Seattle Mariners (2021 Daily Playthrough)

[pauwoo]

List monitors arrive with petition... what kind of scheduling sadist books us for four days in B'more and follows that up with a ~6.25-hour flight back to the Best Coast for a series against Houston? Found this on the google machine - 'individuals possessing sadistic personalities tend to display recurrent aggression and cruel behavior.' - which, if you're asking me, is apt in its description of the MLB scheduling team.


Houston Astros (6-6, .500, 3rd AL West) @ Seattle Mariners (10-3, .769, 1st AL West)
Houston is operating 3.5 games off our pace, they were predicted to hover around .500 by those who believe they can predict these kinds of things, and plenty of folks thought that losing Springer to Toronto and Verlander to injury would be too big a gap to close. They’ve been living that line so far – their offense is in shambles (ok, not really – but it's middle of the road nonetheless), while the pitching is ranked 5th. They have put back-to-back series wins on the board though, so, they might be on a bit of a come-up. This will be a tough test for our jet-lagged outfit – a hard-fought 3-game set that should be a good early-season measuring stick for both clubs… hands up, chins tucked folks!

14 of 162: Jake Odorizzi (1-0, 3.86) @ Nick Margevicius (1-1, 3.86)
Win, 4-2. Our 5th straight… Dalbec was clutch today – 3 for 3, a jack, a double, and 2 RBI – Lewis put a couple of hits on the board, Hedges hit his team-leading 6th homer (we need some real power bats, don’t we?), and SHED “Team First” LONG JR hit a SAC BUNT to give us a much-appreciated cushion. Morecabbage was OK – he gave us 5.2 innings and only allowed two after following Tony Misiewicz who threw two scoreless innings with 3 Ks in the opener role… Servais must’ve felt cute today.


Elsewhere: AJ Pollock went 5 for 5 with a triple, a solo shot, 4 RBI, and 3 runs to lead the Dodgers to victory against their most capable division rival. After today’s 14-6 loss, the Padres are off to a dismal 6-9 start to the 2021 campaign… but, they do have a -1 RDiff so far and have come up short in three of their four 1-run games… Things aren’t as bad as it looks for these guys me thinks…

Record: 11-3
Up Next: We will continue to do our level best against these cheating cheaters from Houston.

[pauwoo]

On my way home to the Bellevue Towers after the game (I’m kidding, I don’t live in the Bellevue Towers, I live in a 600 sq ft studio at Metro 122 – we have a semi-maintained rooftop lounge and unmonitored 24-hour package lockers, so it’s sort of a big deal), I stopped at Pho Ever on 8th and slurped away at my spicy beef & pork soup while appreciating my good fortune – what a start! 11-3, 1st in the AL West – better than I would have dared imagine. Look, it’s early, and this kind of run has a habit of appearing in your rearview mirror with the quickness if you can’t stay focused – so, for now, we’ll enjoy it. And, act like we’ve been here before, like we’re the not surprised version of Nathan Diaz, and, you know, just roll with it…


15 of 162: Jose Urquidy (0-1, 10.80) @ Marco Gonzales (2-0, 3.05)
Loss, 8-1. The cheatin’ ‘stros put four bad ones on us in the 9th to double up their lead and, officially, put this one way out of our reach… Urquidy mowed us down for 7.1 innings and secured 9 total Ks with 2 each against Wong, Haniger, and Dalbec, Fletcher led the club with two hits that didn’t amount to anything, and Marco just couldn’t dial it in today as he allows his most runs in a start for this season at four and gets yanked after retiring one in the 7th so he can live on to fight another day. Listen, Baseball is a game of failure and you can’t let a loss get you down – but, and this is important, WE HATE THE ASTROS. So, losing to this unscrupulous club of ill repute is going to bother us a bit. Especially given that it happened at home. In our park. In front of our wives, girlfriends, mistresses... etc. We don't like it. Not one bit.


Elsewhere: David Peralta, of the Arizona Diamondbacks, went 3 for 3 with 2 dingers, 2 RBI, and 3 runs in his ridiculously ugly uniform during his clubs 5-3 win over the Washington Nationals… with the win, the D’backs improve to 8-7 on the year (2.5 games ahead of Slam Diego) while the Nats are mired in a funk so pervasive that George Clinton himself would be impressed at 5-10 overall and 3 of 7 for their last ten contests. There's a whole lot of rhythm going 'round...

Record: 11-4
Up Next: Rubbermatch... contested in a cage & to the death, live on PPV against the most reviled club in the majors...

[pauwoo]

Hmm… I can get Yasiel Puig from Atlanta for MEETCH (never!), or Joe Musgrove from SD (wait, what?!?)… Is that fair? Doesn’t seem fair. In fact, I can get Musgrove & O’Grady (I mean - O'Grady isn't necessarily desirable) for Meetch and a scrub RP in Robert Dugger… man, my willpower is being tested here.

16 of 162: Zach Greinke (0-1, 3.24) @ Matthew Boyd (1-1, 4.42)
Win, 7-6. It was three innings in, we’re down by four, and starting to lose confidence in our ability to make something happen when Joc Pederson found the Greinke cheat code and charged a 2-run homer to his account to bring us within striking distance. From there we’d go back and forth on runs for a few innings until they couldn’t answer our ‘back’ with a ‘forth’ – an eighth-inning run-scoring double from Kolten Wong would put us ahead for good. Adding to our highlights – we got those 2 RBI from Pederson, two more from Ty France, and Fletch & K-Lew would join Wong with an RBI each, respectively. A hard-earned victory here – we survived Moore getting caught with his hand in the honeypot, overcame fielding flubs from Haniger and Fletch, and managed to put some bad ones on the board late to seal Houston’s fate. Good stuff from Kikuchi (who picked up the win) and David Robertson in relief too.

