SEATTLE (AP) — Yariel Rodríguez allowed one hit over six shutout innings for his first victory, Alejandro Kirk had three hits and drove in two runs and the Toronto Blue Jays held off the Seattle Mariners 5-4 on Saturday.
Rodríguez (1-3) had arguably the best start of his brief major league career and followed up on a terrific outing his last time out against Houston. Rodríguez went 6 2/3 innings allowing one run to the Astros earlier this week, then was even better against another AL West opponent.
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SEATTLE (AP) — Yariel Rodríguez allowed one hit over six shutout innings for his first victory, Alejandro Kirk had three hits and drove in two runs and the Toronto Blue Jays held off the Seattle Mariners 5-4 on Saturday.
A fan holds up the bat Toronto Blue Jays' Vladimir Guerrero Jr. lost on a swing during the fifth inning in a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Toronto Blue Jays' Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hits an RBI single against the Seattle Mariners during the fifth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Toronto Blue Jays' George Springer reacts after scoring against the Seattle Mariners during the fifth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Toronto Blue Jays' George Springer dives into second for a double against the Seattle Mariners during the first inning in a baseball game, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Toronto Blue Jays' George Springer scores before the tag from Seattle Mariners catcher Mitch Garver during the fifth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Toronto Blue Jays' Alejandro Kirk hits an RBI double against the Seattle Mariners during the fourth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Yariel Rodríguez throws against the Seattle Mariners during the second inning in a baseball game, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
“It means a lot to me. A lot of sacrifices for us to be here in the big leagues," Rodríguez said through an interpreter. "Getting that first win is unbelievable feelings. Grateful for the organization, today for my teammates, great defense behind me. It's unbelievable.”
The bigger worry for the Mariners was Julio Rodríguez after he was removed from the game following the first inning due to discomfort in his right quadriceps, manager Scott Servais said. Rodríguez felt the discomfort while warming up before the game and appeared to be moving cautiously in the outfield leading to the decision to pull him.
Servais said Rodríguez was expected to undergo an MRI.
“I'm hoping it's nothing too serious,” Servais said.
Seattle tried to rally late, pulling to 5-3 on Mitch Haniger’s three-run homer off Trevor Richards in the eighth inning, and Luke Raley hit a solo homer off Chad Green with one out in the ninth. Green recovered to strike out Mitch Garver and Dominic Canzone for his fourth save.
Yariel Rodríguez didn’t allow a hit until Luke Raley dumped a single into left field leading off the fifth inning. It wasn’t the most efficient performance by Rodríguez as he walked a pair and had a number of three-ball counts. But he struck out six and Seattle couldn’t string together any type of rally.
The Mariners struck out 11 times and have double-figures strikeouts in 11 straight games.
“That's frustrating. It's really hard to win consistently or put consistent offense together when you're not putting the ball in play enough," Servais said.
Rodríguez also received help in the field from Daulton Varsho, who made a diving catch of Ty France’s liner and was able to double off Josh Rojas at second base. Varsho had a big catch crashing into the wall in Friday's series opener that saved a couple of runs.
“That's a huge momentum swing in the game there. You don't see many double plays that way,” Toronto manager John Schneider said.
Kirk had his first three-hit game since April 28 and just his second multi-hit game since June 1. He sandwiched a pair of singles around an RBI double the scored Varsho with two outs in the fourth and gave Toronto a 1-0 lead.
“I think he's just swinging with a little bit more intent," Schneider said about Kirk. "Everyone knows he can control the zone but I think just swinging with a little more intent is kind of the deal."
Kirk extended the lead to 3-0 in the seventh with a bases loaded sacrifice fly. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. also drove in a pair with an RBI single and added a sacrifice fly in the eighth.
Seattle’s (3-4) Emerson Hancock was recalled from Triple-A Tacoma and made his ninth start of the season. Toronto made him work as Hancock threw 93 pitches and allowed six hits in four-plus innings.
ROSTER MOVES
Toronto reinstated Justin Turner from the paternity list. Addison Barger was optioned to Triple-A Buffalo. Seattle cleared a roster spot for Hancock by designating for assignment backup catcher Seby Zavala.
UP NEXT
Blue Jays: RHP José Berríos (8-6, 3.63) threw 6 2/3 shutout innings earlier this season in a start against Seattle. Berríos is 4-2 in eight career starts against the Mariners.
Mariners: RHP George Kirby (7-6, 3.32) is 3-1 with a 1.93 ERA over his last six starts. But he was rocked for five runs in four innings by Toronto earlier this season.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Emerson Hancock throws to a Toronto Blue Jays batter during the first inning in a baseball game, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
A fan holds up the bat Toronto Blue Jays' Vladimir Guerrero Jr. lost on a swing during the fifth inning in a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Toronto Blue Jays' Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hits an RBI single against the Seattle Mariners during the fifth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Toronto Blue Jays' George Springer reacts after scoring against the Seattle Mariners during the fifth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Toronto Blue Jays' George Springer dives into second for a double against the Seattle Mariners during the first inning in a baseball game, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Toronto Blue Jays' George Springer scores before the tag from Seattle Mariners catcher Mitch Garver during the fifth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Toronto Blue Jays' Alejandro Kirk hits an RBI double against the Seattle Mariners during the fourth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Yariel Rodríguez throws against the Seattle Mariners during the second inning in a baseball game, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The facts emerging from Hurricane Helene's destruction are heartrending: Businesses and homes destroyed, whole communities nearly wiped out, hundreds of lives lost, hundreds of people missing.
