SAN DIEGO (AP) — Julio Rodríguez went 4 for 4 with a 411-foot home run into the second deck in left field, Cal Raleigh hit a two-run homer from each side of the plate and All-Star Logan Gilbert was brilliant for the AL West-leading Seattle Mariners, who beat the San Diego Padres 8-3 on Tuesday night.
Rodríguez also drove in two runs and scored three times in his biggest game of the year. The 2022 AL Rookie of the Year has been in a slump since mid-June, although he homered and doubled in a 7-3 win against Baltimore on Thursday. That homer was his first since June 15. It was his second four-hit game of the season and 10th of his career.
“He's playing a little angry right now,” manager Scott Servais said. "There's some payback here. Some people have gotten away with some things in the first half of the season. Hopefully he can continue it.
“When he's in those two-strike counts and you see him lay off pitches and fouling pitches off, and then come through like that, his confidence starts growing. When it gets going with Julio, it's a runaway train and it's really fun to watch.”
Rodríguez’s ninth homer, off rookie Adam Mazur (1-3) with one out in the fifth, was such a no-doubter that All-Star left fielder Jurickson Profar just turned and watched it sail into the stands for a 5-0 lead.
“It's not angry, it's just kind of how I play the game,” Rodríguez said.
Rodríguez, who hit an RBI single in the first, was aboard for both of Raleigh's shots. He singled ahead of Raleigh's homer to right with one out in the third and doubled ahead of Raleigh's line shot to left with one out in the seventh. Raleigh extended his team lead to 17. Raleigh also doubled in the ninth.
Rodríguez came out with a tight calf late in the game but said he should be OK.
He said he had a mental transition recently, like flipping a switch.
“Sometimes you just have to. Sometimes you kind of feel sorry for yourself a little bit and then you just take on responsibility for what you do and be yourself no matter what. That little thing might seem simple, but I feel like that little flip of a switch can change a lot for you.”
Raleigh had his sixth career multi-homer game and the second of his career with home runs from both sides of the plate.
“I wasn't thinking about it at all," he said. "Just trying to get Julio in. It's a cool thing to do, for sure, but I wasn't really trying to.”
Gilbert (6-5) took a one-hit shutout into the seventh before allowing Jake Cronenworth's homer with one out. The tall right-hander allowed Kyle Higashioka's two-run homer with two outs in the eighth and was pulled. He allowed four hits in 7 2/3 innings, struck out seven and walked one.
Mazur allowed five runs and seven hits in 4 2/3 innings, struck out six and walked two.
Gregory Santos made his Mariners debut with a hitless, scoreless ninth. He was reinstated from the 60-day injured list on Monday after missing 92 games with a back strain suffered during spring training. He was acquired in a trade with the Chicago White Sox in February.
