Tumbling Mariners Will Face Astros
| MARINERS (7-13) | ΔMs | ASTROS (5-13) | EDGE | |
| HITTING (wOBA*) | -16.0 (28th) | -8.2 | 0.2 (15th) | Astros |
| FIELDING (RBBIP) | 5.2 (11th) | 3.0 | -5.6 (21st) | Mariners |
| ROTATION (xRA) | 5.5 (7th) | -1.0 | -13.3 (29th) | Mariners |
| BULLPEN (xRA) | 1.1 (11th) | 0.3 | -10.6 (30th) | Mariners |
| OVERALL (RAA) | -4.3 (17th) | -6.1 | -29.2 (29th) | MARINERS |
Last week I spoke of my emotional difference between the records of 6-11 and 7-10 and how it seemed larger than it should in reality. Just three games later and that gap is gone. Who cares between 7-13 and 6-14? So perhaps I was more influenced by the win coming in that final game leaving a small residue of optimism. Well, mission accomplished, Mariners!
There’s certainly the opportunity for the Mariners to roll through the Astros and re-establish some fringe hope of contention. I’m not optimistic about that however. CoolStandings has the Mariners’ playoff odds already down to 8% with Baseball Prospectus even more grime at 6%. Frankly, I’m just hoping for mild entertainment. It’s a low bar, Mariners.
| Batter | PA | P/PA | Slash line | nBB | K (sw) | 1B/2B/3B/HR | Sw% | Ct% | Qual+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J Smoak^ | 57 | 4.1 | .196/.281/.216 | 6 | 16 (12) | 9 / 1 / 0 / 0 | 43 | 70 | 115 |
| K Morales^ | 56 | 3.7 | .255/.386/.404 | 9 | 10 (6) | 7 / 4 / 0 / 1 | 42 | 80 | 152 |
| K Seager* | 52 | 4.4 | .286/.327/.490 | 3 | 10 (9) | 6 / 7 / 0 / 1 | 39 | 77 | 113 |
| M Morse | 44 | 4.1 | .171/.273/.366 | 3 | 14 (14) | 3 / 2 / 0 / 2 | 52 | 69 | 110 |
| D Ackley* | 44 | 4.1 | .209/.227/.233 | 1 | 9 (9) | 8 / 1 / 0 / 0 | 42 | 84 | 95 |
| B Ryan | 39 | 3.9 | .083/.128/.083 | 2 | 11 (8) | 3 / 0 / 0 / 0 | 47 | 80 | 70 |
| R Ibanez* | 37 | 3.9 | .200/.243/.400 | 2 | 10 (10) | 4 / 1 / 0 / 2 | 46 | 76 | 124 |
| J Bay | 36 | 4.1 | .200/.333/.300 | 6 | 11 (9) | 5 / 0 / 0 / 1 | 32 | 67 | 161 |
| F Gutierrez | 34 | 4.2 | .182/.206/.394 | 1 | 9 (7) | 3 / 1 / 0 / 2 | 45 | 84 | 67 |
| J Montero | 30 | 3.5 | .214/.267/.250 | 2 | 4 (4) | 5 / 1 / 0 / 0 | 50 | 73 | 108 |
| E Chavez* | 26 | 4.2 | .240/.346/.280 | 1 | 5 (5) | 5 / 1 / 0 / 0 | 47 | 81 | 101 |
| K Shoppach | 25 | 4.3 | .333/.440/.619 | 4 | 9 (8) | 3 / 3 / 0 / 1 | 44 | 63 | 193 |
| R Andino | 24 | 4.3 | .217/.250/.304 | 1 | 6 (3) | 3 / 2 / 0 / 0 | 35 | 72 | 110 |
During the past series Eric Wedge had Brendan Ryan pinch hit for Dustin Ackley. I could rack my brain all day and not come up with a better symbol for the futility of the Mariners’ offense this season and the bizarre decisions by the management and not come up with anything to surpass that. There may have been a solid reason for the move, but on the surface it’s so, very, Mariners. Just… Mariners.
| Batter | PA | P/PA | Slash line | nBB | SO (sw) | 1B/2B/3B/HR | Sw% | Ct% | Qual+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J Altuve | 58 | 3.3 | .358/.441/.491 | 5 | 5 (3) | 15 / 2 / 1 / 1 | 39 | 91 | 108 |
| J Maxwell | 58 | 3.7 | .204/.259/.315 | 4 | 14 (10) | 7 / 3 / 0 / 1 | 47 | 69 | 79 |
| C Carter | 56 | 4.5 | .277/.375/.574 | 8 | 18 (12) | 8 / 0 / 1 / 4 | 39 | 73 | 157 |
| C Pena* | 53 | 4.2 | .250/.377/.500 | 9 | 12 (10) | 4 / 5 / 0 / 2 | 44 | 65 | 102 |
| M Dominguez | 52 | 3.9 | .229/.308/.271 | 4 | 7 (6) | 9 / 2 / 0 / 0 | 40 | 85 | 120 |
| J Castro* | 45 | 4.1 | .250/.267/.318 | 1 | 9 (5) | 8 / 3 / 0 / 0 | 45 | 80 | 141 |
| J Martinez | 41 | 3.8 | .237/.268/.474 | 2 | 9 (8) | 4 / 3 / 0 / 2 | 54 | 75 | 103 |
| M Gonzalez^ | 33 | 4.2 | .310/.394/.552 | 4 | 8 (6) | 6 / 1 / 0 / 2 | 42 | 83 | 131 |
| B Barnes | 26 | 4.2 | .348/.423/.522 | 3 | 4 (3) | 6 / 1 / 0 / 1 | 42 | 87 | 74 |
| R Ankiel* | 24 | 4.2 | .292/.292/.750 | 0 | 14 (14) | 2 / 2 / 0 / 3 | 54 | 57 | 251 |
No Brett Wallace this series for the Mariner pitchers to use as a punching bag so they’ll have to defeat actually competent hitters. And the Astros do have that so far. The pitching might qualify for Superfund status already, but their position players haven’t been an embarrassment.
