Lawrence Butler Walks Mariners Off, Engulfs Last M’s Playoff Hopes
For years, the Mariners have relied on an ability to churn out relievers for pennies on the dollar, filling out a bullpen with just enough arms that are viable in a given year for the team to manage the innings required of a strong starting staff.
But the lack of relatively surefire options made the M’s weak to the impacts of a serious amount of injuries. The team lost Matt Brash, Cooper Criswell, and Carlos Vargas for extended periods of time, and the strain hence put on Eduard Bazardo and Jose Ferrer has turned what started as great seasons for both of them into second half catastrophes. The buck has thus fallen to lesser arms who have only inconsistently held up the bullpen’s standards, and with Sunday’s 8-7 loss, the final fruits of this were borne out in full.
The final deciding blow may have been Lawrence Butler’s walk-off two-run homer, but the fulcrum point of the game was the seventh inning. Had Carlos Vargas, who had already pitched a frame, managed to get one of the first two batters out, the A’s wouldn’t have approached Seattle’s tally. Had Gabe Speier, whose effectiveness as a reliever had been closer to his then-4.22 fielding independent pitching (FIP) and 4.36 expected FIP (xFIP) than his then-2.61 ERA, put out the fire with runners on, the A’s would have been down by three when the ninth began. And had Seranthony Domínguez either let Shea Langeliers’ grounder go to second or made a clean grab on the ball, a one-run lead would have continued apace.
“They’re all tough,” said Mariners manager Dan Wilson after the media pre-empted his usual “tough one” stock phrase.
This late in the season, and with more smoke than ever that this will be Wilson’s last as the M’s skipper, that phrase has ascended from being a verbal display of a manager going through the motions and become something of a meme, in both the Dawkinsian and Millennial senses of the word.
It’s tough because it’s a loss. It’s tough because of how avoidable this loss was. It’s tough because it is the final reminder that the Mariners did not do enough, whether in terms of the owners or the front office or the players themselves, to avenge their fallen selves from a year prior. And it’s tough because that word might be the only one given by the other 29 teams to Seattle’s self-sabotage.
Tough.
Bizarre Opening Week for Seahawks, NFC West Concludes With Rams as Only Team in Loss Column
Weird things tend to happen in bunches during the opening week of a new NFL season, and for the Seattle Seahawks and the rest of the NFC West, that certainly proved to be the case as three of the four teams within the division grabbed victories.
Moments after lowering their second-ever Super Bowl title banner at Lumen Field, the Seahawks watched star quarterback Sam Darnold hobble into the locker room after just six offensive plays, and they failed to score a single point in the first half as they fell behind 10-0 in the third quarter against the Patriots. Under such circumstances, most teams would have folded, but that wasn’t the case for coach Mike Macdonald’s championship-tested squad.
Led by Drew Lock under center and an opportunistic defense that picked up where it left off winning a Lombardi Trophy as the No. 1 scoring unit in the league last season, Seattle stormed back with 13 unanswered points. Playing with calm and poise running new coordinator Brian Fleury’s offense, Lock threw for 187 yards and completed 72% of his passes with a 45-yard touchdown pass to Jaxon Smith-Njigba and no turnovers, while rookie runnng back Jadarian Price rushed for 52 yards on just 10 carries to lead the rushing attack.
Defensively, the trio of Nehemiah Pritchett, Julian Love, and Josh Jobe picked off MVP runner up Drake Maye three times in the fourth quarter, with Jobe’s icing the game inside 30 seconds left to play in the end zone as the Seahawks celebrated their comeback victory in front of a boisterous sellout crowd.
Mariners Make History With 19-1 Beatdown of A’s
While not mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, the Mariners are on the edge of despair. Needing to win almost every game from here on out, Seattle got off to a great start with a 19-1 smackdown against the Athletics
For an offense that has been up and down (but mostly down) all year, the Mariners put together their highest-scoring game of the season and recorded the largest margin of victory in franchise history. On the other side of the historic night, starting pitcher Bryan Woo continued his streak of scoreless baseball, dealing six shutout innings.
The bullpen came in and did its part as well, allowing zero earned runs to complete the record-breaking night.
It may have been rather hollow on the whole considering the greater circumstances, but just looking at the score from the 10-foot view, it was the biggest win in team history.
And for rookie Michael Arroyo, there was nothing close to hollow about his trio of firsts.
Offensive Explosion
Can Gracie Gilkyson Make Impact for Torrent as Rookie?
