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Dan Wilson, Cal Raleigh Send AL West Message As Mariners' Lead Grows

The Mariners are beginning to separate themselves at the top of the AL West...
Zach Pressnell|
Sep 20, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) celebrates with third baseman Eugenio Suarez (28) after hitting a home run during the third inning against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
Sep 20, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) celebrates with third baseman Eugenio Suarez (28) after hitting a home run during the third inning against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

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Seattle Mariners

The Seattle Mariners took a two-game lead over the Houston Astros in the American League West after a thrilling win on Saturday night.

With the season hanging in the balance, the Mariners traveled to Houston and quickly took the series with two consecutive wins. These wins were massive in the team's pursuit to steal the division from the Astros after Houston sat atop the AL West for most of the season.

Seattle is heading in the right direction now. The Mariners are one of the hottest teams in baseball, and they couldn't have chosen a better time to get hot.

Mariners take commanding lead over Astros in AL West race

Seattle Mariners manager Dan Wilso
Aug 23, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Mariners manager Dan Wilson (6) stands in the dugout before a game against the Athletics at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

"We've been saying all along that we need to just focus on what we do, and if we take care of business on our end, we'll be where we want to be," Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. "And that hasn't changed. We've just got to continue to do the things that we've been doing, playing to our identity and who we are as a team, and the good stuff will come."

But the Mariners and their team understand that it's not an easy feat to dethrone the Astros at the top of this division. Houston is one of the better teams in the sport, too.

"That's a good team over there," said Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh, who set a franchise single-season record Saturday with his 57th home run.

"We still have one more game here; we have six more tough games (after that). We're keeping one day at a time and focusing on that rather than a certain number or something like that."

Following the series between the Mariners and Astros, Seattle will play a three-game series with the Colorado Rockies and a three-game series with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Each of the next seven games holds huge value to the Mariners' season.

It's a seven-game sprint for Wilson, Raleigh, and the Mariners to end the season. They need each of these games, especially the series finale with the Astros.

More MLB: Aaron Judge Vs. Cal Raleigh: Making The Case For Each AL MVP Candidate

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Zach Pressnell
ZACH PRESSNELL

Zach Pressnell has experience covering all major US sports at both the professional and collegiate levels. He’s produced content for FanSided, Blog Red Machine, The Game Haus, Bethany College Athletics and the Bethany College online newspaper, He graduated from Bethany College (WV) with a degree in Communications and Media Arts, specializing in Sports Journalism. Pressnell was also a four-year member of the baseball team where he earned himself All-PAC recognition as a pitcher (and a cool Tommy John surgery scar). Now, Pressnell specializes in NFL and MLB coverage for Sports Illustrated’s “OnSI” network among others.

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