The Mariners beat the Yankees 3-2 this afternoon to avoid getting swept.

Seattle scored all three of their runs in the first inning with sacrifice flies by Justin Turner and Jorge Polanco and an RBI single by J.P. Crawford.

Logan Gilbert threw five and one-thirds innings of two-run ball to earn the win.

Gilbert also struck out nine batters to earn his 200th strikeout of the season.

The Mariners still sit two games behind the Tigers and Twins for the final Wild Card spot in the American League.

The division race will be a tougher challenge, as they sit 4.5 games back from Houston with just nine games to go.

The M’s are now traveling to Texas for a weekend series against the Rangers.

Coverage for tomorrow’s series opener begins at 4:00 and first pitch is at 5:15 on KGMI.

 

The Sounders played the San Jose Earthquakes to a 2-2 draw last night.

Jordan Morris scored two goals in the first half, but Paul Marie scored late in the second half for the Earthquakes to help them earn a point.

The Sounders are unbeaten in their last three games and currently sit 8 points behind the LA Galaxy for first place in the Western Conference. 

 

The Pac-12 could be getting more reinforcement in the coming weeks.

The Athletic’s Chris Vannini reports that the conference is honing in on Memphis and Tulane as its top targets.

He added that UTSA, North Texas, South Florida and Texas State are among the other options the Pac-12 is looking into.

It comes after the Pac-12 added four schools from the Mountain West last week and are rumored to be aiming for even more schools from the conference.

The four will join Washington State and Oregon State for the start of the 2026-27 academic year.

 

There’s some good news for Sonics fans after the league announced a setback in their plans to expand last week.

ESPN recently published a story that answered some frequently asked questions regarding expansion.

It noted that sources have told its reporters that if a team were to return to Seattle, the Oklahoma City Thunder would relinquish the Seattle history back to the Sonics, including its 1979 championship.

Currently, Thunder records include when the team was in Seattle, but that would end if the Sonics were to return.

ESPN’s story adds that the Kraken’s ownership group, led by owner Samantha Holloway and her father, have already been preparing a bid for the Sonics.

 

A beloved coach who made his debut over the summer is leaving Bellingham.

The Bellingham Bells announced today that head coach Bob Ralston is stepping down due to personal reasons.

Ralston went 34-24 with the Bells last season in his first year as skipper.

He helped the Bells win the opening round of the West Coast League playoffs to reach the North Division Championship Game, where they fell to the Wenatchee AppleSox.

The Bells says they’ll announce their 2025 coaching staff in the coming weeks.

 

And it’s Week Three of the high school football season.

Lynden kicks off the action at 7:00 tonight by hosting Marysville-Pilchuck as the Lions look to improve to 3-0.

Then, the Zone’s Friday Night Lights coverage on KPUG begins at 3 pm tomorrow from Lynden Christian High School.

Allan Fee will be talking to local coaches, players and our broadcast teams to preview this weekend’s slate of games.

Tomorrow’s games begin at 6:00 with Blaine at Chelan and Okanogan at Lynden Christian, which will be aired on KBAI.

Meanwhile, the Bellingham Bayhawks are finally back in conference play for the first time in more than five years.

They’re traveling to Anacortes to face the reigning 2A champion Seahawks.

That game kicks off at 7:00 on KPUG.

Also kicking off at 7…

Mount Baker is hosting Centennial Secondary.

Nooksack Valley is hosting King’s.

Meridian is on the road against Kamiak.

Sehome hosts Lakewood.

Squalicum is at Archbishop Murphy.

And Ferndale is on the road against Marysville-Getchell.