Starring for the Yale Bulldogs, Seattle Torrent 50th-overall pick Gracie Gilkyson was a reliable, minute-eating top pair defender and power play quarterback going against Ivy League competition. In a lesser role during her PWHL rookie season, will she be able to adjust?
“She's a very complete player,” Yale assistant coach Erica Kromm said of Gilkyson. “She can be offensive, but she's also defensive. So I think [it’s important] for her to [continue] that.”
Gilkyson had nine goals and 27 points in 36 games in her senior year for Yale. That was a big step, as she had 31 points in 87 games throughout her first three seasons for the Bulldogs. In her last season, she commanded a huge role and blocked a team-leading 59 shots, stuffing the stat sheet in a myriad of ways.
“She really grew in terms of her defensive play and just her ability,” Kromm said. “She's really quick, so her ability to close time and space on players, have a good stick, make good contact: things like that really grew over her four years.”
Reign Down Bay FC in Third Straight Home Win, Revamp Team-Improvement Techniques
SEATTLE, Wash. — The Seattle Reign are taking ownership of everything they can right now.
After spiraling out of the playoff picture in the spring, the Reign (11-8-4) are firmly in control of the eighth and final postseason spot thanks to three straight close wins at home. The latest victory came on Saturday as Brittany Ratcliffe scored on a stoppage-time breakaway to secure a 2-0 win over ailing Bay FC.
The three-game stretch marked the first time since 2023 that the Reign managed three straight shutout wins, with Sofia Huerta scoring off a Nerilia "Coco" Mondesir-drawn penalty in the 51st. Reserve keeper Cassie Miller earned the clean sheet as usual starter Claudia Dickey recovers from getting stitches to her forehead after the last win over San Diego on Sept. 6.
Miller had four saves on the night, as the 31-year-old coming off a torn hamstring is now 2-2-0 in four starts this season with 22 saves to show for her efforts.
But ownership for the Reign goes beyond just winning games.
The team had to evaluate its entire approach to how it talked about self-improvement — a key for a young squad in which GM Lesle Gallimore is hoping develops greatly in the next few seasons. After all, she kept the roster largely the same after last year’s fifth-place finish.
Head coach Laura Harvey said after Saturday's win, she and her staff made wholesale changes to how they handle team film meetings after the World Cup break, a period in which Seattle was out of the playoff picture and struggling to look dangerous.
"We're looking at ways in which we can be a bit more interactive… I just didn't feel like the way that we have operated and had our process previously was really, like, sinking in," Harvey said.
WATCH: Sounders Settle for Fourth Straight Draw, Arriola Strikes Late
The Seattle Sounders moved to 7-9-7 to remain 13th in the MLS Western Conference after drawing with the LA Galaxy 1-1 on the road on Saturday night. Paul Arriola scored almost immediately after coming on in the 81st minute to tie it up, replacing star striker Dejan Joveljic after the Sporting Kansas City transfer left with cramps.
By the end of the night, both teams put up over two expected goals each as Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer said he had to be stern with his veterans for missing chances after Seattle trailed 1-0 at halftime. With the result, the Sounders sit two points out of a playoff spot with 11 games to go, needing to turn nights like these into wins — Saturday marked Seattle’s fourth straight one-point result.
Emerald City Spectrum reporter Qasim Ali breaks down the action and where the Sounders sit on the table at this crossroads in the season.
Seahawks Need Supporting Cast of Pass Catchers to Pop
Everyone knows about No. 11 on the Seahawks. That being the reigning Offensive Player of the Year Jaxon Smith-Njigba, the one man the opponents can't let beat them, but still manages to do so most of the time anyway.
Smith-Njigba was once again the Seahawks’ biggest weapon in Week 1, and at this point, there’s nothing surprising about that. He finished the 13-10 win over New England with eight catches for 122 yards and a touchdown, including the spectacular 45-yard catch-and-run touchdown that tied the game in the fourth quarter. He was responsible for 69 of those yards in the final period alone.
The trouble was, Smith-Njigba was the only one that shined in the passing game. Offensive coordinator Brian Fleury and Lock didn't feature the supporting cast. Rashid Shaheed signed a three-year, $51 million contract to return to Seattle this offseason. The coaching staff envisioned him being a much bigger part of the passing game than he was last season after the trade from New Orleans. Instead, he amassed just 188 receiving yards in nine regular season games in Seattle.
Huskies Escape Utah State With Second Straight Underwhelming Performance
For the second straight week, the Washington Huskies underwhelmed and escaped.
