sweeet!!!

M’s 4 | Y’s 3

The day started out cloudy, stormy even – Seattle Sports Radio lost a transformer to a lightening strike! As I made my way via ferry, freeway and link light rail to meet my Dad at the Glove, it was one of those days that had me thanking the powers that be at the time of the stadium project that opted for a retractable roof. But, apparently, well before the first pitch they had it on good authority it would be safe to “pop the lid” and the roof slid back to expose the green grass and clay-colored diamond dirt to the elements.

The game, much like the day, started out a bit bleak – maybe a slight hangover from the thirteen-inning fan-tab-ulous marathon that was the the night before that the M’s won 1-0 (and to which I listened intently on the radio). No score through five innings: the Y’s had two singles, four walks; the M’s had one walk. And then came little Sam Haggerty ‘popping the top of the game’ by homering in the 6th, breaking the scoreless tie and breathing life into BOTH teams. The top and bottom of the 7th saw each team score THREE runs – a score that would hold (Ty singled, Mitch singled him home, Carlos homered he and Mitch home). Diego and Paul retired their respective sides in order in the 8th and 9th – it was truly a thing of beauty.

SO. MUCH. FUN. to beat the Yankees 🙂

And, the M’s did just that – taking the series 2-1 and the season series 4-2 (first time since 2002 that the M’s have taken the season series). #SeaUsRise

And, the only thing that made this even sweeter – is that it was attended with my Dad ❤

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lookie! a hit w/the bases loaded!

Mariners 6 | Angels 3

boxscore

M’s are second worst in the MLB in BA w/the bases loaded (only the D-backs are worse)

Moot point today though, as Jesse unloads w/three ducks on the pond and gets the M’s well on their way to what would be a 6-3 victory vs the Hated Halos 🙂

I got a video but, for some reason it won’t load so, here’s the M’s . . .

Pitching, Pitching, Pitching . . .

  • Quality start for Marco – who posted SEVEN K’s in his SIX innings of work
  • And the bullpen was OUTSTANDING! Munoz, Murfee, Sewald posted THREE hitless frames and adding another FOUR K’s

And, besides the salami, the bats did just enough . . .

  • THREE doubles (Geno, Ty and Sam)
  • FIVE walks (two of which scored)

Always fun to be in attendance, even more so w/a win ❤

ch,ch,chiiiily game w/a heart-warming outcome

on a chilly, drizzly July afternoon, the pitching warmed us up . . .

  • Robbie K’d TWELVE in his SEVEN innings and the only run he allowed was a solo shot to the third (and last) batter he faced in the 7th.
  • The bullpen of Munoz and Sewald added FOUR more
this sign was used A LOT today!

Only “O” was in JuliO!
His first pitch homer was the 12th in M’s history (9 by Ichrio!) and his RBI double in the 6th scored Dylan.

Always fun to attend w/my Dad ❤

hs2 | Rays, Phillies

The good news is. . .
they weren’t swept in either series (and TWO of the losses were by ONE run)
The bad news is . . .
they were only able to salvage one win in each series (and BOTH were by ONE run)

To focus on the positive vs Tampa Bay . . .

  • Jarred blasted his first pinch hit homer
  • Sewald hadn’t allowed a base runner in SIX innings (till this series)
  • Julio bagged his first big league triple
  • Adam and Jesse each recorded their homers as Mariners
  • Most promising of all – with friends and family in attendance at T-Mobile Park, George Kirby’s ML debut on Mother’s Day was a thing of beauty: 6IP-4H-0ER-0BB-7K

The only game worth noting in the Phillies series was the second one where . . .

  • Robbie retired the first TWELVE batters he faced and got the win: 5.2IP-2H-2ER-2BB-10K
  • the bats got going with ELEVEN hits; multi-hit games from Adam, Ty Eugenio and Luis

And, in other Seattle sports news . . .

Congrats to the Sounders!!!

And, THIS will be an interesting start to the Seahawks season . . .

I was trying to focus on the positive but, have to mention some really disappointing news re: Mitch 😦

Now it’s off to NY, Toronto and Boston – time to set the road on fire!!!

hs1 | Astros, Rangers, Royals

Now, THAT is how to serve up a Happy Home Stand!
Winning ALL three series, 7-2 overall record, including a “royal” sweep!

