Skubal works 7 strong innings, Meadows makes homer-saving catch as the Tigers beat Mariners 6-2

SEATTLE (AP) — Tarik Skubal allowed two runs over seven innings, Parker Meadows made a homer-saving catch in the eighth inning and the Detroit Tigers beat the Seattle Mariners 6-2 on Wednesday night.

“It was a huge play, a game-changer,” Detroit manager A.J. Hinch said. “When the ball is hit to center, I feel settled because you feel like Parker is going to make (the catch).”

Skubal (13-4) was overpowering in stretches. The 27-year-old left-hander allowed three hits, struck out nine and continued to strengthen his resume in the AL Cy Young Award conversation.

But Meadows' catch will be the lasting image of the game as Seattle fell out of first place in the AL West, slipping a half-game behind Houston.

With two outs in the bottom of the eighth and Seattle trailing 3-2, Cal Raleigh drove Jason Foley’s slider to deep center field. Meadows tracked the ball, timed his jump perfectly and was well above the top of the wall when the ball dropped into his glove.

“My job was to get to the wall and get to a spot, look up and find it,” Meadows said. “In that situation, it is pretty cool. You saw the emotions; I don’t do that very often.”

Raleigh homered in the fourth inning, with Randy Arozarena aboard, for the only blemish on Skubal’s otherwise terrific outing.

Skubal, who pitched collegiately a couple of miles away at Seattle University, retired the first 10 batters he faced and moved into a tie with three other pitchers for the most wins in baseball.

“It is always fun for me to throw here,” Skubal said. “I (have) to try and not make the game bigger than it already is. I enjoy it.”

Wenceel Pérez led off the game with a home run and Jake Rogers added a solo shot in the fourth inning. Matt Vierling and Gio Urshela had RBI singles in the ninth inning as the Tigers scored three times on the heels of Meadows' catch.

Seattle's George Kirby labored to get through five innings, throwing 97 pitches, 65 for strikes. Kirby (8-8) struck out seven and gave up three runs.

“It is one of those games where you got to keep it close,” Seattle manager Scott Servais said. “We did everything right, they just made a play. It happens in the major leagues every once in a while. (Meadows) made an outstanding play.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Tigers: RHP Casey Mize (hamstring) will throw a couple innings in a rehab start with Triple-A Toledo on Thursday, and his pitch efficiency will be monitored, according to Hinch. … OF Riley Greene (hamstring) is still not running bases and Hinch said a rehab assignment is “not imminent.” … OF Kerry Carpenter (lumbar spine stress fracture) went 1 for 4 in his rehab start with Triple-A Toledo, and Hinch said he came out “fine” from the game.

Mariners: OF Julio Rodriguez was doing outfield work with the rest of the team on Wednesday. Servais declined comment on the subject until he spoke with the trainer.

ROSTER MOVE

Mariners: Seattle recalled INF Ryan Bliss from Triple-A Tacoma on Wednesday. Bliss returns to the Mariners after hitting .220 with seven RBIs in 31 games. In a corresponding move, OF Cade Marlowe was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma.

UP NEXT

Seattle will throw RHP Bryan Woo (5-1, 2.08 ERA) in the series finale against Detroit on Thursday. The Tigers have not made a decision on Thursday’s starter.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Tarik Skubal throws against the Seattle Mariners during the first inning in a baseball game, Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Seattle Mariners starting pitcher George Kirby throws against the Detroit Tigers during the first inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Detroit Tigers center fielder Parker Meadows watches the home fun ball hit by Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh during the fourth inning in a baseball game, Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh hits a two-run home run on a pitch from Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Tarik Skubal during the fourth inning in a baseball game, Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Detroit Tigers' Matt Vierling dives into home to score on a double hit by Bligh Madris against the Seattle Mariners during the third inning in a baseball game, Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Detroit Tigers' Jake Rogers points to the sky after hitting a solo home run on a pitch from Seattle Mariners starting pitcher George Kirby during the fourth inning in a baseball game, Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Detroit Tigers shortstop Javier Báez throws against the Seattle Mariners during the second inning in a baseball game, Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Detroit Tigers center fielder Parker Meadows, left, reacts with right fielder Wenceel Pérez after catching a ball hit by Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh during the eighth inning in a baseball game, Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Detroit Tigers center fielder Parker Meadows leaps and catches a ball hit by Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh during the eighth inning in a baseball game, Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Calling it “unserious and unacceptable,” House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries rejected on Monday a proposal from Speaker Mike Johnson that links continued government funding for six months with a measure to require proof of citizenship when registering to vote.