Last week, it was an Apple Cup that was a three-point game in the fourth quarter. On Saturday, it was Utah State, a member of the resurrected Pac-12, throwing into the end zone to try to steal a win at Husky Stadium — Big Ten country.
The pass landed out of harm’s way, into the arms of UW defensive back Rahshawn Clark to seal a 16-14 win for the four-touchdown favorite Huskies. Washington’s offense, dysfunctional for three quarters against Washington State on Sept. 6 and for most of Saturday’s game, struggled in all phases against a Utah State team that lost to FCS opponent Idaho State last week.
WATCH: Julian Love Stars as ‘The Mayor’ Leads By Action in Seahawks' 13-10 Win vs. Patriots
One of the best all-around safeties in the league, Julian Love put his stamp on the Seattle Seahawks' thrilling comeback win over the New England Patriots to open the season in more ways than one, once again proving "The Mayor" swings a big stick in Mike Macdonald's secondary on the stat sheet and as a leader.
Emerald City Spectrum reporter Corbin Smith breaks down Love’s outstanding performance, including a big hit to open the second half that seemed to re-awaken a dormant Lumen Field crowd, and how his presence helped bring out the best in a secondary missing several injured players.
Wildcats Pounce on Sluggish Cougars’ Offense, Washington State Falls to 0-2
When Washington State's Jaylen Thomas made his break on the ball along the Cougars sideline, Kansas State quarterback Avery Johnson knew the mistake he just made. Thomas jumped the route for his second interception of the game and returned it for a touchdown with no time remaining in the first half. This lifeline from their safety put Wazzu on the board trailing 17-7, providing a much-needed momentum boost going into the break.
Courtesy of a 54-minute weather delay at halftime, the Cougs had time to sit on that momentum. But Washington State did not build off the big play in the second half and continued to fall further behind in an eventual 34-7 loss to Kansas State on Saturday morning at the Bill Snyder Family Stadium.
Washington State received the kick after the delay. A false start immediately pushed the sticks back. Wazzu went three-and-out and on the ensuing Kansas State offensive play, running back Rodney Fields Jr. ripped off a 75-yard touchdown. The stark contrast to open both drives was indicative of how both teams would respond following the delay. The Wildcats would not slow down and the Cougars had no answers to speak of.
Top Performers in Seahawks’ 13-10 Week 1 Win vs. Patriots
Despite losing starting quarterback Sam Darnold just six snaps into Wednesday’s opener and falling behind 10-0 in the third quarter, led by Drew Lock and an opportunistic defense, the resilient Seattle Seahawks stormed back in front of the boisterous 12s for a thrilling 13-10 victory over the New England Patriots.
Diving into the All-22 film and digging deeper into Seattle’s hard-fought comeback win to kick off the new season, who stood out in the much-anticipated Super Bowl LX rematch? Here are my top five performers from the Seahawks’ three-point victory over Drake Maye and the Patriots at Lumen Field:
Julian Love
Overall Grade: 91.0 (Run Defense 94, Coverage 92, Tackling 87)
Preaching to his teammates to have “violence in their hearts” during warmups, “The Mayor” took those words literally to heart from the opening kickoff to the final whistle. Reading New England’s blocking schemes like a book, he rocketed into the backfield for a pair of tackles for loss on running back Rhamondre Stevenson, including a crucial 3rd and 1 stop in the first quarter that forced the visitors to punt the ball away after he blew up the back on a B-gap blitz. Even when receivers made catches in his vicinity, he rattled the bones of Drake Maye’s targets, including demolishing Hunter Henry on a 13-yard reception to open the third quarter with a jarring hit that woke the 12s up from their post-Sam Darnold injury slumber.
Big Ten Picks: Washington Huskies Look to Rebound After Underwhelming Apple Cup
A win is a win, but it was less simple than that on Sunday when the Huskies won the Apple Cup.
Washington looks to put some meat on what is essentially a three-game preseason sandwich when Utah State visits Husky Stadium. UW struggled to run the ball in the season opener against Washington State, in part due to a lackluster performance by what is expected to be a solid offensive line.
The Huskies, down their top two running backs, will look to get more production from the big guys up front. Washington led just 10-7 in the fourth quarter before pulling away for a 24-10 win against WSU, mostly via the passing game.
