SEATTLE (AP) — Erasmo Ramirez put a poor outing behind him and returned to his recent form.
Ramirez allowed one run in 5 1/3 innings, and the Seattle Mariners’ bullpen shut down the Baltimore Orioles the rest of the way in a 2-1 victory Monday.
Ramirez (2-3) allowed two hits, struck out five and walked none. The right-hander is 2-1 in five starts since coming off the disabled list on Aug. 12, but he gave up seven runs on nine hits in three innings against the Padres on Aug. 29.
“The only difference tonight is I was throwing better strikes and quality strikes,” Ramirez said. “I attacked the hitters and tried to execute every pitch. I had control of my slider at any point of the count.”
That start in San Diego was the only time since Ramirez returned to the rotation that he has allowed more than three runs.
“That’s what he’s capable of doing, but it has to be on the edges and not the middle of the plate,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “I thought Erasmo threw the ball really well. He had a good cutter and his command was pretty good.”
Edwin Diaz struck out the side in the ninth for his 52nd save and 26th one-run save, both of which lead the majors. Zach Duke, Nick Vincent and Alex Colome combined to pitch 2 2/3 scoreless innings before Diaz finished off the three-hitter.
“They battled, but I made good pitches with my slider,” Diaz said. “I just go pitch by pitch. That’s what I tell myself.”
Ryon Healy had an RBI single and Dee Gordon added a sacrifice fly, both off Josh Rogers (1-1), who made his second major league start and allowed four hits and two walks in 5 1/3 innings.
“That’s a really good lineup they got over there,” Rogers said. “But I was pretty confident the whole time. I was pretty calm and just trying to give the team a chance to win and get deep in the game.”
The Mariners were coming off a four-game split at Oakland that dealt a setback to their playoff hopes. The Orioles, who have the majors’ worst record, have lost four straight, scoring two runs or fewer in three of those games.
“It’s kind of struggling,” manager Buck Showalter said of the Orioles’ offense. “We face a guy tonight that’s had his issues and we just aren’t swinging the bats very well. We’re getting behind in a lot of counts and swinging at pitches out of the zone, uncharacteristically.”
Jonathan Villar homered off the right-field foul pole in the fourth for Baltimore. Healy tied it in the bottom of the inning with a single to center after Rogers walked Robinson Cano and Nelson Cruz.
Gordon’s go-ahead sacrifice fly followed Cameron Maybin’s leadoff triple to the wall in right-center in the fifth. Maybin had two hits after Servais told him before the game to “let it rip.”
“He talked to me about being more aggressive,” Maybin said. “That’s what I did and I’ll continue to work on it. It’s going to take everybody right now down the stretch. Everybody has to bring the energy and have fun and see where the chips fall.”
ROSTER MOVES
The Orioles recalled C Chance Sisco and RHP Jimmy Yacabonis from Triple-A Norfolk. Sisco was the DH Monday, going 0-for-3. Yacabonis entered in the sixth and did not allow a hit in 1 2/3 innings.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Orioles: 1B Chris Davis was a late scratch because of an illness.
Mariners: LHP Marco Gonzales (strained neck) pitched a bullpen session Monday. Gonzales was placed on the 10-day DL on Aug. 27, retroactive to Aug. 24. “Marco may have one more bullpen outing before we try to bring him back into the rotation,” Servais said. DH Nelson Cruz was in the lineup after fouling a pitch off his right ankle on Sunday. “It’s really sore today, but you can’t keep that guy out of the starting lineup,” Servais said.
UP NEXT
RHP Alex Cobb (4-15, 5.11 ERA) will make his 26th start of the season Tuesday for the Orioles. Since Aug. 1, Cobb is 2-1 with a 2.66 ERA in six starts, including a complete-game victory on Aug. 18. LHP Wade LeBlanc (8-3, 3.71) will make his 23rd start of the season for the Mariners. LeBlanc pitched seven scoreless innings in a 7-1 win at Oakland on Aug. 30.
