SAN FRANCISCO — The Mariners offense got virtually nothing going against old pal Robbie Ray on Saturday night.
Now they’re at risk of getting nothing out of their first road trip of the season.
Ray, the veteran left-hander, limited the Mariners to one run over six solid innings, lifting the San Francisco Giants to a 4-1 victory and a series win at Oracle Park.
In Sunday’s series finale, the Mariners will turn to Bryan Woo in hopes of avoiding a sweep. Woo is a Bay Area native who grew up a Giants fan.
The Mariners (3-6) had an encouraging offensive showing in a 10-9 extra-innings loss in Friday’s series opener, with 15 hits and seven walks.
But their offensive shortcomings resurfaced (yet again) Saturday. They created some traffic — drawing six walks, to go along with seven hits — but their issues with runners in scoring position remain glaring.
The Mariners are 7 for 58 with runners in scoring position through nine games — a .121 batting average — with six singles and one double.
“Those are tough situations to hit [in],” manager Dan Wilson said. “I know that it’s coming. It’s going to be there. We were unable to convert tonight a couple of times, but that’s baseball sometimes.”
The Nos. 2 through 6 hitters in the Mariners’ starting lineup — Julio Rodriguez, Cal Raleigh, Randy Arozarena, Mitch Garver and Donovan Solano — combined to go 1 for 15 with three walks and four strikeouts Saturday.
“I don’t know if we can go through the game focusing on ‘trying to get the big hit,’” Dylan Moore said. “Each guy just has to be in the moment and do what they can do, and then that (key hit) kind of happens on its own.”
Moore provided the only run for the Mariners with a fifth-inning solo homer off Ray. It was Moore’s second homer of the season — and second off a Cy Young winner. He hit his first Wednesday off Detroit’s Tarik Skubal.
The Mariners had two stolen bases, but were also caught stealing twice — both on new pickoff moves from Ray.
“You kind of live and die by the baserunning,” Moore said. “But you can’t stop shooting the ball in that regard. … It’s just how we’re built as a team.”
Wilson has preached an aggressive mindset on the bases, and that won’t change, he said.
“We were going to be aggressive tonight with [Ray], and I think aggressiveness is a part of our game,” he said. “Sometimes you’re going to get caught doing that, but we’re going to continue to stay aggressive.”
Ray earned the victory after allowing four hits with five walks and two strikeouts.
An important figure of the Mariners’ rotation during the club’s 2022 playoff push, Ray was traded to the Giants in January 2024 for Mitch Haniger and Anthony DeSclafani as he recovered from Tommy John surgery.
Ray had a diplomatic answer after the game when asked about facing his old club.
“Lot of really good hitters over there,” he told reporters, “so I knew I had to be on my best tonight.”
It wasn’t the best night for Mariners right-hander Bryce Miller, who uncharacteristically struggled to command his two fastballs and consistently fell behind early in counts. His line: four runs, seven hits, three walks and four strikeouts in 5.1 innings.
“It’s a good lineup; I just beat myself today,” Miller said. “I didn’t get ahead and didn’t put batters away. So moving forward, I know what I need to focus on — get the heater back and get ahead and attack, and I think it’ll come around. I didn’t have anywhere near my best stuff today, and I felt like I battled, but I’ve just got to get ahead.”
In a scoreless game through three innings, the Giants scored first after back-to-back doubles from Jung Hoo Lee and Matt Chapman. Miller was frustrated by the splitter he left up in the zone that Chapman torched at 107 mph right at — and through — Moore at third base.
Miller executed his next pitch, a slider in on the hands of Mike Yastrzemski, but Yastrzemski hit a broken-bat blooper that dropped in right field, scoring Chapman from second to make it 2-0.
Lee and Chapman had back-to-back singles again in the sixth to make it 3-1. Trent Thornton relieved Miller and allowed a soft single to Wilmer Flores to make it 4-1.
Miller is 0-2 with a 5.73 ERA through his first two starts.
Washington State product Ryan Walker, an Arlington native, picked up the save with a scoreless ninth inning, and the Giants improved to 7-1.
Right-hander Jesse Hahn, promoted from Triple-A Tacoma earlier in the day, made his first appearance for the Mariners on Saturday — and first in an MLB game in almost exactly four years.
The 35-year-old, who had major shoulder surgery a few years ago, struck out the first batter he faced, LaMonte Wade Jr., in the seventh inning. He scattered two hits over two scoreless innings.
