Mariners Rally Late, Upend Brewers 6-5

Trailing 4-3 with two outs and none on in the eighth inning, the Mariners scored three quick runs to claim their second consecutive come-from-behind win, 6-5 over the Milwaukee Brewers at Maryvale Baseball Park in Cactus League play Tuesday afternoon. Seattle (4-1) has won four in  a row.

Eric Thames started the pivotal eighth with a two-out walk off of Milwaukee closer John Axford. Thames stole second and came home on a game-tying double off the bat of left fielder Carlos Peguero. Justin Smoak followed with a two-run homer for a 6-4 lead. The blast to right was Smoak’s second homer. He’s batting .556 (5-for-9) with a double, two HR and four RBIs in his first three games.

After falling behind 2-0 in the second, the Mariners answered with three runs on back-to-back home runs from Franklin Gutierrez and Michael Saunders in the top of the third. Gutierrez’s ball carried over the hitters’ backdrop in straightaway center.

The Mariners collected 10 hits, including three homers and two doubles, and now have a combined 50 hits (23 extra base hits) in th3 four wins.

Seattle starter Hisashi Iwakuma worked a 1-2-3 first inning in his Cactus League debut. Joe Saunders allowed two runs on three hits in his first inning of work, and Oliver Perez (1.0 IP, 1 ER) and Kameron Loe (2.0 IP, 1 ER) each allowed a run.

Carson Smith (1-0) picked up the win with a shutout inning, and Danny Farquhar notched his first save with a 1-2-3 ninth that featured two strikeouts.

The Mariners play the second of three straight road games Wednesday, traveling to Goodyear to take on the Cleveland Indians at 12:05 PT/1:05 MT. The game will be broadcast in the Seattle area on 710 ESPN and the Mariners Radio Network, delayed to 7 p.m., PT. LHP Danny Hultzen is scheduled to start against Cleveland right-hander Brett Myers.