Iwakuma 8 Strong

Davis led the game off with a solo shot but the Mariners scored two in the bottom half of the inning and never looked back.

Royals (51-50)

Davis DH

Rasmus CF

Lawrie 3B

Encarnacion 1B

Snider LF

Escobar SS 

Johnson 2B

Mathis C

Gose RF

Romero (8-7, 5.79)

Mariners (47-57)

Ackley 2B

Saunders CF

Montero C

Jaso DH

Seager 3B

Wells LF

Carp 1B

Peguero RF

Ryan SS

Iwakuma (1-2, 4.56 )

The Mariners are now 15-15 when i attend

Attendance: 22,443

Time: 2:45

Mariners Roll

Millwood went 6.1 innings and Wilhelmsen picked up his 13th save of the season.

Royals (41-58)

Gordon LF

Escobar SS

Moustakas 3B

Butler DH

Betancourt 2B

Pena C

Francoeur RF

Hosmer 1B

Dyson CF

Bruce Chen (7-8, 5.54)

Mariners (45-57)

Ackley 2B

Wells RF

  Saunders CF

Montero DH

Seager 3B

  Olivo C

Carp 1B

  Robinson LF

Ryan SS

Millwood (3-8, 4.13)

The Mariners are now 14-15 when I attend

Attendance:  32,111

Time:  2:42

Mariners Cruise to 6-1 Victory

Jaso got us on the board in the first with a three run shot to right field, and that was all we needed as we added two more in the 2nd and a solo homer launched by Carp 396 feet in the 6th inning.

Royals (41-57)

Gordon LF

Escobar SS

Cain CF

Butler DH

Moustakas 3B

Perez C

Francoeur RF

Hosmer 1B

Getz 2B

Guthrie (0-1, 9.0)

Mariners (44-57)

Ackley 2B

Saunders CF

Montero DH

Jaso C

Seager 3B

Wells CF

Carp 1B

Peguero RF

Ryan SS

Beavan (5-6, 5.54)

The Mariners are now 13-15

Attendance:  14,953

Time:  2:30

Take That, Damn Yankees

Michael Saunders had two base hits, including a home run in the first, as the Mariners beat their former players Freddy Garcia, Alex Rodriguez, Raul Ibanez, and Ichiro Suzuki by a score of 4-2

Yankees (58-38)

Jeter SS

Granderson CF

Rodriguez 3B

Cano 2B

Teixeira 1B

Ibanez LF

Chavez DH

Ichiro RF

Stewart C

Garcia (4-3, 5.37)

Mariners (42-56)

Ackley 2B

Saunders CF

Montero DH

Jaso C

Seager 3B

Wells LF

Carp 1B

Peguero RF

Ryan SS

Hernandez (8-5, 2.82)

Felix went a solid 7.1 innings, giving  up a solo shot to Granderson in the first and then getting out of a bases load jam in the 4th.  After that he pretty much soared until the 8th inning when he hit the leadoff batter, Jeter, who would come around to score after Felix was taken out of the game.

The Mariners are now 12-15 when I attend
Attendance: 31,908
Time of Game:  2:50

Olivo and Ackley Go Back To Back

Joy of joys, the Mariners scored more than a couple of runs, and even had TWO homers in the 8th inning as they won 6-3.  And, we saw a little history as for the first time in ML History a team featured three Japanese born players in the starting lineup.

Orioles (42-36)

Andino 2B

Hardy SS

Betemit 3B

Jones CF

Thome DH

Wieters C

Davis RF

Reynolds 1B

Pearce LF

Hammel (8-3, 3.29)

Mariners (34-47)

Ichiro RF

Wells CF

Jaso DH

Seager 3B

Olivo C

Ackley 1B

Figgins LF

Kawasaki 2B

Ryan SS

Iwakuma (1-1, 4.75)

Iwakuma had his first ML start due to injuries, he's been our long reliever all year.  He pitched pretty decently.  There was one pitch he would have liked to do over, the three run homer by Davis in the 4th.  But he went 5 innings, and the Bullpen came in and did what they've been doing pretty much all year long.  The Bullpen only allowed two base runners the final four innings, a walk and a hit batter! The walk was to Thome, passing Mantle for 7th all-time.  Thome just joined Baltimore a few days ago, I can't believe he's still playing!

The Mariners were down 3-1 going into the bottom of the seventh, but we put ourselves up for good with a bases loaded double by Wells in the right-center gap to put us up 4-3.  We added two insurance runs in the 8th via back to back one out homers by Olivo and Ackley.  Ackley's was on the first pitch.

It was nice to see the Mariners come back and score some runs.  However, they need to start learning how to score early to reduce the pressure on their starting pitchers to be perfect.


The Mariners are now 11-12 when I attend.  The roof was closed the entire game.
Attendance: 14,805
Time of Game: 2:34

Masterful Felix Goes the Distance

It was probably in the top three performances I've seen by Felix... possibly the number one.  He was spot on, fired up, gutsy.  Striking out a career high 13 via 128 pitches.  And, just his luck, the Mariners were able to pull out a walk-off 1-0 win.

Red Sox (40-35)

Nava LF

Pedroia 2B

Ortiz DH

Saltalamacchia C

Gonzalez 1B

Middlebrooks 3B

Ross RF

Kalish CF

Aviles SS

Morales (1-1, 3.12)

Mariners (32-44)

Ichiro RF

Gutierrez CF

Seager 3B

Montero DH

Wells LF

Olivo C

Ackley 2B

Ryan SS

Felix (5-5, 3.36)

It was Morales' third start of the year, and he pitched 7 good innings.  However, Felix showed once again why he is The King!!!  

Scary moment in the 4th after Gutierrez got on with a the Mariners' first hit of the night.  In a pickoff attempt, Morales hit Guti in the face with the ball.  He was down on the ground writhing and remained on the ground for several mintues while they checked him over.  He was replaced by Saunders.  We weren't sure exactly where he was hit.  At one point someone said his jaw, but it looks like it hit him on his ear and he has a slight concussion.  That's the best possible outcome I can think of.  The dude has just horrible luck.  First his stomach issues last year, then his torn pec muscle and foot issue this year!  Hopefully he won't be out too long, but it was scary for awhile.