Note: We got the 4-run comeback achievement for this one… we won’t rest until we have all the badges and look like some trumped-up cub scout that scammed his way into every badge, belt loop, and flair he could get his hands on.


Elsewhere: Max Scherzer, a little-known fireballer who plies his trade with the Washington Nationals, threw a complete game, 3-hit shutout over the Arizona Diamondbacks – the $35-million-dollar man, and 3x Cy Young recipient, fanned 7 during the 6-0 win at home. He now has 27 Ks in four appearances so far this year which is good enough for 9th on the K table thus far… side note: SP Corbin Burnes, of the Milwaukee Brewers, has 29 Ks in three appearances so far (12.6 K/9) and is ranked 7th in that category so far. His ERA+ is 318 as well – so, I’d be surprised if he doesn’t win the Cy Young this season (SAMPLE SIZE BE DAMNED).


Also, Kyle Lewis is leading the league in AVG so far - .464 and coming for that batting title, son.

Record: 12-4
Up Next: Mookie's outfield acrobatics are on the way to Seattle as the Los Angeles Dodgers head to town...

[pauwoo]

Los Angeles Dodgers (11-5, .688, 1st NL West) @ Seattle Mariners (12-4, .750, 1st AL West)
Here we’ll host the defending champs for a couple of days, treating our fans to the experience of seeing what a championship ballclub looks like, and, potentially, destroying whatever confidence we’ve built up over this early part of the season… Look, we are a good club, but I am a realist – there are levels to this thing and L.A. is firmly entrenched in what I like to call the top tier while we most likely find ourselves somewhere well below that. And the timing leaves a bit to be desired here as we’ll welcome the biggest bully on the block to town while they are in the midst of a 9-1 stretch that includes 7 wins in a row. They’ll also start us out with Trevor – so many red flags. I should note here that we’re also 9-1 over our last 10 contests – that we are more than just a live dog here and that while there are many in the media who have tossed us off as an early-season surprise that is likely punching a class or two above our weight, we’ve been landing those shots with regularity. I see no reason why we can’t do that here.

Updated Power Rankings…
1. Seattle Mariners (Hey! That’s us guys!)
2. Atlanta Braves
3. Los Angeles Dodgers (Ruh-roh!)
4. Pittsburgh Pirates
5. Oakland Athletics

STL is 6th, the Mets are 12th, the Yankees are 21st, and the Padres are 27th…

Eloy Jimenez (CWS) and Ronald Acuna Jr (ATL) got some really nice participation ribbons that say Player of the Week on the front.

17 of 162: Trevor Bauer (1-0, 5.40) @ Aaron Sanchez (1-0, 0.00)
Win, 4-2. We’d head into the stretch on a 2-2 tie – them with 7 hits, just putting it all over the field of play, and us with only one – if this were futbol (or football), they’d be winning the possession & on-target game. But this isn’t soccer – it’s baseball, a crueler and fickler mistress, where the only tie we care about goes to the runner, and where we’ll play forever if that’s what it takes to declare a winner. This one, fortunately for us (and our fans), wouldn’t take forever as Big Bat Bobby Dalbec sauntered up to the plate in the bottom of the 10th, with a man on, prepared to meet his date with destiny head on and smashed a 2-run, walk-off DING DONG for the WIN! 7-game winning streak snapped & a reminder to our rivals that we’ll be your huckleberry, that you’re a daisy if you do, and any other nonsense that Val Kilmer mumbled as Doc Holiday in the time-honored cinematic masterpiece (featuring Kurt Russell in a ton of mascara) Tombstone.


Look at that smile on Bobby D’s face – ear to ear baby!


Elsewhere: James Paxton, of the Milwaukee Brewers, twirled a 7.2 inning, 2-hit gem that included ZERO earned runs, 3 free passes, and 11 Ks during an 8-0 drubbing of the San Diego Padres. With the win, the Brewers inch closer to .500 while San Diego remains firmly entrenched at the bottom of the NL West table, 5 ½ games off the pace, with a 6-12 record. Losers of 8 in a row now. And 1-9 for their last 10. And with at least two more weeks without Tatis Jr… it seems that the Slam Diego shenanigans of yore are, for now, just a distant memory.

Record: 13-4
Up Next: Los Angeles learns that King Kong ain't got (nothin') on us as they try to get back in the plus column against us in Seattle.

[pauwoo]

It’s Jeff Spicoli day at the ballpark today – the first 15K fans to arrive at the park will get a Colt .45 T-Shirt and a VHS copy of Sean Penn’s Shanghai Surprise that you’ll need to be faded to enjoy… also, because we just don’t know when to quit, we’ll be replacing the National Anthem, for today only, with a cover of Earache My Eye as performed by the Seattle-based quartet, Tacocat. Should be fun, bring the kids…

18 of 162: Dustin May (0-0, 5.40) @ Matt Peacock (2-0, 0.89)
Win, 7-4. I only know three chords… Big win for the club, big day for Luis Torrens who hit the game-winner during the bottom of the 8th, and nice day for Kyle Lewis who went 3 for 4 with 2 runs, and a double. We still can’t swipe bags though… Wong & Trammell were both caught trying to sneak a cookie. Good day for the staff – once Peacock came off the bump during the 6th inning after giving up two, 2-run two-baggers, our bullpen locked it down the rest of the way. We’ll sleep well knowing that our fans were sent off happy and that more than half of them will be settling in with a loved one tonight to watch Shanghai Surprise, an unheralded masterpiece, and some of Madonna’s best work.


