The Seattle Mariners fell shy of earning a wild card spot Sunday after the Boston Red Sox defeated the Washington Nationals and Yankees won over the Rays, earning the final wild card spot.
The Mariners needed a win plus a loss by either Boston or New York on the final day to force at least a tiebreaker game for one of the two wild card spots in the American League.
The Mariners lost to the Los Angeles Angels 7-3.
There were multiple scenarios where the Mariners could have kept their season alive. All, however, required them to win Sunday.
The Angels took an early lead, scoring twice in the top of the first inning.
The Angels extended their in the second, scoring two more runs.
The Mariners answered back in the bottom of the second when Jarred Kelenic singled on a line drive, sending Luis Torrens home. Kelenic scored when J.P. Crawford hit a ground ball to center field.
The third inning was scoreless for both teams.
Jared Walsh hit a homerun in the fourth, increasing the Angels' lead 6-2.
The Angels earned a single run in the fifth off a fly ball.
Luis Torrens scored one run for the Mariners in the sixth.
The Mariners have the longest active playoff drought in Major League Baseball at 20 years. This was the closest the Mariners have been to earning a playoff spot with five games or fewer to go since 2001, when they last made the playoffs.
Manager Scott Servais pulled third baseman Kyle Seager from the game in the 9th inning, after the M's were officially eliminated from the Wild Card race. Seattle holds a team option in 2022 for Seager at $20 million. It's unlikely the M's will pick it up.
So today's game could probably be the last time Seager wears a Mariner uniform.
The Mariners stopped the game to allow him to wave goodbye to the fans. He received third base to commemorate Seager's finale in Seattle.
