Raley rallies Mariners twice, Raleigh homers in 7-6 win over A's in 10 innings

SEATTLE (AP) — Leo Rivas scored on Justin Turner’s fielder’s-choice grounder to lift the Seattle Mariners over the Oakland Athletics 7-6 in 10 innings on Saturday night.

Pinch-runner Rivas avoided Shea Langeliers' tag attempt at the plate with a wide slide, giving Seattle its third straight win and 11th victory in its final at-bat of the season.

“That’s not exactly what I was trying to do up there,” pinch-hitter Turner said of his grounder to second. “But (hitting coach Edgar Martinez) talks about it all the time, just trying to get a good pitch and hit it hard somewhere, move the ball forward and make things happen.”

The Mariners' comeback win — their 32nd of the season — came with nothing on the line after the team was eliminated from postseason contention midweek. But the teams traded late leads and Luke Raley rallied the Mariners twice for their seventh win in their last nine games.

First, Julio Rodríguez scored from first base on Raley’s double into the left-field corner for a 4-3 lead in the seventh inning. Then he hit a two-run homer to right field to tie it 6-6 in the ninth. His 22nd homer came after Langeliers had put the A’s up 6-4 in the top of the inning with a three-run homer.

“It’s the big leagues,” Raley said of his motivation. “Not everybody gets to do this. I will never take a day for granted.”

Eduard Bazardo (2-0) earned the win and Scott Alexander (1-3) took the loss.

Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh hit his 92nd career homer in the fourth inning, tying him with Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets Hall of Famer Mike Piazza for most home runs through the first four years of a career for catchers. That also ties Alvin Davis’ team record. Ninety of the 92 homers came after the switch hitter’s first year in the majors.

Josh Rojas added a two-run single later in the inning to put Seattle up 3-0.

Emerson Hancock, a rookie right-hander making his 12th start after being called up from Triple-A Tacoma, walked four batters. He struck out three and gave up five hits in 5 1/3 innings. But he started the fifth by putting Max Schuemann on base, then one out later Brent Rocker hit his 39th homer to cut the Mariners’ lead to 3-2.

“You can kind of see him emerging and taking on that responsibility (of clubhouse leadership), which is awesome,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay said. “I hope that tomorrow works out for him and he gets that 40th homer.”

Tyler Soderstrom tied it in the sixth with a solo shot to the left-field corner.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Mariners RHP Bryce Miller was moved to the 15-day injured list with a blister on his right index finger. The move opened a roster spot for Hancock. Miller was 12-8 and led the majors with nine starts of 6-plus scoreless innings. He’s the first Mariners starter with an ERA lower than 3.99 (2.94) and a WHIP below 1.00 (0.98) since Félix Hernández in 2014.

UP NEXT

Seattle RHP Logan Gilbert (8-12, 3.33 ERA) faces Oakland RHP Mitch Spence (8-9, 4.35) to close out the season.

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Oakland Athletics' Shea Langeliers, right, is greeted by Max Schuemann at home after hitting a three-run home run on a pitch from Seattle Mariners pitcher Collin Snider during the ninth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Oakland Athletics' Shea Langeliers hits a three-run home run on a pitch from Seattle Mariners pitcher Collin Snider during the ninth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Seattle Mariners' Luke Raley celebrates in the dugout after his two-run home run hit on a pitch from Oakland Athletics pitcher Mason Miller during the ninth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh watches the flight of his solo home run off Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Joey Estes during the fourth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Oakland Athletics' Brent Rooker hits a two-run home run on a pitch from Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Emerson Hancock during the fifth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Oakland Athletics' Brent Rooker (25) is greeted by Max Schuemann (12) after both scored on Rooker's two-run home run on a pitch from Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Emerson Hancock during the fifth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Emerson Hancock, right, talks on the mound with pitching coach Pete Woodworth (32) after loading the bases with a walk during the third inning against the Oakland Athletics in a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Joey Estes (68) adjusts his cap on the mound after giving up a solo home run to Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh, back left, who runs the bases during the fourth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh is congratulated in the dugout after hitting a solo home run off Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Joey Estes during the fourth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Seattle Mariners'm Julio Rodríguez dumps water on Justin Turner after he hit the game winning run against the Oakland Athletics to win 7-6 in a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Seattle Mariners' Justin Turner hits an RBI single during the 10th inning against the Oakland Athletics to win 7-6 in a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli airstrikes across Lebanon killed dozens of people on Sunday as the Hezbollah militant group sustained a string of deadly blows to its command structure, including the killing of its overall leader, Hassan Nasrallah.