ON the MOUND

  • Marco: a tale of two pitchers . . .
    a great bounce back start vs the Astros where he went SEVEN and only gave up ONE run getting the win in an 11-1 M’s victory. Then a sad start vs the Rangers where he didn’t even make it through FIVE innings, giving up SIX runs in the M’s 6-8 loss.
  • Chris: off to a slow start but, steady progress . . .
    He posted his second loss in as many starts in the M’s loss via shutout vs the Astros. Then, got his first win of the season, going SEVEN strong vs the Royals.
  • Matt: walking to victory and not . . .
    kind of a crazy start vs the Astros, where he picked up the “W” despite walking SIX. Then, in a no decision vs the Royals, he walked another FOUR and gave up THREE earned runs but, the M’s offense exploded, giving them the 13-7 victory.
  • Robbie: so far, just call him Steady Eddy . . .
    two nearly identical lines for Robbie in both his home starts: 6 innings 3 earned runs and one walk that gave him one victory and one no decision. The best news is the M’s won both.
  • Logan: super solid stud – .54 ERA after three starts
    he earned his second victory via a 6H – ZERO ER – ZERO BB performance vs the Rangers

OUT of the PEN

Still a strength, the pen combined for: 30IP-23H-8R-5ER-10BB-32K-1S

  • always good to have LESS hits than innings pitched
  • always good to have MORE strikeouts than innings pitched
  • only ONE save in SEVEN victories but then, there was only one save opp (thanks to the stellar offense)

AT the PLATE

Except for a shutout vs Verlander, the offense was nothing short of spectacular!
When was the last time you heard (read) those four words in reference to the Mariners?

  • Ty was the obvious standout hitter of this home stand – safe to say, he is ON FIRE . . .
    – 18/38 posting 19 RBI – 4 HR – 3 2B – 7 BB
    – He is TOP THREE in the AL in AVG (.371), HR (5), RBI (19) OBP (.459) SLG (.656) and OPS (1.115)
  • Eugenio and Adam are proving to be solid contributors
  • JP’s been steady from the start and just getting better
  • Jesse, continues to be “Mr. Patience” w/SEVEN more walks and leads the Majors w/FIFTEEN total
  • Julio and Jarred starting to come around, slowly but surely
  • Mitch missed all but the first game at home on the COVID DL (Skip was out for most of the home stand as well)

As a team so far in this young season, M’s offense is TOP THREE in the following categories . . .

  • RBI (2nd)
  • Runs (2nd)
  • OBP (1st)
  • OPS (2nd)
  • HR (3rd)
  • SB (3rd)

IN the FIELD

The defense has been fairly steady – a few spectacular plays, a few uncharacteristic flubs

  • They can definitely TURN TWO – second in the league in DP’s w/16 (turned FOUR in the first FOUR innings of Matt’s start vs. Houston)
  • Fielding Percentage of .983 (10th in the AL) could definitely be improved

some tweets of the home stand . . .

g10 | series win under the Seattle sun

Mariners 7 | Astros 2

April sunshine in Seattle is a bit of a rarity – here’s hoping Mariners series’ wins like today (especially vs divisional opponents) become downright commonplace.

ON the MOUND

Matt’s first big league victory came at home vs the ‘stros today when he clearly didn’t have everything working for him. But, to get through it despite that … says a lot.

5.1IP-2H-2ER-6BB-5K

Fun to imagine what he’ll be able to do on a good day!

the ‘pen combined for 3.2IP-2H-0ER-1BB-5K . . .
ya know, just what we’ve come to expect from the likes of Seawald, Steckenrider, Munoz and Castillo

AT the PLATE

  • their first SIX runs all came w/TWO outs
  • SEVEN batters had at least ONE hit
  • THREE batters had TWO hits (Adam, Ty, Jarred)
  • FIVE batters w/at least ONE RBI – Ty w/THREE (including a TWO-run homer)
  • Julio w/his first big league RBI (line drive single in the 4th)

IN the FIELD

DP, DP, DP, DP
one in each of the first FOUR innings (a strike em out, throw em out and THREE Crawford-Frazier-France)

Great to be at the ballpark on a sunny, Sunday with my Dad 🙂

LOVE these fun murals on the way to the ballpark . . .

tweets of the game . . .

g8 | home opener vs ‘stros

Mariner 11 | Astros 1

QUICK HIGHLIGHTS

  • Awesome bounce back start for Marco –> 7IP-4H-1ER-0BB-6K
  • Ramirez and Koch combined for a scoreless 8th and 9th
  • First double-digit hit game for the team (THIRTEEN!) – let alone first double-digit runs!
  • Julio base hit in his first AB at T-Mobile Park
  • Adam w/FOUR hits AND FOUR RBI
  • Jesse just keeps adding to his patience – TWO more walks (and TWO hits!)
  • Speaking of patience – the entire team had it tonight – EIGHT total walks
  • All those runs but, only one homer, Eugenio ~w/JP on~ in the 8th . . .

unexpected expectations

So glad my dad an I got to be there ❤

For a team where the expectations were few and far between, it was a happy and exciting circumstance for these Mariners to be playing in front of a packed stadium on the very last day of the season in a game that still mattered. It was so much fun for the players and win-starved fans alike. The experience gained from near-playoff baseball should prove to be invaluable to the young players going forward – in other words, despite not getting over that last hump, the future is looking bright.