Casper Wells made two fantastic plays in the 8th inning to rob Aviles and Nava of base hits, the last a sliding grab toward foul territory to end the inning.  In the bottom of the 8th the Mariners went meekly in 7 pitches.  The 9th inning was probably the most gutsy and clutch inning I've seen in awhile.  Felix had 105 pitches through 8 innings.  He matched his career high 13 strikeouts with Pedroia then gave up a first pitch base hit to Ortiz, followed by a full count walk to Saltalamacchia.  It was his one and only walk.  Lillibridge came on to pinch run for Ortiz.  So we had runners on 1st and 2nd with one out.  Felix then proceeded to battle Gonzalez for an epic 9 pitch at-bat.  He was now in the 120s for his pitch count and running on pure guts and determination.  The ninth and last pitch of the at-bat was a towering fly ball that seemed to travel forever to left-center, but Saunders tracked it down to everyone's relief.  Next pitch, pop-up to second and Felix finished pumped up.

Wells, with those two fantastic plays in the eighth, stroked a one out double to left-center.  Boston intentionally walked Smoak to get to Olivo.  Except, Mr. Clutch John Jaso came in to pinch hit, and needed no time to stroke the game winning single to right.  The throw was close, but Saltalamacchia dropped the ball and the ballgame was over!  Celebration ensued.  Jaso continues to impress, stepping up time and again with the clutch hit.  Baseball sure is fun when you win.

The Mariners improved to 10-12 when I attend, with their 4th shutout.
Attendance: 20,692
Time of Game: 2:40

The Roof was closed the entire game.

Mariners Score! Mariners Win!

See what happens when you score some runs guys, you can actually win the damn game!

Oakland (36-38)

Weeks 2B

Hicks 1B

Reddick RF

Cespedes CF

Inge 3B

Smith LF

Gomes DH

Norris C

Pennington SS

Blackley (1-2, 3.15)

Mariners (31-44)

Ichiro DH

Gutierrez CF

Seager 3B

Montero C

Smoak 1B

Saunders LF

Wells RF

Ackley 2B

Ryan SS

Vargas (7-7, 4.66)

Jason Vargas pitched a good game after his last few outings in which he was rocked with homers.  He actually struck out 5 in a row at one point (1st-2nd), and had a career high matching 10 strikesouts.  Matching the 10 strikeouts of Ramirez yesterday, it is the first time since 1999 Mariners pitchers have had back-to-back 10 K starts!  Oakland got runners on in the 3rd and 4th who were erased by double plays.  In the 5th he sandwiched a walk between striking out the side, and gave up another walk in the 6th.  But, at that point the Mariners were up 2-0 and Vargas was able to work out of issues each time.  In the 7th, he wasn't so lucky.  He gave up a monster homer (424 feet) into the Mariners bullpen by Cespedes.  Vargas then gave up a two out double to Smith and was pulled for League.  He then proceeded to fuck it up for Vargas and give up two consecutive singles to tie the ballgame.

Oakland had Travis Blackley on the mound, former Mariner.  It was interesting to see him again, and he had a wicked pickoff move, catching Wells in the 5th.  He lasted 7 innings.  In the 8th inning Wells lead off with a one strike single to left for Wells.  He then stole second base as Ackley was wrung up, and then scored on a Ryan single for the final run of the game.  Ryan himself stole second on a 2-1 pitch to Ichiro, which caused Oakland to intentionally walk him to face Guti and Seager, both who flew out.  But the one run was all we needed as Wilhelmsen came in to nail down the save.

It was nice to see the Mariners come through in the 8th inning with some clutch hitting.  Hell, I'm just excited that they scored more than 1 or 2 runs! 

The Mariners are now 9-12 when I attend
Attendance: 12,411 - tied for 3rd fewest ever with 4-19-11
Time of Game: 2:45

Montero Powers Mariners to Victory

Yippee, we snapped our six game losing streak as we beat San Francisco 7-4 thanks to Montero's three hits on Season Ticket Holder Appreciation Night.

Giants (37-28)

Blanco RF

Theriot 2B

Cabrera LF

Posey C

Pagan CF

Sandoval DH

Belt 1B

Arias 3B

Crawford SS

Lincecum (2-7, 6.00)

Mariners (27-39)

Ichiro RF

Wells LF

Seager 3B

Montero C

Saunders CF

Smoak 1B

Ackley 2B

Jaso DH

Ryan SS

Millwood (3-5 ,3.57)

Tim Lincecum, two time NL Cy-Young winner and former UW Husky, made his first appearance in Seattle since his college days.  He's been struggling this year and continued them in the first as he gave up two solo shots to left field, to Wells and Montero.

It was Millwood's first start since his injury during the combined no-hitter.  For good luck I wore the new t-shirt they produced commemorating the feat, looks like it worked out as our offense woke up for at least the day.  In addition to the two runs in the 1st we also added two in the 5th to tie the game, then the final three in the 6th to make it 7-4.

For the first time ever, I actually won something at the game!  I ended up winning 4 seats to the All-Star Club on the Suite level!  I just have to give them three games to pick from.

It was nice to see a win. only our second of the home stand.

The Mariners are now 8-11 when I attend
Attendance: 30,589
Time of Game: 2:49

Mariners Throw 3rd No-Hitter in Team History

Oh boy, oh boy.  19 years after the last no-hitter... Chris Bosio's 1993 game ending in the famous Visquel play, the Mariners notched their third no-hitter in history.  But this time, it was a highly unusual combined no-hitter.  It is only only the 10th combined no-hitter in MLB History.  Even more rare than a perfect game, 4 homer game, or unassisted triple play!