Hezbollah confirmed Nabil Kaouk, the deputy head of the militant group's Central Council, was killed on Saturday, making him the seventh senior Hezbollah leader slain in Israeli strikes in a little over a week. They include founding members who had evaded death or detention for decades.

Hezbollah had earlier confirmed that Ali Karaki, another senior commander, died in Friday's strike that killed Nasrallah. Israel says at least 20 other Hezbollah militants were killed in the strike, including two close associates of Nasrallah, one of whom was in charge of his security detail.

Meanwhile, Israeli warplanes and drones carried out deadly strikes across Lebanon on Sunday. Two consecutive strikes near the southern city of Sidon, about 45 kilometers (28 miles) south of Beirut, killed at least 32 people, the Lebanese health ministry said. Separately, Israeli strikes in the northern province of Baalbek Hermel killed 21 people and injured at least 47.

The Israeli military said it also carried out another targeted strike on Beirut, but did not immediately provide details.

Lebanese media reported dozens of strikes in the central, eastern and western Bekaa and in the south, besides strikes on Beirut. The strikes have targeted buildings where civilians were living, and the death toll was expected to rise.

In a widely circulated video of a strike in Sidon, verified by The Associated Press, a building swayed before collapsing as neighbors filmed. On one TV station, the broadcaster called on viewers to pray for a family caught under the rubble, posting their pictures, as rescuers failed to reach them. The Lebanese health ministry reported that at least 14 medics were killed over two days in the south.

Meanwhile, wreckage from the strike on Friday that killed Nasrallah was still smoldering. AP journalists saw smoke over the rubble as people flocked to the site, some to check on what’s left of their homes and others to pay respects, pray or simply to see the destruction.

In response to the dramatic escalation in Israeli strikes on Lebanon, Hezbollah significantly increased its attacks in the past week, from several dozen to several hundred daily, the military said. The attacks injured several people and caused damage, but most of the rockets and drones were intercepted by Israel’s air defense systems or fell in open areas.

The army says its strikes have degraded Hezbollah’s capabilities and the number of launches would be much higher if Hezbollah had not been hit.

Also on Sunday, the Israeli military said dozens of aircraft struck Houthi targets in Yemen in response to a recent attack on Israel. The military said it targeted power plants and sea port facilities in the city of Hodeida.

The Houthis launched a ballistic missile attack on Ben Gurion airport on Saturday when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was arriving. The Houthi media office said the Israeli strikes hit the Hodeida and Rass Issa ports, along with two power plants in Hodeida city, a stronghold for the Iranian-backed rebels. Four people were killed and 33 wounded, Houthi-run media reported.

The Houthis claimed they took precautionary measures ahead of the strikes, emptying oil storages in the ports, according to Nasruddin Ammer, deputy director of the Houthi media office. He said in a post on X platform the strikes won’t stop the rebels’ attacks on shipping routes and on Israel.

Meanwhile, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said Israel's airstrikes in Lebanon had “wiped out” Hezbollah’s command structure, but he warned the group will work quickly to rebuild it.

“I think people are safer without him walking around,” Kirby said of Nasrallah. “But they will try to recover. We’re watching to see what they do to try to fill this leadership vacuum. It’s going to be tough. … Much of their command structure has now been wiped out.”

