Robles, Moore provide offense, Castillo bests Skubal in Mariners' 3-2 win over Tigers

SEATTLE (AP) — Victor Robles hit a two-RBI double, Dylan Moore homered and the Seattle Mariners beat the Detroit Tigers and American League Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal 3-2 on Wednesday.

Luis Castillo (1-1) went seven innings, giving up two runs on five hits with two walks and five strikeouts. Gabe Spier pitched a 1-2-3 eighth and Andres Munoz survived a rocky ninth for his third save and prevent a Tigers' sweep of the three-game series.

Robles' second-inning drive to the left-center went over the glove of Ryan Kreidler to bring home Moore and J.P. Crawford. Moore hit his first homer of the season for a 3-0 lead in the fourth.

Skubal (0-2) left with two outs in the fifth after giving up six hits and three walks while striking out eight.

The Tigers scored their runs in the fifth on Trey Sweeney's leadoff homer and Riley Greene's RBI ground out after one-out singles by Kriedler and Zach McKinstry.

Munoz created ninth-inning drama after walking the first two batters. After a strikeout, he gave up a broken-bat single to Dillon Dingler to load the bases. Pinch hitter Javy Baez hit a ground ball to third that Moore turned into a force out at home. Munoz struck out McKinstry on three pitches for the final out.

Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh singled in the first inning to reach base safely for a career-best 20 straight games, the second-longest streak behind Dodger Shohei Ohtani, who came into Wednesday at 22 straight.

The Tigers are off Thursday before opening their first homestand with a three-game series against the White Sox. Jack Flaherty (0-0) is scheduled to take the mound against Chicago's Jonathan Cannon (0-0).

Seattle goes to San Francisco for a three-game series that begins Friday. Bryce Miller (0-1) is to face the Giants' Justin Verlander (0-0).

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

Seattle Mariner'r Victor Robles hits a two-RBI double against the Detroit Tigers during the second inning in a baseball game, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Seattle Mariners' J.P. Crawford, left, is greeted at home after both scored on a double hit by Victor Robles against the Detroit Tigers during the second inning in a baseball game, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Seattle Mariners' Dylan Moore rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run against the Detroit Tigers during the fourth inning in a baseball game, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Seattle Mariners center fielder Julio Rodríguez, left, celebrates with shortstop J.P. Crawford, right, the 3-2 win over the Detroit Tigers in a baseball game, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Seattle Mariners third baseman Dylan Moore hugs first baseman Donovan Solano after the 3-2 win over the Detroit Tigers in a baseball game, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Detroit Tigers' Colt Keith is forced out at home by Seattle Mariners catcher Mitch Garver on a bases loaded hit during the ninth inning in a baseball game, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

Hours before college basketball crowns its next champion, the future of college sports will be hanging in the balance in a California courtroom.

U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken's scheduled hearing Monday in a courtroom in Oakland is expected to be the last one before the changes will truly begin under an industry-changing, $2.8 billion settlement of a 5-year-old lawsuit against the NCAA and the nation's largest conferences. Among other things, it will clear the way for schools to share up to $20.5 million each with their athletes.

Wilken already has granted preliminary approval for the settlement. It was unknown whether she will give final approval at Monday's hearing, which is expected to include testimony from some of those objecting to details of the sprawling plan. LSU gymnast and influencer Olivia Dunne is among the 18 people scheduled to testify, though she is expected to appear via Zoom.

The new structure outlined by the settlement, which represents a shift in billions of dollars from the schools into the pockets of athletes, is supposed to go into effect on July 1.

Universities across the country have been busy making plans, under the assumption Wilken will put the terms into effect.

“We're going to have a plan going into July 1, then we're probably going to spend the next year figuring out how good that plan is and how we need to modify it going forward,” said Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin, whose department is among the biggest in the country and includes a Gators men's basketball team playing for the national title Monday night against Houston.

The so-called House settlement, named after Arizona State swimmer Grant House, actually decides three similar lawsuits that were bundled into one. The defendants are the NCAA and the Southeastern, Big Ten, Atlantic Coast, Big 12 and Pac-12 conferences, all of whom have been touting the settlement as the best path forward for their industry.

“It's a huge step forward for college sports, especially at the highest level," said NCAA President Charlie Baker, whose organization continues to seek antitrust protections from Congress. “My biggest problem with the way the whole thing works right now is the schools have been removed from the primary relationship with the student-athletes.”

The most ground-shifting part of the settlement calls on schools from the biggest conferences to pay some 22% of their revenue from media rights, ticket sales and sponsorships — which equals about $20.5 million in the first year — directly to athletes for use of their name, images and likeness (NIL).

Still allowed would be NIL payments to athletes from outside sources, which is what triggered the seismic shift that college sports has endured over the last four years. For instance, Cooper Flagg of Duke reportedly makes $4.8 million in NIL deals from groups affiliated with the school and others.

The settlement calls for a “clearinghouse” to make sure any NIL deal worth more than $600 is pegged at “fair market value." It's an attempt to prevent straight “pay for play” deals, though many critics believe the entire new structure is simply NIL masquerading as that.

Another key element is the $2.8 billion in back damages to athletes who played sports between 2016 and 2024 and were not entitled to the full benefits of NIL at the time they attended schools. Those payments are being calculated by a formula that will favor football and basketball players and will be doled out by the NCAA and the conferences.

The settlement also calls for replacing scholarship limits with roster limits. The effect would be to allow every athlete to be eligible for a scholarship while cutting the number of spots available.

There will be winners and losers under such a formula, though some fear it could signal the end of the walk-on athlete in college sports and also imperil smaller sports programs that train and populate the U.S. Olympic team.

AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports

Florida's Alijah Martin (15) dunks the ball against Auburn during the second half in the national semifinals at the Final Four of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

UConn center Jana El Alfy (8) and UConn guard Paige Bueckers (5) react during the first half of a national semifinal Final Four game against UCLA during the women's NCAA college basketball tournament, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Auburn guard Tahaad Pettiford (0) moves on the court against Michigan State during the second half in the Elite Eight of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Sunday, March 30, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)