Tag Archives: Beavan

g13 | of bookend pitching issues and woe is O

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Happy Jackie Robinson Day!

 

As for the game, thankfully, I was unable to be witness to this one 😦
So, quick (like rippin’ off a band-aid) recap . . .

Mariners 0 | Rangers 5

ON THE MOUND
So much for Blake’s sub-THREE ERA vs. the Rangers . . .
He only gave up TWO extra-base hits – unfortunately, they came in the form of back-to-back homers in the 2nd and then, he was out (apparently with a stiff shoulder) after the 4th
FOUR innings ~ SIX hits ~ TWO earned runs ~ ZERO walks ~ TWO strikeouts

} the bright spot of the entire game was the middle relief of Dominic (who posted TWO scoreless innings and gave up only ONE hit and struck out TWO) followed by Joe (who recorded a scoreless inning of his own).
} and then there was Tom . . . 😦
not that the bats could seem to do anything to overcome even a TWO-run deficit but, giving up another THREE was certainly not going to improve the situation.

AT THE PLATE
Once again, as their extra-base hits (or LACK of) go, so go the M’s . . .
~ this wastheir THIRD game w/ZERO extra base hits (all losses)
~ of their THREE other losses, ONE game had TWO and TWO games had ONE
~ in every win, they have had at least THREE extra-base hits

IN THE FIELD
Since I didn’t see/hear it, can’t speak to the DEE beyond ONE double-play and TWO caught-stealing in the box score

tweets of the game . . .

 

g90 | eleven on the wrong side tonight . . .

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Mariners 8 | Red Sox 11

It’s not often that the M’s hitters score EIGHT runs on THIRTEEN hits including FIVE for extra bases and the M’s pitchers strike out TWELVE . . . and lose. But, it happened tonight, since those same pitchers also allowed FIVE homeruns and THREE doubles. Now, who replaced my Safeco with Coors?!?

ON THE MOUND
Kuma has been on a slide of late, coming into this game, he had given up FOUR earned runs in each of his last FOUR starts. Sure was hoping this would be where he turned things around ~ alas, several days after being named to his first All Star Game ~ he puts up his worst start of the season and sees his ERA rise to 2.97 (from 1.79 where it was just FIVE games ago) . . .
THREE innings ~ EIGHT hits ~ SIX earned runs ~ ZERO walks ~ THREE strikeouts
(here’s hoping he can recover by Sunday vs. the Halos)

} Blake was much different than in his relief of Aaron vs. the Yanks ~ a couple hits and a couple a runs and a couple of innings
} Danny did his thing ~ allowed a run (on a walk and a double) and struck out FOUR in 1.2 innings
} Charlie and Carter kept the slop going ~ combining to allow another THREE runs in ONE inning
} Lucas (fresh up from AAA) was the lone bright spot outta the pen ~ retiring all FOUR batters he faced

AT THE PLATE
~ Kendrys hit TWO homers extending the M’s homer streak to SEVENTEEN games (total of 21)
~ Kyle and Michael S each had a couple of hits (Michael with another triple)
~ Raul’s hit streak ends at THIRTEEN
~ Brad had a great night, going 3-5 with a “crazy legs” THREE-run double and FOUR total rbi. I had to chuckle at the Red Sox announcers, they were incredulous at how their pitcher was pitching to him since he was “only a .229 hitter”. They failed to take note that he was playing in only his ELEVENTH big league game. And oh, by the way, he’s now a “.275 hitter” 🙂

I wasn’t at the game but, a dear friend was and she sent me this lovely pic . . .

Crazy Legs at the plate | K. Hillman, iPhone

Crazy Legs at the plate | K. Hillman, iPhone

IN THE FIELD
* Big Papi with a stolen base?!? (Carter didn’t even look)
* Only ONE double play (Brad-Nick-Justin) and it ended the top of the 9th
* another WP allows a runner to advance to 3B and then score on a sac-fly

tweets of the game . . .

g82 | I thought the Cubbies were supposed to stink . . .

