Seattle Mariners Offense Stays Dormant in 9-0 Loss to Washington Nationals

Those pair of solo shots were the first two of several earned runs for Seattle starting pitcher George Kirby. It was the 2023 All-Star's second start this season. He was activated off the injured list May 22 after beginning the year on the shelf due to right shoulder inflammation. Kirby reached 77 pitches, but was pulled after the fifth inning. He struck out four, walked two and allowed six earned runs on seven hits (three home runs).

"I'm always gonna try to take a couple thing out of any of my starts," Kirby said after the game. "It's not obviously what I wanted to have with the results. But I'm super glad to be back in the rotation, just healthy. I got my work in these two games and I just got to do better."

Kirby's last four runs allowed came in the final two innings of his start. He allowed an RBI single to Ryan Hassell III and a two-run double to Jose Tena in the fourth, and a solo homer to James Wood to lead off the fifth.

The Nationals led 6-0 through five innings, and the Mariners failed to take advantage of its best opportunity to chip away at the deficit while Kirby was still on the mound.

Seattle had two hits in the bottom of the third, but failed to move either past first. Miles Mastrobuoni was caught stealing second and Ben Williamson was left stranded.

Jackson Kowar entered in relief in the sixth. It was his Mariners debut and his first appearance back from Tommy John surgery. He faced four batters, struck out one and allowed a double. Mastrobuoni tried to spark the offense following Kowar's scoreless inning and hit his second single of the day in the bottom of the sixth. He advanced to second on a throwing error, then to third on a Williamson flyout, but was left stranded.

The M's finished the game 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position and left four on base.

Kowar's performance was the highlight of an otherwise forgettable evening for the home team. The former first-round pick hadn't pitched in a game since Sept. 27, 2023. He touched 98 mph with his fastball and was able to effectively mix his offspeed offerings.

"I thought he had a real good fastball," Wilson said. "His soft stuff was very good, his changeup looked really good. He really looked like he was comfortable out there, and that's great to see. Looking forward to seeing him out there (more)."

Blas Castano made his major league debut and took over for Kowar in the seventh. He pitched the final three innings of the game, and Washington scored its last three runs off the rookie. Hassell hit the first home run of his career — a solo shot — in the bottom of the eighth. Wood brought in the last two Nationals runs of the game with a two-run double the same inning for the eventual final of 9-0.

Seattle and Washington will play in the series rubber match at 6:40 p.m. PT on Thursday. Emerson Hancock will start for the Mariners and MacKenzie Gore will start for the Nationals.