SEATTLE — The Seattle Mariners held a lead twice by the thinnest-possible margin, but was unable to maintain it either time in a 5-3 loss to the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday at T-Mobile Park.

The Mariners fell to 51-52 on the season and finished their six-game homestand 3-3 in the process. The M's fell one game behind the Texas Rangers for first place in the American League West at the time of the game's conclusion.

"I think the pitching is giving us a chance and offensively, we made some adjustments here on the homestand," Seattle manager Dan Wilson said in a postgame interview Wednesday. "(Need to continue) to see the consistency to unveil and unwrap. ... Get on a roll here and start swinging the bat and score runs consistently and getting ourselves in good positions to win, especially on the road."

The Mariners were first on the board and took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second after catcher Cal Raleigh hit an RBI single to bring home first baseman Josh Naylor from second base.

That advantage lasted through the third inning before the Reds took the lead following a lead-off solo home run from left fielder JJ Bleday, Cincinnati's second solo lead-off blast in as many games, and an RBI single from center fielder Dane Myers in the top half of the fourth.

Seattle took the lead back in the bottom of the fourth. A fielder's choice resulted in left fielder Randy Arozarena being safe at first. Naylor hit a ground-rule double to set the M's up with runners at second and third with one out.

Center fielder Luke Raley capitalized with runners in scoring position and hit a two-RBI single to bring Naylor and Arozarena home and flip the score to 3-2 Mariners.

That lead lasted longer and guaranteed Seattle starting pitcher Emerson Hancock finished with a quality start.

Hancock, who exited his last start against the Tampa Bay Rays on July 12 after 1.2 innings due to getting hit on the hand with a comebacker, fought through early command issues with his slider and a 26-pitch fourth inning to finish with a solid outing.

Hancock finished his day with three strikeouts, one walk, one wild pitch and tow earned runs allowed on five hits (one homer) in six innings pitched.

"I think there's certain cues and adjustments that I feel like I'll make with the (sweeper) and other pitches throughout the game," Hancock said in a postgame interview. "I felt like — just keep throwing it. Keep trusting it and you'll find find a really good feel for it."

Once Hancock's day was done, Seattle surrendered the lead again in the top of the seventh inning with reliever Eduard Bazardo on the mound.

Bazardo walked Cincinnati second baseman Edwin Arroyo on four pitches and allowed a single to Myers.

With two outs, Reds second baseman Sal Stewart made Bazardo pay for the earlier free base and base-hit and hit a three-run homer to right field for the eventual final of 5-3.

The Mariners had two runners reach in the final three innings. Designated hitter Julio Rodriguez reached third base but was left stranded. Seattle finished the game 2-for-6 with runners in scoring position and left four on base.

The Mariners will have an off-day Thursday before heading on the road for a seven-game road trip, beginning with a four-game series against the Rangers.

If Seattle wins the series, it will retake the division lead over Texas heading into the final three games of the road trip against the two-time defending World Series champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers.

If the Mariners drop the series to the Rangers, the former will be several games behind and have a steeper climb to securing a second-straight divisional title.

"Every game down the stretch here is big," Wilson said. "There's a lot of baseball in front of us yet and a chance for us to find that consistent stride, to find something that we can put up every single day. ... We just need to concentrate on that as we get on the road trip. I don't think we need any more extra pressure. I think there's plenty of that. We just need to find our way and get ourselves consistent and play the brand of baseball we know we're capable of."

Game one of the four-game set between the two AL West rivals begins at 5:05 p.m. PT at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas. Bryce Miller will start for Seattle and MacKenzie Gore will start for Texas.

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