WASHINGTON -- The banged-up Mariners took another injury hit on Friday night, but it appears to not be as severe as it initially looked.
Randy Arozarena was forced to exit during the third inning of Seattle's 10-2 win at Nationals Park after his left hamstring tightened when attempting to beat out an infield single.
Then on Saturday -- as expected -- he was out of the Mariners’ lineup and very well could be again Sunday, especially with the team off Monday back in Seattle.
“Randy, feeling better today, and still day to day,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “We're still going to monitor him closely, but I think positive signs coming out of there today.”
It’s the first time that the durable left fielder has been out of the Mariners’ starting lineup, leaving Cole Young and Julio Rodríguez as their lone players who’ve started every game. Luke Raley took Arozarena’s spot in left field and Victor Robles -- in his return to the ballpark that he grew up in -- started in right.
Postgame on Friday, Arozarena did not seem overly concerned and was seen in good spirits with teammates, joking and laughing with Rodríguez, who also exited in the seventh but to get him off his feet in garbage time.
“Everything seems fine,” Arozarena said through an interpreter. “I think it was just something that wanted to get tight on me. So I think just a couple days and should be good.”
That self-assessment came after Arozarena went through a few strength tests in the athletic trainers’ room, as the left fielder did not undergo imaging.
“I don't think the plan is for that right now,” Wilson said.
Given how many hits Seattle’s roster has taken on this three-city road trip alone, this counts as a positive development -- even if the club is without its most productive player through the rest of the series.
Because at first, it looked significant, given that Arozarena could barely put weight on his left leg.
After the groundout to third base, Arozarena came up gingerly and was examined by assistant athletic trainer Kevin Orloski, before slowly making his way back to the visiting dugout on the other end of the diamond.
He dialed up his sprint speed to 29.3 feet per second, his third-fastest tracked run of the season, while going home-to-first in 4.34 seconds, his fourth-fastest such time this season. Both numbers underscored hustle, even with the Mariners holding a five-run lead that he helped orchestrate.
Arozarena singled in the second inning, stole second base for his 19th of the season then scored on a two-run triple from Dominic Canzone -- continuing what’s been the most productive first half of any Mariners hitter.
Arozarena leads the team in every slash line category, with a clip of .291/.377/.448 (.825 OPS), to go with seven homers, 18 doubles, one triple, 33 RBIs and 19 stolen bases. At this rate, he’s likely headed to his third All-Star Game.
He’d also played every inning over each of Seattle’s first 70 games, and overall, has been one of MLB’s most durable players since becoming a full-time player in 2020. Since then, he’s played in 852 games (20th-most) and at least 150 games per year since 2022, including a career-high 160 in 2025.
And he’s never been on the injured list for a baseball-related injury.
Bigger picture, the Mariners are already without their top run producer (Cal Raleigh), best contact hitter (Brendan Donovan) and veteran shortstop (J.P. Crawford). And that’s only on the position-player side, as the club also lost its setup man (Matt Brash) and most versatile reliever (Cooper Criswell) to the IL during their four-game split in Baltimore earlier this week.
Raleigh and Crawford, however, are expected back on their next homestand, which begins Tuesday.