Mariners 6, Rays 2
Kendrys Morales went 3-for-4 with a homer and Justin Smoak also went deep as host Seattle handed sinking Tampa Bay its 11th loss in 14 games.
Mariners left-hander James Paxton (1-0) allowed two runs - one earned - and four hits in six innings to win his major-league debut. He struck out three and walked one.
The defeat reduced Tampa Bay’s lead over Baltimore and Cleveland for the American League’s second wild-card spot to one game. The Rays fell 8 1/2 behind the first-place Boston Red Sox in the AL East.
Morales had a run-scoring single in the first and Smoak added a solo homer off Chris Archer (8-7) in the second. Morales homered to right in the third to make it 3-0, and Abraham Almonte’s suicide-squeeze single in the fifth gave the Mariners a four-run edge.
Evan Longoria hit a two-run homer in the sixth, but Seattle got back the runs in the bottom of the frame on RBI doubles by Michael Saunders and Nick Franklin.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Longoria’s blast ended his 12-game homerless drought. … Morales has three multi-hit performances in his last four games. … Archer allowed three runs - two earned - and four hits in four innings.