Wednesday, August 03, 2005
GAME 105: MARINERS 4, TIGERS 1
Mariners 4, Tigers 1
In 25 words or less: More issues with the starting pitching, but a yeoman's effort in long relief saves the Mariners.
This one featured recent call-up Jorge Campillo going up against Jason Johnson. For the uniform number addicts, Jorge Campillo wore number 49. Jeff Harris, called up from Tacoma to take the spot of Jeff Nelson, who was placed on the bereavement to tend to the passing of his father-in-law, wore number 58. Yorvit Torrealba was spotted in the dugout wearing number 8, and hopefully will hit better than his predecessor with the same number, Miguel Olivo. There were also some roster moves since the last time I did one of these recap deals. Aaron Sele was mercifully released to make room for Campillo. Masao Kida is taking Ryan Franklin's spot on the roster, due to the latter's violation of baseball's drug policy. I've probably forgotten some moves, maybe not.
TOP 1ST
Grade: C
Not a banner start. Ichiro nubbed a groundout up the middle. Willie Bloomquist got the hitters' counts and smacked the 3-1 pitch through Johnson and up the middle for a single. Bloomquist was nearly picked off by Ivan Rodriguez behind the plate after the second pitch to Raul Ibañez. Ibañez chopped a 1-2 pitch to second for a 4-6-3 double play.
BOTTOM 1ST
Grade: B-
Some trouble, but no damage. Placido Polanco tagged a 3-1 pitch down the leftfield line and toward the corner for a double. Brandon Inge fouled off a full-count pitch before popping high to Adrian Beltre near third. Bryan Price came out to visit the mound. Chris Shelton lined out to leftfield on the second pitch. Magglio Ordoñez popped out high to Yuniesky Betancourt near the mound.
Campillo's line: 1 inning, 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 17 pitches (9 strikes)
TOP 2ND
Grade: B
They dented the scoreboard. Richie Sexson got behind 0-2, eventually foul-tipping a 2-2 pitch into Rodriguez' glove behind the plate. Adrian Beltre crushed the second pitch about five rows into the seats into leftfield for a solo shot.
»» MARINERS 1, TIGERS 0
Jeremy Reed fell behind 0-2 and later grounded out to second. Dave Hansen popped the first pitch to Dmitri Young short of the track in leftfield.
BOTTOM 2ND
Grade: A-
Jeff Harris, making his Major League debut, came in for Campillo, who left due to a strained right elbow. Rondell White grounded a full-count pitch to short thanks to a strong throw by Betancourt. Ivan Rodriguez crushed a 2-0 pitch to Ibañez, who reached up to make the catch at the wall in leftfield. Dmitri Young popped a 1-2 pitch high into rightfield for the flyout.
TOP 3RD
Grade: C-
Nothing here. Wiki Gonzalez flew out to Young in the gap in leftcenter on a ball that nearly got down for extra bases. Yuniesky Betancourt rolled out to second on the second pitch. Ichiro grounded the first pitch hard to second.
BOTTOM 3RD
Grade: B+
Avoiding trouble once again, but with Joe Dumars spending some time with Rod Allen and Mario Impemba in the Detroit TV booth. Craig Monroe grounded an 0-2 pitch to short, where Betancourt ranged toward the middle and threw, but was late anyway, and the throw got past Sexson, though Monroe didn't advance. Omar Infante bunted the second pitch in front of the plate, but Gonzalez was able to come from behind the plate and nail the lead runner Monroe at second. Polanco dinked the second pitch in front of Reed in centerfield for a single, moving Monroe to second. Inge worked a 1-2 count full and fouled a pitch off before taking a pitch over the inside corner for a strikeout. Shelton got ahead 2-0 and hit a checkswing grounder to second for an out.
TOP 4TH
Grade: C-
Johnson benefitted from a great play. Bloomquist got ahead 3-0 and chopped out to short on a full count. Ibañez clubbed the second pitch deep to centerfield, where Monroe ran full steam back toward the wall and made the catch over the shoulder just short of the wall. Sexson got ahead 2-0 and eventually nubbed a full-count grounder to third, where Inge charged, barehanded, and threw to first, barely in time.
