Denard Span approached the plate, pinch-hitting with two on and the Seattle Mariners trailing by one run in the bottom of the eighth inning.
This was a game the Mariners appeared to have so little business being in after a six-run second inning compounded by errors earlier.
But this team is different. No matter the circumstances, opponent or adversity they somehow continue to find ways to win games that the past 16 years of postseason-less Mariners mostly found ways to lose.
Span, acquired a month ago in a trade from the Tampa Bay Rays, brought the more than 40,000 to their feet when he laced a double down the right-field line, scoring two runs and suddenly the Mariners had regained the lead they once had what felt like eons ago before – before James Paxton’s day had ended after just 2 1/3 innings because of lax defense.