From the jump, Mariners pounce on Verlander

HOUSTON — Twice now, the Mariners have thrown the first punch in Game 1 against an elite starting pitcher, this time jumping on Justin Verlander with an early outburst to open the ALDS in Houston before being handed a walk-off 8-7 loss.

It all started with Julio Rodríguez, the young superstar atop Seattle’s lineup who is making his grand debut on baseball’s postseason stage. Rodríguez worked a leadoff walk against Verlander — only the second that the 39-year-old ace has issued in 2022 — and soon scored on a single by Cal Raleigh.

It was Raleigh who started Game 1 of the AL Wild Card Series with a bang in Toronto, launching a two-run shot off Alek Manoah in the first inning. A fast start in Game 1 is important in any series, but given how challenging the Astros have been for the Mariners — especially at Minute Maid Park — Seattle couldn’t have scripted it better.

Things kept rolling in the second for Rodríguez, who shot a loud double into the right-center-field gap to score two more. Leaving the bat at 113.3 mph, it was the fourth-hardest hit ball that Verlander has allowed since Statcast began tracking exit velocity in 2015. Rodríguez wasn’t done, though. He rarely is. 

Following J.P. Crawford’s solo shot to right field in the fourth, a fine answer to Yordan Alvarez’s two-run double the inning prior, Rodríguez tripled with two outs. He found another gear rounding second and heading into third as his helmet tumbled off, reaching 30.0 feet per second, the bar for “elite” speed per Statcast. As he slid into third base, right in front of the Mariners’ dugout, his teammates erupted as the momentum continued to steamroll back in their direction.

Ty France’s performance behind Rodríguez was just as important, though, with hits in each of his first three at-bats. France singled in Rodríguez following the triple, and after four frames, Verlander was done with six runs allowed on 10 hits. It marks the second-most runs Verlander has allowed in his long postseason career. For the likely future Hall of Famer and AL Cy Young Award favorite coming off a brilliant season, it was another stunning run from this Mariners’ offense.