The response frames the spending battle to come over the next weeks as lawmakers work to reach consensus on a short-term spending bill that would prevent a partial government shutdown when the new fiscal year begins Oct. 1. Lawmakers hope to avoid a shutdown just weeks before voters go to the polls.

Johnson is punting the final decisions on full-year spending into next year when a new president and Congress take over. He's doing so at the urging of members within his conference who believe that Republicans will be in a better position next year to secure the funding and policy priorities they want.

But Jeffries said the appropriations process should be wrapped up by this Congress, and the short-term measure should reflect that. It also needs to be free of “partisan policy changes," Jeffries said.

“There is no other viable path forward that protects the health, safety and economic well-being of hardworking American taxpayers,” Jeffries wrote in a letter to House Democrats released Monday.

Lawmakers are returning to Washington this week following a traditional August recess spent mostly working in their home states and districts. They are not close to completing work on the dozen annual appropriations bills that will fund the agencies during the next fiscal year, so they’ll need to approve a stopgap measure.

The House bill including the proof of citizenship mandate for voter registration complicates the effort. The voter registration measure is popular with House Republicans and has already passed once before in that chamber. The House Freedom Caucus, which generally includes the chamber’s most conservative members, called for it to be attached to the spending bill.

Republicans say that requiring proof of citizenship would ensure that U.S. elections are only for American citizens, improving confidence in the nation’s federal election system, something that former President Donald Trump has sought to undermine over the years.

Opponents say it is already against the law for noncitizens to vote in federal elections and that the document requirements would disenfranchise millions of Americans who do not have the necessary documents readily available when they get a chance to register.

Trump and other Republicans have revved up their complaints about the issue of noncitizens voting with the influx of migrants across the U.S.-Mexico border under President Joe Biden’s administration. They are contending Democrats let them in to add them to the voter rolls. But the available evidence shows that noncitizen voting in federal elections is incredibly rare.

Johnson called the proof of citizenship mandate a “righteous fight” as he entered the Capitol Monday afternoon. He said that even if a small percentage of people who have entered the U.S. illegally end up registering to vote, “they can throw the election. This is serious business.”

Senate Democrats have also come out against Johnson's proposal. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called the bill “pure partisan posturing."

“Speaker Johnson knows deep down that he needs to work with Democrats to get anything done,” Schumer said.

The White House said that if the bill reaches Biden's desk he will veto it. The veto threat said states already have effective safeguards in place to verify voters' eligibility and maintain accurate voter rolls.

“Instead of working in a bipartisan manner to keep the Government open and provide emergency funding for disaster needs, House Republicans have chosen brinksmanship,” the White House statement said.

The bill does provide an additional $10 billion for a disaster relief fund administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. But the White House said it did not cover the full amount needed through other disaster relief programs, such as for highways and bridges damaged by disasters in 38 states.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned that long-term continuing resolutions, such as the current one to be voted on in the House this week, harm military readiness. Austin said in a letter to the chairs and ranking members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees that, if passed, the bill would mark the second year in a row and the seventh time in the past 15 years that the department is delayed in moving forward with some critical priorities.

“These actions subject Service members and their families to unnecessary stress, empower our adversaries, misalign billions of dollars, damage our readiness, and impede our ability to react to emergent events,” Austin wrote.

Associated Press congressional reporter Stephen Groves contributed to this report.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., addresses the audience during the Teha (The European House Ambrosetti ) economic forum in Cernobbio, Como Lake, Italy, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

FILE - The Capitol dome on Capitol Hill is seen through a glass structure in Washington, on April 6, 2011. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)