BOTTOM 4TH
Grade: A-
A fairly quick inning for Harris. Ordoñez stung the ball into leftfield for a solid single. White flew out on the first pitch to Sexson, who was way in on the first-base line. Rodriguez grounded the second pitch hard to second, starting the 4-6-3 double play.
TOP 5TH
Grade: C
A fairly quick and uneventful inning. Beltre grounded the first pitch to second. Reed worked a 1-2 count full by taking a couple of very close pitches, fouled off another pitch, then took the next pitch up and in for a walk, snapping Johnson's streak of nine straight retired hitters. Hansen whiffed on a 1-0 pitch inside, which didn't help Reed's plight, as he was gunned down at second despite a high throw. Hansen lined a pitch toward the corner in rightfield, but Ordoñez came over and caught it.
BOTTOM 5TH
Grade: A
Amazingly, another quick inning for Harris. Young poked a ball deep toward the leftfield corner, where Ibañez made the catch near the warning track. Monroe flew out to Ibañez on the track in leftfield. Infante flew out to Reed in centerfield.
TOP 6TH
Grade: C
Some runners, but nothing more. Gonzalez lined the first pitch right to Young in leftfield. Betancourt dumped the second pitch in front of Young in leftfield for a single. Ichiro grounded a 3-0 pitch hard up the middle, but Infante came over (tough play) and backhand flipped to second for an out, though Ichiro predictably beat out the throw to first (6-4 fielder's choice). Bloomquist got ahead 3-0 and grounded the 3-1 pitch to short.
BOTTOM 6TH
Grade: A-
Harris looked good. Polanco flew out to centerfield on the second pitch. Inge chopped out to short. Shelton got behind 0-2 but worked the count full before lining right to Beltre.
Harris' line: 5 innings, 0 runs, 3 hits, 0 walks, 1 strikeout, 65 pitches (41 strikes)
TOP 7TH
Grade: C-
Some deep balls, but they're all outs. Ibañez sent the first pitch near the warning track in centerfield, where Monroe went back and made the catch. Sexson mashed a pitch to the track in leftcenter, again caught by Monroe. Beltre chopped out to third on the second pitch.
BOTTOM 7TH
Grade: C
Julio Mateo (birthday boy, 28 years old) came in for Harris. Ordoñez got behind 0-2 and chopped a 2-2 pitch to short for the groundout. White bashed a 2-2 pitch to Ibañez, who caught it on the track in leftcenter. Rodriguez lined the first pitch five rows into the rightfield seats for a solo shot, tying the game.
»» TIGERS 1, MARINERS 1
Young got ahead 2-0, fouled off a full-count pitch, then hit a low liner that found Reed's glove in centerfield.
Mateo's line: 1 inning, 1 run, 1 hit, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 19 pitches (12 strikes)
TOP 8TH
Grade: A-
This one was fruitful. Reed fell behind 0-2 and later lined a 1-2 single into centerfield. Hansen pulled back a bunt on a strike, air-bunted a 1-1 pitch foul, pulled the bunt back on a 1-2 pitch up and in, then bunted in front of the plate, where Inge charged and threw to first in time. Noticing that third base was uncovered on the play, Reed rounded second and broke for third. He beat Ivan Rodriguez to third, who had to race out from the plate and receive the throw from first, which wasn't in time. Gonzalez took a 3-1 pitch down and in for a walk on a pitch that crossed up Rodriguez behind the plate. Detroit pitching coach Bob Cluck came out to visit the mound. Betancourt grounded the first pitch down the leftfield line, and it died next to the stands, good for a double to score Reed and move Gonzalez to third. The Mariners now led.
»» MARINERS 2, TIGERS 1
Ichiro took an intentional walk, loading the bases. Bloomquist popped the second pitch high to Polanco on the grass in shallow centerfield.