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Mariners 6 | Cubs 7

Between catching up on errands and chores that went neglected yesterday in favor of social engagements and loss of cable and internet for awhile this afternoon, I was unable to see any of the game, though listened to as much as possible. ‘t was pretty bleak early, pretty exciting late and pretty disappointing in the end, though, not without bright spots on which I will try to focus.

ON THE MOUND
Jeremy’s M’s debut back in early June left much to be desired, as he gave up SEVEN earned runs and was unable to get out of the 5th. Since then, he’s had FOUR total starts and gone at least 5+ in each (once a full EIGHT) and given up a total of FOUR earned runs.  Today, the Cubs definitely had his number, as he wasn’t even able to get out of the FOURTH . . .
3.1 innings ~ SIX hits ~ SIX runs ~ FOUR earned runs ~ TWO walks ~ TWO strikeouts

} Enter long-man, Blake. He allowed an inherited runner to score and then ONE of his own but, settled down and pitched pretty well . . .
4.2 innings ~ THREE hits ~ ONE earned run ~ ZERO walks ~ FOUR strikeouts

} Oh sO good to see Tommy mow ’em down! first batter took awhile to get (9 pitches till the fly out) but then a quick ground out and a strikeout swinging.

AT THE PLATE
Let’s just get the bad outta the way . . .
ONE fer FOURTEEN w/RISP (blech! blech! blech!)

Now then, the good . . .
~ TEN hits ~ SEVEN for extra bases ~ FOUR doubles (2x Endy, 2x Brad) + THREE homers
~ Brad with his FIRST and SECOND big league hits ~ both doubles  ~ and his FIRST run scored
~ Jason with his TENTH homer (all solo shots)
~ Rauuuuuuul with his NINETEENTH homer (his total for ALL of last year)
~ Kyle with his ELEVENTH homer (a TWO-run shot to get the M’s to within ONE in the 8th)
~ Kyle and Nick (the future is now) each with TWO rbi

Brad's first big league hit - a double | Photo/Ted S. Warren, AP

Brad’s first big league hit – a double | Photo/Ted S. Warren, AP

IN THE FIELD

A rare (best fielding 3B going into this game) and unfortunate error by Kyle allows 2 unearned runs

tweets of the game . . .

 

g78 | Pirates find treasure at The Safe

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Mariners 4 | Pirates 9

ON THE MOUND
The bad news ~ so much for “Safeco Joe” . . .
1.2 innings ~ SIX hits ~ SIX earned runs ~ ONE walk ~ ONE strikeout

The more or less expected news ~ Blake with decent mop up duty . . .
4.1 innings ~ FOUR hits ~ ONE earned run ~ TWO walks ~ TWO strikeouts

The good news ~ with a 1-7 deficit, Tom got a chance for his “soft-landing” . . .
struck out the side (swinging, looking, looking) in the 7th

Back to bad news ~ Carter continues to have long-ball-itis . . .
TWO more homers (his 8th and 9th of the season) one in the 8th, one in the 9th

AT THE PLATE
~ Only FIVE hits but, a decent XBR ratio 😉
~ Kyle’s a solo shot in the 6th and Justin’s a 2-run in the 9th
~ Carlos had his first RBI on a single in the 2nd

IN THE FIELD
* web gem from Carlos (at SS) backing up Kyle who got an in-between hop and had the ball deflected off his glove – Carlos made a rocket throw to 1B
* Nick with his FOURTH SB
* Kyle with a rare throwing error – would have been the third out of the 6th instead resulted in the Pirates seventh run

tweets of the game . . .

g70 | no sweep for yous

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Mariners 2 | Athletics 10

Well, something was bound to give, as Kuma and Colon had combined to give up ONE run in the past 57.2 IP

ON THE MOUND
Kuma was playing with fire early on, as the A’s had a runner at 3B in each of the first THREE innings (including via a triple – the first Kuma had allowed all season) but failed to score.

