George Kirby takes the mound against Framber Valdez
Today the Mariners will test how resilient their goldfish memories are and try to wipe away a crushing shutout loss against Hunter Brown and the Astros that saw the Mariners lose their hold on sole possession of first place in the AL West. George Kirby takes the mound for the Mariners, which is good, but as Luis Castillo’s strong start last night shows, this offense leaves essentially no room for a starter to be anything less than superhuman. That will be an additional challenge with old not-friend Framber Valdez on the mound.
Lefty-masher and hot hand Victor Robles moves into the two spot, and fellow lefty-masher Dylan Moore takes over at third for Rojas. Righty Mitch Haniger also rejoins the outfield mix.
TV: ROOT Sports NW, with Ryan Rowland-Smith and Aaron Goldsmith (doublesmith!)
Radio: 710 AM Seattle Sports, with Dave Sims and Gary Hill Jr.
A note for out-of-market fans: MLB TV is free for this weekend, so if you’re not subject to blackout restrictions, you can watch these games for free. Although it sort of feels like you should get paid to watch them, instead.
Today in Mariners history:
1984: In one of the wildest finishes in baseball history, the visiting Toronto Blue Jays score 11 runs in the top of the 9th inning, overcoming a 3-1 Mariners lead. Alvin Davis recorded his second career grand slam in the bottom of the ninth, but the Jays won 12-7.
2013: The Mariners recorded only one hit, and were no-hit through the first 6.0 innings, but scratched out a 4-2 win over the Astros. Seattle tied the game 2-2 with a 2-run 6th inning without a hit (2 walks, 2 passed balls, sacrifice fly) and scored the winning runs in the 7th on a 2-out, 2-run double by Michael Saunders. It was only the 4th time since 1900 where a team scored 4+ runs without the benefit of more than one hit.
2014: The Mariners endured another walk-off loss at Angel Stadium, letting a 5-3 lead after 7 innings slip away in a 6-5 loss. All three games of the series were one-run games, with the Mariners dropping 2 of 3. Closer Fernando Rodney “shot his arrow” in the 8th inning and the Angels rallied for a pair of runs in the 9th inning with Albert Pujols and Mike Trout “shooting arrows” back at Rodney. Grant Green recorded the walk-off hit with 2 outs and the bases loaded.
2017: Félix Hernández recorded his 118th career start of at least 7.0 innings pitched while allowing 1 run fewer, most in the Major Leagues since his debut in 2005 (Clayton Kershaw 102). Despite Hernández’s strong start, the Yankees defeated the Mariners 4-1. Robinson Canó became the first left-handed batter to record an extra-base hit against Aroldis Chapman that season. He went 3-for-5 with a double and an RBI on the day.
2021: Cal Raleigh records first two MLB hits, including an RBI double.
