Behind Jacob deGrom, Rangers seek split of series vs. Mariners

Luis Curvelo will never forget his first major-league victory.

And should they make the playoffs, neither will the Texas Rangers.

Curvelo replaced injured closer Robert Garcia and pitched 1 1/3 innings of scoreless relief as the Rangers defeated the host Seattle Mariners 6-4 in 11 innings Saturday.

Texas is scheduled to send former Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom (10-3, 2.55 ERA) to the mound Sunday in an effort to split the four-game series against its American League West rivals. The Mariners are set to counter with rookie Logan Evans (4-4, 4.22).

Curvelo spent six years in the Mariners' organization before signing with the Rangers in the offseason. The 24-year-old right-hander was called up from Triple-A Round Rock on Wednesday and made his major-league debut the next night, pitching two scoreless innings in a 6-0 loss.

He got the call Saturday when Garcia exited with a scapula spasm with a runner on first and two outs in the bottom of the 10th. Curvelo struck out Eugenio Suarez to end the inning and retired the Mariners in order in the 11th after the Rangers scored twice in the top of the frame.

"I mean, what a great job. These kids came up and really pitch well and you know we needed it," Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said. "(Curvelo's) got a lot of enthusiasm and passion, you can see it out there and he's got confidence. He went out there and did a terrific job. I can't say enough about these guys after a tough loss (Friday night), how they battled back. Just a great effort throughout the lineup."

Kyle Higashioka homered and drove in three runs for the Rangers.

Randy Arozarena hit a tying two-run homer in the bottom of the 10th for the Mariners after Texas scored twice in the top of the inning.

"Coming back again in the extra innings with the home run by Randy, again to tie it back up in the 10th, (that was) huge," Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. "We just weren't able to come out on top of this today. But a great effort on all those guys' part."

Seattle's Cal Raleigh, who leads the majors in both homers (42) and RBIs (88), went 0-for-5 with five strikeouts.

"He's in a good spot," Wilson said about Raleigh. "It was just one of those days for him. We all have those days. That's going to happen. That's baseball."

deGrom is coming off a 6-4 loss Monday against the host Los Angeles Angels in which he allowed five runs over 5 1/3 innings. He's 2-1 with a 2.51 ERA in six career starts against Seattle. deGrom took a no-decision in a 5-3 loss April 11 in Seattle, then beat the M's 8-1 on May 4 in Arlington, Texas, as he allowed one run on three hits over five innings.

Evans' lone start against the Rangers came in that 8-1 loss, though just one of the six runs he gave up in five innings was earned. His last start was a 6-1 defeat to the Athletics on Tuesday in West Sacramento, Calif., in which he allowed six runs in 4 2/3 innings.

-Field Level Media