And then, there was the special goodbye to Kyle Seager . . .
emotional for him, his teammates and the fans. They were behind the entire game but, we’d seen them come back time after time (42 to be exact) so, all hope was not lost. Until the top of the 9th, when the out of town scoreboard turned in favor of the Red Sox and dashed any post season hope for the M’s (even if they had won the game, they help they needed hadn’t materialized). It was at that point that the crowd started chanting “Kyle – Seager!” and he was given the opportunity to have a moment with the fans (he was even presented with the 3B bag!). Kyle gave his all for eleven years – and it’s such a shame that, like Felix, he was never able to take part in post season baseball. Even with that, he seemed to harbor no regret and in fact spoke glowingly about his years with the M’s and, especially THIS specific team which, according to him, had a particularly special bond.

Mariners 3 | Athletics 7

boxscore

ON the MOUND

The Halos were relentless – base runners galore – not only TEN hits but SEVEN walks . . .

  • Tyler just didn’t have it today (not quite as bad as his previous start vs the Halos but, given the magnitude of the game, it sort of felt like it: 1.2IP-5H-4R-3ER-2BB-0SO
  • Ramirez got the last out of the 2nd and pitched a scoreless 3rd
  • Misiewicz and Swanson gave up THREE runs in their combined TWO innings
  • Munoz, Doolittle, Sadler and Steckenrider combined for FOUR scoreless innings (Munoz made his debut – throwing 101MPH)

AT the PLATE

NINE total hits, including TWO doubles but . . .

  • the runs came via Jarred and JP RBI singles in the 3rd and a JP force out in the 6th
  • they were only 3 for 11 w/RISP and left NINE on base
  • the middle of the order was 0-16

IN the FIELD

  • SB (Toro)
  • TWO errors (both pitchers not helping their cause: Anderson and Swanson)

tweets of the game . . .

b.e.l.i.e.v.e (suitcases to the park tomorrow?)

Have a night, Mitch! (FIVE RBI)

First time the M’s have won NINETY games since 2003

Mariners 6 | Angels 4

boxscore

ON the MOUND

  • Flex wasn’t super sharp but, still gave ’em a chance: 5.1IP-6H-1R-1Er-1BB-1SO
  • Sadler: gets the next TWO batters in the 6th (of course!)
  • Misiewicz: three ground ball outs for a scoreless 7th
  • Sewald was (understandably) out of gas: he ending up striking out the side in the 8th but, not before walking the first TWO batters and giving up a homer and the lead (4-3 halos)
  • Steckenrider: fly-out to Mitch; line-out to Jake; double; line-out to Toro – and that’s all she wrote for the 9th!

AT the PLATE

amaze-balls!!!

  • 3rd: Ty w/a double and Mitch singled him in for the first run of the game
  • 5th: Ty w/a double and Mitch homered him in (are you seeing a pattern here?)
  • 8th: hit by a pitch, walk, sac-bunt, intentional walk, Mitch w/a 2-OUT, 2-run single, Kyle added a little insurance w/an RBI single

IN the FIELD

  • an awesome DP (Crawford-Toro-France)
  • great play by Kyle

tweets of the game . . .

sellout crowd disappointed . . .

Mariners 1 | Angels 2

boxscore

ON the MOUND

awesome pitching – unfortunately, the Halos TWO runs were all they needed . . .

  • Marco’s only struggle was in the 3rd: 6IP-3H-2R-2ER-2BB-5SO
  • Sadler: scoreless 7th (of course!) 7th
  • Sewald: scoreless 8th (including a strikeout of Otahni)
  • Castillow + Misiewicz = scoreless 9th

AT the PLATE

0-7 w/RISP, pretty much tells it all . . .

  • Toro singled w/TWO outs in the 2nd and Kelenic drove him in with a double for the first M’s run
  • huge opportunity in the 7th: Torrens led off with a triple, Toro walked but, the next three batters struck out in order
  • Kyle lead off the 9th with a double but then a ground out, popup, fly out

IN the FIELD

  • DP (Crawford-Toro-France)

tweets of the game . . .

more tweets than usual – couldn’t watch because, as of TODAY, Root Sports is no longer on DISH couldn’t be WORSE timing to lose the local sports broadcast 😦 😦 😦

Unfortunately, it didn’t give the right way . . .