Long, Mariners beat Pirates 6-5 in 11 innings for sweep

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Seattle Mariners are on their way to finishing at the bottom of the AL West, but they plan to do more than merely play out the string over the final two weeks.

“We’ve got a lot of young guys who are trying to make an impression,” manager Scott Servais said.

Among them is rookie Shed Long, who had three hits and scored the go-ahead run on an unusual inning-ending double play in the 11th as the Mariners beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-5 on Thursday.

The Mariners swept the three-game series between last-place teams and sent the Pirates to their sixth straight loss.

Mariners left-hander Yusei Kikuchi lasted four innings in his next-to-last start of the season, allowing four runs and eight hits with one strikeout and one walk.

Signed from Japan to a three-year, $43-million contract in the offseason, Kikuchi has made 31 starts and pitched 155 2/3 innings. He is 6-10 with 5.55 ERA after never starting more than 26 games in any of his eight seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball.

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