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Rain Extinguishes Seattle Mariners Offense in 10-1 Loss to Minnesota Twins
Seattle Mariners pitcher Emerson Hancock throws during a game against the Minnesota Twins on June 26 at Target Field. Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images

Rain Extinguishes Seattle Mariners Offense in 10-1 Loss to Minnesota Twins

Originally posted on Seattle Mariners on SI
By Teren Kowatsch  |  Last updated Jun 26, 2025 9:41 PM ET

A four-hour rain delay before the game seemed to extinguish the Seattle Mariners' hot bats in a series finale against the Minnesota Twins on Thursday at Target Field. The Mariners lost 10-1 to the Twins and fell to 41-39 on the season with the loss. The gap between Seattle and the Houston Astros in the American League West grew to a 5.5-game disadvantage for the M's. The Mariners still occupy the final AL Wild Card spot by half a game over the Cleveland Guardians.

For the first five innings Thursday, the game was a stellar pitching duel rather than the blowout it ended as.

Seattle starting pitcher Emerson Hancock and Minnesota starter Simeon Woods Richardson went toe-for-toe through the first four innings. Neither pitcher allowed an earned run and no base runner advanced past second base.

Hancock was the first pitcher to blink and ultimately lost the pitching duel in the bottom of the fifth. Through four innings, the former first round pick got the first two outs in order. The potential third out got on base in all those innings, either via walk or base-hit. That pattern broke in the home half of the fifth in a way neither Hancock or the Mariners wanted.

Hancock forced a groundout to lead off the bottom of the fifth, but walked Byron Buxton the next-at bat on eight pitches. Trevor Larnach punished Hancock with a two-run homer to right field that put the Twins in front 2-0.

Hancock also lost his catcher, Mitch Garver.

Garver exited the game three plate appearances after Larnach's home run. A foul ball hit by Minnesota right fielder Matt Wallner ricocheted into Garver's jaw. Trainiers came to examine Garver before he headed to the clubhouse. Cal Raleigh, who was originally penciled in as the designated hitter, took over behind the plate for Garver.

There was no news on Garver's status after the game. Top 100 prospect Harry Ford will be on the team's taxi squad for the final leg of the road trip against the Texas Rangers while the M's await results of imaging for Garver.

That fifth marked the end of Hancock's day. He finished with two strikeouts and walked three batters in five innings. He allowed two earned runs on three hits (one home run).

Seattle's day continued to spiral from there.

In the bottom of the sixth, with the Mariners still trailing 2-0, the Twins put an eight-spot on reliever Zach Pop. Brooks Lee led off the inning with a solo home run on the first pitch he saw, Buxton hit an RBI double, Kody Clemens scored on a throwing error, Willi Castro hit an RBI double, Carlos Correa hit a two-run single and Wallner capped the inning with a two-run homer. When the seventh inning arrived, Minnesota led 10-0.

Seattle left a runner stranded at second in the seventh and was retired in order in the eighth. Miles Mastrobuoni hit a two-out RBI single in the top of the ninth for the eventual final of 10-1, and to avoid a shutout. The M's finished the game 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position and stranded seven.

The Mariners will begin the final leg of the 10-game road trip in Game 1 of a three-game series against the Texas Rangers at 5:05 p.m. PT on Friday. Logan Gilbert will start for Seattle and Nathan Eovaldi will start for Texas.

This article first appeared on Seattle Mariners on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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