Rodríguez hits a grand slam as Castillo and the Mariners beat the White Sox 5-1

CHICAGO (AP) — Julio Rodríguez hit a grand slam, Luis Castillo pitched seven crisp innings and the Seattle Mariners beat the Chicago White Sox 5-1 on Monday night for their fourth straight victory.

Castillo allowed three hits, struck out five and walked none in his first win since April 26. The right-hander is 2-0 with a 1.71 ERA in four career starts against Chicago.

The last-place White Sox wasted a sharp performance by Davis Martin in their fifth consecutive loss. The right-hander pitched a career-high 7 1/3 innings of four-hit ball.

Cam Booser replaced Martin (2-5) with one on in the eighth. He walked J.P. Crawford and surrendered Mitch Garver's pinch-hit single before Rodríguez connected for his second career slam.

Castillo (4-3) retired his last 14 batters. He threw 94 pitches, 64 for strikes.

Chicago scored its only run on Andrew Vaughn's RBI single with two out in the ninth. Andrés Muñoz struck out Michael A. Taylor with the bases loaded for his 15th save.

The AL West-leading Mariners used three consecutive two-out singles to score their first run in the third. Ben Williamson raced home from second on Jorge Polanco's grounder into right field.

Polanco is a .273 hitter (106 for 388) with 24 homers and 73 RBIs in 101 career games against the White Sox.

Chicago had a prime scoring opportunity in the second. Joshua Palacios hit a leadoff double and moved to third on Vaughn's groundout. But Austin Slater struck out swinging before Josh Rojas flied out.

Randy Arozarena robbed Vaughn with a diving catch in left for the final out of the seventh. The White Sox challenged the play, but the call on the field was upheld.

The Mariners improved to 23-11 since April 9.

Bryse Wilson (0-2, 6.00 ERA) pitches for Chicago on Tuesday. Seattle did not announce its starter before the series opener.

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

Chicago White Sox relief pitcher Cam Booser looks down as Seattle Mariners' J.P. Crawford walks to first base during the eighth inning of a baseball game in Chicago, Monday, May 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Chicago White Sox manager Will Venable, left, talks to players while waiting for relief pitcher Cam Booser during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners in Chicago, Monday, May 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Luis Castillo throws against the Chicago White Sox during the first inning of a baseball game in Chicago, Monday, May 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Seattle Mariners' Julio Rodríguez (44) celebrates with Ben Williamson, left, and Mitch Garver (18) after hitting a grand slam during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox in Chicago, Monday, May 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Seattle Mariners' Julio Rodríguez celebrates with teammates in the dugout after hitting a grand slam during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox in Chicago, Monday, May 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The Columbus Blue Jackets fired coach Dean Evason and named hockey-lifer Rick Bowness as his replacement on Monday.

Evason is the first NHL coach fired this season. General manager Don Waddell announced the abrupt change with his team sitting in last place in the Eastern Conference 45 games into the season with a record of 19-19-7.

“This season has been a frustrating one for all of us and the bottom line is we are not performing at a level that meets our expectations," Waddell said. "We all share in that responsibility, me included, and while this was not a decision that was made lightly, it is one that needed to be made at this time. Dean did a tremendous job last year under extremely difficult circumstances, and I thank him for that."

Assistant Steve McCarthy, who had been with the organization for nearly a decade, was also fired.

Bowness is back in the league after he retired in the spring of 2024, ending a stint with the Winnipeg Jets. Bowness, who coached Dallas to the Stanley Cup Final in the 2020 pandemic bubble, turns 71 on Jan. 25.

“Rick Bowness is a tremendous coach with invaluable experience and knowledge, and he will bring a steadiness to our team at an important juncture in our season,” Waddell said. “He is a good communicator whose teams play with structure, are sound defensively and we believe he is the right person to bring out the best in our group.”

Bowness during his lengthy career has been head coach for seven different teams, dating to the original Jets in 1988. He did some broadcasting with TNT since stepping away from his most recent job in Winnipeg.

Evason was just past the midway point of his second season in charge of the Blue Jackets. Waddell’s first order of business upon becoming GM was to fire then-coach Pascal Vincent and put Evason behind the bench.

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

FILE - Winnipeg Jets head coach Rick Bowness yells during the first period of Game 4 of an NHL Stanley Cup first-round playoff series April 28, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)

Columbus Blue Jackets coach Dean Evason watches his team during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the New Jersey Devils in Columbus, Ohio, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Paul Vernon)