Dodgers (37-21)

Gordon SS

Herrera 3B

Ethier RF

Rivera DH

Abreu LF

Hairston 2B

Loney 1B

Ellis C

Gwynn CF

Eovaldi (0-2, 2.64)

Mariners (26-33)

Ichiro RF

Ackley 2B

Seager 3B

Montero C

Smoak 1B

Saunders CF

Jaso DH

Carp LF

Kawasaki SS

Millwood (3-5, 3.90)

We came in after a 5-4 road trip in which we absolutely crushed the ball, scoring 64 runs, including a 21-8 drubbing of Texas.  So all thoughts were that we'd finally found our groove and were hoping that it would carry over to Safeco.  It wasn't the case, but we were able to get just enough offense to win 1-0.

Millwood started out superbly, with only 68 pitches through six innings against the best team in the National League.  He retired the first 12 men he faced until a leadoff walk by Rivera in the 5th, who was immediately erased on a double play grounder.  Millwood didn't allow another batter.  He came out in the 7th inning, tossed one warmup, then left the game.  We weren't exactly sure what was going on... speculation on the radio and twitter was that it was a blister.  I was glad to find out later that it was a mild groin strain.  If he had left a no-hitter for a stinking blister?  Sheesh.  Anyway, at that point it was still a scoreless game, and I was pretty sure the chance at seeing a no-hitter was over.  But... five guys from our bullpen all came out and got the job done.  Furbush came on for the injured Millwood, got a fly ball for the first out, then made a two-base error on a chopper back to the mound.  But he struck out Ethier, and Rookie Stephen Pryor came on to finish out the 7th with a strikeout of his own.  He throws in the upper 90s.

We scored the lone run of the game in the 7th inning, so Pryor picked up his first ML win.  We scored when Ichiro got a two out single (his third single of the game), followed by a walk to Ackley and then an RBI single by Seager.  It was his 23rd two out RBI of the year (our of 37 total), which leads the AL.

In the top of the 8th, Pryor walked the first two batters, so was relieved by Luetge who in 13 innings has yet to give up a run.  He faced one batter, a sacrifice to advance runners to 2nd and 3rd with one out.  Next followed League.  He lost his closing job a couple of weeks ago, and anytime he comes in I get really anxious. Well, Ellis hit a shallow ball to left but Figgins (who had come in that inning as a defensive replacement) was able to get to it, and quickly throw home.  It was a high throw, but Montero was able to save the run by snagging it out of the air.  League struckout Gwynn to finish the inning, and we were only 3 outs from History!!! 

Ryan came in as a defensive replacement in the ninth, and it was a good thing he did.  The dude is insane, I don't care if he is batting below the Mendoza line.  He is probably the best shortstop in the league.  Wilhelmsen came in to close out the game, and all 22,028 on hand were on their feet.  Every no-hitter has one or two spectacular defensive plays.  Seager had one to leadoff the fourth, and Ryan came through in the ninth.  Gordon hit a 0-2 pitch slowly, but Ryan charged it and was just able to get the play at first.  It was damn close, Gordon was incensed but... hell we were on the bad end of a call for the perfect game.  So even if he was safe, that's baseball!!  He sure looked out to me.  Herrera lined out to Ryan, and the final out was a ground ball to Ackley.  History was made, and the celebration commenced!

I think it is pretty cool that I have been to a perfect game and combined no-hitter this year, after 18 years of griping about leaving the Bosio no-no early... I'm rewarded with this.  I felt like the Baseball Gods decided to give something back, after the torture of the perfect game.  It wasn't the most spectacular pitching performance I've ever seen, but truly bizarre.  I think Washburn gave up one hit in a complete game, and that hit was erased on a double play so he faced the minimum batters.  That was better.   This one had a few walks and an error, but it was a great team accomplishment.  And, as it was only the 10th combined no-hitter ever, extremely rare!  I can now finally shut up about the Bosio no-hitter!

The Mariners are now 7-8 when I attend
Time of Game: 2:48
Attendance: 22,028

 

Mariners handle Darvish

The Mariners won their fourth in a row, 6-1, as Felix pitched 8 strong innings against the best team in the American League.

Rangers (26-16)

Kinsler 2B

Andrus SS

Hamilton CF

Beltre 3B

Young DH

Murphy LF

Cruz RF

Napoli C

Moreland 1B

Darvish (6-1, 2.60)

Mariners (19-24)

Ackley 2B

Saunders CF

Ichiro RF

Seager 3B

Montero DH

Smoak 1B

Jaso C

Carp LF

Ryan SS

Hernandez (3-3 ,3.02)

It was the first appearance at Safeco by rookie Yu Darvish, the heralded starting pitcher signed in the offseason from Japan.  It was our second time facing him, and once again the Mariners proved that he is human.  Last time we were unable to put him away early on.  Tonight, he lasted only four innings, trailing 5-0.  In all honesty it probably should have been 7-0 or 8-0, as we didn't take full advantage of our opportunities.  But the way Felix was pitching, the run in the first inning was all we needed for most of the game.

Josh Hamilton came into the game batting .389 with 18 HR and 47 RBI!!  Yep, you read that right.  The dude is leading the league in all categories, and I think we'd have to combine 3 or possibly 4 mariners to match his output.  Contrast that to our third batter in the order, Ichiro, at .280 with 1 HR and 14 RBI... having a true middle of the order guy instead of a 7/8 hitter and who knows what we'd be doing!  Anyway, Felix was able to handle Hamilton, retiring him all four times including two strikeouts in which Hamilton looked like a fooled rookie.

The Mariners got their first run in the opening inning after Saunders drew a four pitch walk, followed by an triple down right field line by Ichiro, it got stuck under the padding in foul territory.  Darvish ended up walking six total batters in his four innings.  We were retired in order in the 2nd, then Ryan lead off the 3rd with a single followed by Darvish's second walk of the game to Ackley.  With no outs and runners on 1st and 2nd, Saunders laid down a bunt up the first base side, unfortunately Moreland went for the forced out at third.  So, once again runners on 1st and 2nd but now one out.  Ichiro, notoriously bad this year with runners in scoring position, laced an RBI single to center.  Ackley raced around to home, and Hamilton tried to throw out Saunders at third for some reason.  The throw sailed into the dugout, so Saunders scored and Ichiro was now on third!  Seager walked, leaving runners on 1st and 3rd with one out.  Montero then came through with a sacrifice fly to the warning track in center, making it 4-0.

