Ross LF
Ryan Kalish CF
Mike Aviles SS
Mariners (32-45)
Ichiro Suzuki RF
Franklin Gutierrez CF
Kyle Seager 3B
Jesus Montero DH
Casper Wells LF
Justin Smoak 1B
Miguel Olivo C,
Dustin Ackley 2B
B.J. Ryan SS
Franklin Morales is on the mound for the Sox against his Venezuelan countryman on the Mariners, Felix Hernandez.
6:30 p.m.: David Ortiz has a chance at history tonight.
The Red Sox designated hitter enters the game sitting on 399 career home runs after blasting his 21st of the year against the Blue Jays on Wednesday. With King Felix on the mound for Seattle, he'll have his work cut out for him, but it's as good a reason as any for Red Sox fans to stay up late to see this one.
8 a.m. ET: Once again, Franklin Morales will make a spot start for the Red Sox (40-35). The team is cruising, having won nine of their last 11 games and five straight series entering this matchup. Morales hopes to continue turning heads in the starting rotation like in his past two starts, when he fanned 17 batters in his last 11 innings.
In his last outing, the left-hander — who is 1-1 with a 3.12 ERA — struck out eight in six innings and allowed three runs as he won his first game as a Red Sox starter. He'll go up against Mariners starter Felix Hernandez, who is 5-5 with a 3.36 ERA. Hernandez has shined in his last two appearances, allowing two runs in 14 innings to the Giants and Padres.
For more analysis, follow NESN.com's live blog. Tune into NESN's pregame show at 9 p.m. First pitch is scheduled for 10:10 p.m.
