Seattle @ Texas preview

Last Meeting ( May 31, 2018 ) Texas 1, Seattle 6

The Seattle Mariners have found it difficult to score runs for the better part of a month, and it is no coincidence Kyle Seager's recent woes during what may end up being the worst season of his career have played a big part. The one-time All-Star broke out of his funk in his last game, however, and the Mariners hope to ride that offensive wave a bit longer starting Monday when they visit the Texas Rangers for the opener of a three-game series that begins a 10-game road trip.

Seattle entered Sunday having scored three runs or fewer in 18 of its previous 23 games before Seager and Nelson Cruz combined to hit three homers and drive in all of the team's runs in a 6-3 victory over Toronto. Seager's two solo blasts were particularly refreshing for the 30-year-old third baseman, who is still batting a career-worst .231 despite ending his 21-game homer drought and helping the Mariners end a five-game losing streak. The win also allowed Seattle to move within six games of American League West-leading Houston while remaining 2 1/2 games behind division-rival Oakland in the race for the final wild-card spot. The Rangers have won seven of nine since dropping six of their first seven following the All-Star break, but they fell short of completing their first four-game sweep of the season with Sunday's 9-6 loss to Baltimore.

TV: 8:05 p.m. ET, ROOT Northwest (Seattle), FS Southwest (Texas)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Mariners LH Wade LeBlanc (6-2, 3.95 ERA) vs. Rangers LH Martin Perez (2-4, 6.50)

LeBlanc has dropped two of his last three decisions since winning each of his first five, and the worst effort of the bunch came when he surrendered a season-high seven runs over 4 1/3 frames in Wednesday's loss to Houston. The Alabama product has been a boon to the rotation for the most part, however, going 6-2 with a 3.86 ERA since becoming a starter in early May. LeBlanc notched his first victory as a starter against Texas on May 31, yielding one run over five innings.

Perez is winless in four starts since returning from a 2 1/2-month stint on the disabled list, despite allowing one earned run or fewer in three of those outings. The 27-year-old Venezuelan settled for a no-decision at Arizona last Monday after permitting four runs (one earned) across five frames. Seager (16-for-46, four homers and seven RBIs) and Cruz (8-for-25, three home runs and five RBIs) have fared well against Perez, who earned his last victory on April 22 by holding the Mariners to two runs over six innings.

WALK-OFFS

1. Mariners 2B Dee Gordon (ankle) was held out of the lineup for the second straight contest Sunday but remains day-to-day.

2. Texas 1B Joey Gallo and 2B Rougned Odor failed to homer for the first time in four games Sunday, but SS Elvis Andrus' triple in the first inning extended his hitting streak to 16 games - matching the best run of his career.

3. Cruz has four home runs and eight RBIs through five games this month.

PREDICTION: Mariners 5, Rangers 4