Meet your Mariners, 1st in most pitchers used and last place in the American League West
A thrilling Friday night win garnered by a strong performance from a relative unknown as a pitcher (Sam Gaviglio) was overridden by 3 straight losses. These losses include brutal blowouts on Saturday and Sunday where the M’s were outscored by the Chicago White Sox 24-2
| May 18 | Chi White Sox | W 5 – 4 |
| May 19 | Chi White Sox | L 2 – 1 |
| May 20 | Chi White Sox | L 16 – 1 |
| May 21 | Chi White Sox | L 8 – 1 |
It was a matter of time, but the injuries caught up to the Mariners. While definitely not an excuse—all teams face injuries—it is painfully apparent that this team does not have the depth to sustain the devastating losses. Without the likes of Felix Hernandez, Drew Smily, and Hisashi Iwakuma the M’s have the 27th worst ERA (4.79), 18th worst Walks/Hits per inning (1.35), and rank 30th in the Majors with 65 home runs allowed.
The offense has tried to bail this team out as Jean Segura’s .338 batting average (3rd in the American League), and Nelson Cruz’s 36 RBIs (leads the AL) have been on fire. The M’s have also seen Jarrrod Dyson steal 12 bases (leads the AL) but unfortunately, and injured Mitch Haniger and Robinson Cano has derailed a potent offense.
The season is in dire straights as the M’s head to Washington to face the Nationals and Boston to face the Red Sox this week. And to quote Larry David, both teams are “pretty, pretty good.”
SSU Player of the Series
It was really hard to find any good in this 4 game series. If there was one shining moment, it was strong 5 inning outing by Sam Gaviglio. You may ask, who is Sam Gaviglio and you would be justified. But due to a rash of injuries, this 26 year old was called up from Triple A Tacoma and generated an excellent 1.29 ERA and 0.86 WHIP over his first seven innings as a major leaguer.
Gaviglio looked as impressive as he had in his major-league debut on May 11, allowing just one extra-base hit and three hits overall over his five frames. Given his impressive outing and the decimated state of the Seattle rotation, he looks to be in line to take the mound again for another start on the road against the Nationals next Tuesday.
| IP | H | ER | BB | K | WHIP | ERA | |
| Sam Gaviglio | 5.0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0.86 | 1.2 |
Standings
| AL West | W | L | Pct | GB |
| Houston | 29 | 15 | .659 | 0.0 |
| Texas | 24 | 21 | .533 | 5.5 |
| LA Angels | 23 | 23 | .500 | 7.0 |
| Oakland | 20 | 24 | .455 | 9.0 |
| Seattle | 20 | 25 | .444 | 9.5 |
Injuries
| Seattle | Date | Status | Injury |
|
Ryan Weber |
5/13 | 10-day-dl | Right biceps strain |
|
Robinson Canó |
5/12 | 10-day-dl | Strained right quad |
|
Hisashi Iwakuma |
5/6 | 10-day-dl | Right shoulder inflammation |
|
Evan Marshall |
5/5 | 60-day-dl | Strained right hamstring |
|
James Paxton |
5/2 | 10-day-dl | Strained left forearm |
|
Mitch Haniger |
4/25 | 10-day-dl | Strained right oblique |
|
Evan Scribner |
4/25 | 60-day-dl | Right flexor bundle strain |
|
Felix Hernandez |
4/25 | 10-day-dl | Right shoulder bursitis |
|
Shae Simmons |
3/30 | 60-day-dl | Flexor strain, right forearm |
|
Shawn O’Malley |
3/30 | 60-day-dl | Right shoulder tendinitis |
|
Drew Smyly |
3/29 | 60-day-dl | Left arm flexor strain |