In the fourth we probably should have added at least three or four more runs, but were unable to get a clutch hit.  Darvish loaded the bases to open up the inning on three walks, then Ackley hit a single to right to score Jaso, making it 5-0.  Unfortunately we then ground into two consecutive fielder's choices, forcing the out at home both times.  Seager then got caught looking in three pitches.  We had loaded the bases with nobody out, and couldn't muster a sacrifice fly or a ball hit out of the infield.  But, thanks to Felix, it didn't matter in the long run.  It was the last inning for Darvish, and we were retired in order in the 5th and 6th innings.  Our final run came in the 7th when  Montero hit an RBI double to left.

The Rangers got their lone run in the top of the 8th, when Moreland launched a solo shot to right field that traveled 403 feet.  What was funny is that I called it earlier in the game.  There were about 4/5 fans in the row in front of me who were ragging on Moreland all night for some reason.  They were just teasing him and yelling at him.  That homer was his answer.   It would have been nice to shut out the Rangers, but I got a chuckle out of it.

The Mariners improved to  6-5 when I attend!
Time of Game: 2:49
Attendance: 18,672

Pitching, Defense, Clutch Hitting

Tonight John Jaso batted leadoff, only the 2nd Mariners catcher to do so.  The last was in 1978!  Well, it ended up paying off as Jaso once again came through in the clutch and the Mariners beat Detroit 2-1 in just over two hours.

Vargas was absolutely stellar, again.

Tigers (15-14)

Jackson CF

Boesch RF

Cabrera 3B

Fielder 1B

Young DH

Raburn LF

Peralta SS

Laird C

Worth 2B

Smyly (1-0, 1.61)

Mariners (14-18)

Jaso C

Ryan SS

Ichiro RF

Montero DH

Seager 2B

Smoak 1B

Liddi 3B

Wells LF

Figgins CF

Vargas (3-2,3.09)

I bet Detroit will be glad to not see us until 2013, as we went 5-1 against them this year, losing only yesterday's game.

We were only able to muster 4 hits, but we made them count.  Ichiro singled in the 4th, stole second, then came around on an RBI double by Seager which almost went out of the ballpark. Ichiro's single put him at #100 on the all-time hits list.

Vargas, meanwhile, was only in trouble once the whole night.  Sporting a 1-0 lead he gave up a leadoff double to Laird.  Worth followed with a single to advance him to third.  Jackson then got Detroit their only run of the game via a sacrifice fly.  Boesch followed with a single but Vargas was able to get out of trouble by inducing a 4-6-3 double play.  There were about three or four absolutely fantastic defensive plays by Ryan tonight, including a barehanded grab to end the third.  Even if he isn't hitting right now, at least he is flashing a gold glove worthy defense.  One of the plays essentially ended the game, but more on that later.

After Vargas got out of the sixth, he retired the next six batters to finish the 8th with an efficient 90 pitches.  In my opinion he should have probably come back out in the ninth inning, but Wedge doesn't like to play that way.  The score was tied 1-1, and Saunders pinch hit for Wells to lead off the bottom of the inning.  He hit a double to left field.  Figgins then laid down a sacrifice bunt, which brought up Jaso.  He hit a single to center field, scoring Saunders with the eventual winning run.  It feels like the 4th or 5th time already this year that he has produced a game winning RBI.  Unfortunately, Jaso got a little too excited and tried to stretch the single into a double and was thrown out at second.

League came in to close out the game, and proceeded to walk the leadoff man, Jackson, which meant that Boesch, Cabrera, and possibly Fielder were due up next.  Boesch hit an absolute laser to Ryan, who was able to knock the ball down and get the double play.  For a split second it looked like he had caught it, but it was hit too hard.  That turned to our favor, and we easily doubled them up.


The Mariners are now 5-5 when I attend, 2-2 in one run games!
Attendance: 15,655
Time of Game: 2:06

Mariners Spoil Another Fister Start

It seemed like every time I saw Fister pitch last year, we ruined his great outing in some way.  Mostly it was from a lack of scoring, once it was that phantom walk (three pitch walk).  Well, we did it again. Only this time, it was for our benefit as we scored 3 in the 9th to spoil Fister's outstanding start for the Tigers.

Tigers (14-13)

Jackson CF

Dirks LF

Cabrera 3B

Fielder 1B

Young DH

Avila C

Peralta SS

Boesch RF

Raburn 2B

Fister (0-0, 0.00)

Mariners (13-17)

Ackley 2B

Ryan SS

Ichiro RF

Montero C

Seager 3B

Jaso DH

Smoak 1B

Carp LF

Saunders CF

Beavan (1-3, 4.45)

Fister was off the DL after hurting himself in his first start of the year, and he looked like the same old Fister.  I had mixed feelings, I love watching the man pitch but not at our expense.  We outlasted him, got to their Bullpen and were lucky enough to meet a very wild Dotel.

Beavan went out after the third inning after a strange 1-5-4-3 double play to end the third.  Cabrera absolutely smoked the ball straight up the middle and it ricocheted off Beavan's elbow.  Iwakuma came on in relief, only his third appearance of the season, and after a shaky 4th inning in which he allowed 1 run on three hits (sandwiching three strikeouts), he retired the order in the 5th and 6th innings.  Our relievers were outstanding tonight, keeping us in the game. 

The Tigers scored in the first inning on two doubles, the second by Fielder.  It wasn't hit very hard, but was a pop up that just managed to land right next to the foul line, far enough out of reach of Carp, Wells, and Seager.  Wells was roaming around Left Center so he had no chance, Ryan barely missed it.  I would call Fielder's RBI double a bloop one.  He had another softly hit bloop single against Iwakuma in the 4th, and came around to score on a broken bat single by Boesch.  So the Tigers weren't hitting us hard, I would say their hardest hit ball was the one that put Beavan out of the game.

