Randy Arozarena's Multi-Homer Day Lifts Seattle to 6-2 Win Over Kansas City

SEATTLE It was the Randy Arozarena show for the Seattle Mariners on Monday at T-Mobile Park.

The former All-Star launched two home runs and finished the game 2-for-4 with two runs and four RBIs in the Mariners' 6-2 win against the Kansas City Royals.

Seattle improved to 44-40 on the season with the victory, pulled to within six games of the idle Houston Astros in the American League West and improved its hold of the final AL Wild Card spot to 2.5 games over the Los Angeles Angels.

"Really good ball game tonight, kind of all around," Mariners manager Dan Wilson said in a postgame interview.

" ...

Some really good at-bats up-and-down the lineup.

...

To be able to do that and put as many pitches on (Royals starting pitcher Michael Wacha) as we did early in the game kind of wore him down a bit.

And we were able to strike it big and break the game open a little bit." Arozarena's first home run marked a major career milestone for the seventh-year outfielder.

It was a solo shot to center field in the bottom of the fourth that tied the game 1-1.

It was his 100th career homer.

Kansas City struck first in the top of the third on an RBI single hit by Bobby Witt Jr.

Arozarena became the sixth player in MLB this season to reach the 100-homer mark.

Two of the other five were Arozarena's teammates Cal Raleigh and Mitch Garver.

Raleigh broke the 1-1 knot with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the fifth that scored Cole Young and gave the Mariners a 2-1 advantage.

Arozarena's second homer came the next at-bat after Raleigh's go-ahead sacrifice.

It was a three-run shot to center field that gave Seattle a 5-1 lead.

"Very happy.

Very happy," Arozarena said via translator Freddy Llanos after the game.

"As soon as I hit it, kind of got the memories of hitting my very first one in my debut.

So very happy for myself, it's kind of an embodiment of all the work I've done." Raleigh, who will almost certainly be heading to his first-ever All-Star game as the American League's starting catcher, hit his major league-leading 33rd home run of the season to cap off the night for Seattle.

It was a solo shot to center field that bolstered the Mariners' advantage to 6-1.

Raleigh finished the game 1-for-3 with a run, his homer and two RBIs.

Witt Jr.

grounded into a force out in the top of the eighth that scored John Rave for the eventual final of 6-2.

Raleigh and Arozarena's multi-RBI nights coincided with a quality start from Seattle starting pitcher George Kirby.

The fourth-year righty struck out five batters in six innings and allowed one earned run on three hits.

"Backdoor worked really well today," Kirby said after the game.

"Flashing (the sinker) in, mixing the (four-seam fastball) with that.

We had a great game plan with the heaters tonight, just kind of mix them and work the slider off it.

You just got to really keep them off balance, and we did that tonight." The Mariners have won three of their last four and will look to clinch at least a series split against the Royals in Game 2 of the four-game set at 6:40 p.m.

PT on Tuesday.

Emerson Hancock will start for Seattle and Michael Lorenzen will start for Kansas City.

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