![\"Seattle](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/260326_bh_MLB_SEA_vs_CEL4390.jpg\" "\\"Seattle")
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Seattle Mariners first baseman Josh Naylor (12) walks off between innings of the opening day game against the Cleveland Guardians at T-Mobile Park, on Thursday, March 26, 2026, in Seattle, Wash.<\/p>\n
Brian Hayes<\/p>\n
bhayes@thenewstribune.com<\/p>\n
SEATTLE<\/p>\n
Jose Ramirez strikes again.<\/p>\n
Tied with two outs and two runners aboard in the seventh inning, Cleveland\u2019s star third baseman stole Seattle\u2019s Opening Day magic.<\/p>\n
How did the seven-time All-Star and six-time Silver Slugger barrel that?<\/p>\n
Mariners reliever Gabe Speier\u2019s 1-1 slider missed well below the zone, but Ramirez found a way to golf a go-ahead, two-run double to the warning track in left center. Cleveland\u2019s Brayan Rocchio waved his arms rounding third and Chase DeLauter slid home behind him, putting Thursday night\u2019s home opener firmly in doubt: Guardians 5, M\u2019s 3.<\/p>\n
The Mariners hit four solo home runs and right-hander Logan Gilbert struck out seven, but Ramirez\u2019s heroics were the difference in a 6-4 loss to the Guardians at T-Mobile Park.<\/p>\n
\u201cA tough one tonight,\u201d Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. \u201cThey just were able to bunch together a couple hits there in the one inning and put a couple runs on the board, outside of the solo shots.<\/p>\n
\u201c(Logan) kept us in the ballgame. Offensively, obviously we saw the home runs and guys stinging the ball. Just weren\u2019t able to create any traffic.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cleveland\u2019s DeLauter hit two solo home runs, becoming the sixth player in MLB history with a multi-homer game in his regular season debut. A first-inning blast drew first blood before an insurance homer in the ninth sent some fans heading for the exits.<\/p>\n
Gilbert allowed three runs on five hits, fanning seven without a walk across 5.1 innings.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe main thing is always attacking and getting in good counts, and I feel like I did that,\u201d Gilbert said. \u201cI had a pretty good mix. I liked what Cal was doing behind the plate. I had a pretty good feel for everything.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously, a couple mistakes and they took advantage of those.\u201d<\/p>\n
Seattle third baseman Brendan Donovan, acquired in a February trade with the St. Louis Cardinals, homered in his first-career Mariners at-bat \u2014 hoisting the gold trident in front of a sellout home crowd of 44,938 for the very first time. It marked Seattle\u2019s first leadoff homer on Opening Day in franchise history.<\/p>\n
\u201cI got to carry the trident. It\u2019s a lot heavier than I thought,\u201d Donovan joked. \u201cThat was a nice surprise.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"New](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/260326_bh_MLB_SEA_vs_CEL3639.jpg\" "\\"260326_bh_MLB_SEA_vs_CEL3639.jpg\\"")
New Mariners leadoff batter Brendan Donovan (33) celebrates his solo home run on his first at-bat as a Mariner during the first inning of the opening day game against the Cleveland Guardians at T-Mobile Park, on Thursday, March 26, 2026, in Seattle. Brian Hayes bhayes@thenewstribune.com <\/p>\n
Mariners designated hitter Dominic Canzone stung a pair of solo homers in the second and seventh innings. Right fielder Luke Raley added another, knotting Thursday\u2019s opener in the fifth with a solo blast to right.<\/p>\n
Guardians starter Tanner Bibee left the game in the sixth inning with right shoulder inflammation, allowing three runs on four hits with two walks and seven strikeouts.<\/p>\n
Donovan finished 2-for-4 with a home run and double in his Mariners debut.<\/p>\n
World Series aspirations surround the only MLB team that\u2019s never been there. The Mariners\u2019 magical 2025 postseason ended eight outs shy of the Fall Classic, cut short by Toronto Blue Jays hero George Springer\u2019s three-run blast in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series.<\/p>\n
But Seattle knows they possess the pieces to get back. The Mariners boast the sport\u2019s best catcher in Cal Raleigh, feature homegrown star Julio Rodriguez in center field, and retain the entirety of last year\u2019s starting rotation. They re-signed first baseman Josh Naylor to a five-year contract, a trade-deadline acquisition and integral piece of last year\u2019s playoff run, and welcomed Donovan into the mix less than two months ago.<\/p>\n