Elsewhere: Standing 5 feet and 11 inches tall and weighing in at svelte 180lbs, San Francisco’s Mike Yastrzemski, put his 6th and 7th ball out of the park and drove in 5 total runs during the Giants’ 7-1 dismantling of the Philadelphia Phillies – in Philly (good luck getting back to the hotel buddy)… Johnny Cueto toyed with Philly’s lineup for 7 innings, allowing 5 hits, weak dribblers one and all, while fanning 8.

Record: 14-4
Up Next: A travel day...

[pauwoo]

We’ll get a much-needed respite from the grind and a morning left to our own devices before meeting back up at SeaTac to embark on the 5+ hour flight to Boston where we’ll be for four days enjoying the chowder, local hospitality, and playing a little ball before heading south to Houston for four more games. So, a nice little 8 game road trip where will have our every whim cared for and live free from the distractions of home… or, something along those lines. I made sure to pack my New Edition T-Shirt – it’ll give off an old-school native vibe to keep the naysayers and Sox faithful at bay should they notice me during my early morning migas questing.

Elsewhere: Arizona’s David Peralta went 2 for 4 with a homer, 3 RBI, a run, and a free pass during the D’backs’ convincing 5-2 win over the Queen City Reds in the first game of their double-header. Meanwhile, Cincy’s Jonathan India smashed a walk-off, GRAND SLAM during the nightcap to secure the 5-3 win for the Reds – and he did it as a late-game pinch hitter. If any moment called for the MLB to get in on the Top Shot craze, this would be it.

Also, peep some player stats (attached)…

[pauwoo]

I wore my New Edition shirt this morning – too early, I should’ve saved it – and no less than 4 people sang Mr. Telephone Man aloud as they walked by me on the street. So, in addition to my morning being ruined by the fact that I was unable to find any migas for breakfast, I’ll have that joint stuck in my head for the rest of the day. And, listen, I don’t want you to take that the wrong way – I love that track, Mr. Telephone Man is a jam… but, for the real New Edition O.G.’s it’s Cool It Now or nothing.


Seattle Mariners (14-4, .778, 1st AL West) @ Boston Red Sox (8-11, .421, 4th AL East)
While we’ve come out gangbusters thus far, the Red Sox have busied themselves by playing the part that the baseball punditry laid out for them in the season preview… they’ve been every bit the listing, rudderless ship everyone believed they would be – good enough to avoid a complete capsizing, sure, maybe even good enough to pass the treading water portion of the PADI certification test, but nowhere near championship quality. Their lot seems destined to be that of the irritant – good enough to win a few that they shouldn’t, spoil a series or two, and to act as an MLB gatekeeper of sorts… a Mendoza line for the table, if you will, where anyone situated above them will do and anyone below is found wanting. And never mind the fact that we’re likely to be right there with them when this thing is all said and done – YOU HUSH THAT FUSS – because now, like RIGHT NOW, our form is impeccable… something that should be enjoyed like a fine wine. Until the bottle is empty, and you’re left with nothing better than a box of Franzia (a nice Sunset Blush, perhaps) in the fridge to keep the party going…

19 of 162: Nick Morecabbages (2-1, 3.60) @ Martin Perez (1-0, 3.46)
Win, 6-4. Joc would get us started in the top of the 1st with a 3-run double that served as our opening salvo and notice to the league that we are, for tonight at least, the Real Deal Holyfield… Boston wouldn’t go down without a fight – they clawed their way back into it with runs in the 4th and 5th frames – until Dylan Moore, who was pinch hitting for Shed Long (who was pinch running for Ty France), put a 3-run moon shot over the fence to put this one just out of reach for the home team. Kyle Lewis, the MLB batting leader so far this year, went hitless in 5 tries, Fletcher went 3 for 5, Wong 2 for 4, and Morecabbages was good enough over 6.2 innings of work to pick up his 3rd win on the year.

Note: Ty France left the game after getting hit by a pitch. He’ll be DtD for a few…


Elsewhere: The Yankees’ gentle giant, Giancarlo Stanton, went 2 for 4 with 2 jacks, 4 RBI, and 2 runs to lead New York to a 6-1 win over Cleveland… New York is now sitting on a disappointing 8-10 record with a +9 rDiff and operating two games below the Pythagorean… and, speaking of rDiff, we’re flexing a +44 differential which is 3 ahead of Oakland and good enough for top of the pops in all of baseball. Crazy.

We are, simply put, the best there’s ever been.

Record: 15-4
Up Next: Marco is back on the bump. Get excite.

[pauwoo]

Found my way over to the Trident Booksellers Café (about half a mile from Fenway) this morning to rustle up some migas, and since they have them, grab a book to read on the plane down to Houston… First, they didn’t have migas, so the guy at the hotel will have some explaining to do (no worries though - I had a Mega Benedict which is basically some short rib gravy ladled over giant tots with cheese, poached eggs and hollandaise – a delicious breakfast that I’ll likely pay for later), and second, I grabbed a copy of Savage Country by Robert Olmsted mostly because the cover looked cool. The blurb on the back sounded bleak though…

20 of 162: Marco Gonzales (2-1, 3.67) @ Matt Andriese (1-0, 5.27)
Loss, 6-3. Things were going fine – not swimmingly, exactly, just fine – until the bottom of the 6th when Christian Vazquez decided to get cute and burn Marco on a 2-run dinger (his second on the day) that would ultimately be the difference-maker here. Bobby Dalbec hit a 2-run blast against his former employer, our defense was stout (3 expertly crafted double plays), and the pitching was (mostly) good until the 6th. A tough day at the office… just couldn’t find our groove – so, as any downtrodden baseball GM should, I’ll be retiring to my quarters early to drown my sorrows in that classic combo of an ice-cold Sam Adams paired with a bowl of Boston-style clam chowder.