Jamie Walker came in for Johnson. Ibañez tagged an 0-2 pitch up the middle for a single into centerfield, scoring Gonzalez and Betancourt, further solidifying the lead. Ichiro scooted to second.
»» MARINERS 4, TIGERS 1
Craig Dingman came in for Walker. Sexson grounded to short for an easy 6-4 fielder's choice.
Johnson's line: 7 2/3 innings, 4 runs, 5 hits, 3 walks, 1 strikeout, 100 pitches (57 strikes)
Walker's line: 0 innings, 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 3 pitches (3 strikes)
Dingman's line: 1/3 inning, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 4 pitches (2 strikes)
BOTTOM 8TH
Grade: B
JJ Putz came in for Mateo. Monroe grounded the first pitch, which went off Beltre's glove and high into the air, where Betancourt pulled it barehanded out of the air and threw in time to first, a run-on-the-mill 5-6-3 putout. Infante stung the second pitch down the rightfield line for a double. Polanco grounded an 0-2 pitch into the hole on the right side, where Bloomquist moved over to throw in time. Inge fell behind 0-2 and later flew out on a 2-2 pitch to fairly deep rightfield.
Putz' line: 1 inning, 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 12 pitches (10 strikes)
TOP 9TH
Grade: C-
Ramon Colon, making his Detroit debut, came in for Dingman. Beltre pulled an outside pitch for a 1-2 groundout to short. Reed whiffed on a low 0-2 breaking ball. Hansen got behind 0-2, worked the count full, then tapped to Colon just off the mound, who went to first for the out.
Colon's line: 1 inning, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 1 strikeout, 15 pitches (11 strikes)
BOTTOM 9TH
Grade: A-
Eddie Guardado came in for Putz. Shelton got ahead 2-0 and eventually flew out to fairly deep rightfield on a 2-2 pitch. Ordoñez flew out high to Reed in shallow centerfield. White grounded an 0-2 pitch to short. Ballgame.
Guardado's line: 1 inning, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 11 pitches (8 strikes)
---
Gameball: Jeff Harris.
After the last couple years, I'm so glad to see the Mariners on the good end of the following scenario -- pitcher who is new to league shuts down other team, and the hitting team usually blames it on not having a book on the pitcher. Anyway, though the Mariners don't have playoff implications like they did in 2003, I'm glad that the Mariners came out on top in this game. I'd never seen Jeff Harris pitch before this game, but he had it going tonight. Hopefully he won't need it in the future for five innings at a time. After the suckitude of the starting pitching lately, the Mariners needed someone to eat up innings. After Jorge Campillo came out after the first inning due to the strained throwing elbow, the Mariners' entire pitching staff could have been screwed for a week or so. In a sense, they still might be, but less so than if they didn't have Jeff Harris come in and mop up. Julio Mateo could have been the first guy out of the pen, and he could have been burned for four games. In related news, Harris at times reminded me a little bit of former Mariner Todd Williams. I thought Tom Davey at first for some reason, but it's more along the lines of Todd Williams.
Goat: Richie Sexson.
It's got to be somebody. Nobody was a blatant hole of suck tonight. Since Sexson generally is expected to contribute more to the offense than a Dave Hansen (0-for-3), Sexson is getting the goat for this game. He went 0-for-4 with a strikeout and left two runners on base, one of them in scoring position with two out. Still, even with the 0-for-4 day, his average is still at a very respectable .271. Good times. I hope he doesn't offset a crazy July with a cliffdive of an August, though I am expecting him to level off at least a little bit. If we see 40 homers out of Richie this season, I think that's a victory. Of course, the spaciousness of Comerica did rob Richie of what would normally be a homer in this game, but when doesn't Comerica do that?
