The Seattle Mariners misplaced their fourth consecutive sport on Friday, dropping a 4-1 contest to the Atlanta Braves (field rating) that noticed the bullpen spoil a high quality begin from right-hander Logan Gilbert. Left-hander Gabe Speier, usually dependable, surrendered three runs on 4 hits with out recording an out within the backside of the eighth inning. The Mariners offense then failed to succeed in base within the prime half of the ninth inning as Seattle’s winless begin to September reached 0-4.
Worse but, the Mariners stay 3 ½ video games behind the Astros within the American League West — that regardless of Houston struggling an extra-innings loss to the Texas Rangers. The lack to capitalize on the Astros’ misfortune has grow to be a typical theme in Seattle, to the extent that the Mariners can blame solely themselves in the event that they fail to seize their first division title since 2001.
Take into account this. The Astros, ravaged by accidents, have performed at a 74-win tempo because the All-Star Recreation. But the Mariners have gained just one ½ video games on the Astros in that point. What’s extra is that Houston’s division lead is strictly as massive because it was on Aug. 1 — that regardless of the Astros going 15-18. (The M’s are 15-16 in that span.) Irrespective of the way you slice and cube the season, the Mariners have fumbled certain alternatives to make up floor on and/or overtake the Astros:
|
Since All-Star Recreation |
21-25 |
22-23 |
|
Since Aug. 1 |
15-18 |
15-16 |
|
Since Aug. 15 |
9-12 |
6-13 |
Mariners followers may observe that how Seattle has faltered has exacerbated the psychic injury they’ve suffered as of late. The Mariners have top-of-the-line data in one-run video games in all of the majors, however you would not comprehend it given 5 of their final 13 losses have been by a single rating.
The kicker in all of that is that the Mariners nonetheless have a transparent pathway to the division crown. They’ve one of many weakest remaining schedules in baseball, in line with Tankathon’s math, with their opponents profitable simply 47.3% of their video games. The Astros have nearer to an average-strength schedule to play, with their very own opponents profitable precisely 50% of their video games so far.
It is as much as the Mariners to reap the benefits of that simpler schedule. It is also on them to benefit from the three head-to-head video games remaining with the Astros, all of which is able to happen in Houston from Sept. 19-21. The season collection is knotted at 5-5, that means that whoever wins that remaining three-game set will acquire management of the divisional tiebreaker. Keep in mind, MLB did away with Recreation 163 situations when it expanded the playoffs, so the head-to-head report would decide the AL West winner if the 2 events find yourself tied atop the division at season’s finish.
After all, emphasizing these factors ignores that the West is definitely a three-team race. The Rangers, in the course of their very own collection in opposition to the Astros, are solely a half-game behind the Mariners and at the moment are 4 again within the West. It is attainable Texas emerges from this weekend in a a lot stronger place than just some days in the past. Moreover, the Mariners’ drawback hasn’t been coming throughout alternatives to take over the West, it has been executing upon them.
Whether or not or not that modifications over the approaching weeks is to be seen. If it would not, the Mariners might be left to surprise what may have been if that they had made higher use of the previous few months.
