SEATTLE — An opportunity slipped away Sunday from the Mariners in large part because reliever Nick Vincent, in an otherwise standout season, remains bedeviled by the Angels.
Vincent surrendered three runs in the eighth inning, which turned a tie game into a 5-3 loss to the Los Angeles Angels at Safeco Field. Justin Upton delivered the key blow with a two-run double.
Upton had one hit in 10 previous career at bats against Vincent. With the Angels, even when the precentages seem to favor Vincent, they don’t play out that way.
Vincent sports a 1.62 ERA in 58 games this season against everyone except the Angels. The Angels, though, are his kryptonite: seven runs and 10 hits in five innings over six outings.
“I don’t think about any of that going out there,” he said. “I just didn’t make any good pitches today. (Ben) Revere got on there to lead off the inning. I just made a bad pitch to Upton. A cutter in the middle and he hit a double.
The loss prevented the Mariners from completing a three-game weekend sweep, dropped them below .500 at 71-72 and prevented them from gaining ground in the American League wild-card race.
Minnesota’s loss at Kansas City meant the Mariners, by winning, could have closed to within two games of the Twins in the battle for the final wild-card spot. Instead, they remain three games back with 19 games to play.
Revere started the eighth by doinking a pinch-hit single into center. He moved to second on Brandon Phillips’ sacrifice bunt. That prompted an intentional walk to Mike Trout, who had homered earlier in the game.
Upton then drove a first-pitch cutter into the left-center gap for a two-run double. Upton moved to third on Albert Pujols’ drive to deep center. After Marc Rzepczynski replaced Vincent, Upton scored on a wild pitch.
The Mariners got one run back in the bottom half of the inning on a Jean Segura home run, but that was it.
Cam Bedrosian got the victory when Blake Parker and Usmeiro Petit protected the lead over the final two innings.
The Angels opened the scoring in the first inning when Trout drove a full-count cutter from Seattle starter Erasmo Ramirez over the center-field wall for a 1-0 lead. It was Trout’s 28th homer of the season and the 24th in his career against the Mariners. His career high against an opponent is 25 against Oakland.
The Mariners answered with two runs in the second inning against LA starter Parker Bridwell after catching an enormous break. Kyle Seager was at third base with two outs when Ben Gamel sent a high drive to left-center field.
Either Upton or Trout could have made the catch. Neither did. The ball fell for a game-tying triple. Mike Zunino followed with a broken-bat RBI single to right for a 2-1 lead.