Fister, in the meantime, went 7 strong innings, allowing only 4 hits in the 1st, 3rd, 6th, and 7th with 73 pitches.  He probably could have finished the game, but I'm glad he didn't!

In the 9th inning Ryan and Ichiro both drew walks.  Then, on the first pitch to Montero, Dotel threw a Wild Pitch advancing the runners to 2nd and 3rd with nobody out.  I looked at the remaining players to come up:  Seager, and Jaso, and was fully confident that we had just won the game.  I knew that Montero would either get a sac fly or a base hit to score the runs, and that Seager and Jaso would do something magical.  On his 2-0 pitch, Dotel threw wildly again, Avila couldn't handle it and it got past him to score Ryan and put Ichiro on third via the passed ball.  Montero then launched a fullcount bomb to deep center field.  On a warmer night it would have been gone, but it bounced off the the wall for an RBI double, and the ballgame was tied.  Montero absolutely crushed it.  Dotel was done, and Kawasaki came in to pinch run.  This meant that if we went to extra innings we probably would have lost our DH as Jaso would have switched to catcher.  But we had three outs still to play with, and like I said I was fully confident.

Sure enough, Seager, probably our most consistent hitter lately, immediately put down a sac bunt to advance Kawasaki to third.  And then, Mr. Clutch John Jaso came up to the plate.  He'd already won two games for us this year.  We had all the momentum... and sure enough after fouling back the first pitch Jaso hit a fly to right field, and Kawasaki beat the throw to score the winning run.  The team poured out and swarmed Jaso.  The fans went crazy, and everyone went home happy.  It was a great comeback win and nobody could ask for a better way to end a ballgame.

Can't pin down the player of the game, too many played such an important role.

The Mariners are now 4-5 when I attend and 1-2 in 1 run games
Attendance: 14,462
Time of Game: 2:31

Felix and Seager Snap 7 Game Skid

It was a beautiful night at the ballpark while Felix cruised through 8 innings of one hit ball and Seager knocked in four runs as the Mariners snapped their 7 game losing streak with a 7-0 shut out.

Twins (7-18)

Span CF

Carroll SS

Mauer DH

Willingham LF

Doumit C

Parmalee 1B

Valencia 3B

Komatsu RF

Casilla 2B

Marquis (2-0, 6.23)

Mariners 11-17

Ackley  2B

Ryan SS

Ichiro RF

Montero C

Seager 3B

Jaso DH

Smoak 1B

Carp LF

Saunders CF

Hernandez (2-1, 2.23)

Felix looked good from the start, he struck out nine while giving up just two walks and a hit.  All of those were in the 4th inning as he loaded the bases.  But Felix pitched his way out of the jam and the Twins were unable to reach base the rest of the game.  At that point, it was still a scoreless game.

The home team had at least one runner reach base in each of the first four innings but was unable to capitalize as they hit into three double plays.  They were retired in order in the 5th but then were able to break through in the 6th inning with two runs.  With the way Felix was pitching, I was sure that the two would be enough and it turned out to be the case.  Ackley lead off the inning with an infield single.  Then, Ryan was able to get down a sacrifice bunt to advance Ackley.  In the 3rd inning Ryan had been unable to sacrifice Saunders and Ackley (after back to back walks to start the inning) with failed bunt attempts, and ended up striking out.  In the third, Ichiro then hit into a double play.  This time,  Ichiro then drew an eight pitch walk.  Montero followed with a groundout to the pitcher that advanced the runners, with two outs.   Seager then took a 2-0 pitch up the middle for a two rbi single and we had all the runs Felix would need.  Jaso followed by what I like to call the "intentional unintentional" walk as Smoak has been struggling all year.  Sure enough, he ended the inning with a flyball to left.

We added on a bunch of insurance in the 7th inning.  While it was exciting to see, we didn't need it, but it would good to see production out of our lineup.  Carp leadoff with a walk, then Saunders laid down a bunt for a single.  They put in Wells as pinch runner for Carp.  Ackley drew another walk, loading the bases for Ryan who had already laid down a sacrifice bunt his previous at-bat.  This time, he did his job with a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Wells and advancing Saunders to third.  So here comes Ichiro.  1st and 3rd with 1 out, similar to his 3rd inning at-bat when there were runners on 1st and 2nd with 1 out and he hit into a double play.  This time... he didn't.  He launched an 0-1 pitch the the "sweet spot" in right-center for a TRIPLE!  It was now 5-0.  One out later, on his first pitch, Seager launched his 4th home run of the year to right field that traveled 395 feet.  7-0 Mariners and that was the ballgame.

Easy for me to say that Seager is the player of the game with his 2 hits and 4 RBI, closely followed by Felix.  He was excellent, but without Seager's offense it could have been a whole different ballgame.  It is important to support Felix, as he pitches his heart out every game and rarely sees a reward for his efforts.  Felix didn't come out to pitch the 9th, but I guess it was because there was no need.  The game was in hand, no reason to risk his health on a cold night.  I was hoping to see a complete game from him.

Everyone in the lineup contributed, by either getting on base or producing a run.  That's what you like to see.  We had had 7 hits and 8 walks, with only 2 strikeouts.  This has already been a streaky season and we are only a month in, it is going to continue to be a long but interesting ride.

Mariners now 3-5 when I attend
Attendance:  28,437
Time of Game: 2:33

Figgins and Ichiro Go Yard

That's right, Figgins and Ichiro both hit homers as the Mariners and Vargas beat the Indians 4-1 in front of the smallest home crowd in Safeco history.