Yr W-L Pct GB Stk
2001 76-29 .724 -- W4
2002 63-42 .600 13 L1
2003 63-42 .600 13 L2
2000 61-44 .581 15 L1
2005 46-59 .438 30 W1
2004 39-66 .371 37 L4
Someone else had a good game whose name wasn't Jeff Harris. Yuniesky Betancourt went 2-for-3 with the only multi-hit game for any Mariner hitter in this game. He singled in the sixth and had the game-winning double in the eighth. Not only did he have the key hit of the game, he made some very nice defensive plays, leaving the Detroit TV crew marveling at his strong arm. There was also the play where the ball ate up Adrian Beltre and went high into the air. That didn't prevent Betancourt pulling the ball out of the air with his bare hand and throwing in time to first. That was a crazy play. If Betancourt can have a game on offense every once in a while like this and play such sound defense... Would you rather have a Mike Morse, who obviously is better on offense than defense, or would you rather have a Betancourt, who appears to be stellar on defense, and might be good enough on offense? It's a dilemma, I know, and it doesn't factor Adam Jones into the equation or anything like that. Just something to think about.
Let's hope Jorge Campillo's elbow comes out of the wash okay. Of course, we probably saw better output from Campillo in one inning today than if Aaron Sele would have started the game and went four innings. In those four innings, Sele probably would have been tagged for 6 runs and 9 or 10 hots or so, even in Comerica Park. Of course, since Jamie Moyer's back is bad and Ryan Franklin is kinda out for a couple starts due to the 'roids thing, this leaves the rotation pretty much in shambles. We're left with Gil Meche as the most consistent healthy starting pitcher, and well...if that doesn't scare you, I don't know what does. Sounds like a great time for a youth movement, huh?
I just recently thought about this...you can pretty much take the following statement to the bank: Ryan Christianson will NEVER put on a uniform at the Major League level for the Seattle Mariners. The Mariners shipped off Miguel Olivo, and after all of the moves, the Mariners ended up adding Yorvit Torrealba and Miguel Ojeda, two more catchers to put ahead of Christianson on the organizational depth chart at catcher. The Mariners have now had seven catchers put on the uniform this year, and none of them have been named Ryan Christianson. If they're not going to use Christianson at the Major League level, can they just get something for him or cut him loose already? If he doesn't get a September call-up...ugh. I'm not expecting him to come up to Seattle and just tear things up, but he's got to get at least one chance to step on the field for this team. Heck, if they brought him up as a late-inning defensive replacement and then got rid of him totally, I'd be all right with that. If they're blackballing him because of the steroid thing, then Ryan Franklin better get some of the same medicine when he gets back, but I know he won't.
Let's play a fun little game. I'll put up the Opening Day roster for this year, and we can compare it to the current roster. I'll bold the new additions and put asterisks by those either gone or just off the 25-man roster...
OPENING DAY
position players (13)
Adrian Beltre
Willie Bloomquist
Bret Boone*
Greg Dobbs*
Raul Ibañez
Miguel Olivo*
Jeremy Reed
Richie Sexson
Scott Spiezio
Ichiro
Wilson Valdez*
Dan Wilson*
Randy Winn*
pitchers (12)
Ryan Franklin*
Eddie Guardado
Shigetoshi Hasegawa
Bobby Madritsch*
Julio Mateo
Gil Meche
Jamie Moyer
Jeff Nelson
JJ Putz
Aaron Sele*
Matt Thornton
Ron Villone*
CURRENT (as of me typing this, anyway)
position players (13)
Adrian Beltre
Yuniesky Betancourt
Willie Bloomquist
Wiki Gonzalez
Dave Hansen
Raul Ibañez
Mike Morse
Jeremy Reed
Richie Sexson
Scott Spiezio
Jamal Strong
Ichiro
Yorvit Torrealba
pitchers (12)
Jorge Campillo
Eddie Guardado
Jeff Harris
Shigetoshi Hasegawa
Masao Kida
Julio Mateo
Gil Meche
Jamie Moyer
Joel Piñeiro
JJ Putz
George Sherrill
Matt Thornton
By my count, it looks like 10 of the 25 roster spots are different from Opening Day. That's 40 percent. Yes, stuff has happened for the Seattle Mariners this year. There's been some moderate housecleaning.
So...let's see if the Mariners can pull off a series win tomorrow before Felix pitches on Thursday, eh?
