Julio Rodriguez Makes History as Mariners Secure Massive Series Win in 5-4 Victory vs. Rangers

SEATTLE, Wash. – As everyone predicted, Seattle Mariners hurler Logan Evans outdueled former Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom.

It was a back-and-forth battle of the home run for the first two-thirds of the game on Sunday afternoon as the Seattle Mariners sparred with the Texas Rangers in the final game of their four-game series, but as the clouds cleared and the Blue Angels put on their final Seattle show of 2025, the bullpens took control. That was good news for the Mariners, who came away with a 5-4 victory.

The win kept the Rangers at a two-game distance and the Mariners in sole possession of the third wild card. Other results around the American League continued to favor Seattle, who now have a real chance of coming away with the AL West.

And one swing from Julio Rodriguez put him in sole company for young players in baseball’s long and storied history along the way.

M’s, Rangers Trade Early Bombs

Although deGrom walked Randy Arozarena to lead off the bottom of the first, he quickly buckled down and breezed through the next three guys. His changeup had a killer fading action that sent down both Cal Raleigh and Josh Naylor with ease.

Jorge Polanco’s one out at-bat in the bottom of the second started well for deGrom: a foul ball was followed by a painted changeup for two quick strikes. DeGrom went for a low and away changeup to finish off Polanco, but it flew high and outside. After a low slider for ball two, deGrom tried to paint a fastball on the lower outside edge of the strike zone.

He should have gone for the changeup. Perhaps he didn’t have quite the feel for it after airmailing the ball two pitches earlier. But in any case, deGrom missed his low and away spot and found a lot of zone on the lower inside part of the plate. Polanco mashed an absolute screamer of a line drive into a crowd of waiting fans.

Texas upped the ante in the top of the third. Although Evans got two quick outs, Josh Smith drove a single into right to bring up the always-dangerous Corey Seager. Evans started off looking for the corners. He hit some and he missed some, getting to 2-2. 

A sweeper came in, starting off the plate away and then zooming across to clip the inside corner – but it was called ball three by home plate umpire John Libka. Evans dropped a curveball into the plate, looking to catch Seager off-guard.

Seager kept a beat on it and cracked a fly ball to center field. At first, it looked like Rodriguez had a beat on it – but it kept slicing and drifting. As Rodriguez reached the wall and leapt up, the ball fell on top of the wall a few feet in front of him and bounced past it for a two-run shot to put the Rangers up 2-1.

That lead didn’t last very long, however. Just like Evans in the bottom half, deGrom allowed a two-out baserunner, this time Raleigh with a walk. His first pitch to Julio Rodriguez was a hanging slider.

Rodriguez belted a low liner deep into the gap in right center. Wyatt Langford and Adolis García went back and watched the ball inch over the fence to flip the direction of the lead as the Mariners went up 3-2. 

Crawford Blasts Another

The only run scored by either team on something other than a homer came in the top of the fourth. Adolis García continued a strong afternoon with a hot liner into the left field corner for a leadoff double. But after two popouts, it looked like Evans might get out of it with the lead still intact.

Rowdy Tellez – who went 5-12 in the four-game set against his former team – lofted a ball to deep left. Arozarena drifted back but lost the beat on the ball as he got to the warning track, and so it dropped in for Tellez’ third double of the series to tie the game.

Again, not for long. DeGrom, for the second straight inning, flew through the first two men up. And for the second straight inning, he allowed a two-out walk, with Dominic Canzone getting the free pass on eight pitches. 

That brought up J.P. Crawford. The first two pitches split the outside corner for a 1-1 count. But the next was a fastball left out over the middle and he didn’t miss it.

Crawford put a giant swing on the ball and the ball swung on a giant arc. Right center field in T-Mobile Park is often where balls go to die, but in this case, it soared halfway up the seats. To say the crowd was roaring is an understatement.

DeGrom struggled with two outs in the fifth inning but managed to get out of it. Still, it was an uncharacteristically poor outing from the Rangers’ ace. He entered Sunday’s game with a 10-3 record, 2.55 ERA, 0.922 WHIP, 9.5 SO/9, and 1.9 BB/9. But those numbers, while elite, are down from much of his all-time career.

But Sunday was deGrom’s second straight start with five runs allowed – after not allowing more than four in any start all season up to that point. The stuff is still mostly there, as we saw with some early changeups that made the top of the Mariner order look silly (and got him his 1800th career strikeout). But he missed his spots a few too many times.

Muñoz Closes Out Huge Series Win

The only scoring after that came in the top of the sixth from García. Carlos Vargas, in his first of two innings of work, left an 0-1 slider over the plate for García – and the Rangers’ right fielder tattooed it into the Mariners bullpen. 

But after that, the Rangers had nothing. Vargas breezed through the seventh and Caleb Ferguson got three weak flyouts in the eighth.

Mariners closer Andrés Muñoz walked out to the mound in the top of the ninth, but appeared to struggle somewhat with his control. García, who stood a triple shy of the cycle, worked a walk before Muñoz’ missed his first two to Joc Pederson. Raleigh called a meeting on the mound.

Pederson grounded the next pitch into the hole. Crawford came up with it but had an issue on the transfer and barely made the one out at second. Still, it was an out. Muñoz got time to regroup as Rangers manager Bruce Bochy called for a challenge, but the call stood.

Sam Haggerty came on to pinch-run for Pederson and soon bolted for second. Raleigh stood and fired to second base. Haggerty appeared to reach the base a moment before Cole Young applied the tag. Second base umpire James Hoye called him safe.

But Dan Wilson called a challenge. Review showed Haggerty slipping off the base as Young held the tag against him – and he was ruled out. Wyatt Langford struck out on the very next pitch to end the game as the Mariners survived with a one-run victory.

Julio Makes History

Rodriguez had a game that any ballplayer would certainly take any day of the week: 2-4 with a home run and a stolen base – and I would be remiss if I didn’t mention an excellent running catch in the top of the second to steal a double away from Josh Smith.

The home run was the 20th of the 2025 season and the 100th of the Mariner center fielder’s young career. But what really makes it special is the combination it has with his speed.

In 2022, Rodriguez hit 28 home runs and stole 25 bases. He had 32 bombs and 37 bags in 2023, 20 and 24 in 2024.

With his third-inning shot and fifth-inning swipe on Sunday, Rodriguez now has 20 home runs and 21 stolen bases in 2025. As a result, he became the very first player in MLB history to open his career with four straight 20/20 seasons. 

“I’m excited to see where things are gonna go from here,” Rodriguez said about the milestone.

Barry Bonds, who is the only 400/400 player in MLB history (and he did that accomplishment before beginning his diet of “balanced breakfasts”), didn’t get 20 homers in his first or fourth seasons and didn’t get 20 stolen bases in his third year. It was his fifth season at age 25 when Bonds got going with a 33/52 season – the first of nine straight 20/20 seasons.

Julio Rodriguez is 24.

On Deck

With their Sunday victory, the Seattle Mariners improved to 60-53 on the 2025 season. Most importantly, they finish the season series against the Texas Rangers 10-3 and have a two-game lead over Texas for the third wild card. The Astros lost their third straight and are now just two and a half games ahead of Seattle for the AL West crown. The Yankees also lost their third in a row and are now just a half game ahead of Seattle in the wild card chase (currently holding the second place spot), while Boston is two games up on Seattle.

The M’s have played 17 straight games, but on Monday, they get an all-important rest day. Tuesday begins a home series against the driftless Chicago White Sox – a chance to get on a roll after a massive rivalry win.