ARLINGTON, Texas — Ryon Healy let out a sigh of relief, and the Seattle Mariners regained the lead in extra innings when his hard grounder got through the left side of the Rangers infield.
Healy singled past diving Gold Glove third baseman Adrian Beltre and beyond the reach of also-diving shortstop Elvis Andrus to drive in the go-ahead run with two outs in the 12th inning, and the Mariners won 4-3 at Texas after blowing an early three-run lead Monday night.
“Never feel comfortable when I hit a ball that way, and Elvis Andrus is no slouch either. That man (Beltre) is an unbelievable defender,” Healy said. “It took me a while to finally see the ball get to the outfield.”
Mitch Haniger scored from second base. He had doubled into the left field corner off Eddie Butler (2-2) a pitch after Jean Segura was thrown out trying to steal second base.
“Every game’s a big one and that’s how we’re approaching each night,” Haniger said. “Just keep it simple and try to win each day.”
Mike Zunino had three hits and homered for the playoff-contending Mariners, who have won back-to-back games since a season-worst five-game losing streak.
Sam Tuivailala (4-3), the seventh Seattle pitcher, had a perfect 11th for his first decision in four appearances since getting acquired July 27 in a trade from St. Louis. Edwin Diaz pitched the 12th for his majors-best 42nd save in 45 chances despite allowing a pair of singles.
The Rangers trailed 3-0 before six consecutive batters reached base in the seventh against starter Wade LeBlanc and three relievers. LeBlanc threw 82 pitches and allowed only a walk and two singles.
“Got to the point in the game, felt really good about going to the bullpen there, 95, 96 degrees out here, Wade threw outstanding,” manager Scott Servais said. “Guys in the bullpen, in the seventh inning, just struggled.”
LeBlanc was done after Andrus’ one-out single that extended his hitting streak to 17 games, his career best and the longest active streak in the majors. Adam Warren then walked a batter, allowed an RBI double to Jurickson Profar and hit Robinson Chirinos on his hand on a full-count pitch. Scott Servais argued the pitch hit the knob of the bat, but the call stood and the bases were loaded after a 2-minute replay review.
Zach Duke walked Joey Gallo, the only batter he faced, to force in a run before Alex Colome allowed an RBI single to Isiah Kiner-Falefa for a 3-3 tie. Colome did get five outs before three different pitchers had 1-2-3 innings to get to the 12th.
Tuivailala’s final out in the 11th was a deep flyball by Profar that kept carrying and was caught by Cameron Maybin against the center field wall.
“I think LeBlanc kept us off-balance just with the volume of offspeed,” Texas manager Jeff Banister said. “Maybe we were a little anxious, didn’t let the ball travel early.”
EXTRA, EXTRA
The Mariners improved to 9-1 in extra-innings games this season.
COULD HAVE BEEN MUCH MORE
After Healy led off the sixth with a double and scored on Maybin’s single, Seattle loaded the bases with no outs before speedy leadoff hitter Dee Gordon’s grounder turned into a nifty double play by Rouged Odor. The second baseman made a backhanded pick of the short hopper, stepped on the bag and threw with his body falling away from the base. First baseman Profar snagged the one-hop relay while sliding into a split as a run scored to make it 3-0.
PEREZ OVERCOMES
Rangers starter Martin Perez gave up 10 hits over seven innings. He is still without a win in five starts since coming off the disabled list.
“Seemed to have traffic the entire time. I thought he did a great job being able to navigate for the most part,” Banister said.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Mariners: Gordon was back in in the lineup after missing two games because of a sore right ankle. He twisted the ankle trying to turn a double play Thursday. He played Friday, but not Saturday or Sunday.
Rangers: RF Nomar Mazara, out since the All-Star break with a sprained right thumb, is taking batting practice and Banister said he could possibly start a rehab assignment later this week. Mazara said the thumb is getting stronger every day.
UP NEXT
A matchup of struggling former AL Cy Young Award winners when 45-year-old Rangers hurler Bartolo Colon (5-10, 5.18 ERA) goes against Seattle and Felix Hernandez (8-9, 5.49). The last victory for both right-handers was June 30. Colon, the 2005 Cy Young winner while with the Angels, has lost five consecutive starts since his 246th career win that matched Dennis Martinez for the most by a player born in Latin America. The 32-year-old Hernandez, who won the Cy Young with the Mariners in 2010, is 0-3 with a 7.64 ERA his last four starts.
