Walker cruises before cooling in the sixth

SEATTLE — For five innings Wednesday, Taijuan Walker looked every bit like one of the best young pitchers in baseball and as dominant as the right-hander has been over the first six weeks of the season. Then in a blink of an eye — and a couple rare walks — his 4-0 lead disappeared on a grand slam by the Rays’ Corey Dickerson.

But as seems to be a growing trend with this Mariners club, Walker’s teammates turned the momentum back around and battled to a 6-5 victory in 11 innings to maintain their 1 1/2-game lead over the Rangers in the American League West.

• Total team effort: Mariners exude confidence

“It’s crazy,” said the 23-year-old. “It’s been fun. Everyone has been picking each other up. I gave up a four-spot, but the bullpen came in and did an unbelievable job and [Chris] Iannetta with the walk-off homer … everyone has been unbelievable. We’re playing together as a team and that’s why we’ve had so much success.”

So what happened to Walker, who had allowed just …

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