Then in the 4th ~after 31 2/3 innings without allowing an earned run~ Kuma allowed TWO runs to tie the game at 2-2 . In the 5th, Kuma continued to struggle, giving up the lead with another TWO runs and his day ended much earlier than desired or expected and ultimately recording his second loss of the season and only his third “non-quality start”
FIVE innings ~ EIGHT hits ~ FOUR earned runs ~ THREE walks ~ THREE strikeouts

Unfortunately, the bullpen ended up with an even worse day . . .
combining to allow NINE more hits and SIX more runs in their THREE innings of work
} Blake replaced Kuma and got through the 7th without giving up any runs despite two singles but, the 8th would not be so kind. Back-to-back homers and back-to-back singles extended the A’s lead to 6-2 – still with only ONE out.
} Tom replaced Blake, and I’m thinking . . . at least he’ll get some work, maybe get on track . . . not so much 😦 He allowed a single that loaded the bases, an “RBI walk” and a sac-fly that extended the lead AGAIN to 8-2
} Carter’s appearance left much to be desired, as he gave up TWO runs on TWO solo shots and then it was 10-2

AT THE PLATE
~ FIVE singles in the 2nd gave the M’s a 2-0 lead – decent start
~ at one point ~after the M’s scored their TWO in the 2nd~ Colon retired 12 in-a-r0w and then just allowed a couple scattered singles and then the A’s bullpen completely shut them down

IN THE FIELD
* awesome 3-6 (Michael-Brendan) DP to end the bottom of the 1st w/ runners at 1B and 3B
* SUPER diving web gem by Nick in the 8th for the out of what would have been a sure single, maybe more.

tweets of the game . . . 

 

https://twitter.com/gbakermariners/status/346378314174320642

 

 

g61 | words not typically uttered . . . thank heaven for Blake Beavan!

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Mariners 1 | Yankees 6

Not the most enjoyable game I’ve ever attended, and a loss is a loss but, it’s not like (even as rosy as I am) I really expected a win tonight. Not after the marathon yesterday in which EVERY position player played ALL SIXTEEN innings and then, add to that, an up/down Aaron Harang on the mound ~ it wasn’t a recipe that screamed success. So, the fact that the game ~as a whole~ ended up better than expected because of the performance of Blake Beavan was very encouraging. It’s not every day a reliever posts a quality start 😉

ON THE MOUND
Aaron Harang’s night in Seattle against the Yankees wasn’t quite as bad as Phil Hughes’ outing in New York against the Mariners (when he gave up 7 runs and didn’t get out of the 1st inning). In fact, things were looking manageable after the first TWO innings – a hit batsman the only base runner. Then came the 3rd and the melt-down ensued . . . FIVE singles, ONE double, TWO homers and SIX runs later, Aaron was out of the game.

Enter Blake Beavan, fresh back from Tacoma. I was worried that things weren’t going to get any better with this switch (in fact, part of me thought it might get worse). Was I glad to be wrong. Blake came in and not only ate innings (to save that depleted bullpen) but MOWED ’em down – retiring NINETEEN of the TWENTY batters he faced (and got the double play immediately after the single).

His performance really can’t be over-stated. They needed an outing like that because it helped in the immediate (resting a totally depleted bullpen) as well as provided some encouragement for the future, should Harang and Bonderman continue to struggle (whether it be as a long man or as the mop up dude. In any case, when was the last time a “reliever” posted a line like this?

6.2 innings ~ ONE hit ~ ZERO runs ~ ZERO walks ~ FOUR strikeouts

AT THE PLATE
Combine players who played SIXTEEN innings the day before and a pitcher who is “on his stick” and it’s not typically an easy day at the office.  Phil Hughes was the total opposite of what the guys saw in NY in May. the only managed FOUR total hits (THREE off Hughes) and only ONE extra base hit (a Kyle Seager’s RBI double in the 8th).