Thursday night began with the unveiling of a new banner suspended over the right-field view level: 2025 AL West Champions.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a reminder of what we did last year, and the type of season we had, and the way this team came together,\u201d Wilson said Wednesday. \u201cAll of those things are wrapped up in that banner.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut this is a brand-new year. It\u2019s a new season. It\u2019s a time where we start looking forward to what\u2019s ahead of us. It starts (Thursday) night. The banners are great to remember what was, but we\u2019re concentrating on what\u2019s ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n
ROBO-UMPS DEBUT AT T-MOBILE PARK<\/p>\n
When home plate umpire Lance Barksdale rang up Steven Kwan on a 1-2 cutter in the third inning, Cleveland\u2019s left fielder disagreed.<\/p>\n
Mariners right-hander Logan Gilbert knew it was strike three, casually strutting off the mound before the call. Catcher Cal Raleigh knew, too, tossing the baseball to third baseman Brendan Donovan for a traditional game of around the horn.<\/p>\n
In years past, players may have barked at the official. Maybe the argument would have escalated into an ejection, or perhaps Guardians manager Steven Vogt would have exited the dugout to offer Barksdale his own thoughts.<\/p>\n
Not in 2026.<\/p>\n
The future is now, and the robots decide who\u2019s right.<\/p>\n
Kwan tapped his helmet, signaling for an Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) review. It was the first such challenge in T-Mobile Park history.<\/p>\n
MLB implemented the new system this season after several years of testing in the minor leagues, giving teams two challenges per game (challenges are retained if the umpire\u2019s call is overturned). The process takes only 10-15 seconds, with the result shown on jumbotrons across the league.<\/p>\n
In Kwan\u2019s case? The All-Star would\u2019ve been better off trotting back to the dugout. The video board confirmed what Gilbert and Raleigh knew all along \u2014 that the right-hander\u2019s cutter had caught plenty of the strike zone.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve got to be smart (with challenges),\u201d Raleigh said last month. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to put the team first, obviously, and understand when to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n
CRAWFORD, MILLER PLACED ON IL<\/p>\n
The Mariners began their 50th season without their starting shortstop.<\/p>\n
J.P. Crawford (right shoulder inflammation) was placed on the 10-day injured list ahead of the team\u2019s 26-man roster cutdown, lifting utilityman Leo Rivas into the Opening Day lineup. Crawford began a throwing program at the team\u2019s spring facility in Peoria, Ariz., and the injury is \u201cprogressing the way it should,\u201d manager Dan Wilson said.<\/p>\n
Right-handed starter Bryce Miller began the season on the 15-day injured list with a left oblique strain and remains in Arizona, Wilson said. Miller made one spring start on Feb. 26 and felt discomfort in warmups on March 11.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe next step is getting some hitters in the box, and that ramps things up a little bit more,\u201d Wilson said of Miller. \u201cOnce he passes that hurdle, then it\u2019s getting a chance to get in games, whether that\u2019s down there, whether that\u2019s up here remains to be seen.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s progressing\u2026 in a way that we were hopeful for. It shouldn\u2019t take him too long.\u201d<\/p>\n
SHORT HOPS<\/p>\n
\u2013 Only four MLB teams have won 85+ games in each of the last five seasons: The Seattle Mariners, Houston Astros, Milwaukee Brewers and Los Angeles Dodgers.<\/p>\n
\u2013 Julio Rodriguez\u2019s 112 career home runs rank second in MLB history among centerfielders through their first four seasons, trailing only Joe DiMaggio (137), per Mariners PR.<\/p>\n
ON DECK<\/p>\n
Right-hander George Kirby and the Mariners host Cleveland in the second of a four-game set on Friday night. First pitch is scheduled for 6:45 p.m.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s a breakdown of the remainder of Seattle\u2019s series with the Guardians at T-Mobile Park:<\/p>\n
Friday: RHP George Kirby vs. RHP Gavin Williams (CLE), 6:45 p.m.<\/p>\n
Saturday: RHP Bryan Woo vs. LHP Joey Cantillo (CLE), 6:40 p.m.<\/p>\n
Sunday: RHP Emerson Hancock vs. RHP Slade Cecconi (CLE), 4:20 p.m.<\/p>\n
This story was originally published March 26, 2026 at 10:09 PM.<\/p>\n
Tyler Wicke<\/a><\/p>\n The News Tribune<\/p>\n Tyler Wicke joined The News Tribune in 2019 as a sports clerk. A graduate of the University of Washington Tacoma in 2021, Wicke covers the Mariners, preps, and maintains clerical duties. Was once a near-scratch golfer, but now, he\u2019s just happy to break 80.\u00a0
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