The Seattle Mariners are absolutely rolling, and it’s showing up in the American League standings in a big way.
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With a 6-3 win Sunday over the Tampa Bay Rays, the M’s finished off their second straight series sweep and ended a wildly successful homestand where they went 9-1. They have now won seven straight, which is the longest winning streak of the season for Seattle, which previously took six in a row from April 26-May 3.
So about those standings.
The Mariners have made quite the move since we last took a close look following their sweep of the Chicago White Sox on Thursday. At that point, they were the AL’s second wild card and 1 1/2 games behind the Houston Astros for the AL West lead.
Now, the Mariners are 66-53 and have slipped past the Boston Red Sox (65-54) for a one-game lead for the top wild card spot. As for the Astros, at 66-52, they’ll go into this week with the M’s breathing down their necks at just a half-game back for the division lead.
Seattle got some help by the fact that the another team in the playoff picture, the New York Yankees, hosted the Astros this weekend. That meant no matter what happened in the Bronx, it was going to help the Mariners so long as they kept winning. And they certainly did.
The Astros won two games and the Yankees won one, so the M’s gained ground on both. The defending AL champion Yankees (62-56) are 3 1/2 games behind the Mariners and three back of the Red Sox, while the Cleveland Guardians are only a half-game behind them for the third and final wild card.
There’s more where that came from, too. The Astros will host the Red Sox for three games starting Monday. That means the Mariners will enter Tuesday either tied with Houston in the division if the Red Sox win Monday, or 1 1/2 games in front of Boston for the top wild card if the Astros win the series opener.
The Mariners have also created some noticeable separation from the third-place Texas Rangers in the AL West. Since the M’s took three of four from the Rangers to open this most recent homestand, Texas has gone 2-6, including getting swept at home in three games by the Philadelphia Phillies. Texas (60-59) now is six games behind the Mariners.
A bye in play?
This latest surge by Seattle could start a different conversation about their playoff hopes. Not only have they moved up in the standings, but they’re inching towards the top two teams in the AL. At 68-51, the AL Central-leading Detroit Tigers are just two games in front of the M’s, while the AL East-leading Toronto Blue Jays (68-50) are just a half-game ahead of Detroit.
That’s worth mentioning because the top two teams in the league get a bye past the American League Wild Card Series straight to the AL Division Series. Perhaps that’s the next move the M’s will make.
What’s next
The Mariners have Monday off, then kick off a nine-game, four-city trip with a three-game series that starts Tuesday in Baltimore against the 53-65 Orioles.
They then will go to New York for two games against the Mets (63-55). The finale of that three-game series will be the Little League Classic in Williamsport, Penn., next Sunday, Aug. 17 on ESPN.
Finally, the M’s will go to Philadelphia to take on the NL East-leading Phillies (68-49), who have won six of their last seven.
Seattle Sports radio coverage of Tuesday’s 3:35 p.m. game between the Mariners and Orioles will begin at 2:30 with the pregame show.
More on the Seattle Mariners
• How M’s switch-pitching prospect Cijntje fared in Double-A debut
• Hall of Famer Ichiro joins Mariners legends with No. 51 retirement
• Mariners hilariously roast HOF voter who didn’t vote for Ichiro
• Mariners to unveil Ichiro statue in 2026
• Morosi sees a clear turning point in Seattle Mariners’ season
