Dominic Canzone was closer to assistant hitting coach Bobby Magallanes than just about anyone on the Seattle Mariners’ roster.

The two spent hours working on making Canzone more than just a platoon player.

So Canzone took it pretty hard when Magallanes was fired Thursday, the fall guy for the Mariners’ anemic offense.

Canzone responded by hitting his team-leading 16th home run, a three-run shot in the seventh inning, and added an RBI double in the ninth as the visiting Mariners rallied for a 6-4 victory against the Texas Rangers on Sunday in Arlington, Texas.

The four-game series between the top two teams in the American League West concludes Monday afternoon.

“Offense can be contagious, and that’s the hope, that this sparks a fire,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said.

The reigning division champion Mariners snapped a four-game skid and moved past the Houston Astros into second place in the division, 1 1/2 games behind the first-place Rangers.

Canzone’s homer gave the Mariners the lead and Randy Arozarena went deep on the next pitch, both off Rangers reliever Cole Winn.

“I just left a pitch over the middle and (Canzone) took advantage of it. Same thing with Randy,” said Winn, who hadn’t allowed a run in his previous seven appearances. “There’s really nothing to that aside from making bad pitches and them capitalizing.”

The Mariners, who rely on the long ball more than just about any other team in baseball, had gone deep just 28 times in their previous 34 games.

“It was obviously a big moment,” Canzone said. “It was nice to just get the team in front and get a win.

“Especially coming from behind and struggling a little bit offensively, obviously, this is a step in the right direction. We need to come out tomorrow and do the exact same thing.”

The Rangers won the first two games of the series 5-4 and 7-1.

They took a 3-1 lead into the seventh Saturday.

“I think the bullpen, we have different guys in different lanes that have done really good, and we’ve had some hiccups along the way that have cost us just like everybody else,” Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said. “Today the home run cost us.”

Monday’s series finale is set to feature a pair of right-handers in Seattle’s George Kirby (8-8, 3.57 ERA) and Texas’ Kumar Rocker (3-8, 4.13).

Kirby pitched six innings last Monday in an 8-0 victory against visiting Cincinnati, giving up three hits and striking out six. Kirby is 9-1 with a 1.33 ERA in 12 career starts against the Rangers. He suffered the lone loss by a 3-2 margin April 7 in Arlington despite pitching eight strong innings. He rebounded to beat them 7-3 on April 18 in Seattle.

Rocker beat the visiting Chicago White Sox 10-0 on Tuesday with six innings of one-hit ball. He’s 0-2 with a 4.50 ERA in four career starts against Seattle.

–Field Level Media

The Detroit Lions will be without starting safeties Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph when training camp begins, as they were placed on the physically unable to perform list on Sunday.

The Lions also placed veteran tight end Tyler Conklin — signed as a free agent in March — on the PUP list with an injury.

Branch, 24, sustained a season-ending Achilles tear in Week 14 last season. Joseph, 25, dealt with a knee injury last season that limited him to six games.

Players can be placed on the active/PUP list only before the start of training camp. The Lions begin camp on Wednesday.

Players on the active/PUP list count against the 90-man roster limit and can attend team meetings and use team facilities in the preseason. They can be removed from the list at any time during camp and begin practicing immediately. Otherwise, while on the list, they cannot participate in any part of practice.

A player on the reserve/PUP list doesn’t count against the active roster but must sit out at least the first four games.

A Pro Bowl selection in 2024, Branch played in 12 games (all starts) last season, making 75 tackles, 2.5 sacks, five tackles for loss and nine passes defensed.

For his career, Branch has 258 tackles, 4.5 sacks, seven interceptions (one returned for a touchdown), 20 tackles for loss and 38 passes defensed in 43 regular-season games (37 starts) since 2023.

Detroit selected Branch in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft out of Alabama.

A first-team All-Pro in 2024 when he led the league with nine interceptions, Joseph played in just six games (all starts) last season. He had 18 tackles, three interceptions and four passes defensed.

Joseph has played in 55 regular-season games (52 starts) and has 265 tackles, 20 interceptions (one returned for a TD) and 35 passes defensed.

Detroit selected Joseph in the third round of the 2022 draft out of Illinois.

Conklin, who turns 31 on Thursday, had seven receptions on 10 targets for 101 yards in 13 games (five starts) last season for the Los Angeles Chargers.

He has 270 career receptions for 2,645 yards and 11 touchdowns in 127 games (69 starts) for the Minnesota Vikings (2018-21), New York Jets (2022-24) and Chargers.

Minnesota drafted Conklin in the fifth round in 2018 out of Central Michigan.

–Field Level Media

A compelling case exists for Keider Montero as the Detroit Tigers’ Most Valuable Player this season.

Montero has bounced between the starting rotation and long relief, consistently providing quality innings in either role. He will start the opener of a three-game home series against the Baltimore Orioles on Monday.

Montero (7-5, 3.14 ERA) is currently in the rotation in part because Jack Flaherty (right flexor inflammation) is on the injured list. The Tigers are also going through a 13-game stretch without a day off.

In his last outing on Wednesday, Montero started in Chicago and limited the Cubs to one run and three hits over 5 1/3 innings, while recording eight strikeouts. In his previous appearance, Montero closed out a game against the Los Angeles Angels with 3 1/3 innings of scoreless relief.

“His versatility is one thing,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “Everybody can see it on the field. He’s pitched in a lot of different innings, maybe in every inning of the game so far it feels like. But more importantly, it’s his buy-in to just do his best and give everything he has in the role that he’s being given. He hasn’t asked a lot of questions. He hasn’t complained at all. He’s accepted whatever his responsibility is that day.”

As a starter, Montero has held opponents to a .210 batting average and .611 OPS. He’s been even more stingy in a relief role, limiting the opposition to a .176 average and .446 OPS.

“He’s an animal out there,” first baseman Spencer Torkelson said. “He attacks the zone, gets ahead, puts guys away. I mean, he’s the real deal. I love playing behind him.”

Montero has faced the Orioles three times, posting one win and a 3.86 ERA.

Kyle Bradish (7-9, 3.49) will start the series opener for Baltimore. Bradish has posted quality starts in five of his last six appearances, including all three of his July starts.

In his first outing since the All-Star break, Bradish held Boston to one run and four hits in six innings on Wednesday. Baltimore ended the Red Sox’s 15-game winning streak in the process.

“I definitely went out there with that on my mind, trying to end it,” he said.

Bradish signed a five-year, $90 million extension just after the break, making him the highest-paid pitcher in franchise history.

“We all know who K.B. is and what he’s capable of,” Orioles manager Craig Albernaz said. “It was just great to see him go out there and kind of be that stopper for us. And he did a great job of pounding the strike zone. Fastball shapes were great. Breaking balls were outstanding, and he did a great job getting us through six.”

Bradish gave up three runs in 4 2/3 innings in his lone career outing against Detroit in 2023.

The Tigers lost a pair of one-run games to Kansas City over the weekend, snapping a three-game winning streak. The Orioles have lost four of their last six games, including a 3-2, 11-inning decision to the visiting Atlanta Braves on Sunday.

–Field Level Media