Meche. Maroth. Today.
In 25 words or less: More issues with the starting pitching, but a yeoman's effort in long relief saves the Mariners.
This one featured recent call-up Jorge Campillo going up against Jason Johnson. For the uniform number addicts, Jorge Campillo wore number 49. Jeff Harris, called up from Tacoma to take the spot of Jeff Nelson, who was placed on the bereavement to tend to the passing of his father-in-law, wore number 58. Yorvit Torrealba was spotted in the dugout wearing number 8, and hopefully will hit better than his predecessor with the same number, Miguel Olivo. There were also some roster moves since the last time I did one of these recap deals. Aaron Sele was mercifully released to make room for Campillo. Masao Kida is taking Ryan Franklin's spot on the roster, due to the latter's violation of baseball's drug policy. I've probably forgotten some moves, maybe not.
TOP 1ST
Grade: C
Not a banner start. Ichiro nubbed a groundout up the middle. Willie Bloomquist got the hitters' counts and smacked the 3-1 pitch through Johnson and up the middle for a single. Bloomquist was nearly picked off by Ivan Rodriguez behind the plate after the second pitch to Raul Ibañez. Ibañez chopped a 1-2 pitch to second for a 4-6-3 double play.
BOTTOM 1ST
Grade: B-
Some trouble, but no damage. Placido Polanco tagged a 3-1 pitch down the leftfield line and toward the corner for a double. Brandon Inge fouled off a full-count pitch before popping high to Adrian Beltre near third. Bryan Price came out to visit the mound. Chris Shelton lined out to leftfield on the second pitch. Magglio Ordoñez popped out high to Yuniesky Betancourt near the mound.
Campillo's line: 1 inning, 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 17 pitches (9 strikes)
TOP 2ND
Grade: B
They dented the scoreboard. Richie Sexson got behind 0-2, eventually foul-tipping a 2-2 pitch into Rodriguez' glove behind the plate. Adrian Beltre crushed the second pitch about five rows into the seats into leftfield for a solo shot.
»» MARINERS 1, TIGERS 0
Jeremy Reed fell behind 0-2 and later grounded out to second. Dave Hansen popped the first pitch to Dmitri Young short of the track in leftfield.
BOTTOM 2ND
Grade: A-
Jeff Harris, making his Major League debut, came in for Campillo, who left due to a strained right elbow. Rondell White grounded a full-count pitch to short thanks to a strong throw by Betancourt. Ivan Rodriguez crushed a 2-0 pitch to Ibañez, who reached up to make the catch at the wall in leftfield. Dmitri Young popped a 1-2 pitch high into rightfield for the flyout.
TOP 3RD
Grade: C-
Nothing here. Wiki Gonzalez flew out to Young in the gap in leftcenter on a ball that nearly got down for extra bases. Yuniesky Betancourt rolled out to second on the second pitch. Ichiro grounded the first pitch hard to second.
BOTTOM 3RD
Grade: B+
Avoiding trouble once again, but with Joe Dumars spending some time with Rod Allen and Mario Impemba in the Detroit TV booth. Craig Monroe grounded an 0-2 pitch to short, where Betancourt ranged toward the middle and threw, but was late anyway, and the throw got past Sexson, though Monroe didn't advance. Omar Infante bunted the second pitch in front of the plate, but Gonzalez was able to come from behind the plate and nail the lead runner Monroe at second. Polanco dinked the second pitch in front of Reed in centerfield for a single, moving Monroe to second. Inge worked a 1-2 count full and fouled a pitch off before taking a pitch over the inside corner for a strikeout. Shelton got ahead 2-0 and hit a checkswing grounder to second for an out.
TOP 4TH
Grade: C-
Johnson benefitted from a great play. Bloomquist got ahead 3-0 and chopped out to short on a full count. Ibañez clubbed the second pitch deep to centerfield, where Monroe ran full steam back toward the wall and made the catch over the shoulder just short of the wall. Sexson got ahead 2-0 and eventually nubbed a full-count grounder to third, where Inge charged, barehanded, and threw to first, barely in time.