IN THE FIELD
* nice double play in the 8th to erase the sole base-runner Blake allowed
* Jason put out the side in order in the 2nd

tweets of the game . . . 

g29 | O’s give M’s woes

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Mariners 2 | Orioles 7

::: Yes ~ I got my Brendan Ryan “I talk to buffaloes” tee shirt.

::: No ~ my night at the ballpark wasn’t very pleasant.

Obviously, the loss had a lot to do with the unpleasant-ness but, it actually started before the game. I decided to have what has been one of my favorite food items at The Safe: a beef crepe. Normally, my indulgences of the fare of La Creperie have been fresh, hot, tender and delicious. Last night it was more stale, barely warm, chewy and over done 😦 I thought about complaining but, didn’t have the energy so, I just ate it at standing at the bar overlooking the bull pen as I watched fans trickling in . . . sincerely wondering if they might have some of the 5000 tee shirts leftover.

I made my way up to the 300 level, got some hot chocolate (because it was freezing!) and then went to my seat in the first row of section 340. I was actually supposed to be in 341, third seat in but, decided to take my chances with the end seat across the aisle. That was the best decision I made all night. Once a few others arrived, I soon realized I would have been just two seats away from a very vocal Orioles fan (it was bad enough being across the aisle – all I could think of is at least I’m not right next to him). Anyhoo, he wasn’t really obnoxious or anything, just cheered for his team but, it’s just SO iritating when the M’s are losing and you are close to opposing fans – especially when the stadium is . . . much less than full (oh, btw, all the shirts were given away – attendance was 13k+).

As for the game itself . . .

ON THE MOUND
I picked this game to attend because I hadn’t yet seen Brandon pitch in person and it seemed (from the way things had been going) he had the best chance at a victory. Well, so much for that theory – the lead-off homer he allowed was foreshadowing of a bad night much like my stale, chewy crepe . . .

FOUR innings ~ SIX hits ~ FOUR earned runs ~ TWO walks ~ TWO strikeouts

The somewhat encouraging thing is, all four runs were given up in the first inning and he went on to toss three scoreless. Granted, he had to work REALLY hard to get through those three innings but, hard as it is to take the loss, he’ll be better for the experience, likely learning a lot from it.

And the ‘pen  . . .
Blake was no better that Aaron, Ollie walked a couple but didn’t allow a run and Medina actually posted a nice 1.1 outing.

AT THE PLATE
::: the good ~ double-digit hits: Dustin, Justin, Kendrys & Michael M all with TWO each
::: the bad ~ the old nemesis: only ONE for EIGHT w/RISP
::: the good ~ Michael M a homer, Justin a double
::: the bad ~ I was in the restroom when Michael homered, just adding insult to injury to my evening 😦

IN THE FIELD
::: Kelly with a nice throw to Dustin to nail a would-by 2B thief
::: no DP’s (and they really could have used some!)

tweets of the game . . . 

 

g23 | Houston, we (the M’s) have a problem … you’re our daddy!

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Mariners 3 | Astros 10

In a 3-game series with the Tiggers – the M’s gave up a total of EIGHT runs
In TWO 3-game series with the Astros – the M’s gave up THIRTY-EIGHT runs

go figure.

Let’s just say I’m SO glad it was on during a weekday morning and I missed it.

The score pretty much tells the story . . .
Joe and Blake, to put it bluntly – sucked.
They combined for FOURTEEN hits, TEN runs, TWO walks and only TWO K’s

As for the line up . . .
yet another ONE fer FIVE w/RISP
Yes, Justin hit his first homer and Dustin a double
OK no one can crow about .228 and .230 BA but, they have raised them from .175 and .114 – so, there’s that

NEWS and NOTES

  • Casper Wells was picked up by the Athletics after being DFA’s by the Blue Jays after being DFA’d by the M’s (Good luck, Casper!)
  • Guti was placed on the 15-day DL (strained right hamstring: he’ll have an MRI tomorrow when the team is back home) yesterday and Carlos Peguero was called up from Tacoma
  • Before the game, it was reported that Brendan Ryan is no longer the starting shortstop, seems Robert Andino will be chatting with the buffalo now
  • Michael Saunders will likely be headed to Tacoma for a rehab stint as soon as Friday

tweets of the game . . .

