The Final ‘Must Win' Loss: Why This Team's Season Is Over for Good

A brutal 6-2 loss to the Texas Rangers last night solidified one painful truth for this team: there are no more “must win” games left this year. The season, in all its frustrating glory, is effectively over. Ouch.

José Soriano, man, it was not his day out there, even if his defense did him zero favors. The first inning? Bam! A home run right out the gate. Then it got messier: a walk, a hit batter, and then Andrés Giménez with an error that allowed one run to score. To top it off, a wild pitch brought in a second run in that same inning. Just brutal to watch.

The sixth inning brought more agony. Another hit batter, a single, and then a double made it a 4-1 game. Soriano was done after that, going five innings. His final line looks kinda wild: four hits, six runs, but only five earned, one walk, and nine strikeouts. Nine Ks sounds efficient, right? But if you allow seven base runners and six of them score, that is not efficiency. And he hit *two* batters. What a rough outing.

Paul Sewald came in during the sixth after Soriano’s exit. He managed to grab a strikeout, which felt like a moment of relief. Then the move happened, the one that makes you want to throw your remote: they intentionally walked Nick Lopez to load the bases. Seriously? Who likes intentional walks? I hate ’em. And I like them even less when the very next pitch hits the batter, bringing in another run. Just infuriating! After that mess, a sacrifice fly pushed the score to a disheartening 6-1.

Three relievers did pitch an inning each without giving up any runs. Sewald, Tyler Rogers, and Brendan Cellucci all held their own after that initial blip. Sewald’s hit batter did add to Soriano’s line, a double whammy.

Our offense? It was… sparse. We only managed six hits, one walk, and got one hit batter all game. Honestly, getting two runs out of that meager showing was actually pretty good. Davis Schneider was the lone bright spot with a solo home run, our only extra base hit of the night. The other run came together after a hit batter (Giménez again, but this time at the plate), a single from Bateman, and another single from Kirk.

Speaking of Kirk, he had two hits, which is good. But the “Jay of the Day” award? Nobody really earned it. Kirk also let a throw home get past him, a tough catch, sure, but one he really needed to make.

The “Other Award” list is just as telling: Soriano for his rough start, Springer for an 0-for-4 night with a strikeout, and Straw for an inexplicable play in the outfield. Someone in the game thread even compared Straw’s bizarre fielding to “Jesús Sánchez outfield stylings.” You know what they say about “stylings” right? It means it was bad.

So, what’s next? Tomorrow’s game isn’t a “must win” anymore. The reality has set in. But you know what? We’ll still be there, watching every pitch. Because in a bit more than a week, it’ll be “stare out the window and wait for spring” time. That’s a grim thought. Catch the game at 2:30 Eastern start time.

This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.

From the source Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.