Indians (5-4)

Donald SS

Kipnis 2B

Choo RF

Santana C

Hafner DH

Duncan LF

Lopez 3B

Kotchman 1B

Cunningham CF

Lowe (2-0, 1.98)

Mariners (6-6)

Figgins LF

Ackley 1B

Ichiro RF

Montero DH

Seager 3B

Saunders CF

Olivo C

Kawasaki 2B

Ryan SS

Vargas (1-1, 3.44)

The story of the game was the first inning and Vargas.  Vargas went 7 strong innings, striking out seven while he gave up just one run on four hits.  The home plate umpire, Angel Campos, seemed to have a strange strike zone as there were a lot of called strikeouts, including two back-to-back by the Indians in the 4th.  Vargas struck out the side in that inning, he's not known for striking guys out.  He was really only in trouble one inning, when he loaded the bases in the 6th inning.  But, by that time he was up 4-1, and he was able to wiggle out of the jam.

Figgins gets my pick for offensive player of the game, he lead off the first inning by hitting the seventh leadoff home run of his career, first as a Mariner. It was also the first leadoff homer by a Mariner other than Ichiro since 2000, when Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson went yard.  Figgins has been a "new and improved" player.  The home run was on the 8th pitch of the at-bat.  He also had a single and a walk, and broke up a double play with a fantastic slide.  As soon as we signed him a couple of years ago I was thrilled we finally had a real leadoff hitter, for some reason they kept Ichiro in that spot and our team suffered for it.

Not to be outdone, Ichiro hit a homer run of his own just four pitches later.  It was almost as if he wouldn't let Figgins "show him up".  Everyone has always claimed Ichiro can hit a home run whenever he wants to, I guess this was proof.  Then why doesn't he do it more often?  Seager added a double, and Saunders a single in the rest of the first but we were unable to score.  We added our third run in the second inning after loading the bases with two outs.  Montero then drew a four pitch walk to score Ryan from third!

The Indians scored their only run in the third inning, Cunningham led off the inning with launched double to left that hit off the yellow line, right next to the hand operated scoreboard.  Manny Acta, the Indians' Manager, came out to argue with the third base umpire after which all four gathered together then jogged into the bowels of Safeco for an instant replay.  I HATE instant replay.  It has no place is baseball, and umpires are correct 95-99% of the time.  If it had gone over the wall, it would have sounded differently, and it would have bounced back differently.  Also, the bullpen had no reaction, they knew it was a double.  About two minutes later and the call was confirmed.  A waste of time.  NO PLACE IN BASEBALL!  A sacrifice bunt pushed Cunningham to third and he scored on a sacrifice fly by Kipnis.  And, that was their offense until the sixth inning.   The Mariners added another run in the 4th after Ryan walked, followed by consecutive singles.

Kawasaki is fun to watch, just because he exudes absolute joy.  You can tell he loves the game, and is very generous with the fans.  He had a walk in the bottom of the third and after a pick off attempt he did a pushup at first, then was caught stealing.  It is weird watching him because the swing is EXACTLY like Ichiro's.

Ackley had his first ML start at first base as Smoak was out with a tight hamstring.

It is a shame more people aren't going to games, they are a lot more enjoyable to watch this year.  I looked around about the third inning and wondered when we had turned into Oakland, I also thought back to the Kingdome days, but at least then we were covered and warm!  The smallest crowd ever was actually an away game vs the Marlins last year, but tonight counted as the smallest home crowd.

Record when I attend: 2-2
Attendance: 11,343
Time of Game: 2:47

Noesi and Montero Shine

I have attended four shutouts in a row at Safeco Field, thankfully today was the first time the Mariners had won in that span.  Today's final score was the reverse of yesterday's, as we won 4-0.  The stars of the game were traded for in the Pineda trade. 

Athletics (4-4)

Weeks 2B

Crisp LF

Reddick RF

Cespedes CF

Smith DH

Suzuki C

Barton 1B

Donaldson 3B

Pennington SS

Milone (1-0, 0.00)

Mariners (4-5)

Figgins CF

Ackley 2B

Ichiro RF

Smoak 1B

Montero C

Liddi 3B

Olivo DH

Wells LF

Ryan SS

Noesi (0-1, 21.00)

It was the first time we got to see Noesi, I had no idea what to expect as he was shelled in his first start in Texas.  He was very effective and induced a ton of popups.  Ackley alone had four of the nine. The only major trouble he got in was in the 8th inning.  He was at 88 pitches through 7 and at the rate he was going I thought he had a possibility of a complete game.  He retired the first two batters of the 8th, but then Pennington got a single up the middle and Weeks launched a double to right center.  We were lucky that it bounced over the fence for a ground rule double, 'cause Pennington was already around third ready to score.  Noesi then induced Crisp to pop up on the next pitch, and he stranded the runners on second and third.  Fantastic first outing at home, I was very impressed.  League came in to finish off the game in the 9th.

Milone faced only 1 batter above the minimum through 5 innings, that was Montero's 2nd inning full count rocket of a home run to deep center, estimated at 415 feet.  It was literally a line drive, I thought it was going to hit off the top of the wall for a double but it kept carrying.  It was his first home run as a Mariner.  That was all of our offense until the sixth inning.  There was a questionable call in the 4th in which Ichiro hit a solid stroke just past first base.  Barton was able to deflect it, but it hit the first base umpire so instead of going to the wall Barton was able to snatch it and throw to Milone covering first.  Wedge came out to argue, pointing animatedly.  It was bang bang, huge boos came from the concourse after the replay on TV, but according to twitter he was out. 

In the sixth inning we broke out for three more runs.  We loaded the bases with 1 out via a Ryan single, Figgins double, and Ackley walk.  Ichiro, not surprisingly, popped out.  So the bases were loaded with two out for the "meat" of our lineup.  Smoak has been struggling but he patiently worked a walk for his third RBI of the year.  Then, Montero came through again with a double down the right field line, it dropped right in front of our section and cleared the bases... except Smoak was thrown out at home (9-3-2) so we only got two runs on the play.  The collision at home was a little scary at first, as Smoak seemed to take some time getting up.  But he played the rest of the game so he must be okay.  Montero was the hero, his final line: 3 AB, R, 2B, HR, 3RBI

Montero quietly has an 8 game hitting streak.  I guess he has done so because they had all been singles prior to tonight.  Also, he caught his second game of the year.  We have won both games, and unlike Olivo he has done a decent job blocking pitches.  The kid is only 22, I can see Montero moving to being the starting catcher if he continues to make progress.  The Athletics did steal a base on him in the third, but the more repetitions he gets the better he will be.  Of course, he won't be one of the top notch defensive catchers out there, but his better than average offense will offset that.  Your DH should not be a 22 year old.  

