Mariners' Dan Wilson Has Two-Word Astros Message Ahead Of High-Stakes Showdown

Fitting that Texas will be the site of this Wild West duel...

Aug 19, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Seattle Mariners manager Dan Wilson (6) walks to the dugout against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

To say this weekend has high stakes for the Seattle Mariners and Houston Astros would be putting it mildly.

Both teams are 84-69 entering game one on Friday. And whoever wins the series will win the division tiebreaker as well, so at a minimum, one team will end the weekend with a 1 1/2-game cushion for an American League West title and six games to go.

The Mariners are coming in hotter than Houston, having won 11 of their last 12. But the Astros have home-field advantage, and the confidence that comes with winning seven of the last eight division titles.

Mariners ready to take on Astros for potential division crown

Sep 14, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Mariners players dance after the win over the Los Angeles Angels at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: John Froschauer-Imagn Images | John Froschauer-Imagn Images

However, Seattle manager Dan Wilson wants to make one thing clear: the Mariners are not nervous heading into this grudge match. In fact, they're practically salivating over the challenge.

“This is going to be fun,” Wilson said, per Jackson Stone of MLB.com. “To get some momentum today is big, but we got to be prepared -- and we will be. This is why you play. It’s exciting. I think everybody in there is ready to go and like I said, getting today, getting some momentum, and now it’s game on in Houston.”

Wilson is feeling loose, and his players are following suit. Just take it from Jorge Polanco, one of the team's most consistent offensive performers all season.

“Since the beginning of the season, we've been having fun. We cannot stop doing that, you know?” Polanco said, per Stone. “That’s the main thing in this game is to have fun. This is a game. We just go out there and give our best effort and give everything we have, but have fun.”

Game one begins Friday night at 6:10 p.m. PT. Appropriately enough, the battle begins with a pair of aces on the mound, as Mariners All-Star Bryan Woo takes on Astros All-Star Hunter Brown.

Wilson said all there is to say. It's Game On for the two West squads all weekend long.

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