Josh Naylor hits walk-off single and Cal Raleigh homers as Mariners beat A's 5-4 to avoid sweep

SEATTLE (AP) — Josh Naylor hit a game-ending single, Cal Raleigh homered for the third time in as many games and the Seattle Mariners beat the Athletics 5-4 on Wednesday to avoid a three-game sweep.

The Athletics' seven-game road winning streak was snapped, while the Mariners won for just the third time in nine games.

With two outs in the ninth, Naylor lined a first-pitch cutter from Joel Kuhnel (0-1) the opposite way into left field to score Raleigh from second. Naylor finished 3 for 5 to raise his batting average to .194.

Raleigh, also off to a slow start, hit a solo shot to right in the third for his fifth homer. He also went 3 for 5 — his first three-hit game this season — and is batting .198.

Nick Kurtz tied it in the top of the ninth when he sent a hanging slider from Mariners closer Andrés Muñoz (3-2) 438 feet to center for his fourth homer.

Julio Rodríguez had a pair of singles to extend his on-base streak to 19 games. His RBI groundout in the seventh put the Mariners ahead 4-3.

Mariners starter Logan Gilbert, who gave up three runs in four innings, got a comebacker off the bat of Carlos Cortes lodged in his jersey in the first. Cortes was credited with a single.

Athletics starter Aaron Civale gave up three runs in 5 1/3 innings. Tyler Soderstrom, Jeff McNeil and Jacob Wilson drove in runs for the Athletics.

Mariners RHP George Kirby (3-2, 2.97 ERA) will oppose Cardinals RHP Andre Pallante (2-1, 4.05) on Friday at St. Louis. Athletics RHP Luis Severino (0-2, 6.20) will take the mound on Friday against the visiting Texas Rangers.

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

Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Logan Gilbert tries to fish out the ball after Athletics' Carlos Cortes hit a line drive base hit into his jersey during the first inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Seattle Mariners' Josh Naylor hits a single against the Athletics during the first inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh follows through on a solo home run against the Athletics during the third inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Seattle Mariners' Josh Naylor, center, celebrates with Julio Rodríguez, left, and Luke Raley, right, after hitting a game-winning single against the Athletics during the ninth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Seattle Mariners' Josh Naylor, front, is hugged by Julio Rodríguez, back, as they celebrate Naylor's game-winning single against the Athletics during the ninth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Three congressional candidates wagered on the outcome of their own elections on Kalshi, according to the prediction market, which said Wednesday that it fined and suspended the men from their platform for five years.

It is the latest high-profile case of alleged insider trading on prediction markets including Kalshi and Polymarket, which have brought bipartisan scrutiny from Congress and calls for stricter regulations of the websites where people can put money on just about anything.

Kalshi's disciplinary documents named Mark Moran, who is running as an independent in Virginia's U.S. Senate race; Ezekiel Enriquez, who ran in a Texas Republican primary for a U.S. House seat; and Matt Klein, a Democratic state senator running for a U.S. House seat in Minnesota.

Klein and Enriquez both placed bets less than $100 related to their “own candidacy,” Kalshi said. Moran said on social media that he “traded $100 on myself.”

These relatively small bets follow mammoth wagers on prediction markets earlier this year that raised eyebrows. In one case, an anonymous Polymarket user made a $400,000 profit in January on a wager that former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro would soon be out of office.

In March, after two U.S. senators announced legislation that threatened prediction markets, Kalshi and Polymarket highlighted new rules, including against political candidates trading on their own campaigns.

Moran refused to reach an agreement with Kalshi and was fined the most at more than $6,200, while Klein and Enriquez did reach agreements and face penalties of over $530 and $780, respectively, the company said. All were suspended from Kalshi for five years.

Some politicians have said the punishments didn't go far enough. U.S. Rep. Mike Levin slammed the repercussions as a “timeout."

"That’s not a punishment. That’s a parking ticket," Levin wrote.

The agreements are with the company, and not with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which regulates predication markets. The agency is chaired by Michael Selig, who is considered friendly to the burgeoning industry.

Far from denying the allegations, Moran took to social media on Wednesday to say he placed the bets because he wanted to draw attention to the issue.

“We live in a Country destroyed by vice, which Kalshi directly contribute to,” Moran wrote on X, saying the goal of the trade was to "highlight how this company is destroying young men.”

Klein also confirmed Kalshi's findings in a post on social media on Wednesday. The $50 wager he placed in October was the first time he had used a predictions market, he said in a statement on X, and he was “curious about how it worked.”

“This was a mistake and I apologize,” he wrote, saying that the experience made it clear that the markets need more regulation.

Klein is a cosponsor of a bill working its way through the Minnesota Legislature to ban most wagering on predictive markets, including the outcome of elections. In an interview, he said he didn’t think there was an inconsistency between his betting $50 on himself to win his primary and his sponsorship of legislation.

Klein said he spent the winter learning about predictive markets and signed onto the bill well before he learned that his bet violated Kalshi’s rules.

Associated Press reporter Steve Karnowski contributed from St. Paul, Minnesota.

FILE - The prediction market app Kalshi is displayed on a mobile phone, April 16, 2026, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley, File)