BOTTOM 4TH
Grade: A-
A fairly quick inning for Harris. Ordoñez stung the ball into leftfield for a solid single. White flew out on the first pitch to Sexson, who was way in on the first-base line. Rodriguez grounded the second pitch hard to second, starting the 4-6-3 double play.
TOP 5TH
Grade: C
A fairly quick and uneventful inning. Beltre grounded the first pitch to second. Reed worked a 1-2 count full by taking a couple of very close pitches, fouled off another pitch, then took the next pitch up and in for a walk, snapping Johnson's streak of nine straight retired hitters. Hansen whiffed on a 1-0 pitch inside, which didn't help Reed's plight, as he was gunned down at second despite a high throw. Hansen lined a pitch toward the corner in rightfield, but Ordoñez came over and caught it.
BOTTOM 5TH
Grade: A
Amazingly, another quick inning for Harris. Young poked a ball deep toward the leftfield corner, where Ibañez made the catch near the warning track. Monroe flew out to Ibañez on the track in leftfield. Infante flew out to Reed in centerfield.
TOP 6TH
Grade: C
Some runners, but nothing more. Gonzalez lined the first pitch right to Young in leftfield. Betancourt dumped the second pitch in front of Young in leftfield for a single. Ichiro grounded a 3-0 pitch hard up the middle, but Infante came over (tough play) and backhand flipped to second for an out, though Ichiro predictably beat out the throw to first (6-4 fielder's choice). Bloomquist got ahead 3-0 and grounded the 3-1 pitch to short.
BOTTOM 6TH
Grade: A-
Harris looked good. Polanco flew out to centerfield on the second pitch. Inge chopped out to short. Shelton got behind 0-2 but worked the count full before lining right to Beltre.
Harris' line: 5 innings, 0 runs, 3 hits, 0 walks, 1 strikeout, 65 pitches (41 strikes)
TOP 7TH
Grade: C-
Some deep balls, but they're all outs. Ibañez sent the first pitch near the warning track in centerfield, where Monroe went back and made the catch. Sexson mashed a pitch to the track in leftcenter, again caught by Monroe. Beltre chopped out to third on the second pitch.
BOTTOM 7TH
Grade: C
Julio Mateo (birthday boy, 28 years old) came in for Harris. Ordoñez got behind 0-2 and chopped a 2-2 pitch to short for the groundout. White bashed a 2-2 pitch to Ibañez, who caught it on the track in leftcenter. Rodriguez lined the first pitch five rows into the rightfield seats for a solo shot, tying the game.
»» TIGERS 1, MARINERS 1
Young got ahead 2-0, fouled off a full-count pitch, then hit a low liner that found Reed's glove in centerfield.
Mateo's line: 1 inning, 1 run, 1 hit, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 19 pitches (12 strikes)
TOP 8TH
Grade: A-
This one was fruitful. Reed fell behind 0-2 and later lined a 1-2 single into centerfield. Hansen pulled back a bunt on a strike, air-bunted a 1-1 pitch foul, pulled the bunt back on a 1-2 pitch up and in, then bunted in front of the plate, where Inge charged and threw to first in time. Noticing that third base was uncovered on the play, Reed rounded second and broke for third. He beat Ivan Rodriguez to third, who had to race out from the plate and receive the throw from first, which wasn't in time. Gonzalez took a 3-1 pitch down and in for a walk on a pitch that crossed up Rodriguez behind the plate. Detroit pitching coach Bob Cluck came out to visit the mound. Betancourt grounded the first pitch down the leftfield line, and it died next to the stands, good for a double to score Reed and move Gonzalez to third. The Mariners now led.
»» MARINERS 2, TIGERS 1
Ichiro took an intentional walk, loading the bases. Bloomquist popped the second pitch high to Polanco on the grass in shallow centerfield.
Jamie Walker came in for Johnson. Ibañez tagged an 0-2 pitch up the middle for a single into centerfield, scoring Gonzalez and Betancourt, further solidifying the lead. Ichiro scooted to second.