Elsewhere: Baltimore’s Freddy Galvis went 4 for 4 with a double, TWO JACKS, 3 RBI, and 3 runs during the Orioles’ complete and utter dismantling of the Oakland Athletics. Mancini went 2 for 4 with a run and an RBI, DJ Stewart hit a 3-run blast, and the pitching held firm with Kremer, Armstrong, and Mattson all contributing to the cause. Good day to be a skipjack city fan.

Record: 15-5
Up Next: We pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and take another crack at these clowns tomorrow in Fenway.

[pauwoo]

So, we have two more to go in Boston, including today and I’m already all set to get out of dodge – I mean, listen, it’s a cool town, but as a card-carrying PNW lifer, there’s only so much non-Ivar’s chowder and hopped-up Southie accents a guy can take... I mean, if I work my way through another Sammy’s half-rack like I did last night, I’ll end up looking like Cole Hauser’s character in Goodwill Hunting, passed out in the back seat of my Uber on my way back to the ballpark…

21 of 162: Matthew Boyd (1-1, 5.56) @ Connor Seabold (0-3, 7.20)
Win, 5-3. And we’re back in the high life again! A 2-run single from Wong broke things open for us in the 7th and Franchy’s run-scoring single in the bottom of the 9th wasn’t enough to get it done as Logan Morrison struck out looking with 2 outs on the board and two men on base in the bottom of the 9th to close the book on this one. Haniger is still struggling for my fake Ms (I want the real-world version right about meow) and finished 0 for 3 in this one, Wong went 3 for 5 with 3 RBIs, Joc fanned three times, Dalbec was hit by a wayward pitch, Kyle Lewis committed his first fielding flub on the year, and, somehow, someway, we got it done anyway.


Elsewhere: Cleveland’s Ryan Lavarnway went 3 for 4 with a double, TWO DONG DONGS, FOUR RIBLETS, and 3 RUNS during his clubs 14-7 win over the downtrodden Yankees of New York. The Yankees, at 8-12 so far, have not kicked things off in the style we’d expect given the talent on their roster. Of course, it’s a marathon, not a sprint, and all that…

Record: 16-5
Up Next: Our time in Boston comes to an end as we close out this four-game parlay before leaving on a jet plane bound for Houston.

[pauwoo]

I lost the cleaning cloth that came with my Oakley’s so things aren’t looking as crystal clear as I am accustomed to, and I can’t find a decent plate of migas in this godforsaken town. But my club is playing like gangbusters and we’re headed down to Houston after the game. So, if nothing else, my migas situation should improve.

22 of 162: Aaron Sanchez (1-0, 1.20) @ Nathan Eovaldi (0-2, 6.75)
Win, 8-6. This was a hard-fought tilt – we clawed our way back after allowing 4 runners to plate before the 6th and took the lead during the top of the 6th when Joc charged a bases-loaded, 3-run double to Eovaldi’s account to put us up for good. Boston’s Xander Bogaerts was the man of the match here as he did his level best to send us off on a loss – 3 for 4 with TWO JACKS and a walk, while scoring 3 runs and driving in two. Sanchez was less than stellar – he gave up five runs during his 6.2 innings of work, but the offense was cranking and managed to steal this last one in Boston. Now we rush to the plane to get outta dodge…


Elsewhere: Milwaukee’s James Paxton hurled an 8-inning, 1-hit shutout with 3 walks and 9 Ks to lead his Brewers to a 3-0 win over the Chicago Cubs. With the win, Milwaukee moves to 10-11 on the year while the Cubbies fall to a putrid 8-13 so far. The division’s still close though as the last place Cubs are only 5 games off the pace set by the St. Louis Cardinals.

Record: 17-5
Up Next: Houston... good migas, gross club.

[pauwoo]

Seattle Mariners (17-5, .773, 1st AL West) @ Houston Astros (10-11, .476, 3rd AL West)
So far, in the early going of the 2021 campaign, the once formidable Houston Astros are the paper tiger of the AL West. Just an ineffectual group of ne'er-do-wells whose laziness and reliance on trash can tech has seemingly left a talent gap significant enough to knock them off the perch reserved for the best in the AL West. And, it would seem that we, the perennial doormat of the AL West, have swooped in to make our claim… This is all just fantasy. We’ve been stellar – there really is no other way to put it – a +46 rDiff, +2 against the PYT, an American League leading .356 OBP. Basically, with the way we are laying it down, we are right where we should be… But, Houston, for all their flaws, are likely laying in wait for some unsuspecting prey to saunter by so that they may strike & fuel up for the inevitable climb ahead. This 4-game set, should they rise to the level of play that they are capable of, and should we come crashing back down to earth, could be the series that helps them right the ship while tempering our expectations a bit.

Note: Xander Bogaerts, likely buoyed by his performance against us, took home the Player of the Week award in the American League, while former Mariner, the BIG MAPLE, took home Player of the Week in the National League. Pax went 2-0 with 20 Ks in 15.2 innings of work while maintaining a perfect 0.00 ERA. I’d much prefer that he be doing this for us – but, really, it’s just nice to see him injury-free and doing well in this save.