Yet this devastation and despair is not enough for the extremist groups, disinformation agents, hucksters and politicians who are exploiting the disaster to spread false claims and conspiracy theories about it and the government's response.
According to former President Donald Trump, the federal government is intentionally withholding aid to Republican disaster victims. Far-right extremist groups warn on social media that officials plan to bulldoze affected communities and seize the land from residents. A tale straight from science fiction asserts that Washington used weather control technology to steer Helene toward Republican voters in order to tilt the presidential election toward Democratic nominee Kamala Harris.
The claims, according to experts and local officials dealing with disaster response, say less about the reality of the widespread damage from Helene than they do about America's fractured politics and the fear and distrust shadowing an election year marked by assassination attempts and escalating global tension.
As rescue work continues and authorities try to separate fact from fiction, the conspiracy theories are not helping. Elected leaders from both parties have had to set the record straight and urge people not to give into fear and rumor.
"If everyone could maybe please put aside the hate for a bit and pitch in to help, that would be great,” posted Glenn Jacobs, the retired professional wrestler known as Kane, who is now the Republican mayor of Knox County, Tennessee. Jacobs' post was intended to rebut rumors that workers from the Federal Emergency Management Agency were seizing relief supplies from private citizens.
Many of the conspiracy theories focus on hard-hit North Carolina, a state key to winning the White House. Rumors circulated that FEMA was raiding storm donations and withholding body bags, forcing local hospitals to stack the bodies of victims. One claim suggested federal authorities would condemn the entire town of Chimney Rock and prohibit resettlement in order to commandeer a valuable lithium mine nearby.
Elon Musk, the owner of Tesla, X and SpaceX, posted that private relief flights to North Carolina were being blocked by the Federal Aviation Administration, a claim dismissed as false by Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
Despite the tradition of Democrats and Republicans putting aside politics for disaster response, many conspiracy theories suggest Democrats such as President Joe Biden or North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper are intentionally withholding aid from Republicans. Trump has pushed the claim, as has North Carolina's lieutenant governor, Mark Robinson, the embattled GOP nominee for governor.
“They’re being treated very badly in the Republican areas,” Trump told Fox News, ignoring reports and photo and video evidence of recovery efforts underway throughout the region. “They’re not getting water, they’re not getting anything.”
Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones endorsed Trump's fact-free allegation. Jones, the founder of InfoWars, popularized the idea that the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Connecticut that killed 20 children in 2012 was faked. “Exclusive: Victims of Hurricane Helene Confirm The Federal Government is Purposely Blocking Rescuers and Stealing Aid In an Attempt to Keep Deep Red Areas From Voting," Jones posted Thursday on X.
State-run media and disinformation campaigns run by China and Russia have amplified false and misleading claims about the response to the storm. Both countries have used social media and state news stories to criticize responses to past U.S. natural disasters, part of a larger effort to stoke division and distrust among Americans.
State and local officials from both parties have condemned the conspiracy theories as rumors, saying the focus should be on recovery, not political division and hearsay. Responding to the hoaxes is taking up time that should go toward assisting victims, said North Carolina state Sen. Kevin Corbin, a Republican who urged his constituents not to give into hoaxes.
“Friends can I ask a small favor?" Corbin posted Thursday on Facebook. “Will you all help STOP this conspiracy theory junk that is floating all over Facebook and the internet... Please don’t let these crazy stories consume you.”
After Robinson, the GOP candidate for North Carolina governor, posted that state officials had not prepared for the storm, a spokesman for the governor accused Robinson of mounting “an online disinformation campaign.” North Carolina officials say the response to Helene is the largest in state history, including thousands of members of the National Guard and other recovery workers, millions of meals, dozens of aircraft and more than 1,000 chainsaws.
Trump has tried to tie the hurricane’s aftermath to immigration, a leading issue of his campaign. He falsely claimed that FEMA had run out of money because all of it had gone to programs for undocumented immigrants.
The agency's funding for disaster aid is stretched, but that is because of the many parts of the country dealing with the effects of hurricanes, wildfires and other calamities. Disaster aid is funded separately from other Department of Homeland Security programs that support immigration-related spending.
Bizarre stories proposing that the government used weather control technology to aim the hurricane at Republican voters quickly racked up millions of views on X and other platforms.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., endorsed the idea, posting Wednesday on X: “Yes they can control the weather. It’s ridiculous for anyone to lie and say it can’t be done.”
Far-out tales of space lasers, fake snow and weather control technology -- sometimes tinged with antisemitism — have spread after recent natural disasters, including a snowstorm in Texas and last year’s wildfire in Maui.
Experts who study conspiracy theories say big events like disasters — or the Sept. 11 attacks or the COVID-19 pandemic — create perfect conditions for conspiracy theories to spread because large numbers of anxious people are eager to find explanations for shocking events.
Responding to the volume of false claims about Helene, the Red Cross urged people to consult trustworthy sources of information and to think twice before reposting conspiracy theories.
“Sharing rumors online without first vetting the source and verifying facts ultimately hurts people — people who have just lost their homes, neighborhoods, and, in some cases, loved ones," the organization wrote in a public plea.
Areas impacted by Hurricane Helene near Chimney Rock, N.C., Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, can be seen by President Joe Biden, as he flies on Marine One to survey the area.(AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump talks with Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp during a briefing at the Columbia County Emergency Management Agency as he visits areas impacted by Hurricane Helene, Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, in Evans, Ga. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Joe Biden greets people in Keaton Beach, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024, during his tour of areas impacted by Hurricane Helene. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Business are seen in a debris field in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, in Chimney Rock Village, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
