With closer Edwin Diaz needing some work, Seattle manager Scott Servais had to deliver the bad news to Leake.
”Very tough, very, very hard,” Servais said. ”I told him: `Mike, 99 percent of the time I wouldn’t take you out of this game, but we need to get Eddie out there.”’
Leake (8-4) gave up three singles, struck out five and walked two six days after he allowed five runs and took the loss against the Red Sox at Safeco Field. Diaz gave up two runs in the ninth.
”I wanted it,” Leake said. ”I was ready, but they wanted to give Diaz work, so there’s no fight there.”
His last shutout was on Sept. 30, 2015, for San Francisco against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Nelson Cruz had three hits and scored twice a night after hitting two homers and driving in seven runs for Seattle, which went on its skid after beating Boston two straight at home last weekend.
J.D. Martinez had two singles for Boston after going 4 for 5 with five RBIs when the Red Sox collected a season-high 20 hits in a 14-10 victory Friday.
Eduardo Rodriguez (9-2) gave up five runs, four earned, in four innings, snapping his personal six-game win streak. The Red Sox were 13-1 in his starts this season.
”Today was just the command with the pitches, you know what I mean?” he said.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Rodriguez’s lack of command with his cutter was the difference from last weekend when he was solid against the Mariners. He said both of Haniger’s doubles came off the pitch.
Playing on a cool, misty night, the Mariners managed to close out the Red Sox after blowing two five-run leads during their slide, including Friday.
Seattle broke it open with three runs in the fourth. Haniger made it 4-0 with a two-out, two-run double off the Green Monster. He scored from second on Kyle Seager’s infield hit when Rodriguez slipped covering first and turned late for the plate.
Haniger also had an RBI double in the first.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Mariners: SS Jean Segura missed his third straight game with a right forearm infection. ”The swelling has gone down quite a bit,” Servais said. The plan was for him to hit and field to see where he’d be for Sunday afternoon’s game.
Red Sox: Cora said LHP Drew Pomeranz (10-day DL, left biceps tendinitis) felt better after throwing off a mound on Friday. He threw lightly on Saturday and Cora said he ”might do another bullpen” on Monday. … 3B Rafael Devers fouled a ball of his foot and came out after completing his at-bat. ”He’s OK,” Cora said.
SHORT-HANDED SOX
Red Sox right fielder Mookie Betts and shortstop Xander Bogaerts were both out of the lineup.
Cora said Betts was ”a little bit under the weather. He had no energy.” The All-Star outfielder entered Saturday with a .342 average, second-best in the majors, with 19 homers and 39 RBIs.
Bogaerts left Friday’s game after he sprained his left index finger on a headfirst slide to second.
YOU AGAIN
For the second straight game, both starters had faced the same team in their previous start. Rodriguez earned the win, allowing only two runs in six innings last Sunday in Seattle.
”It does make it a little bit more challenging for the pitcher in my mind,” Servais said before the game.
Cora said: ”You have to make an adjustment just to make an adjustment.”
UP NEXT
Mariners: LHP Marco Gonzales (7-4, 3.80 ERA) is slated to start the series finale Sunday. He’s 6-2 with a 2.88 ERA in his last 11 starts.
Red Sox: LHP Chris Sale (6-4, 2.74) is set to start. The ace has allowed one or no runs in nine of 17 starts this season and is 5-1 with a 2.09 ERA in his career against Seattle.
Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon said Saturday’s sweltering conditions at Wrigley Field were the worst he’s experienced during a major league game.
The Minnesota Twins were in no position to disagree.
Minnesota’s Eddie Rosario, Bobby Wilson and Max Kepler all left early because of heat illness on a scorching afternoon, and the Cubs beat the Twins 14-9.
Rosario homered in the top of the fifth inning, then was pulled from left field shortly after fielding a hit by Anthony Rizzo in the bottom half. The Cubs said it was 96 degrees at the time with a heat index of 107 – that’s a calculation of how hot it actually feels, with the humidity factored in.
There was a short break in the sixth after Wilson drew a walk. A couple of cups of water were brought out for him to sip and douse himself to cool off. Wilson eventually scored and was replaced at catcher after the inning ended with the score tied at 9.
”I just couldn’t catch my breath,” he said. ”My heart was fluttering. I felt dizzy. Started getting a headache. Just couldn’t even hold a conversation in the dugout.”
All three Twins players were treated with IVs.
Jason Heyward had four of the Cubs’ 20 hits, Ben Zobrist had three RBIs and Chicago had a pair of five-run innings. The Cubs rallied from 3-0 and 7-4 deficits and have scored at least 10 runs in three straight games for the first time since April 2003.
Albert Almora Jr. had three hits and drove in two runs as the Cubs won their third in a row. He exited in the fifth after experiencing leg cramps related to dehydration.
Joe Mauer had two hits and three RBIs for the Twins.
Plate umpire Hunter Wendelstedt worked with a towel draped around his neck and frequently left the field between innings.
”It was just tough,” Minnesota manager Paul Molitor said. ”We couldn’t keep them off base. There were a lot of singles. They kept hitting them in the right spot.”
Chicago broke open a tie game with a five-run seventh.
David Bote led off with a walk and Ian Happ doubled off reliever Trevor Hildenberger (1-2). It was Chicago’s 15th hit to that point – and first extra-base hit despite the wind blowing out.
”Home runs are pretty cool,” Almora said, ”but the way we produced runs today was special.”
After pinch-hitter Kyle Schwarber was intentionally walked to load the bases, Heyward hit a soft liner that just scooted over the head of shortstop Ehire Adrianza – with the infield playing in – for an RBI single and a 10-9 lead Baez hit a grounder up the middle, just out of Adrianza’s reach with the infield playing in, for two more runs.
Justin Wilson (2-2) pitched a scoreless inning for the win.
STRONG DEBUT
Willians Astudillo, primarily a catcher in the minors, made his major league debut – replacing Rosario – and wound up playing center field for the Twins, his first time at that spot as a pro. He hit an RBI single in his first at-bat.
”I just went out and had fun,” Astudillo said through a translator. ”It’s just great to be here.”
TRAINER’S ROOM
Twins: CF Byron Buxton (fractured left big toe) has been on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Rochester since June 19 and there’s no timetable for when he’ll be activated from the DL. Buxton was hitting .206 with a homer and four RBIs in nine games with Rochester before Saturday. If he continues to struggle, there’s a chance he could be optioned to Rochester when his rehab assignment ends on July 8.
Cubs: RHP Carl Edwards Jr. (right shoulder inflammation) threw 19 pitches and got two outs during a rehab outing with Triple-A Iowa on Friday. Maddon said the reports were positive and that his ”velocity was normal.” Edwards is expected to pitch again either Sunday or Monday.
UP NEXT
LHP Jon Lester (10-2, 2.18 ERA) opens the July schedule after winning all five of his June starts, compiling a 1.13 ERA during that stretch. RHP Lance Lynn (5-6, 4.81) starts the finale of the three-game series for the Twins.