Your OPS Leaders so far…
Eloy Jimenez, CWS, 1.256
Matt Olson, OAK, 1.132
Cody Bellinger, LAD, 1.129
Bobby Dalbec, SEA, 1.052
Franmil Reyes, CLE, 1.049

Updated Power Rankings:
Atlanta Braves, 147.1
Seattle Mariners, 147.1
Los Angeles Dodgers, 132.7
New York Mets, 132.7
Oakland Athletics, 129.7

Houston is 17th, the White Sox 18th, Yankees 21st, and Padres 30th.

23 of 162: Matt Peacock (2-0, 2.13) @ Lance McCullers, Jr (1-2, 5.25)
Loss, 6-4. This was a back and forth affair for much of the game – they drew first blood in the bottom of the 4th, we answered back with three of our own spread across the 5th and 6th frames, and they put another on after the stretch. It was the 8th frame that would be our undoing though – after we added another run in the top of the inning (our 4th on the day), Houston would turn into a wrecking crew with four runs, all off Kikuchi, during the bottom of the frame to put themselves up for good. Kyle Tucker was the main culprit – 2 for 4 with 2 jacks, 3 RBI, and 2 runs – while Joc and K-Lew did their level best to get us a result – Lewis with the solo shot off McCullers Jr and Pederson with a 2 for 4 day that included a couple of riblets. Joc had some opportunities to do a little more though – he’d come up short with the bases loaded twice (striking out each time) – and Bobby Dalbec put our second Golden Sombrero (or worse) on the board with an 0 for 5 day and 4 Ks.


Elsewhere: Mike Moustakas, Cincinnati’s $80-million-dollar man, was worth every penny during tonight’s 6-4 win over the Los Angeles – for the contest, he went 3 for 4 with TWO BOMBS, 6 RBI, and 2 RUNS to dispatch the Dodgers. It didn’t quite have the energy of those rivalry games during the 70s did, but it was a hotly contested tilt, nonetheless.

Record: 17-6
Up Next: Still in Houston… home of the ‘Purgatory Scream Park’ and likely hotbed of Juggalo fan club activity.

[pauwoo]

Listen, dropping games to Houston, or anyone really, is something that, as professional baseball men, we are mentally prepared for. Baseball is a game of failure, we were predicted to fail a lot by the punditry, and even the best drop a game or two… the problem, as I see it, however, lies in the fact that this could be the start of something bad, something cataclysmic – because, no matter how much we are enjoying our time at the top, we know that we aren’t supposed to be here. The question we intend to answer now is can we borrow enough time to beat Houston in their park before our inevitable decline begins?


24 of 162: Nick Margevicius (3-1, 4.15) @ Jake Odorizzi (2-1, 3.63)
Win, 8-3. We’re the oft-overlooked Marco Antonio Barrera, in his prime, running roughshod over all comers and bucking the odds every time out – we’re not the favorite, but we’re fundamentally sound and capable of burning the overconfident (See: Prince Naseem Hamed) when given the opportunity. Fletch played the role of spoiler – 2 for 4 with a homer, 4 RBIs, and a run – K-Lew continued his fantastic start at the plate with a 3 for 5 performance that put his average at .411 so far this year, and Joc drove two in and hit a solo shot of Odorizzi in the 3rd. Outfield assist for Joc today as well – he caught Bregman trying to stretch out a double – and Margevicius picked up his 4th win of the year. I’m going to be honest here though – he’s been more lucky than good.

Also… Luis, we barely knew ye

• Activated SP Josh Lindblom from the injured list.
• C Luis Torrens was designated for assignment and placed on irrevocable waivers.

We also brought up Matt Manning, Logan Gilbert, and Jarred Kelenic - so there is that…

Record: 18-6
Up Next: We continue to live out our surreal professional baseball existence in Houston as part of our own personal Still Life with Woodpecker...

[pauwoo]

In just two days’ time, we’ll be back home in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, enjoying all its natural splendor and facing off against another tip-top division foe in the Los Angeles Angels – so, no rest for the wicked any time soon. I do miss my bed though.

25 of 162: Matt Manning (0-0, 0.00) @ Jose Urquidy (1-2, 6.95)
Loss, 3-2. As far as season debuts go you can do a lot worse than Matt’s 7.1 innings of work with 5 hits, 3 earned, and 7 Ks – good on the kid for coming out hot. Unfortunately, for us and our young hurler, we were unable to solve Urquidy, and didn’t do much offensively here outside of a run-scoring single from Wong and a solo shot for Kelenic (also in his season debut). And it’s not like they were much better – Correa drove in a couple and Aledmys Diaz put one out. In the end, we just didn’t have enough in this one and, as a result, dropped a close one that would’ve looked really nice in our win column.


Elsewhere: New York’s Gleyber Torres went 5 for 7 with a double, 3 RBI, and 2 runs during the Yankees 15-7 shellacking of the Baltimore Orioles. The Yankees still suck though as this was their 1st win in 5 tries.

Record: 18-7
Up Next: More of the same… Houston again… it’s getting gross.

[pauwoo]

We’ve arrived at our last chance for a slow dance here in Houston – would be nice to get the split and head off to the airport for our ~5-hour flight on a good note.