Chauncey Wiggins' Georgia Case Stayed, Gonzaga's Roster Remains in Eligibility Limbo
On back-to-back days in early August, the Gonzaga Bulldogs received commitments from two 5-in-5 players, Dayton transfer Javon Bennett and Florida State transfer Chauncey Wiggins.
However, a couple of weeks after Bennett committed to the Zags, the Tenth Circuit granted the NCAA’s stay request in an Ohio case that included Bennett, deeming him ineligible to return to college basketball. The same has now happened to Wiggins, who is part of a Georgia lawsuit that recently had its preliminary injunction stayed by the state’s Court of Appeals, also making Wiggins temporarily ineligible.
With the personnel losses GU has endured this offseason, Wiggins and Bennett are expected to play pivotal roles on the roster as the Bulldogs’ starting small forward and backup point guard, respectively. But a long eligibility waiting game for these two and other Gonzaga commits lingers, as a definitive resolution for older players in college basketball has still not been identified.
Storm’s Katie Lou Samuelson Out Final 4 Games After Knee Surgery
Receiving their second dose of bad news in as many days, the Seattle Storm will be without forward Katie Lou Samuelson for the final four games of the WNBA season after she underwent arthroscopic surgery on her left knee, the team announced on Friday, Sept. 11.
Samuelson, who missed the entire 2025 season with a torn ACL, has sporadically missed time at various points throughout the 2026 season. She has still managed to play in 32 games (one start) and has averaged 4.4 points, 2.1 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 0.8 steals in 15.3 minutes per game.
The two major injuries appear unrelated, as Samuelson tore her right ACL last season. It’s unclear exactly when Samuelson suffered the current injury, but either she or the Storm decided to have her get surgery during the FIBA break instead of at the end of the WNBA season.
Washington State Likely Without Tony Freeman for Road Test at Kansas State
The Washington State Cougars will have to earn their first win of the Kirby Moore era without their top receiver in Tony Freeman when they battle the Kansas State Wildcats in Manhattan this weekend.
Freeman suffered a knee injury during Washington State's Apple Cup loss to Washington last Sunday, leaving the Cougars without one of their most important players on offense and special teams.
Exiting in the opening quarter, Freeman’s absence was noticeable on special teams as much as offense. Washington State struggled with punt returns, including having a dropped punt. Safety Jaylen Thomas took over as the Cougars' punt returner after Freeman exited the game and likely will continue in that role in Week 2.
Mariners Finally Take Singular Series from Rangers in 2026
At least the Mariners can play spoiler.
That is hardly where anyone on the team wanted them to end up when the season began. But the autopsy of the year - where three guys the Szymborski Projection System (ZiPS) had putting up a combined 15.2 FanGraphs wins above replacement (fWAR) only accrued 4.9 fWAR with 15 contests left in the season - is already written in the oft-surprised and oft-sullen faces of those in T-Mobile Park’s home dugout.
Going into their series against the Texas Rangers, the M’s had already squandered their last chance to jump back into the fray with a somewhat robust series loss to the Athletics over their previous four games. Things had already been dire for Seattle since at least the end of July if not earlier, but that set of games was the moment that the players on the team fully realized they had to stare down the music.
Perhaps there was a new attitude that arose a few hours, give or take, after rookie Lazaro Montes sent a Cal Quantrill meat and cheese sub to Saturn on Tuesday. If the M’s can’t make the playoffs for themselves, perhaps they can use one of their last remaining series against a contender to ruin someone else’s day.
Kade Anderson and Logan Gilbert went 13 combined innings with four runs allowed total.
Both the least experienced and most experienced starting pitchers did what the team needed of them on Wednesday and Thursday. That in and of itself was a departure from the muddy record of M’s hurlers since the All-Star Break, when the staff has suffered one of the worst stretches in recent memory up and down its roster. Before Anderson’s first career win on Wednesday, Seattle starters had logged a 4.99 ERA and 5.04 FIP in the second half, and the youngest had struggled with a 5.40 ERA and 5.63 FIP in his first three starts.
Storm Center Ezi Magbegor Suffers Torn ACL at FIBA World Cup
Seattle Storm center Ezi Magbegor tore her ACL during Australia’s quarterfinal qualifying game against Italy in the 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup on Wednesday, the Storm announced. She will miss the rest of the WNBA season.
Magbegor played just four minutes in Australia’s 82-80 victory before suffering the injury. It’s the third time this calendar year that Magbegor has suffered an injury that has forced her off the court.
