Astros blow 7-0 lead in Seattle

SEATTLE (AP) – Dylan Moore scored a Grand Slam in the eighth inning to lead the Seattle Mariners to an 11-8 comeback win against the Houston Astros on Monday evening.

Houston scored six runs in the first and led 7-0 in the fourth before Seattle began to rally. The seven-run deficit is the highest the Mariners have overcome this season and the biggest cushion the AL West-leading Astros have lost.

In the eighth, the Mariners loaded the bases with two outs down 8-7. Moore started helper Brooks Raley’s 1-1 pitch into the second deck of left field for his fourth homer of the season to complete the comeback.

“It’s hard to describe. It boils down to the best baseball moment of my career yet, ”said Moore.

After giving up Moore’s slam, Raley hit JP Crawford in the back with a 3-1 pitch and was thrown out. Crawford had three hits and scored twice.

Kendall Graveman (4-0) took a goalless eighth place and Paul Sewald secured his fourth save with a perfect ninth place.

“It’s tough when you get down like that, and certainly against a team that leads the division with one of the best records in baseball,” said Seattle manager Scott Servais. “You are in a situation where we are fighting for something against the first place in the overall standings, so this is very special.”

Ryne Stanek (1-2) accepted the defeat.

Six Houston Batters in a row scored a goal in the first inning against rookie Darren McCaughan, making it his first career start. Martin Maldonado added a solo homer in the fourth.

The Mariners made it a game with a triple homer from Cal Raleigh in the fourth and a triple homer from Kyle Seager in the fifth.

“It hurts very much. We made some mistakes, we went a few thugs, ”said Astros manager Dusty Baker. “We couldn’t put the horse back in the stable and didn’t score any more. We know that your bullpen has been in a great position lately. “

Houston starter Luis Garcia allowed career highs of six runs, five of which were earned. He gave up six hits and one walk while hitting nine.

McCaughan’s start came after playing five innings without a hit on his Major League debut against the Rockies last Wednesday.

McCaughan got leadoff hitter Jose Altuve for his first strikeout of his career, but gave up his first hit on the next batter when Michael Brantley’s comebacker deflected his glove. The Astros just kept beating, six runs before McCaughan had a second out. Kyle Tucker’s triple homer was the biggest blow, followed by a solo shot from Abraham Toro.

McCaughan regrouped, pitched four innings, and gave up a total of seven runs. With the Mariners’ bullpen drained after a tough previous streak against athletics, getting a few extra innings after the tough start was crucial for Seattle.

“We have no one else available this evening. He had to run four innings in this game to stand a chance, ”said Servais. “Literally after the first inning and the way it went, are you starting to think, do I have to throw a position player at the end of this? We were so close on the pitching side. “

THROWN

Raley said it was the first time he was kicked out of a game.

“Major league, minor league, everywhere. There was no intention. Ball escaped me, ”he said.

After Crawford was hit, Servais seemed the busiest, roaring from the shelter steps.

“You can’t let pitches get away with beating someone like this after giving up a grand slam,” Servais said. “Was it on purpose? I do not know. It was a very emotional game and I’m glad he was kicked out. “

TRAINER ROOM

Astros: INF Aledmys Diaz (broken left hand) was activated from the 10-day injury list and INF Robel Garcia was given an option for Triple-A Sugar Land.

Mariners: OF Jake Fraley will begin a rehab assignment at Triple-A Tacoma this week after being on the COVID-19 injured list since July 18. Fraley attended pre-game training, Servais said. … LHP Justus Sheffield (left forearm) threw a hill on Sunday and is expected to throw a full bullpen on Wednesday.

READY TO RETURN

Seattle LHP Hector Santiago, the first player to be punished in Major League Baseball’s foreign substance crackdown, has served his 10-game suspension and will be available to play on Tuesday.

NEXT

Astros: RHP Lance McCullers Jr. (7-2, 3.04 ERA) has allowed three or fewer runs in 15 of his 16 starts this season.

Mariners: RHP Chris Flexen (9-4, 3.35) will make his 19th start of the season and 12th at home, standing 6-2 with an ERA of 1.89. The Mariners are 13-5 when Flexen starts.

___

More AP-MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports