SEATTLE — The Seattle Mariners earned their first win of the season on Friday via a 5-1 win against the Cleveland Guardians.

Mariners second baseman Cole Young ended up providing the go-ahead hit — a three-run shot in the bottom of the fourth inning - but it was an outfielder that provided the final insurance runs for Seattle.

M's right fielder Luke Raley iced the game in the bottom of the sixth inning with a two-run homer to right field.

Raley's two-run shot Friday was his second homer in as many games, which have totaled three RBIs.

In addition to the power he's shown at the plate, Raley has also started in right field for the Mariners in the first two games of the season and has been tested defensively.

It's still very early in the year, but early returns suggest the 31-year-old slugger is in prime position to bounce back after a lost 2025.

Raley was limited to just 73 games last season due to a pair of injured list stints. He was out from April 30-June 20 with a right oblique strain. Raley was back for just a week before he was placed on the IL again on June 30 (retroactive to June 27) due to back spasms.

By the time Raley, who mainly plays the outfield and first base, returned to the team Aug. 15, Dominic Canzone was in the middle of a career-best season and Josh Naylor, who was acquired by the team in a trade with the Arizona Diamondbacks, was firmly entrenched at first.

Raley was unable to get a high number of at-bats due to Canzone's emergence and Naylor's arrival and was unable to get back into rhythm as a result. He finished '25 with a slash line of .202/.319/.311 with a .630 OPS and hit eight doubles and four home runs with 19 RBIs in 73 games.

Now that he's back healthy following a full offseason of work, it seems he's beginning to return to form.

"Obviously he battled through some tough stuff last year," Seattle manager Dan Wilson said in a postgame interview Friday. "Just the way he's out there now, the way he's seeing the ball, the way he's driving the ball — his timing is there, he's got a good swing going right now. Made some nice plays defensively, as well. I think he's in a really good spot. Getting that confidence early in the season like this is big."

With Rob Refsnyder and Victor Robles on the roster, it's likely that Raley will get a break when the team goes against left-handed pitchers this season.

However, if this early start is a sign of a return to the norm for the former Lake Erie College product, Raley will continue to be a valuable and reliable contributor to the team in 2026.

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