Sunday, August 20, 2006
GAME 123: ANGELS 9, MARINERS 7
In 25 words or less: It just continues! My oh my!!! Party like it's 1992! Crank up something off of this list to put yourself in a time warp!
The Mariners hadn't lost ten straight since 1992. News came down during the game that Jamie Moyer, the team's all-time winningest pitcher with a record of 145-87, had waived his no-trade clause and had been traded to Philadelphia with cash for Andrew Barb and Andrew Baldwin, two class-A pitchers. Would the Mariners win one for Jamie? It would be kind of moot since he wasn't there for the game anyway. Apparently Willie Bloomquist was supposed to start once again in centerfield, but was out with a sore back. The obvious joke here would be to say he got it from striking out in all three of his at-bats on Friday night. Moyer reactions aside, however, the Mariners were trying to avoid being the double-digit losing streak. The aforementioned 1992 team did lose ten straight, sure, but their losing streak ran all the way to 14 before Tim Leary beat Bob Welch on September 19th of that season (log). That streak stopped with a win, but the futility stretched a bit as the Mariners lost three games after the one win to make it 17 losses in 18 games. By the way, with the loss on Friday night, the Mariners already had the Major League record for consecutive losses to teams within the division. Would they pad their record or snap two streaks in one night?
TOP 1ST
Ichiro was down 0-2 before reaching low and popping a 2-2 pitch to center. Jose Lopez spanked an 0-2 pitch into center for a single. Adrian Beltre reached on a low-and-away 1-2 pitch to Figgins in leftcenter. Raul Ibañez bounced the first pitch over the right side for a single to move Lopez to third. Richie Sexson was down 0-2 and whiffed on a low 1-2 breaking ball. Lackey threw 18 pitches.
BOTTOM 1ST
Chone Figgins walked on a 3-1 pitch up and away. Maicer Izturis worked a 1-2 count full before poking an outside pitch past a diving Sexson for a single near the rightfield line, moving Figgins to third on the hit-and-run. Orlando Cabrera rolled the second pitch slowly to short, moving Izturis to third and scoring Figgins.
»» ANGELS 1, MARINERS 0
Vladimir Guerrero was down 0-2 before bouncing a 1-2 pitch to Betancourt in the hole at short, who threw to first in time as Izturis scored (they didn't walk Guerrero).
»» ANGELS 2, MARINERS 0
Juan Rivera took an 0-2 pitch across the outside corner. Washburn threw 21 pitches.
TOP 2ND
Kenji Johjima popped the second pitch lazily to right. Ben Broussard slapped the second pitch through the left side for a single. Yuniesky Betancourt was up 2-0 but ended up rolling hard to short to start an easy 6-4-3 double play. Lackey threw eight pitches and had 26 through two.
BOTTOM 2ND
Garret Anderson looped the first pitch into center for a single. Robb Quinlan drilled the second pitch past the reach of Betancourt and through the left side for a single, moving Anderson to second. Howie Kendrick was jammed on an 0-2 pitch and tapped to the mound, moving Anderson and Quinlan to third and second. Mike Napoli grounded hard past Washburn and the mound, but Lopez raced in front of the bag to make a diving stop, and he threw from a knee to first in time as Quinlan moved to third and Anderson scored.
»» ANGELS 3, MARINERS 0
Figgins grounded hard to first on the first pitch. Washburn threw ten pitches and had 31 through three.
TOP 3RD
Adam Jones whiffed on a 2-2 breaking ball over the outside corner. Ichiro popped an outside first pitch foul to Rivera just in front of the stands along the leftfield line. Lopez was up 2-0 before lining a single to left. Beltre rolled a 2-2 pitch slowly to the hole on the right side, where Kendrick eventually got to it, but it rolled off his glove and away, enabling Beltre to reach on the single (he wouldn't have been out anyway) and Lopez moved to third. Ibañez walked on a full-count fastball down and in. Sexson whiffed on a 2-2 curve. Lackey threw 30 pitches and had 56 through three.