»» MARINERS 4, TIGERS 1
Craig Dingman came in for Walker. Sexson grounded to short for an easy 6-4 fielder's choice.
Johnson's line: 7 2/3 innings, 4 runs, 5 hits, 3 walks, 1 strikeout, 100 pitches (57 strikes)
Walker's line: 0 innings, 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 3 pitches (3 strikes)
Dingman's line: 1/3 inning, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 4 pitches (2 strikes)
BOTTOM 8TH
Grade: B
JJ Putz came in for Mateo. Monroe grounded the first pitch, which went off Beltre's glove and high into the air, where Betancourt pulled it barehanded out of the air and threw in time to first, a run-on-the-mill 5-6-3 putout. Infante stung the second pitch down the rightfield line for a double. Polanco grounded an 0-2 pitch into the hole on the right side, where Bloomquist moved over to throw in time. Inge fell behind 0-2 and later flew out on a 2-2 pitch to fairly deep rightfield.
Putz' line: 1 inning, 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 12 pitches (10 strikes)
TOP 9TH
Grade: C-
Ramon Colon, making his Detroit debut, came in for Dingman. Beltre pulled an outside pitch for a 1-2 groundout to short. Reed whiffed on a low 0-2 breaking ball. Hansen got behind 0-2, worked the count full, then tapped to Colon just off the mound, who went to first for the out.
Colon's line: 1 inning, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 1 strikeout, 15 pitches (11 strikes)
BOTTOM 9TH
Grade: A-
Eddie Guardado came in for Putz. Shelton got ahead 2-0 and eventually flew out to fairly deep rightfield on a 2-2 pitch. Ordoñez flew out high to Reed in shallow centerfield. White grounded an 0-2 pitch to short. Ballgame.
Guardado's line: 1 inning, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 11 pitches (8 strikes)
---
Gameball: Jeff Harris.
After the last couple years, I'm so glad to see the Mariners on the good end of the following scenario -- pitcher who is new to league shuts down other team, and the hitting team usually blames it on not having a book on the pitcher. Anyway, though the Mariners don't have playoff implications like they did in 2003, I'm glad that the Mariners came out on top in this game. I'd never seen Jeff Harris pitch before this game, but he had it going tonight. Hopefully he won't need it in the future for five innings at a time. After the suckitude of the starting pitching lately, the Mariners needed someone to eat up innings. After Jorge Campillo came out after the first inning due to the strained throwing elbow, the Mariners' entire pitching staff could have been screwed for a week or so. In a sense, they still might be, but less so than if they didn't have Jeff Harris come in and mop up. Julio Mateo could have been the first guy out of the pen, and he could have been burned for four games. In related news, Harris at times reminded me a little bit of former Mariner Todd Williams. I thought Tom Davey at first for some reason, but it's more along the lines of Todd Williams.
Goat: Richie Sexson.
It's got to be somebody. Nobody was a blatant hole of suck tonight. Since Sexson generally is expected to contribute more to the offense than a Dave Hansen (0-for-3), Sexson is getting the goat for this game. He went 0-for-4 with a strikeout and left two runners on base, one of them in scoring position with two out. Still, even with the 0-for-4 day, his average is still at a very respectable .271. Good times. I hope he doesn't offset a crazy July with a cliffdive of an August, though I am expecting him to level off at least a little bit. If we see 40 homers out of Richie this season, I think that's a victory. Of course, the spaciousness of Comerica did rob Richie of what would normally be a homer in this game, but when doesn't Comerica do that?
