SEATTLE (AP) — Mitch Haniger hit two identical three-run homers and the Seattle Mariners gained precious ground in the AL wild-card race with a 13-4 win over the Oakland Athletics. Seattle’s 10th straight victory against Oakland tied the team record for most consecutive wins against a single opponent.
Ty France went 4 for 4 with a walk and four RBI. J.P. Crawford added three hits and an RBI. Each scored three runs.
Chris Flexen (14-6) started for Seattle. After giving up three runs in the first, Flexen settled in to strike out six over five innings. The Mariners' bullpen threw four innings of shutout ball. Casey Sadler extended his major-league leading scoreless streak to 25 appearances.
The Mariners have won eight of nine overall and nine of their last 11. They are 1 1/2 games behind Boston for the second wild card, with Toronto a game back of the Red Sox. Both those teams were off Monday.
Oakland fell 3 1/2 games behind Boston and two back of the Mariners with two more games to play in Seattle.
