Time for some K.C. Strip
July 16-19
New Seattle Mariners motto: For every silver lining there is a dark looming rain cloud.
Pitching match ups:
Game 91: LHP – Jason Vargas vs. LHP – Jonathan Sanchez
Expect HOT weather
Jason Vargas continues to be the Mariners top potential trade piece aside from one of their up and coming Über prospects. Playing in Kauffman Stadium in mid July is the closest the Mariners will get to the All Star game this season.
The current Royals have only 44 at bats against the M’s southpaw.
- Current line: 8-7 / 4.07 ERA / 32 BB / 86 SO / 1.15 WHIP
- Right handed batters haven’t done much against Vargas, hitting only .229
Jonathan Sanchez has not pitched well this season.
At all.
He has only one win on the entire season and has only pitched over 5 innings once. I wonder if the Royals are waiting to see how the Mariners fare against him before his impending doom. The M’s have not hit well off left handed batting this season.
- Current Line: 1-5 / 6.75 ERA / 43 BB / 34 SO / 1.94 WHIP
- Sanchez has given up a lot of walks this season. The M’s need to be patient at the plate.
Game 92: TBD vs. LHP Everett Teaford
With Erasmo Ramirez on the DL, The Mariners are going to have to get creative with this start. Stay tuned for a roster move.
Teaford is a disgrace to the Royals, but he is left handed which keeps him on the mound. He has been a reliever most of this season and is hoping to have a strong start going against a team hitting only .229 against lefties this season.
That is about all there is to say about him.
- Current Line 1-2 / 5.52 ERA / 14 BB / 18 SO / 1.50 WHIP
Game 93: RHP – Kevin Millwood vs. LHP – Bruce Chen
Old man Millwood keeps plugging away dropping his ERA almost 2 points is the past month. The good news is that Millwood may actually have the value the Mariners need, not in trade value, but in mentoring power.
The M’s seem to be getting worse by the day while the veteran Millwood is improving.
This is good news.
- Current Line: 3-7 / 3.71 ERA / 37 BB / 73 SO / 1.32 WHIP
- The M’s may face Adam Moore in this series who was just dropped by the Mariners last month
The Mariners will face the 5th Southpaw in 6 games: Derek Holland, Matt Harrison, Jonathan Sanchez, Everett Teaford and now Bruce Chen.
Chen is a 35 year old native of Panama who started his career in 1998. He has not pitched at his normal career numbers this year, the major problem being his opponent batting average sitting at .285.
Being a lefty doesn’t seem to carry much of an advantage for him. That may be the only good news for the M’s.
Current Line: 7-8 / 5.50 ERA / 25 BB / 77 SO / 1.38 WHIP
Game 94: RHP – Felix Hernandez vs. RHP – Luke Hochever
I’ve been listening to a bunch of people singing Felix’s praises as if the struggles he had at the beginning of the season never happened to the king. Baseball fans seem to have short term memories. Wait what were we talking about?
- Current Line: 7-5 / 2.92 ERA / 35 BB / 140 SO / 1.17 WHIP
Is it just me or to the Royals pitchers have a lot of abnormally large beards for a place that gets so blistering hot during the summer? Hochever joins the former 3 starters in boasting an ERA above 5.
The M’s should be able to gain their confidence back against a low tier right handed pitcher like this.
Jason Vargas continues to be the Mariners top potential trade piece
- Current Line: 6-8 / 5.16 ERA / 33 BB / 75 SO / 1.40 WHIP
M’s vs Royals Series Predictions
Game 1:
Come on guys – it is Sanchez. You can do this
Prediction: Win (Royals 2 – Mariners 6)
Game 2:
Tough to say what will happen without knowing who will be pitching for Seattle, but I don’t feel super confident in invisible pitchers anyway.
Prediction: Loss (Royals 3 – Mariners 2)
Game 3:
There are a loot of “If’s” going through my brain, but I think I have the confident to call a series win in Kansas City – though I can’t go as far as a sweep in my head.
Can you?
Prediction: Win (Royals 3 – Mariners 5)
Game 4:
If the M’s dont win this game then I may have to take a sledge hammer to my brain.
Prediction: Win (Royals 0 – Mariners 6)
Other News:
Seattle has been involved in 45 games decided by two runs or fewer, the second-highest total in the AL behind Detroit (49). The Mariners are 17-28 in those contests. Kansas City SS Alcides Escobar came back strong from the All-Star break, going 6-for-13 with two home runs and six RBIs in the three-game series against the White Sox.
The Mariners have lost seven consecutive series since winning two of three against San Francisco from June 15-17.
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