Catcher Chris Ianetta knocked in Kole Calhoun with a two-out single in the 11th inning, lifting the Los Angeles Angels to a 3-2 victory over he Mariners Friday night. Ianetta’s hit off Bobby Lafromboise, the sixth Seattle pitcher, pinned on the Mariners their league-high 13th walk-off loss of the season (49th over the last four years) and their 26th in an opponent’s final at-bat.
The Mariners took a 2-0 lead in the seventh inning, but the Angels tied it in the bottom of the frame and won after four hours and 10 minutes on Ianetta’s fifth career game-winning hit. The Mariners (67-87) have lost 10 of 12, are 2-6 on the final road trip of the season, and can afford only two more losses if they hope to avoid 90 or more defeats for the fourth time in six seasons.
Seattle’s loss total matches the number of defeats suffered by the Mariners in 2012, when they finished 75-87.
Michael Saunders gave Seattle a 2-0 lead with a two-run single in the seventh, but Andrew Romine answered with a two-run single later in the inning.
Erasmo Ramirez, who started for Seattle, had an impressive outing, scattering six hits without an earned run over 6.0 innings. But his effort was matched by Angels rookie Matt Shoemaker, a 26-year-old undrafted free agent who yielded two hits over 5.0 innings. Ramirez left the game with tightness in his groin and will be re-evaluated Saturday.
Nick Franklin, who entered the game batting .216, delivered three hits, who stranded 10 runners and went 2-for-14 with runners in scoring position.
The series continues Saturday at 6:05 p.m., PT. LHP Joe Saunders (11-15, 5.16) will work for Seattle opposite RHP Jerome Williams (8-10, 4.65). The series ends Sunday with Felix Hernandez scheduled to make his first start since Sept. 2.