BOTTOM 3RD
Izturis bounced the second pitch to short. Cabrera popped the second pitch to Jones near the track in rightcenter. Guerrero took a 2-2 pitch over the outside corner. Washburn threw nine pitches and had 40 through three.
TOP 4TH
Johjima got down 0-2 and whiffed horribly on a 1-2 breaking ball in the dirt away. Broussard was down 0-2 and rolled a 1-2 pitch up the middle for a single. Betancourt whiffed on a 1-2 pitch in the dirt away that got away from Napoli behind the plate, but there was a man on first, so he couldn't take first, but Broussard moved to second. Jones foul-tipped an 0-2 outside fastball into Napoli's glove behind the plate. Lackey threw 16 pitches and had 72 through four.
BOTTOM 4TH
Rivera blistered a double to the wall near the leftfield corner. Anderson bounced a 1-2 pitch to Lopez in the right-side hole, moving Rivera to third. Quinlan popped the first pitch to Sexson near the bag at first. Kendrick stung the second pitch into the rightfield corner for a triple to easily score Rivera. Ichiro's throw was wide and probably late anyway.
»» ANGELS 4, MARINERS 0
Napoli tapped a 2-2 pitch back to the mound. Washburn threw 16 pitches and had 56 through four.
TOP 5TH
Ichiro dumped a single along the leftfield line. Lopez was down 0-2 before whiffing on a 1-2 fastball over the outside corner. Beltre took a 2-0 pitch for a ball and Ichiro took off for second, and Napoli's throw airmailed into center (error), enabling Ichiro to go to third, breaking the Mariners' single-season record for consecutive stolen bases formerly held by Julio Cruz in 1981. Beltre lined a full-count pitch into left that one-hopped Rivera and bounced past him and to the wall, scoring Ichiro easily and moving Beltre to third (single and error).
»» ANGELS 4, MARINERS 1
Ibañez ripped an 0-2 pitch to the wall in leftcenter, scoring Beltre easily.
»» ANGELS 4, MARINERS 2
Sexson cranked the first pitch off the base of the wall in leftcenter for a double, scoring Ibañez.
»» ANGELS 4, MARINERS 3
Johjima grounded hard to third on a 1-2 pitch as Sexson held at second. Broussard cranked a 2-0 pitch a few rows into the seats just to the right of the centerfield hitters' backdrop. Huh? What's happening?!!?!
»» MARINERS 5, ANGELS 4
Betancourt got ahead 3-0 and ripped a 3-1 pitch into the leftfield corner for a double.
Hector Carrasco came in for Lackey. Jones popped a 2-0 pitch high to Quinlan near the first-base coaches' box. Carrasco threw three pitches.
Lackey's line: 4 2/3 innings, 5 runs, 12 hits, 1 walk, 7 strikeouts, 105 pitches (72 strikes)
BOTTOM 5TH
Figgins tapped the second pitch back to the mound. Izturis bounced the second pitch to third. Cabrera popped to center. Washburn threw seven pitches and had 63 through five.
TOP 6TH
Ichiro bunted the first pitch and threaded it between Quinlan and Carrasco on the right side, where it was pretty much a hit, but Quinlan grabbed the ball and threw past Carrasco and into foul ground (error on Quinlan) as Ichiro moved to second. Lopez bunted the first pitch to make sure Quinlan knew how to cover a bunt, and he did, making the 3-1 putout to move Ichiro to third. Beltre was up 2-0 and grounded a full-count pitch quite hard to third, nearly leading a diving Izturis to the third-base bag (he wouldn't have had Ichiro), but he threw high to first where Quinlan hopped off the bag when he caught the ball, but Beltre was called out anyway on a bullcrap call. Mike Hargrove came out shortly to argue to no avail. Said Rex Hudler on the Angel broadcast, "if I'm Hargrove, I get thrown out on that." Finally, something on which I agree with Hudler. Ibañez was ahead 3-1 but whiffed on a full-count breaking ball. Carrasco threw 16 pitches.
