The Seattle Mariners decided to go with the starting pitcher that had an extra day of rest over the one with a little more overall experience in Friday’s elimination game at T-Mobile Park.
Following a late-afternoon workout with the roof closed on Thursday, Mariners manager Dan Wilson announced that right-hander George Kirby would start Game 5 of the American League Division Series vs. the Tigers. The deciding game will be broadcast by Fox and be the third time in franchise history the Mariners have played in a deciding Game 5 of the ALDS.
Wilson also had the option of going with Luis Castillo to start Game 5. But Kirby, who started Game 1, had an extra day of rest.
“George Kirby will be on the mound for us,” Wilson said. “He certainly threw very well the first game of the series, and he comes back on good rest. We’re ready for tomorrow and excited that George has the ball. Like I said, he threw well against them last time, and we would expect the same type of outing from George tomorrow.”
On Wednesday, the Tigers announced the obvious, that left-hander Tarik Skubal would start Game 5 for them.
Kirby pitched five innings, allowing two runs on six hits with a walk and eight strikeouts in Game 1. He needed 94 pitches to get through the five innings. His nemesis Kerry Carpenter hit a two-run homer off him in the fifth inning for his only big mistake.
Castillo pitched 4 2/3 scoreless innings, giving up just one hit with four walks and three strikeouts. He was lifted with runners on first and second and two outs in the fifth inning with Carpenter coming to the plate.
So why Kirby?
“I think certainly in terms of the rest, George had a little bit more,” Wilson said. “They both threw very, very well against Detroit. George certainly threw the ball extremely well, and it was kind of by design. This is kind of the way we had hoped it would work out, so this is the way it went.”
But it’s possible both Kirby and Castillo will pitch in Game 5.
“That’s the phrase: All hands are on deck tomorrow,” Wilson said. “It’s a Game 5. Obviously everything’s on the line, so anybody that’s available will be down there and we can use them.”
The Tigers were sort of expecting Kirby to start, but realize that they might see Castillo as well. The urgency of an elimination game changes everything.
“I’ve been in these games where that (starter) has lasted six, seven, eight innings, and I’ve been in games where that guy is pulled in the first,” said Tigers manager A.J. Hinch. “So there’s no assumption past the first guy that they list on what their plan is going to be. And we won’t really be surprised, given that we’ve played these guys for four games. They’ll let us know, and we’ll set our order accordingly.”
This isn’t the first time Kirby has started an elimination postseason game. In 2022, he started Game 3 of the ALDS at T-Mobile Park against the Astros with Seattle down 2-0. He was outstanding in that game, pitching seven scoreless innings while allowing six hits with no walks, two hit batters and five strikeouts. It’s an experience he can lean on.
“For one, the atmosphere was awesome and I know that it’ll be the same tomorrow,” Kirby said. “But nothing changes. Like I said the last time, we’re all, at this time of the year, pitching with your best stuff. Everything kind of just leads up to this moment.”
For Kirby, starting against the same team isn’t about tricking them or surprising them with a new strategy.
“You can always switch up game plan and whatnot, but I think it really just comes down to having some conviction in your pitches and executing,” he said. “More times than not, when me or anyone else executes, you get the guy out. So it’s just staying locked in on every pitch, being committed, having some conviction on every pitch, and kind of just leave it all out there.”
Kirby’s fastball was hitting 99 mph in the first inning of Game 1, which is 3-4 mph above his season average. It started to wane in the later innings as some of the adrenaline wore off and fatigue started to build. Will that happen again?
“We’ll find out … ,” he said.
The Mariners are going to find out a lot of things about themselves Friday.
“Nothing changes,” Kirby said. “It’s still the same game. The stakes are higher, but there’s no need to go out there and be someone who you’re not. So just attack the day and go out there and have some fun, do what makes you good.”
M’s announce lineup
The Mariners are running it back with the same lineup for Game 5 as the last time they faced Tigers ace Tarik Skubal earlier in the American League Division Series.
That means right-handed batting Mitch Garver is in as the designated hitter instead of left-handed hitting Dominic Canzone to face the lefty-throwing Skubal for the decisive game of the ALDS.
Garver went 1 for 3 with a strikeout and a single off Skubal in the M’s 3-2 win in Game 2.
The top four batters in the M’s lineup remained the same: Randy Arozarena, Cal Raleigh, Julio Rodríguez and Jorge Polanco. Eugenio Suárez and Josh Naylor flipped spots in the order from the past two games, with Suárez hitting fifth and Naylor sixth.
Here’s the full lineup for Game 5 behind starting pitcher George Kirby:
1. Randy Arozarena LF
2. Cal Raleigh C
3. Julio Rodríguez CF
4. Jorge Polanco 2B
5. Eugenio Suárez 3B
6. Josh Naylor 1B
7. Mitch Garver DH
8. Victor Robles RF
9. J.P. Crawford SS
The Seattle Times’ Tim Booth contributed to this report.