Seattle Mariner Cal Raleigh belts one his two home runs in the bottom of the first inning against the Sacramento A’s at T Mobile Field in Seattle on Sun Aug 24, 2025 (AP News photo)
Sacramento A’s Outslugged in Seattle 11-4 as Cal Raleigh Powers Mariners to Victory
By Mauricio Segura
The Sacramento A’s bus arrived at T-Mobile Park this morning looking to build momentum, but instead found themselves stuck in a nightmare that started early and never really stopped. The Mariners, fueled by Cal Raleigh’s booming bat and Randy Arozarena’s relentless presence on the bases, pounded the Green and Gold 11-4.
The loss was less a contest than a crash course in how quickly a game can spiral out of control when the opponent smells blood. Things unraveled almost immediately. After Sacramento’s top of the first fizzled with three straight outs, Seattle wasted no time in setting the tone.
Arozarena singled to left, and Raleigh followed with a two-run shot that landed deep in the seats. It was his 48th home run of the season, but he wasn’t done. The Mariners were up 2-0 before many fans had even settled into their seats.
The A’s showed a flicker of life in the second inning when rookie Jacob Wilson lined a solo home run to left. For a moment, it looked like the start of a back-and-forth slugfest. That illusion didn’t last long. Seattle responded immediately in the bottom half with Jorge Polanco drawing a walk and Arozarena ripping a run-scoring double.
Then Raleigh came up again and crushed another homer, his 49th, a two-run shot that pushed the Mariners ahead 5-1. Just like that, any sense of balance disappeared.
The bottom of the third cemented the rout. Sacramento starter Jacob Lopez, already shaky, walked Mitch Garver to open the frame and surrendered a single to Polanco. J.P. Crawford added another free pass to load the bases.
Victor Robles then drove in two with a sharp single, and the Mariners smelt blood. The Athletics turned to Eduarniel Núñez out of the bullpen, but he hit Arozarena with a pitch to reload the bases and extend the misery.
Raleigh, mercifully, struck out, but Julio Rodríguez picked him up with a two-run single. Josh Naylor delivered the knockout punch of the inning with a two-run double, stretching the Mariners’ lead to 11-1.
It wasn’t just that the Mariners scored, it was how they scored, aggressive baserunning, clutch hits, and walks that piled up as Sacramento’s pitchers struggled to find the strike zone. By the end of the third, the game was functionally over.
Sacramento’s offense, meanwhile, was almost invisible. Strikeouts came in waves, with Shea Langeliers, Tyler Soderstrom, and Darell Hernaiz combining for ten on the afternoon. Brent Rooker, the team’s most consistent power threat this year, went hitless with a pair of strikeouts.
The A’s lineup often looked overmatched by Mariners starter Logan Gilbert, who racked up nine strikeouts over six innings and allowed just one earned run, the Wilson homer in the second.
The only offensive spark came late, long after the Mariners had eased off the gas. In the seventh, Sacramento managed to string together a mini-rally when Wilson singled and JJ Bleday followed with another knock.
Willie MacIver drove in a run with a base hit, and after a hit-by-pitch brought in another, the A’s trimmed the deficit slightly. A Jacob Wilson RBI groundout in the eighth brought the final tally to 11-4, but by then, Seattle’s bullpen was simply managing traffic rather than facing any real pressure.
Wilson was a rare bright spot, finishing with two hits, including the home run and two RBI. MacIver also added an RBI single, but it was otherwise a quiet day for the Sacramento bats. The team finished with just eight hits compared to Seattle’s 11, and the strikeout total (16 in all) told the real story of how thoroughly the Mariners staff dominated.
Defensively, the A’s settled down after the early barrage, with Joey Estes providing three scoreless innings of relief to stop the bleeding. But by then, the damage had already been inflicted. Sacramento simply couldn’t match Seattle’s offensive firepower, and once Raleigh and Arozarena set the tone, the Mariners never looked back.
The Green and Gold now face the harsh reality of another lopsided loss, part of a season that’s been defined by inconsistency. Young players like Wilson, Butler, and Soderstrom continue to gain experience, but the gulf between rebuilding Sacramento and playoff-bound Seattle was on full display in this matchup.
For the Mariners, it was another showcase of why they’re feared in the American League down the stretch. For Sacramento, it was another reminder of just how long the road back to contention may be.
Starting pitchers for the Tigers LHP Tarik Skubal whose having a Cy Young type year (11-3 ERA 2.32) for the A’s RHP JT Ginn (2-5 ERA 4.95) first pitch at 7:05pm PT.
Costa Rican-born Mauricio Segura has been covering sports in the Bay Area since 2001 for a variety of magazines and newspapers, as well as his own publication, Golden Bay Times.