BOTTOM 6TH
Guerrero reached outside on the first pitch and looped it just past Sexson and into the rightfield corner for a double. Rivera fouled the second pitch off plate umpire Rick Reed's mask. Rivera popped high to Sexson on the infield grass on the right side. Anderson reached on the first pitch and dumped a single into shallow right near the line, scoring Guerrero and pulling Lackey off the hook.
»» ANGELS 5, MARINERS 5
Quinlan popped the first pitch to the track in right (Hudler implied that Ichiro was tricking the crowd by slowing his trot, but having it all the way, though he did trick the cameraman). Kendrick bounced an 0-2 pitch to short, where Betancourt bobbled it (error), gathered himself and tried to throw back to second for the force on Anderson, but it was late. Sexson at this point called time and went to chat with Washburn, then he went to his position before Hargrove came out with the hook.
Mark Lowe came in for Washburn. Napoli ripped a 1-2 pitch to nearly take off Lowe's head, but it went into center for a single, scoring Anderson and moving Kendrick to second. Jones' throw to the plate bounced behind the mound and was way up the line, and Napoli went to second.
»» ANGELS 6, MARINERS 5
Figgins was up 2-0 and ended up popping to center. Lowe threw eight pitches.
Washburn's line: 5 2/3 innings, 6 runs (5 earned), 7 hits, 1 walk, 2 strikeouts, 72 pitches (51 strikes)
TOP 7TH
Sexson stuck the first pitch through the left side for a single. Johjima bounced the second pitch to second for a 4-6-3 double play. Broussard fouled a 2-1 pitch off the ground and of his bat a second time, a peculiar and rare happening. Broussard popped the full-count pitch to left. Carrasco threw 11 pitches and had 27 total.
BOTTOM 7TH
Izturis hit a pop fly that bounced off the top of the scoreboard in rightcenter. Another first for Lowe, giving up his first homer.
»» ANGELS 7, MARINERS 5
Cabrera grounded the second pitch to Beltre near the bag at third. Guerrero bounced the second pitch slowly to the left side, where Beltre charged and did the barehand throw thing that he does to get Guerrero at first. Rivera took a first pitch that bounced in the other batters' box. Rivera had the hitters' counts before lining a full-count pitch over Beltre and toward the leftfield corner for a double.
George Sherrill came in for Lowe. Anderson rolled a double just inside the bag at first and into the rightfield corner for a double to score Rivera.
»» ANGELS 8, MARINERS 5
Rafael Soriano came in for Sherrill. Quinlan was down 0-2 but dumped a 2-2 pitch into the corner for a triple to score Anderson.
»» ANGELS 9, MARINERS 5
Kendrick popped a 3-0 pitch to Sexson just past the tarp in foul ground on the right side. Soriano threw 27 pitches.
Lowe's line: 1 inning, 2 runs, 3 hits, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 22 pitches (14 strikes)
Sherrill's line: 0 innings, 1 run, 1 hit, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 4 pitches (2 strikes)
TOP 8TH
Betancourt worked a 1-2 count full before popping to Figgins in shallow leftcenter on the tenth pitch of the at-bat. Chris Snelling, hitting for Jones, drove the second pitch that Guerrero had some trouble with at the rightfield wall, and it bounced off the wall and track for a triple. Ichiro got ahead 3-1 and took a full-count pitch in the dirt for a walk.
Scot Shields came in for Carrasco. Lopez bounced the first pitch right to Kendrick at second for a 4-6-3 double play. Shields threw one pitch.
Carrasco's line: 2 2/3 innings, 0 runs, 3 hits, 1 walk, 1 strikeout, 46 pitches (28 strikes)
BOTTOM 8TH
JJ Putz came in for Soriano, Snelling stayed in to play right, and (drum roll) Ichiro moved over to center for the first time since playing three games in center in 2003. Napoli was down 0-2 before popping a 2-2 pitch to rightcenter, where he leaped at the track and made the catch against the wall. Hilariously, Dave Niehaus' radio call was for a home run before he caught himself. Figgins whiffed on a 2-2 fastball on the outside corner. Izturis was up 3-1 and lined a full-count pitch into center for a single. Cabrera was down 0-2 and ripped a 2-2 pitch up the middle for a single to move Izturis to second. Guerrero bounced up the middle to Lopez on the centerfield grass, who threw to first in time. Putz threw 25 pitches.
