The Seattle Mariners struggled in Maryvale against Milwaukee Brewers, falling by 6-3. Their offense relied heavily on power hitting with all three runs coming via homeruns; with Brennan Davis standing out through an impressive display of strength at bat.
Milwaukee’s new left-handed pitcher Kyle Harrison quickly established dominance, efficiently working through Seattle Mariners top hitters in an opening inning with only six pitches thrown and striking out Brennan Davis on three attempts – an example of both his command and skill.
On the mound for Seattle, George Kirby encountered some early adversity. He managed to handle a sharply struck ball by Garrett Mitchell that was expertly fielded by Will Wilson at third base. A double by Jake Bauers increased pressure on the Mariners’ defense, and although Lazaro Montes made a strong throw from right field, it narrowly missed preventing a run at home plate.
The Mariners found a spark in the second inning against Harrison when Patrick Wisdom reached base due to a dropped third strike. Leo Rivas capitalized on the opportunity by connecting on a first-pitch fastball and sending it 441 feet for a two-run homer, injecting energy into the dugout.
Lazaro Montes extended the rally with a double hit against the defensive shift, though he faltered slightly by not running at full speed into second base, narrowly avoiding a tag. However, fans were forgiving given his prior defensive effort, where he was denied a solid putout at second base.
Kirby faced further challenges in the second inning, some self-inflicted. After a lengthy nine-pitch at-bat yielded a hit by Blake Perkins and a miscue on a routine groundball by Will Wilson, Kirby found himself in a difficult situation with two outs. Still, he managed to escape by inducing an easy groundout from Ethan Murray.
Kirby was noticeably sharper in the third inning, retiring the Brewers in order. He recorded a strikeout against Mitchell with a changeup and followed up with two groundouts. Postgame, Kirby expressed some frustration over a slider he left hanging to Andrew Vaughn that resulted in a ground-rule double, acknowledging that he was trying too hard instead of trusting his mechanics.
The game took a turn against the Mariners when reliever Troy Taylor allowed an inherited runner to score on a three-run homer, extending the Brewers’ lead to 4-2. The ball traveled an impressive 477 feet off a powerful swing.
Josh Simpson entered to relieve, yet struggled allowing two runs – including Jake Bauers’ homer and Christian Yelich’s RBI double. Yet, in spite of control issues he showed great promise by striking out seven batters as part of an effective performance and remains an invaluable depth option in the Mariners organization.
Brennan Davis once again showcased his power with an epic 464-foot homer to deep left center field off Jacob Misiorowski that registered an exit velocity of 115.8 mph – underscoring his determination to stand out regardless of how the game ended.