MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Cole Young had three late-inning RBIs for the Seattle Mariners, including the go-ahead two-run single in the ninth that fueled a 5-3 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday.
Young reached for an outside pitch he slapped in front of the mound and just past the glove of Eric Orze (0-1), who watched the ball scoot past a diving second baseman Luke Keaschall with the infield drawn in. Orze retired only one of five batters he faced in the three-run inning for the Mariners.
Andrés Muñoz pitched a perfect ninth for his sixth save in seven attempts as the Mariners won for the eighth time in 11 games. The 22-year-old Young, who also delivered a tying double with two outs in the seventh, is batting .383 with 10 RBIs in 47 at-bats over his last 13 games.
Seattle (16-16) improved to .500 for the first time since April 3.
Victor Caratini’s pinch-hit single with two outs in the eighth gave the Twins a 3-2 lead against Gabe Speier, who was hustled in from Seattle’s bullpen when Matt Brash was pulled after two pitches as a precaution with discomfort in his side. Cooper Criswell (1-0) got the last out of the inning with the bases loaded.
The Twins went 3 for 22 with runners in scoring position while losing the last two games of the series.
Taj Bradley posted his fourth quality start in seven turns for the Twins, allowing only four hits and two walks over seven innings with seven strikeouts before their thin bullpen faltered again. Minnesota entered the afternoon with a 5.13 relief ERA, fifth-worst in the major leagues.
J.P. Crawford homered for the Mariners.
Brooks Lee hit a two-out, two-run single for the Twins off starter George Kirby in the fourth inning.
Up next
Seattle begins a three-game series at home against Kansas City on Friday.
Minnesota stays home to start a four-game series against Toronto on Thursday.
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