How crazy is it that James Paxton didn’t totally have it last night – his first Major League game since May 2nd – and he still managed 5.1 innings of 3-hit shutout ball? How crazy is it that James Paxton has thrown shutout ball in 5 of his 7 starts this season? This guy is unbelievable! Now please, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, stay healthy the rest of the season!
In winning four in a row to close out the month, the Mariners managed to go 14-14 in May. They’re a game up on the A’s and only THIRD-worst in the American League. They’re also, not for nothing, 3.5 games out of the second Wild Card spot, because say what you will about teams like the Astros and Yankees running away with things, but all these teams contending for the second Wild Card spot are PRETTY mediocre.
Now we settle into what appears to be – on paper – a very enjoyable month of June. 19 out of 27 games at home, 3 total off days (including 2 in the middle of long homestands), only have to go as far east as Minnesota, only three games (at home) against the unstoppable Astros, no stupid games in National League parks, the luxury of two more games against the hapless Philadelphia Phillies. I mean, I could go on and on, but this month should be a delight!
So, you know, watch the Mariners muck it up somehow.
10 more hits for the offense last night, but only 3 for 11 with RISP. Nevertheless, the Mariners jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the second, and were able to tack on a couple more as the game went on; none of the runs attributed to homers, which is nice. It’s nice that the Mariners can score in bunches and don’t just have to rely on the long ball. Seager, Valencia, and Zunino each had two hits apiece (Valencia with 2 RBI to boot); Ben Gamel had a hit and a couple more RBI; Cruz, Segura, and Dyson all got in on the action as well.
Is it a coincidence that the Mariners have won four in a row, and the bullpen has been fantastic in that span? Absolutely not!
- Shutout in Boston: 2 innings by Pazos, Vincent, and Diaz
- 6-5 win in Colorado: 4 shutout innings by Pazos, Zych, Vincent, Scrabble, Altavilla, and Diaz
- 10-4 win in Colorado: 4 innings, 2 runs by Lawrence, Zych, Scrabble, and Altavilla
- Shutout in Seattle last night: 3.2 innings by Cishek, Pazos, and Vincent
We’re going to need to see the bullpen continue to do this, pretty much for the rest of the season and not in these temporary bursts, but at least we’re starting to see something from these guys. The next step, of course, is to get more consistent performances from our starters, to take some of the pressure off of them.
Particular kudos to Steve Cishek last night for getting out of that jam in the 6th without giving up any of his inherited runners. I’d LOVE to see more of that going forward as well.
Today, we go for the sweep, with Gallardo on the mound. I wish I could say I have even a little bit of confidence in him getting the job done, but all I can think about is how happy I am that this is a weekday afternoon game so I don’t have to subject my eyes to this nonsense.