Analysis: 5 Kraken Youngsters to Watch at Rookie Camp
Ushering in a new season, rookie camp begins for the Seattle Kraken on Friday. For many Kraken youngsters, rookie camp and the scrimmage against the Vancouver Canucks’ rookies on September 12 and 13 are just the typical preseason rituals. Many of these players will return to their junior team after training camp or are already penciled into the Coachella Valley Firebirds lineup.
But for some of these players, rookie camp serves as an extension of training camp. As part of the new NHL and NHLPA Collective Bargaining Agreement, there’s only four preseason games and training camps were shortened. As a result, many NHL teams have invited youngsters on the bubble of the roster to get them playing early and make early assessments on their opening night rosters.
Looking towards rookie camp, which players bear watching with eyes on earning an AHL or NHL role?
Jani Nyman
Nyman has played parts of two seasons in the NHL and been a great scorer in the AHL. He averaged just 10:34 of ice time when he played in the NHL last season, and had four goals and seven points in 28 games, not taking quite the jump the organization hoped.
The 22-year-old Nyman is still waivers exempt, and is in a crowded forward group. His previous NHL games played and 49 goals in 117 AHL games might not matter. On the NHL roster, the Kraken has offensive winger options like Jared McCann, Jordan Eberle, Kaapo Kakko, Berkly Catton, and Mackie Samoskevich, who was acquired from the Florida Panthers this offseason. Competing for fourth line minutes, there’s also still recently re-signed Jacob Melanson, Curtis Douglas, Ryan Winterton, and Ben Myers.
‘Mr. Clutch’: Drew Lock Delivers Again in Prime Time, Outduels Drake Maye in Seahawks Season-Opening Win
Once the preseason comes to a close and the calendar flips to September, Drew Lock knows all too well the reality of being an NFL backup quarterback. After months of receiving ample snaps rotating behind Sam Darnold, with the start of regular season games, those opportunities dry up to next to nothing with the starter getting the lion’s share of snaps for the Seattle Seahawks.
Relegated to scout team duty or watching from the sideline, staying prepared for the possibility of having to actually play on game day can be incredibly tricky. There’s no such thing as being able to replace or replicate live reps on the field, but yet, that’s exactly what backups such as Lock have to try to accomplish with limited practice time being fully dedicated to the starters. There’s no proven, scientific formula to do so, with each backup having his own routine during a game week to remain ready if his number is called.
But now in his eighth season, after leading the Seahawks to a thrilling 13-10 comeback win over the Patriots replacing an injured Darnold in the first quarter on Wednesday night, Lock seems to have found the right recipe in Seattle. His secret? Well, it starts and ends in the bedroom - with a dry erase marker and a whiteboard - for the player defensive tackle Jarran Reed calls “Mr. Clutch.”
“I've got one next to my bed. I'll do it at night and I'll do it in the morning,” Lock explained to reporters after the game. “That's just been my thing, being able to visualize it so when I read it out it's just there in my head. Because of the lack of reps you don't get to physically do it. I got to be able to draw it from somewhere, no pun intended, and drawing it helps me draw it from somewhere.”
Rapid Reaction: Seahawks Rally Behind Drew Lock, Intercept Way Past Patriots for 13-10 Win
SEATTLE, Wash. - Overcoming an early injury that knocked Sam Darnold out of action, the Seattle Seahawks roared back from a 10-point second half deficit to open the 2026 season with a 13-10 win over the New England Patriots.
Filling in admirably for Darnold, Drew Lock outplayed Drake Maye, completing 16 out of 22 passes for 187 yards and a 45-yard touchdown to Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who finished with 122 receiving yards to kick off the new year. The trio of Julian Love, Nehemiah Pritchett, and Josh Jobe recorded fourth quarter interceptions, with the latter picking off Maye in the end zone to ice the game inside 30 seconds to play.
Diving into a wild, adversity-filled opener, here are five takeaways from a big-time win in a Super Bowl LX rematch at Lumen Field:
1. Despite Darnold scare and a slow start for the backup, Lock comes up clutch again in relief.
On the path to a Lombardi Trophy a year ago, Seattle had relatively positive fortunes on the injury front. But only a few minutes into Wednesday’s opener, that luck got twisted upside down in a heartbeat, sending a frenzied crowd into a silenced panic. Sacked by Dre’Mont Jones on third down to end the opening series, Darnold gingerly jogged off, trying to shake off the discomfort as he headed to the sideline. Only a few minutes later, he spent a brief spell in the blue injury tent before hobbling to the locker room, sending Lock in for sub duty.
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