26 of 162: Marco Gonzales (2-2, 4.15) @ Zack Greinke (1-2, 3.82)
Win, 7-1. I think that this one could be summed up thusly – we charged four bad ones to Zack Greinke’s account today and he wasn’t even telling us what pitches he was going to throw. In total, we got homers from Dalbec and K-Lew, and THREE MORE from Joc – that’s 5 in total if you’re counting. We’d round things out with a swiped bag from Wong, 2 double plays (including a sweet yo-yo DP from Murphy-Wong), and Logan Gilbert’s debut – he gave us 1.1 innings of work, allowing only a single hit while walking one and fanning 3. A split against the team we love to hate the most, in their house? Sign me up.

Elsewhere: Well, not elsewhere really – instead, I’ll just leave this right here…


Record: 19-7
Up Next: We’re meeting Mike Trout in the playground at 5 to duke it out – or something like that. I also plan on pestering Perry Minasian until he finally relents and agrees to send Rendon over to my club for a couple of prospects and a half rack of Rainier Beer. Also known as – Longmire’s favorite beer.

[pauwoo]

Los Angeles Angels (13-13, .500, 3rd AL West) @ Seattle Mariners (19-7, .731, 1st AL West)
Before the 2021 campaign kicked off, the Angels were predicted to finished tied at the top of the pops with none other than us… As evidenced by their paltry 13-13 record, they have not kept up their end of the bargain while Oakland (predicted to finish in 4th, currently in 2nd at 18-8) has been more than happy to pick up the slack. On paper, they are the better club – better parts, better pit crew, better management – but, this isn’t Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, there’ll be no 20-sided die, and there is no graphing paper here - we run these back on the field of play. What’s clear, so far, is that LA’s offense is struggling – they’re ranked 13th or worse in every category worth tracking – and their pitching hasn’t been much better. They’re just not who we thought they were – at least so far – while we’ve been greater than the sum of our parts. Our offense is humming – ranked 1st overall in the AL – and our staff has been stout. So, really, it’s about keeping the good times rolling for as long as we can.

27 of 162: Jose Quintana (1-2, 6.33) @ Matthew Boyd (2-1, 4.70)
Loss, 2-0. The good times are killing me… TWO HITS. TWO GD HITS. That’s all we could muster here… both hits came courtesy of former Angel and current seafaring ne'er-do-well, David Fletcher, who finished 2 for 2 in the tilt. And, really, that’s all we got here… sure, the pitching was serviceable – Boyd went 6.1, allowed 7 hits and 2 runs – but we needed more than serviceable today if we were going to find our way over the finish line before Los Angeles. We just didn’t have enough – we’re tired, we’ve been on the road for a good stretch, and it’s hard to get a result when you’re running on empty. Exhilarating but not ideal.


Elsewhere: Catcher Bruce Maxwell, of the New York Mets, went 3 for 5 with a two-bagger, homer, 6 RBIs, and 2 runs during a 9-5 win over the Philadelphia Phillies. Some good work at the plate and from behind the plate here for Maxwell as he also managed to corral an unusually wild Jacob deGrom, helping him win his 5th game so far this year despite giving up two homers and 5 total runs.

Record: 19-8.
Up Next: A night spent sleeping in our own beds followed by another day at the park.

[pauwoo]

Some notes… Our very own SP Matt Peacock took home the Rookie of the Month Award for his work throughout April – 2-0, 2.01 ERA, and held opponents to a .182 average. Other winners – LF Eloy Jimenez (CWS) won the AL Best Bat Award while Los Angeles’s Cody Bellinger did the same in the NL, Cleveland SP Aaron Civale and New York SP Jacob deGrom were named Top Hurlers, and CF Cristian Pache won RotM in the NL.

My Top 5 Clubs in the League (based on performance):
1. Atlanta Braves (19-7, 1st NL East)
2. Oakland Athletics (19-8, t-1st AL West)
3. Seattle Mariners (19-8, t-1st AL West)
4. Los Angeles Dodgers (18-9, 1st NL West)
5. New York Mets (17-8, 2nd NL East)

Standings & League Leaders are attached…

28 of 162: Griffin Canning (2-1, 2.96) @ Josh Lindbloom (1-0, 3.00)
Loss, 5-4. Upended. Again. We’d come out gangbusters in this one with a 2-run dinger from K-Lew during the bottom of the 1st that followed a run-scoring double courtesy of Ty France. Things would fizzle out a bit from there though… we traded zeroes for a stretch, allowed one in the top of the 4th, put one across in the bottom of the 5th, and then promptly gave that one back in the top of the 6th. Through 6 it was safe to say that things were going swimmingly – we were motoring around the deep end, without a care in the world, confident in our ability to keep our head above water without the aid of our trusty water wings…. And, then, the fatigue set in. The top of the 7th would be our undoing here – Starter Josh Lindbloom gave up 3 solo dingers during the top of the frame (was Scott sleeping? Like, yank the kid SKIP) that spelled our doom. It wasn’t even the usual suspects that got it done here – LF Jared Walsh hit his 1st out, RF Brandon Marsh hit his 3rd, and C Kurt Suzuki sent his 4th yard during the sequence. No Trout, No Rendon, No Shohei... Frustrating day at the park.

Elsewhere: KC’s Hunter Dozier put two balls out of the park, drove 7 in, and scored three times during the Royals’ 12-2 dismantling of the Minnesota Twins. In Minnesota. Dozier’s game score of 96 is ranked 2nd on the Top Game Performances table with only NY’s Gio Urshela ranked ahead of him with a 114 score. Our own Joc Pederson is 11th on the table with an 84 score – it came against Houston only two days ago and is, of course, highlighted above. Also, I’m sad that I missed this yesterday… BUT, SF SP Alex Young hit a GRAND SLAM against the Colorado Rockies to help lift his team to a 12-11 extra-innings win on the 30th.