Putz' line: 1 inning, 0 runs, 2 hits, 0 walks, 1 strikeout, 25 pitches (16 strikes)
TOP 9TH
Beltre clubbed a neck-high 3-1 pitch into left for a single. Ibañez lined the second pitch into and out of Guerrero's glove in right (error), moving Beltre to second. Sexson couldn't check his swing on a 2-2 pitch up and in (anyone seeing the game may have winced if they remembered Sexson exploded his labrum on a checkswing back in 2004, and this one seemed particularly violent). Johjima lined the first pitch into center for a single to score Beltre and move Ibañez to third.
»» ANGELS 9, MARINERS 6
Francisco Rodriguez came in for Shields. Broussard roped a 2-2 slider on the outer half into the rightfield corner for a double, scoring Beltre and moving Ibañez to third.
»» ANGELS 9, MARINERS 7
Betancourt fell behind 0-2 and fouled off an up-and-in 1-2 pitch that went to the backstop (a run or two may have scored). Betancourt whiffed horribly on a 1-2 slider in the dirt away and it rolled behind Napoli a bit, who threw in time to first as Johjima held at third. Snelling took a 3-0 pitch that barely caught the outside corner, took the next pitch a bit further off the corner for a strike (I yelled "bullsh*$" at the television on this one), then took a full-count letter-high slider for strike three. Snelling and third-base coach Carlos Garcia jawed with plate umpire Rick Reed for a bit before heading for the clubhouse.
Shields' line: 1 inning, 2 runs (1 earned), 2 hits, 0 walks, 1 strikeout, 14 pitches (8 strikes)
Rodriguez' line: 2/3 inning, 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 walks, 2 strikeouts, 16 pitches (10 strikes)
---
Gameball: Ben Broussard.
Again, another one of those this-may-never-happen-again gameballs. Other than the fact that my MLB.com Gameday worked through the whole game without interruption and a need to incessantly refresh the page, Broussard was the best thing going on this night. He went 4-for-5 with a double, a home run, and three RBIs in what easily was his best game as a Mariner. Broussard is now 12-for-54 (.222) in a Mariner uniform with one double, five homers, and nine RBIs. He's hitting 12-for-54 (.222) as a Mariner with a double, five home runs, and nine RBIs. He's slugging .519 as well. Of course, those numbers are through eighteen games over what is about two-thirds of a month. I know I hoped Broussard wouldn't stay horrible, but I wish he could have been a little unhorrible when the Mariners were still remotely in the division race, because now they're beyond kaput. However, they do have Broussard under contract past this year, so they could still reap some dividends from him. He should be quite useful next year, I would think.
Goat: Mark Lowe.
On a night when the Mariners pound out 18 hits and benefit from four Angel errors, I'm not giving the goat to a hitter. As much as I hate to do it, I'm giving it to Lowe. He had his second straight bad outing. After giving up his first Major League run(s) on Thursday night, he gave up another two in this game, including his first Major League home run against. He went 13 appearances without giving up a run, though he let one of Jake Woods' runners across the plate in his final outing before resting his elbow. Another somewhat disturbing thing showing on the game log is his propensity to walk people. I know he's young and everything, but let's just hope he improves. He didn't walk a batter in his first five outings, but since has walked batters in all but three out of ten games. His two innings against Oakland were the first time he'd really struggled since his call-up, and after they shut him down, they brought him back and he was unhittable again. Then the Angels proved to be his undoing. It seems as though they are the only team so far that hasn't been wholly impressed with his stuff, and that's a bad thing when you have to put up with Steve Physioc and Rex Hudler on your MLB.tv feed.
Yr W-L Pct GB Stk
2001 88-35 .715 -- W1
2002 74-49 .602 14 L2
2003 74-49 .602 14 L1
2000 69-54 .561 19 L7
2006 56-67 .455 32 L10
2005 53-70 .431 35 L1
2004 46-77 .374 42 L1
Woods. Santana. Today.
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