 

 

g20 | swept away in Arlington

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Mariners 3 | Rangers 11

ON THE MOUND
Things didn’t start out that bad for Aaron . . .
All things considered, through FOUR he’d only given up FOUR hits (granted two were homers) and the M’s had scored again in the top of the 5th to cut the deficit to ONE. But, then came the bottom of the 5th ~ and off came the wheels. A lead-off triple, a couple of singles, a couple of walks and ~oh, yeah~ a grand slam and the door was , basically slammed.

Blake was no help . . .
giving up THREE runs (including another homer) in his THREE innings of work

AT THE PLATE
The good news . . .
* FIVE extra base hits (doubles by Kyle, Kelly, Endy, Michael and Kyle’s first homer)
* Kyle was 3/4 with a walk, an RBI double, a homer ~ his hit streak stands at TEN games and his double total (10) leads the majors

The bad news . . .
the lineup was ONE for FOURTEEN w/RISP and another double digit strikeout game . . . . a r g h ! ! !

As Greg Johns details here, Michael Morse is not the only one whose offense has suffered since his his pinkie was broken . . .

After dropping Sunday’s series finale, 11-3, to the Rangers, the Mariners have scored 16 runs in the nine games since Morse’s injury, an average of 1.78 per game. In the 10 games he played prior to his injury, they averaged 4.2 runs.

Michael Saunders was lost the day after Morse and had also been settling in nicely, posting a 7-game hitting streak with a double, a triple and a homer and 5RBI prior to his shoulder injury. Michael is due to come off the DL on Friday but, progress is slow and he hasn’t even thrown yet, which is what will be most affected.

IN THE FIELD
one error a piece and no DP’s for either side

tweet of the game . . .

Here’s hoping they fair better vs. the Astros in Houston than they did at The Safe

g16 | heartbreak in fourteen . . .

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It seemed that both starters deserved the W and both lineups deserved the L . . .

Continuing with the “pitcher’s strikeout tally theme” from last night (er, night before last)  where like golf, the fewest wins:  Mariners 19 ~ Tigers 21, giving the M’s the 2-1 series edge in K’s with an aggregate score of 28-36

Alas, the game is still decided by runs, and the Tiggers (despite going 0’fer 12 w/RISP) had one more than the M’s at the end of 14

Mariners 1 | Tigers 2 / in 14

ON THE MOUND
um … lots a K’s

Felix was his usual Felix self, and then some . . .
EIGHT innings ~ FOUR hits ~ ONE UNearned run ~ ZERO walks ~ TWELVE strikeouts

Going into the game, Felix’s was 9-0 with a 2.86 ERA vs. Detroit in his last ten games. The loss column now has a number and the ERA went down to 2.41

We feel your pain, King | Ted S Warren, AP

The bullpen (Tom + Carter + Oliver + Charlie + Blake) combined for . . .
SIX innings ~ THREE hits ~ ONE earned run ~ FOUR walks ~ NINE strikeouts

AT THE PLATE
um … lots a K’s

1st-6th ~ M’s had THREE singles, ONE walk

7th ~ Michael doubled and Raul singled to drive in the M’s only run

8th-14th ~ M’s tallied FOUR singles, TWO doubles, THREE walks but ZERO runs and Justin was thrown out at the plate trying to score on Dustin’s double in the 14th

Justin is unsuccessful at dislodging the ball at the plate | Ted S Warren, AP

IN THE FIELD
The way the pitchers were rolling, it could be argued the DEE decided the game . . .
* a really tough bounce error for Brendan gave the Tigers their first run in the 5th
* the M’s were unable to turn any DP’s
* the Tiggers turned THREE double plays and had the HUGE outfield assist from Torii in the 14th

Tweets of the game . . .

 

cool minor league note . . .
Carlos Triunfel hit for the cycle last night in Tacoma’s 8-0 win over Fresno