Kirby, who spoke on CNN’s “State of the Union,” sidestepped questions about whether the Biden administration agrees with how the Israelis are targeting Hezbollah leaders. The White House continues to call on Israel and Hezbollah to agree to a 21-day temporary cease-fire that was floated by the U.S., France and other countries last week as world leaders gathered for the U.N. General Assembly.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday appointed a former rival, Gideon Saar, to his Cabinet. The move expands Netanyahu’s governing coalition and helps entrench the Israeli leader in office.

Under their agreement, Netanyahu said Saar would be given a spot in the Security Cabinet, the body that oversees management of the ongoing war.

Saar had hoped to replace Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, another rival of Netanyahu’s. But a deal to become defense minister fell through after fighting intensified with Hezbollah.

Earlier this month, Hezbollah was also targeted by a sophisticated attack on its pagers and walkie-talkies that was widely blamed on Israel. A wave of Israeli airstrikes across large parts of Lebanon have killed more than 1,030 people — including 156 women and 87 children — in less than two weeks, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry.

Hundreds of thousands of people have been driven from their homes in Lebanon by the latest strikes. The government estimates around 250,000 are in shelters, with three to four times as many staying with friends or relatives, or camping out on the streets, Environment Minister Nasser Yassin told the AP.

Hezbollah, a Lebanese militant group and political party backed by Iran, Israel’s chief regional rival, rose to regional prominence after fighting a devastating monthlong war with Israel in 2006 that ended in a draw.

Kaouk was a veteran member of Hezbollah going back to the 1980s and served as Hezbollah's military commander in southern Lebanon during the 2006 war with Israel. The United States announced sanctions against him in 2020.

Hezbollah began firing rockets, missiles and drones into northern Israel after Hamas' Oct. 7 attack out of Gaza triggered the war there. Hezbollah and Hamas are allies that consider themselves part of an Iran-backed “Axis of Resistance” against Israel.

The conflict has steadily ratcheted up to the brink of all-out war, raising fears of a region-wide conflagration.

Israel says it is determined to return some 60,000 of its citizens to communities in the north that were evacuated nearly a year ago. Hezbollah has said it will only halt its rocket fire if there is a cease-fire in Gaza, which has proven elusive despite months of indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas led by the United States, Qatar and Egypt.

Chehayeb reported from Beirut. Associated Press reporters Natalie Melzer in Tel Aviv, Aamer Madhani in Washington, Samy Magdy in Cairo and Jack Jeffery in Jerusalem contributed.

Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

People gather near the site of the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

People check the site of the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

A man stands on the rubble of buildings near the site of the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

A man walks on rubble at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon as seen from northern Israel on Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

People check the site of the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

A woman sleeps on Beirut's corniche after fleeing the Israeli airstrikes in the southern suburbs of Dahiyeh, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

Children sit in a motorcycle cart in Beirut's Martyrs' square after fleeing the Israeli airstrikes in the southern suburbs of Dahiyeh, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

A boy sleeps in Beirut's Martyrs' square after fleeing the Israeli airstrikes in the southern suburbs of Dahiyeh, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

A family sleep on the ground in Beirut's corniche area after fleeing the Israeli airstrikes in the southern suburbs of Dahiyeh, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

An elderly man stands near al-Amin Mosque in Beirut's Martyrs' square after fleeing the Israeli airstrikes in the southern suburbs of Dahiyeh, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

People gather at the site of the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Families sleep on Beirut's corniche after fleeing the Israeli airstrikes in the southern suburbs of Dahiyeh, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

A man stands on the rubble of buildings near the site of the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

A destroyed building at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

A woman cares for her newborn girl, Fatima, in Beirut's Martyrs' square after fleeing the Israeli airstrikes in the southern suburbs of Dahiyeh, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

People gather near the site of the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

People check the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

A hole in the ground near the site of the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

A man walks on rubble at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)