Mariners Look to Take Series After Edging Dodgers in Wild 7-6 Slugfest

The Mariners stroll into Chavez Ravine riding high after snatching a 7-6 thriller from the Dodgers last night, and suddenly this series has some juice. Seattle's offense woke up at the perfect time, scratching out runs against LA's bullpen when it mattered most. Now they've got a chance to take the series in enemy territory—something that always tastes sweeter when you're playing spoiler in front of 50,000 blue-clad faithful.

The Dodgers will be seething after coughing up that one-run lead late. Their bats did enough damage to win, but when your relief corps can't hold a cushion, you're asking for trouble. LA needs to bounce back immediately before this thing snowballs into a genuine concern heading into August. The lineup has the firepower to explode for double-digit runs any given night, but they'll need the pitching staff to tighten up after yesterday's leaky performance.

Seattle's confidence is surging. They proved they can hang with the big boys in a high-scoring affair, and momentum is a hell of a drug in baseball. The Dodgers are still the better team on paper, but paper doesn't play the games. Expect LA to come out swinging, desperate to avoid dropping two straight at home to an AL wildcard contender.