| MARINERS | ΔMs | ASTROS | EDGE | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| INFIELD | -1.7 (20th) | 0.2 | -1.6 (19th) | Astros |
| OUTFIELD | 6.9 (4th) | 2.8 | -4 (22nd) | Mariners |
| RBBIP | 0.292 (9th) | -.008 | 0.317 (20th) | Mariners |
| OVERALL | 5.2 (11th) | 3.0 | -5.6 (21st) | MARINERS |
22 APR 17:10 – BRAD PEACOCK vs FELIX HERNANDEZ
The Mariners have had loads of trouble scoring runs. Here comes a hopeful antidote in the form of Brad Peacock.
If the Mariners can’t hit off Brad Peacock then just, oh gee. Also, the Astros home page is hyping this match-up as: “Peacock opens for Astros vs. division-rival Mariners.” The rival part just slays me. Yeah, it’s true by the strict definition of the word, but it’s just so sad, for everyone involved.
I was halfheartedly musing to some friends that, based on their track record of ruining everything they attempt to coach, if the Mariners wouldn’t be better off with literally zero coaches on the Major League team. It was mostly a sarcastic joust intended to convey my dissatisfaction with the coaching ineptness, but then I started wondering about it seriously.
Not in a the-Mariners-should-actually-do-this serious way, but in a what-would-actually-be-the-ramifications way. How would they set the lineup? Maybe the bat boy should do it. Or the hitter with the highest WAR value. I anticipate no problems from the base coaches being gone, but there could be an issue with pitching changes and the like. So I’ve decided that Felix should handle all of that.
Basically the Mariners should let Felix do whatever he wants, and encourage him to do other zany things as well.
23 APR 17:10 – BUD NORRIS vs HISASHI IWAKUMA
Bud Norris is supposed to be Houston’s best starter and he can get strikeouts, but he doesn’t do much else well. That’s basically the best the Astros have to offer. Ouch.
Iwakuma, meanwhile, continues to be boringly effective and good. His re-signing last winter is looking like a rare bright spot in the offseason.
24 APR 11:10 – LUCAS HARRELL vs JOE SAUNDERS*
| Reliever | BF | Str% | nBB | Ct% | K(sw) | GB% | HR | Qual- | LI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C Capps | 45 | 66.1 | 2 | 65.5 | 14 (12) | 24.1 | 2 | 123.0 | 1.4 |
| C Furbush* | 34 | 55.2 | 8 | 60.0 | 11 (10) | 50.0 | 1 | 70.5 | 1.0 |
| K Loe | 31 | 63.7 | 1 | 81.3 | 3 (3) | 37.0 | 6 | 142.3 | 0.7 |
| T Wilhelmsen | 30 | 64.0 | 4 | 89.6 | 5 (4) | 47.6 | 0 | 91.0 | 1.8 |
| O Perez* | 28 | 67.7 | 2 | 76.6 | 7 (6) | 05.3 | 1 | 129.1 | 1.2 |
| S Pryor | 26 | 64.7 | 1 | 86.8 | 7 (3) | 38.9 | 0 | 111.4 | 1.7 |
| B Beavan | 21 | 63.1 | 2 | 78.0 | 2 (2) | 41.2 | 1 | 61.5 | 0.7 |
| L Luetge* | 20 | 65.1 | 0 | 71.9 | 3 (3) | 41.2 | 0 | 102.3 | 0.5 |
| Reliever | BF | Str% | nBB | Ct% | K(sw) | GB% | HR | Qual- | LI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| H Ambriz | 51 | 65.0 | 2 | 80.7 | 5 (5) | 59.1 | 1 | 93.0 | 0.9 |
| P Clemens | 49 | 63.9 | 3 | 86.2 | 4 (2) | 31.0 | 3 | 103.2 | 0.5 |
| D Keuchel* | 49 | 63.5 | 5 | 77.3 | 6 (4) | 57.9 | 2 | 79.7 | 0.8 |
| R Cruz | 48 | 61.0 | 7 | 78.9 | 3 (3) | 36.8 | 2 | 121.7 | 0.8 |
| W Wright* | 42 | 61.9 | 3 | 81.8 | 6 (5) | 53.1 | 0 | 93.5 | 0.7 |
| X Cedeno* | 36 | 56.1 | 9 | 78.9 | 3 (3) | 54.2 | 0 | 85.7 | 0.6 |
| J Veras | 32 | 64.0 | 3 | 78.3 | 6 (6) | 30.4 | 0 | 117.0 | 1.1 |
The Astro relievers almost all have low leverage indexes because the game has typically been out of reach by the time they’re brought in.
Comments
4 Responses to “Tumbling Mariners Will Face Astros”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
How horrible is it that I kind of want Brad Peacock to pitch a perfect game against us? I mean, I feel horrible saying it; but I also think it would be absolutely hilarious, in a desperately-deranged sort of way. Imagine the fan reactions, the post-game commentary…
Secondly: The no-coaches thing just might work. If it means actually getting my hands on some King-Felix hot-sauce or watching a live Bernandez ventriloquist routine, I’m all for it!
Next M’s Manager: Chili Davis.
8% chance of making the playoffs? That’s hilarious.
Insert Jim Mora soundbite – HERE –
Next M’s Manager: I will put in a plug for Ryne Sandberg
Criswell predicts – Felix pitches 9 perfect innings and Peacock strikes out 23 Mariners.