Seattle Mariners shortstop J.P. Crawford gestures after hitting a grand slam against the Cleveland Guardians on June 15 at T-Mobile Park. Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

Takeaways From Seattle Mariners Series Sweep Against Cleveland Guardians

Originally posted on Seattle Mariners on SI
By Teren Kowatsch | Last updated Jun 16, 2025 4:00 PM ET

SEATTLE — The Seattle Mariners turned the page in a big way over the weekend.

The Mariners swept the Cleveland Guardians to take the final Wild Card spot in the crowded American League playoff picture as of Monday.

It was a necessary series win after a disappointing stretch from mid-May to early June. And it's something Seattle can build on going forward.

Here's the takeaways from the Mariners series win against the Guardians:

Seattle's offense, pitching beautifully melds

Ever since Seattle's nine-series win streak was snapped by the Toronto Blue Jays (May 9-11), the team has struggled to get a balanced showing from its starting rotation, bullpen and offense. Mariners general manager Justin Hollander said as much in an interview with MLB Radio earlier this month.

Seattle bucked that trend against Cleveland. The Mariners outscored the Guardians 17-5 in the series. The rotation of Luis Castillo, George Kirby and Emerson Hancock allowed a combined four earned runs and the bullpen allowed one, which came on a wild pitch. The team also got valuable offensive contributions by various players.

Jorge Polanco hit a walk-off RBI single Saturday, J.P. Crawford hit a grand slam Monday and the club had a four-run seventh inning Friday that included run-scoring hits from Randy Arozarena, Dominic Canzone and Cole Young.

DAD STRENGTH GRAND SALAMI.

https://t.co/Q16mvWt8m4 pic.twitter.com/rw41x0EFjm
— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) June 15, 2025

It was a rare complete showing for Seattle, and the team will need a lot more displays like it if it wants to clinch a spot in the postseason by the end of September.

Seattle's lineup gets the timely hits

For a large portion of the Mariners three-series losing streak before the set against Cleveland, Seattle managed to get players on base. It was bringing runners home that was the issue.

The Mariners got those timely hits against the Guardians. Seattle scored its 17 runs across the series on 28 runs. The club brought runners home on singles, doubles, sacrifice flies and home runs.

We'll take four please

https://t.co/Q16mvWt8m4 pic.twitter.com/J1pXcX2cLN
— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) June 14, 2025

The Mariners offense carried the team for a large portion of the nine-series win streak with timely hitting and being able to score in a variety of ways. This past weekend's series was probably the best example of the team doing that since the streak was snapped. In Seattle's 4-3 win against Cleveland on Saturday, the M's accomplished that against one of the best closers in the game and 2024 AL Cy Young finalist, Emmanuel Clase.

With a three-game sample size to work with against a legitimate playoff contender, the Mariners could build on and carry that momentum into their next series.

Up next

Seattle will begin a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox at 6:40 p.m. PT on Monday. Logan Gilbert will start for the Mariners and Lucas Giolito will take the mound for the Red Sox.

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

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