I would like the add that the Saturday curse is officially broken!  Last year I attended 9 games on Saturday and we won none of them!

The Mariners are now 1-1 when I attend, 5-5 overall.
Attendance: 21,071
Time of Game: 2:29

Vargas is Stellar in Final Start.

Fantastic pitching by both starters, as Mariners won 4-2 in front of 17,057 fans.  There was a little excitement in the 5th inning as Carter hit the roof with a foul ball!!!!!  This is a rare occurrence, occurring only two other times that I can recall.

Athletics (72-87)

Weeks 2B

Crisp CF

Matsui DH

Willingham LF

Sizemore 3B

Suzuki C

Carter 1B

Taylor RF

Rosales SS

McCarthy (9-8, 3.26)

Mariners (66-93)

Ichiro RF

Rodriguez SS

Ackley 2B

Carp DH

Smoak 1B

Olivo C

Robinson LF

Liddi 3B

Saunders CF

Vargas (9-13, 4.38)

The Mariners scored all of their runs via the long ball.  Olivo got a solo shot in the 5th to tie up the ballgame.  Then, in the 6th, Smoak launched a 3 run homer 403 feet to right center, scoring Ackley and Carp with 2 outs.  I'm hoping that Ackley, Carp, and Smoak will be producing like that for the Mariners for the next decade.  Smoak has had a tough year with the passing of his father, and injuries.  I'm hoping next year he's healthy, and finally proves that we made the right trade for Cliff Lee.  Olivo is now the all-time leader in single season home runs for a Mariners catcher with 19.  If only he could actually catch the damn ball. 

I was a little pissed that they pulled Vargas after 8 innings.  He got his career high 10th strikeout in the 8th. Vargas only had 105 pitches, and it was his final start of the year.  They way he was cruising, I don't think an extra 12 pitches would have put him in imminent danger of injuring himself.  Plus, League struggled and practically blew the save.  He gave up 2 hits and a run before getting Suzuki to ground to short for the final out.  My heart started racing for a few minutes, thinking that League was going to ruin the night.  But he pulled it out, and Vargas got a much deserved 10th win of the year.  The lone run he gave up was in the top of the first, after that it was smooth sailing.

I guess McCarthy deserves some praise as well... he had a complete game.

The Mariners are now 18-21 when I attend.

Mariners earn 10th Shutout

The Mariners put in a solid performance, shutting out their opponent for the 10th time this season behind the excellent pitching of Beavan.  He ended up going 8 strong innings, giving up only four hits.  League wrapped up his 45th save of the year by striking out the side.  

Rangers (86-64)

Kinsler 2B

Andrus SS

Hamilton LF

Young 3B

Beltre DH

Murphy RF

Torrealba C

Moreland 1B

Chavez CF

Wilson (16-6, 3.01)

Mariners (62-87)

Ichiro RF

Ryan SS

Ackley 2B

Olivo C

Carp 1B

Pena DH

Seager 3B

Robinson LF

Wells CF

Beavan (4-5, 4.32)

The Mariners scored 3 of their 4 runs in a 41 pitch 3rd inning, thanks to a key error. Wells and Ryan were on 1st and 2nd, respectively, with 2 outs when Ackley came to the plate.  The count was 3-2 and he hit a chopper to Kinsler.  Kinsler fielded it fine but his throw to first was way off.   It ended up being a 2 base error as Wells scored and Ryan ended up at 3rd.  Chalk it up to Ackley's speed, a brain fart?  I don't know, but I'll take it.  Just three pitches later and a wild pitch got past Torrealba, scoring Ryan.  Olivo ended up with an infield single to shortstop followed by an RBI single off the second base bag for Carp. Pena was then hit by a pitch on his foot to load the bases, but Seager struck out for the final out. It was a wild inning, and one that Niehaus would have enjoyed.  Remember, this was all with 2 outs.  So we got an error, wild pitch, and freak hit to thank for the 3 runs as we went through the lineup.  That was all we needed, but they added an insurance run in the 7th inning as Wells lead off with a homer into the Rangers' bullpen, and we won 4-0.  Special note, Wells worked a full count in each of his at-bats tonight.  

Now 17-21 when I attend!
Att: 17,607

Smoak, Ichiro, and Vargas Deliver

Justin Smoak knocked his first home run in 48 games and the Mariners won 4-1 as we held one of the League's best hitting offenses to just five hits.  Kansas City's 1-3 hitters all came into the game batting exactly .300.

KC Royals (60-84)

Gordon LF

Cabrera CF

Butler DH

Hosmer 1B

Francoeur RF

Moustakas 3B

Giavotella 2B

Perez C

Escobar SS

Hochevar P

Mariners (59-83)

Ichiro RF

Ryan SS

Ackley 2B

Carp LF

Smoak 1B

Kennedy DH

Seager 3B

Robinson CF

Giminez C

Vargas P

After struggling in the second half of the season, the "old" Vargas showed up tonight, and it was nice to see.  He ended up lasting 6 innings, allowing just 1 run on 4 hits.  He retired the lineup in order in the first inning, then... in the second Francoeur hit a one out triple that got past Carp after he made a diving attempt at the fast sinking ball.  It should have been a double.  Vargas got out of the jam by inducing a fielder's choice from Moustakas with a sharp grounder to Ackley, who immediately threw the ball to Giminez.  There was a collision at home, but Giminez held on and Francoeur was out!  At that point we were up 1-0.

Ichiro led off the Mariners' offense by taking the first pitch 386 feet into the right field stands.  It was his 36th lead off homer of his career, and passed Bobby Bonds for 6th on the all-time list.  For a guy who flat out refuses to do anything but single, I guess that's a pretty amazing stat.  He now has 94 ML homers so 38% of all of his homers are lead off.