The Slammers So Far…
Alec Bohm, PHI, 2
Jose Altuve, HOU, 1
Brian Anderson, MIA, 1
Josh Bell, WAS, 1
David Bote, CHC, 1
Michael Brantley, HOU, 1
Mike Brosseau, TB, 1
Zack Collins, CWS, 1
Alex Dickerson, SF, 1
Hunter Dozier, KC, 1
Adam Duvall, MIA, 1
Joey Gallo, TEX, 1
Eric Hosmer, SD, 1
Jonathan India, CIN, 1
Aaron Judge, NYY, 1
Jake Marisnick, CHC, 1
Jason Martin, TEX, 1
Bruce Maxwell, NYM, 1
Jeff McNeil, NYM, 1
Tomas Nido, NYM, 1
Anthony Rizzo, CHC, 1
Luis Robert, CWS, 1
Pedro Severino, BAL, 1
Chris Taylor, LAD, 1
Spencer Torkelson, DET, 1
Gleyber Torres, NYY, 1
Gio Urshela, NYY, 1
Pat Valaika, BAL, 1
Alex Young, ARI, 1 (IT’S A PITCHER)

Bases Loaded K Leaders…
RF Franmil Reyes (CLE) – 5 K’s in 7 Bases Loaded AB’s
1B Bobby Dalbec (SEA) – 4 K’s in 5 Bases Loaded AB’s
LF Joc Pederson (SEA) – 4 K’s in 8 Bases Loaded AB’s
2B Chris Taylor (LAD) – 4 K’s in 6 Bases Loaded AB’s

Record: 19-9
Up Next: We’ll see these guys one more time and do our level best to right the ship and salvage some dignity here…

[pauwoo]

We find ourselves on the verge of being swept, at home, against a club that is suddenly playing up to their capabilities. And, when you factor in that yesterday’s loss puts us at 5-5 for our last 10, I think it is safe to say that the good times are no longer rolling.

29 of 162: Dylan Bundy (2-1, 7.17) @ Matt Peacock (2-0, 2.01)
Loss, 4-1. Oof. Swept. At home. In front of our wives, children, family, and friends. Not a good look. Peacock was just OK – he labored a bit here – and gave us 5.1 innings of work with 4 hits, 3 earned, 4 walks, and 5 K’s. He was no match for Bundy, though, who went 7 strong while only allowing only 5 hits and NO RUNS. Dylan Moore put his 3rd ball out of the park, we got a nice DP from Murphy-France and left 5 runners stranded who are now left to wander the earth like Cain from Kung Fu – forever lost in some philosophical purgatory reserved for baserunners who never found their way home.


Elsewhere: Oakland’s Matt Chapman went 3 for 5 with a double, a 3-run dinger, and 2 runs while his partner in crime, and fellow Matt, Mr. Olson went 3 for 4 with a 2-run dinger and 3 runs during what would be an 11-2 dismantling of the Baltimore Orioles. The win puts Oakland two games ahead of us in the AL West while their foil here, the B’More O’s, find themselves stuck amongst the lowest of the low in 5th and 5.5 games off the pace in the AL East.

Record: 19-10
Up Next: We'll welcome the Baltimore Orioles to town with open arms and a full heart.

[pauwoo]

Baltimore Orioles (12-16, .429, 5th AL East) @ Seattle Mariners (19-10, .655, 2nd AL West)
As expected, the Baltimore Orioles are in a bad way – they’ve lost 5 straight, including, most recently, an unceremonious sweep in Oakland, and boast a pitching staff that doesn’t look to have the chops to get them out of this mess. We’re happy to have them – always a death knell – as this represents something of an opportunity to get the USS Mariner back on course after drifting so listlessly for the last three contests. Of course, that is not to say that our winning here is nothing more than a foregone conclusion – it’s not – as Baltimore is no doubt licking their chops at the prospect of seeing us on the other side of the field, mired in our own losing streak, and quickly forgetting what it felt like to be so cocksure before we welcomed Trout and his merry men to town. The Orioles do some things well – they hit for average, have a middle-of-the-road .331 OPS, and are ranked in the top five for both wOBA and Starters ERA. Everything else, however, is suspect – something we’d like to pick at a little bit. A good opportunity to course-correct – let’s hope we don’t squander it.

30 of 162: Dean Kremer (3-1, 5.64) @ Matt Manning (0-1, 3.68)
Win, 5-2. Big Bat Bobby Dalbec put two bad ones on Baltimore and drove in 4 of our 5 runs while Matt Manning put together a strong 6.1 inning performance, giving up only two runs while fanning 9 hapless hitters. The bottom of the 6th is where Bobby D brought this one home for us – a three-run blast that, his second dinger of the day, and 9th on the year. A good enough effort against a ho-hum Orioles club – SAC BUNT for Haniger, SAC FLY for Wong (who also recorded a HBP and stole his 3rd bag of the season), and two tasty double-plays. We’ll take it and two more just like it… please & thank you.

Elsewhere: Minnesota’s Byron Buxton joined Bobby D in today’s 2 JACK club – he went 3 for 4 with 2 dingers, 3 RBI, and 3 runs during the Twins’ 6-0 victory over the Texas Rangers. It should also be noted that Texas (along with the Detroit Tigers and the Washington Nationals) is one of only three teams that have not yet won 10 games. 8-22 to start the 2021 campaign for the representative from the Lonestar State. What's the opposite of yee-haw?

