> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # The Good, Bad, Ugly: Jorge Polanco, Mariners Steal Opening Day Win vs. Athletics - URL: https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/good-bad-ugly-jorge-polanco-mariners-win-opening-day-athletics/ - Published: 2025-03-28T06:13:13.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-08T06:00:04.000Z - Author: Corbin Smith - Tags: Mariners, Athletics, Logan Gilbert, Jorge Polanco, Randy Arozarena, Ryan Bliss \[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="1920"\] ![ Seattle Mariners third baseman Jorge Polanco delivered the goods with a late home run to help beat the Athletics 4-2 on opening day at T-Mobile Park. ](https://storage.ghost.io/c/1d/f2/1df2f77b-83dd-4bc0-a6d2-6d1bb5df89a3/content/images/2026/10/revised-twitter-template-format-original-3.png) Seattle Mariners third baseman Jorge Polanco delivered the goods with a late home run to help beat the Athletics 4-2 on opening day at T-Mobile Park. \[/caption\] Well, that was fun. It didn’t look like it was going to be, but the Seattle Mariners were able to persevere and come up with a 4-2 win over the Athletics on Opening Day to being their quest for 162 wins. Ok, probably not, but it’s a good start in their bid to return to the postseason and win the American League West for the first time since 2001. Lets take a look at the good and bad from Thursday’s dramatic victory at T-Mobile Park: ### Good: Logan Gilbert was phenomenal Phenomenal really doesn’t tell the story here, and it’s possible his line undersells just how impressive Gilbert was in his first-ever Opening Day start. He doesn’t get the win, but all that tells you is how silly that stat is. He deserved it and then some with seven innings of one-run baseball, and he struck out eight without issuing a walk. The only mistake was a slider that was left up to Tyler Soderstrom that gave the A’s a 1-0 lead in the fifth. From that point on — and before it — the man they call Walter was superb, locating his splitter and changing eye levels while throwing everything for strikes. It just didn’t end in a victory because… ### Bad: The offense was atrocious for seven innings You have to give some credit to Luis Severino, who pitched well in his first start as a member of the A’s. But you can’t give too much credit, because this offense was wretched until the bottom of the eighth. While the Mariners did draw four free passes against the 31-year old, they simply couldn’t come up with the big hit. And in the process, they swung through or simply didn’t make hard enough contact with some pitches down the middle of the plate. It was a reminder of their offensive ineptitude for the majority of the 2024 season, and it was against a pitcher who is a mid-rotation starter, at best. The Mariners cannot waste starts like this from Gilbert like they did last summer, and they came ever-so-close to doing that in the opener. ### Good: The defense was very good, particularly Ryan Bliss Bliss had a mixed day at the plate; he did draw two walks and showed off his speed on a stolen base, but he also grounded into a double play and had a poor slide that allowed him to get tagged out at home on a bizarre play that involved Victor Robles missing a bunt. That being said, Bliss was fantastic with the glove. He made a diving stop on a Jacob Wilson liner up the middle (note: Wilson is going to be a pest to the Mariners for years), and he showed quality hands and quick reflexes when the ball was hit his way. Julio Rodriguez also made a nifty “diving” catch — the quotations coming because I’m not so sure he needed to dive, but a nice play, regardless” — and J.P. Crawford ended the game with a charging double play. Seattle has some question marks with the glove on this roster to go with the sensational defenders like Julio Rodriguez and Cal Raleigh, but they looked great Thursday. ### Ugly: Trent Thornton in the eighth In a tied game in the eighth inning, manager Dan Wilson pulled Gilbert and put Thornton — a right-hander — in the game to face Soderstrom — not a right-hander. The result was a solo homer from Soderstrom that gave the A’s a 2-1 lead. You hear people talk about process and result in sports all the time. I am questioning the process here. With a fully-available bullpen as far as we know, I don’t get going to Thornton. The right-hander is not bereft of talent and put up decent numbers last year, but there were many situations where he failed in high-leverage situations. Why not go to Collin Snider or Gregory Santos in that situation? Why not let Gabe Speier get a crack at the left-hander and let him pitch to the bottom of the lineup? I just don’t think this was a good decision, and again, it almost cost them dearly. But it didn’t, because… ### Good: Arozarena and Polanco come up huge What a great moment the eighth inning was. After seeing the go-ahead homer go over the fence against them in the top of the frame, the Mariners did not go gently into that good night. Randy Arozarena took advantage of a mistake from Jose LeClerc, and he blistered the baseball over the left-field fence to tie the game. Arozarena looked fantastic all spring, and it’s more than worth pointing out that when he’s been at his best, there haven’t been many players better. Luke Raley drew a walk, and then, Polanco did this: > Jorge Polanco gives the [@Mariners](https://twitter.com/Mariners?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=emeraldcityspectrum.com) the lead in the bottom of the 8th! [#OpeningDay](https://twitter.com/hashtag/OpeningDay?src=hash&ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=emeraldcityspectrum.com) [pic.twitter.com/jObUfN2B9P](https://t.co/jObUfN2B9P?ref=emeraldcityspectrum.com)— MLB (@MLB) [March 28, 2025](https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1905474574889758820?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=emeraldcityspectrum.com) Polanco ended the game 3-for-3 with the two-run homer, and quite frankly, it’s awesome to see. It would have been great to see any Seattle Mariner hit that homer, but the fact that it was him, the same player who struggled so much in 2024 and who was basically cast away in the offseason, only to return when the market didn’t play out for him, is fantastic. And like Arozarena, it’s also worth pointing out that he looked excellent with the bat in the Cactus League. We don’t wanna go too bonkers over spring training numbers, but it beats the alternative. Sure, a loss to the artists formerly known as Oakland would have been just the one with 161 more chances, but there’s no denying how hard this one would have been to take with Gilbert pitching so phenomenally. Instead, it’s a win, and a whole heck of a lot of that credit goes to a player that didn’t deserve much in 2024.