The game remained 1-0 until the 6th inning, when the Royals tied up the ballgame.  Cabrera got a one out bunt single (first pitch), then stole second and scored on a single to center.  The tie was short lived, as in the bottom of the sixth the Mariners went ahead for good thanks to a leadoff 4 pitch walk to Ackley, and a Smoak two run homer.  It was nice to see, as he has had a tough year with the death of his father and several injuries.  Hopefully he can have a good couple of weeks to finish off the season, right on through to Spring next year.

We added an insurance run in the 7th.  Ichiro got a two out single, stole second and third base, then scored when Ryan reached on an error by the shortstop.

League came on in the 9th to nail down his 34th save, but not before our defense put the tying run at the plate.  Moustakas reached on a single that ricocheted off League and ended in "no man's land" between Smoak and League.  Then, on what was going to be a sure out by Ryan to end the ballgame, he was unable to get a hold of the ball and committed the error.  Perez then hit a ground ball to Ryan, who tossed to Ackley for the Fielder's Choice.  And that was the ballgame.


Pizza
16-17 when I attend
Att: 14,377

Felix With 5th Complete Game

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!  What a way to end the month of August.  Carp tied the Mariners rookie mark for RBIs in a month, Felix passed Jamie Moyer for 2nd on the strike out list (trailing only Randy Johnson) as well as passed 200 strike outs in a season for the third year in a row.  This game had it all, fantastic defense, pitching, clutch hitting, and a come from behind 2-1 win.

Angels  (73-62)

Aybar SS

Kendrick 2B

Hunter RF

Trumbo 1B

Callaspo 3B

Bourjos CF

Trout LF

Mathis C

Haren P

Mariners (57-77)

Ichiro DH

Gutierrez CF

Ackley 2B

Carp 1B

Olivo C

Seager 3B

Wells RF

Ryan SS

Robinson LF

Hernandez P

With Felix and Haren on the mound, we knew it had the potential to be a great game.  When both pitchers are on, they're ON.  As with the majority of fantastic pitchers, you have to hit them in the first couple of innings or it will be a long night.

Haren gave up a walk in the first and a double in the second... which was followed by retiring the next 15 batters until a single by Carp in the 7th inning.  It was an inning in which we loaded the bases but weren't able to break out for a run. 

At that point we were trailing 1-0 thanks to a leadoff broken bat single by the speedy Trout in the 3rd who came around on another single by Kendrick after advancing to second base on a sac bunt.  The single by Kendrick followed Felix's 3rd strikeout in the game, Aybar, which made him pass Jamie Moyer to the number 2 position on career strikeouts at 1,240.  He ended up with another 6 on the night.

Felix wasn't perfect, but he was definitely sharp.  At one point, from the 4th to the 8th inning, he retired 12 in a row.  His final line:  9 IP, 109 P, 5H, 1 R, 9 K, 1 BB

So here Felix is, pitching his ass off again and looking at another complete game loss.  We got to Haren in the 7th but were unable to score.  Needless to say, I was less than confident with Robinson and Ichiro up 1 and 2 in the order in the top of the 8th.  As predicted, neither produced.  But Gutierrez, having refound his stroke in the month of August, got a single up the middle and WE WERE ALIVE!  Ackley quickly followed with a single of his own and we had runners at the corners.  All we needed was a single to tie or a well placed double to put us ahead.  Carp came up to the plate, needing those two RBI sitting on the bases to tie Danny Tartabull in 1986 for most RBIs by a Mariners rookie in any month (25).

After a pitching change in which Haren was pulled, on a 2-1 pitch Caro smoked it... and I mean smoked, to left center which got past Bourjos for a double that scored both runners!  The crowd went nuts.  Carp had tied the rookie record, we were up 2-1, and with the way Felix was pitching there was no doubt he wouldn't come out to complete the game.  To the roar of the crowd, he came trotting back out to the 9th and retired the first two batters via strikeouts.  Then, Trumbo took a 1-1 pitch deep to RF, but thankfully it was grabbed at the warning track for the final out.  Everyone went home happy and pumped up from the excitement.

Gyro
15-16 when I attend
18,520 att

Carp Snaps Streak

Losing streak, that is.  The Mariners played spoiler, knocking off the Angels 5-3 on one of their better games of the year.  We had everything, great hitting, great defense, and solid pitching.  Seeing as how we came into the game 20 games under, the only thing to look forward to is the role of spoiler and the continued development of our youngsters.  The Angels are fighting for the AL West top spot with the Rangers, but they will have to wait at least another day for a win.

Angels (72-61)

Izturis 3B

Kendrick 2B

Abreu DH

Hunter RF

Trumbo 1B

Wells LF

Aybar SS

Bourjos CF

Conger C

Pineiro P

Mariners (56-76)

Ichiro RF

Gutierrez CF

Ackley 2B

Carp 1B

Olivo C

Kennedy DH

Wells LF

Seager 3B

Ryan SS

Beavan P

Trumbo is a freaking beast of a rookie... he came into the game hitting 256 with 18 homers and 71 RBI.  He added 2 more RBI with his 2 run homer in the 4th.  The Angels added another run that inning, but that was pretty much all she wrote for their offense!

Ackley was a homer shy of a cycle, Wells got two outfield assists (3rd and 7th) as well as walked in 3 out of his 4 plate appearances (one intentional), and Carp crushed the game winning 2 run homer 432 feet to the hit it here cafe in the 8th as the Mariners won 5-3 in a thrilling game.  There were only 16,990 fans, which is pathetic considering the weather was beautiful and it is still August!  The Mariners hit a season high 7 extra base hits.  Ichiro had 2 of them, both doubles in which he came around on a sac fly to left field in the first and Ackley's triple in the 5th (which tied the game at 3).  He now has 153 hits on the year with 29 games to go on his quest for 200.  I really hope he doesn't get it.

Garlic Chicken
14-16 when I attend
I scored, but let my sister score for nearly half of the game.  She did a good job and I think had a good time.