Rodríguez hits 3-run homer in 8th, Mariners beat Rangers 5-4 to spoil deGrom's return

SEATTLE (AP) — Julio Rodríguez hit a three-run home run in the eighth inning to help spoil Jacob deGrom’s return to the mound and send the Seattle Mariners to a 5-4 victory over the Texas Rangers on Friday night.

Back after undergoing Tommy John surgery in April 2023, DeGrom left after 3 2/3 innings with a 2-0 lead and the Rangers had a 4-0 advantage.

Rodríguez began Seattle’s rally with a double in the seventh that set up two runs. Then in the next inning, he hit his 15th homer of the season to deep left field with two outs off David Robertson (3-4).

“I feel like that’s every player's dream,” Rodríguez said. “I feel like if you go across leagues and sports, as a player you want to be in the batter’s box in those moments.”

JT Chargois (3-1) struck out three in the eighth for the victory, and Andrés Muñoz struck out one in the ninth en route to his 21st save.

DeGrom struck out four and gave up four hits in his first game since April 2023, showing some of the speed and power that has made him a two-time Cy Young Award winner. He reached 98 mph occasionally, but left before finishing the third with two runners on base when he reached his pitch count.

“The last thing that I’m trying to figure out is my slider,” deGrom admitted. “You know, it’s not as consistent as it normally is.”

Texas built a 2-0 lead early, capitalizing on a costly Emerson Hancock mistake to start the game. Hancock hit leadoff batter Marcus Simien, who moved to third on Josh Smith’s single. Nathaniel Lowe and Josh Jung delivered two-out RBI singles for a 2-0 lead.

Wyatt Langford made it 3-0 with a solo home run off Hancock, his 11th of the season. Lowe added an RBI single in the seventh to make it 4-0.

DeGrom was having a fairly easy outing until the fourth when Josh Raley doubled and moved to third on Justin Turner’s single. Manager Bruce Bochy pulled deGrom one out later on his 61st pitch.

Reliever Walter Pennington ended the inning with a ground out. Seattle rallied in the seventh after reliever José Ureña hit Victor Robles to start the inning. He gave up a double to Rodríguez to put runners in scoring position and Cal Raleigh’s sacrifice fly and Randy Arozarena’s RBI single made it 4-2.

Rodríguez hit the field early for batting practice and was locked in all night, going 4 for 5 with three hits reaching 100 mph exit velocity.

“That home run was crushed,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “That was tremendous, that was a big blow right there. ... There aren’t many balls hit into that upper deck there. That was really launched.”

Though he has a third straight starter on a pitch count Saturday with Max Scherzer due back, Bochy said he wasn't worried about the bullpen.

“We have coverage tomorrow to help out Max,” Bochy said. “And we knew that we have to have that kind of coverage.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

The Rangers officially moved SS Corey Seager to the 60-day injured list. He will undergo season-ending sports hernia surgery.

ROSTER MOVE

To make space for deGrom on the roster, the Rangers optioned RHP Owen White to Triple-A Round Rock.

UP NEXT

Rangers RHP Scherzer (2-4, 3.89 ERA) was set to make his first start since July after a stint on the injured list because of shoulder and nerve pain in his right arm. RHP Logan Gilbert (7-11, 3.15) was scheduled to start for Seattle.

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Texas Rangers starting pitcher Kumar Rocker, facing, greets his father and Tennessee Titans defensive line coach Tracy Rocker, after his major league debut in a 5-4 win over the Seattle Mariners in a baseball game Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Texas Rangers' Marcus Semien reaches third base after tagging from second on a sacrifice fly by Adolis Garcia in the first inning of a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in Seattle. (Dean Rutz/The Seattle Times via AP)

Texas Rangers first baseman Nathaniel Lowe, left, cannot pull down a throw from third baseman Josh Jung in the first inning, allowing Seattle Mariners' Victor Robles to reach first safely during a baseball game Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in Seattle. (Dean Rutz/The Seattle Times via AP)

Texas Rangers' Nathaniel Lowe hits an RBI single in the first inning of a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in Seattle. (Dean Rutz/The Seattle Times via AP)

Texas Rangers' Jacob deGrom delivers against the Seattle Mariners during a baseball game Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in Seattle. (Dean Rutz/The Seattle Times via AP)

With Texas Rangers runners on the corner, Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Emerson Hancock throws to Rangers' Nathaniel Lowe in the first inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in Seattle. (Dean Rutz/The Seattle Times via AP)

Seattle Mariners' Victor Robles tumbles past home after scoring on a Cal Raleigh sac fly during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Texas Rangers, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in Seattle, (Dean Rutz/The Seattle Times via AP)

Julio Rodriguez scores on the Randy Arozarena RBI single in the seventh. The Texas Rangers played the Seattle Mariners in Major League Baseball Friday, Sept. 13, 2024 at T-Mobile Park, in Seattle. (Dean Rutz/The Seattle Times via AP)

Seattle Mariners' Julio Rodriguez, right, gets a big hug from Justin Turner following his three-run homer in the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Texas Rangers, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in Seattle, (Dean Rutz/The Seattle Times via AP)

PARIS (AP) — French far-right leader Marine Le Pen is to answer questions from judges at a Paris court Monday as she and her National Rally party stand trial over the suspected embezzlement of European Parliament funds. She has denied any wrongdoing.

The nine-week trial is a critical juncture for Le Pen, expected to be a strong contender in France’s next presidential election in 2027. A guilty verdict could significantly affect her political career and aspirations.

The National Rally and 25 of its top officials went on trial last month for having used money intended for EU parliamentary aides instead to pay staff who worked for the party between 2004 and 2016, in violation of the 27-nation bloc’s regulations. The National Rally was called the National Front at the time.

Le Pen is scheduled to answer questions from the court for three successive days, starting on Monday, over the use of EU money to pay for her bodyguard, her chief of staff and two other party aides.

When the trial opened last month, she vowed to present “solid arguments” showing that she and other party officials “did not violate any political and regulatory rules of the European Parliament.”

If found guilty, Le Pen and her co-defendants could face up to 10 years in prison and fines of up to 1 million euros ($1.1 million) each. Additional penalties, such as the loss of civil rights or ineligibility to run for office, could also be imposed, a scenario that could hamper, or even destroy, Le Pen’s goal to mount another presidential bid after the end of President Emmanuel Macron’s term. Le Pen was runner-up to Macron in the 2017 and 2022 presidential elections.

Two other National Rally officials, including the party’s historic leader, Le Pen’s father Jean-Marie, have faced similar accusations but have been exempted from prosecution on health grounds.

The trial is scheduled to last until Nov. 27.

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen walks past the media as she arrives at the court house in Paris, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Louise Delmotte)

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen speaks to the media as she arrives at the court house in Paris, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)