Randy Arozarena has gone deep in back-to-back games against the Yankees — HR #15 on August 11 and HR #16 on August 12 — and the Mariners have lost both. Seattle fell 10-5 on Wednesday and has now dropped six consecutive games, its longest losing streak since May 2022. Arozarena is the best hitter in this series. His team is a different story.
The Home Run That Wasn’t Enough
In the first inning of Wednesday’s game, with a runner on base, Arozarena jumped on an 85.5 mph sweeper from Will Warren and drove it to right field at Yankee Stadium. Exit velocity: 96.0 mph. Launch angle: 29°. Distance: 348 feet. Two-run homer, Seattle up 2-0 before a single out was recorded.
Then things fell apart. Warren gave up five runs in just over four innings — matching his career high by allowing three home runs in the game — but the Yankees erased a five-run deficit in the seventh inning on two home runs and a double by Trent Grisham. Final: New York 10, Seattle 5, in front of 41,714 fans in the Bronx.
The night before, on August 11, Arozarena had launched a solo shot in the sixth inning — HR #15 — to put the Mariners up 1-0. That wasn’t enough either. Yankees won 4-1.
18 Career Home Runs vs. New York: The Cuban Who Hurts Them Most
The broadcast graphic says it plainly: Arozarena has 18 career home runs against the Yankees, including the postseason — the third-highest total by any hitter since 2020. Yankee Stadium might as well be his second home.
There’s a number that puts it in historical context. With 41 career RBI against New York, Arozarena has tied Kendrys Morales for sixth place among all Cuban-born hitters ever against that franchise, according to Swing Completo. For a player who only joined the Mariners in 2024, that’s a lot of damage in very little time.
It’s worth remembering where the Yankees connection started: in the 2020 postseason, when Arozarena was still a relative unknown with the Rays, he set the MLB record with 10 home runs in a single postseason. Some of those came against New York.
The Numbers Say He Can Do More
In the 2026 regular season, Arozarena is posting a wOBA of .362 and an xwOBA of .350 — meaning his actual production and his contact-based expected production are nearly aligned, with no fluky luck propping the numbers up. His Hard Hit% sits at 42.8%, average exit velocity at 91 mph, and Barrel% at 7.8%: solid, consistent contact, not yet explosive, but trending.
The problem isn’t Arozarena. The Mariners are 56-65, nine games under .500. When your best hitter against the opponent goes deep in back-to-back games and the team still loses by five runs, the issue is somewhere else on the diamond.