Yr W-L Pct GB Stk
2001 76-29 .724 -- W4
2002 63-42 .600 13 L1
2003 63-42 .600 13 L2
2000 61-44 .581 15 L1
2005 46-59 .438 30 W1
2004 39-66 .371 37 L4
Someone else had a good game whose name wasn't Jeff Harris. Yuniesky Betancourt went 2-for-3 with the only multi-hit game for any Mariner hitter in this game. He singled in the sixth and had the game-winning double in the eighth. Not only did he have the key hit of the game, he made some very nice defensive plays, leaving the Detroit TV crew marveling at his strong arm. There was also the play where the ball ate up Adrian Beltre and went high into the air. That didn't prevent Betancourt pulling the ball out of the air with his bare hand and throwing in time to first. That was a crazy play. If Betancourt can have a game on offense every once in a while like this and play such sound defense... Would you rather have a Mike Morse, who obviously is better on offense than defense, or would you rather have a Betancourt, who appears to be stellar on defense, and might be good enough on offense? It's a dilemma, I know, and it doesn't factor Adam Jones into the equation or anything like that. Just something to think about.
Let's hope Jorge Campillo's elbow comes out of the wash okay. Of course, we probably saw better output from Campillo in one inning today than if Aaron Sele would have started the game and went four innings. In those four innings, Sele probably would have been tagged for 6 runs and 9 or 10 hots or so, even in Comerica Park. Of course, since Jamie Moyer's back is bad and Ryan Franklin is kinda out for a couple starts due to the 'roids thing, this leaves the rotation pretty much in shambles. We're left with Gil Meche as the most consistent healthy starting pitcher, and well...if that doesn't scare you, I don't know what does. Sounds like a great time for a youth movement, huh?
I just recently thought about this...you can pretty much take the following statement to the bank: Ryan Christianson will NEVER put on a uniform at the Major League level for the Seattle Mariners. The Mariners shipped off Miguel Olivo, and after all of the moves, the Mariners ended up adding Yorvit Torrealba and Miguel Ojeda, two more catchers to put ahead of Christianson on the organizational depth chart at catcher. The Mariners have now had seven catchers put on the uniform this year, and none of them have been named Ryan Christianson. If they're not going to use Christianson at the Major League level, can they just get something for him or cut him loose already? If he doesn't get a September call-up...ugh. I'm not expecting him to come up to Seattle and just tear things up, but he's got to get at least one chance to step on the field for this team. Heck, if they brought him up as a late-inning defensive replacement and then got rid of him totally, I'd be all right with that. If they're blackballing him because of the steroid thing, then Ryan Franklin better get some of the same medicine when he gets back, but I know he won't.
Let's play a fun little game. I'll put up the Opening Day roster for this year, and we can compare it to the current roster. I'll bold the new additions and put asterisks by those either gone or just off the 25-man roster...
OPENING DAY
position players (13)
Adrian Beltre
Willie Bloomquist
Bret Boone*
Greg Dobbs*
Raul Ibañez
Miguel Olivo*
Jeremy Reed
Richie Sexson
Scott Spiezio
Ichiro
Wilson Valdez*
Dan Wilson*
Randy Winn*
pitchers (12)
Ryan Franklin*
Eddie Guardado
Shigetoshi Hasegawa
Bobby Madritsch*
Julio Mateo
Gil Meche
Jamie Moyer
Jeff Nelson
JJ Putz
Aaron Sele*
Matt Thornton
Ron Villone*
CURRENT (as of me typing this, anyway)
position players (13)
Adrian Beltre
Yuniesky Betancourt
Willie Bloomquist
Wiki Gonzalez
Dave Hansen
Raul Ibañez
Mike Morse
Jeremy Reed
Richie Sexson
Scott Spiezio
Jamal Strong
Ichiro
Yorvit Torrealba
pitchers (12)
Jorge Campillo
Eddie Guardado
Jeff Harris
Shigetoshi Hasegawa
Masao Kida
Julio Mateo
Gil Meche
Jamie Moyer
Joel Piñeiro
JJ Putz
George Sherrill
Matt Thornton
By my count, it looks like 10 of the 25 roster spots are different from Opening Day. That's 40 percent. Yes, stuff has happened for the Seattle Mariners this year. There's been some moderate housecleaning.
So...let's see if the Mariners can pull off a series win tomorrow before Felix pitches on Thursday, eh?
Meche. Maroth. Today.
/ Click for main page