Other Notes: Oakland’s Matt Olson and Cincy’s Mike Moustakas each took home the Player of the Week trophy for their respective leagues, Boston’s Alex Verdugo is leading the majors in doubles while playing Center Field at 13 (4 ahead of Baltimore’s Austin Hays who is in 2nd at 9), and we dropped to 6th in the weekly power ranking… top five, etc is below.

Power Rankings:

1. Oakland Athletics
2. Atlanta Braves
3. Tampa Bay Rays
4. New York Mets
5. Cleveland Indians

Notables… Seattle - 6th, LAA - 7th, LAD - 8th, MIN – 14th, CWS – 15th, PHI – 18th, NYY – 21st, HOU – 24th, SD – 27th.

Record: 20-10
Up Next: We continue our attempt to cure all that ails us against the Orioles in Seattle.

[pauwoo]

We have a couple more against Baltimore - a club we should handle with relative ease. We just have to remain focused on the task at hand – then it’s a day off before heading out to Arlington, Texas to take on another club that should not present much difficulty. This is a fortunate early-season stretch for us… a series of, in my mind, must-win games against clubs that we should be able to beat. In fact, this looks to be a real up and down month in terms of opponent quality – sets against Baltimore, Texas (twice, totaling 7 games), and Detroit are pushed up against some difficult sets against the likes of the Dodgers, Indians, Athletics, and Padres (who are much better than they’ve shown… and who will have Tatis Jr back in the lineup by the time we pay them a visit).

31 of 162: Matt Shoemaker (0-1, 27.00) @ Marco Gonzales (3-2, 3.61)
Win, 6-2. Another day, another workmanlike performance against the visiting Baltimore Orioles. Marco picks up his 4th win with a 6 inning, 6 hit, 2 earned, and TEN K performance, and the pen gave us three innings of 3-hit relief to close this one out as quickly and efficiently as possible. Kelenic went 2 for 4 with an RBI, Haniger drove two in on a 2 for 4 day of his own, and K-Lew & K-Wong each hit a run-scoring double to provide a bit of padding.


Elsewhere: Zooming out a bit here… Si-won Park, of the Changwon Dinos, went 4 for 4 with TWO, TWO-BAGGERS, a triple, a DING DONG, 4 total RBI, and 2 runs in his clubs 9-2 win over the Hampyeong KIA Tigers. He just missed the cycle here, needing only the single to etch his name into the history books. On the year, Park is hitting .500/.579/1.125 with 2 homers, 6 RBIs, and NO Ks. It’s only 4 games in, but still… kid came out hot and deserves a tip of the ol’ cap. Meanwhile, in the MLB, KC’s Whit Merrifield went 3 for 5 with two triples, 5 RBI, and a couple of runs against the Cleveland Indians in what was a 13-7 win for his Royals. That’s cool – not as cool as what Si-won laid down, but low-key cool nonetheless.

Record: 21-10.
Up Next: A chance for a confidence-boosting sweep over the Orioles.

[pauwoo]

We’ll finish things up against the Orioles here (hopefully with a sweep) before taking most of the day off tomorrow before meeting in Everett in the late afternoon to make the hop from Paine Field to Love Field in the Dallas Metropolitan area… it’s also Cinco De Mayo which means my assistant is headed to Yakima, WA to fetch me some tacos from the 5 Salsas Food Truck – 4 hour round trip and well worth every minute you ask me… of course I’m not the one doing the driving, so my assistants' mileage may vary. I think she enjoys it – I’ve likened it to transporting vital transplant organs… same urgency, the same care with the transported items. Tacos are important, on that I think we can all agree.


Have taco, will travel...

32 of 162: Cole Hamels (0-2, 7.52) @ Matthew Boyd (2-2, 4.38)
Loss, 5-2. There’ll be no sweep this time out – what we did get, however, is some hard-nosed baseball with a never-say-die, Goonie-ish attitude on full display until the bottom of the 9th when, with the bases loaded, Kelenic and Dalbec both struck out trying to win the game with one swing. Kids these days… We got a good outing overall from Matthew Boyd as he pitched 8 hard-scrabble innings where he watched 4 runners plate while only being responsible for two of them… we’d also get doubles from France and Pederson, homers from Moore and Kelenic (a solo shot that came one inning too early), completed a pretty sweet Fletcher-Wong-Dalbec DP, and even got an OF assist from Haniger. Unfortunately, we were a bit sloppy in spots as well – two fielding flubs that accounted for 3 of Baltimore’s 5 runs, and we left a total of 10 runners stranded here. A wasted opportunity.


Elsewhere: Alex Dickerson, of the San Francisco Treats, went 4 for 5 with a double, a DING DONG, 4 total RBI, and 3 runs as the Giants destroyed the Colorado Rocky Mountain Oysters by a score of 13-3. The entire Giants unit was engaged in this one – doubles for Yastrzemski, La Stella, and Solano, Homers for Dickerson & Posey, and a burgled bag from Alex Dickerson would round out the offensive highlights here… oh, and SP Jake Thompson is now 3-0 for San Francisco after entering an 8-inning, 7-hit, 3-run effort into the permanent record with 8 K’s too boot. Not a bad day on the road for the Giants.

Side Note: Alex Dickerson's nickname in the game is Grandpa... which, according to the man himself, was earned when he was a 15-year old. Note that, in-game, his injury rating is set as 'normal'. At least in my save.

Record: 21-11
Up Next: We’ll take a day of rest, make the not-so-quick hop over to Love Field, get all checked in to our hotel, and steel ourselves up for a 3-game set in Arlington against the Texas Rangers. Should be fun.