Post by Commissioner Erick on Oct 13, 2019 10:50:08 GMT -5
Seattle Mariners (20-23) @ Tampa Bay Rays (24-21)
SEA: Roniel Raudes (0-4, 5.88)
TB: Blake Snell (3-4, 5.51)
The Seattle Mariners and Tampa Bay Rays each come into this Game of the Week struggling. Seattle was atop the AL West earlier this month, but has lost eight in a row, and 15 of 18. Tampa Bay meanwhile, has lost nine of 12 to relinquish their lead in the AL East to the Toronto Blue Jays. Tampa Bay's been much better at home this year, with a 15-9 mark at Tropicana Field, that should give them an edge against the road-weary Mariners. Tampa Bay is also facing a pitcher addicted to yielding homers in Roniel Raudes. On the surface this should be an easy matchup for Tampa Bay, but the Rays have performed worse than expected this year.
Players to Watch
Mariners:
2B—Aramis Ademan:
Ademan has had a spectacular start to his first full year, with that start driving much of Seattle's success. He was hitting .300 until May 22, though he hit .111 last week, right in the midst of Seattle's broader eight-game losing streak. That being said, the former top 100 prospect has drawn one fewer walk than strike out, and he's third in the league in doubles. Plus, his defense gives him a high floor, as Ademan is fourth in the league in shortstop zone rating. Blake Snell doesn't issue many walks though, and has some of the best stuff in baseball. As a result, Ademan's offensive struggles may persist one more day.
RF—Dylan Carlson:
Carlson struggled in Triple-A this year, has struggled in the majors, and has struggled defensively, yet he's on Seattle's roster as a right field defensive replacement. He likely won't get into the game for his bat, so he'll need to produce a zone rating better than the -1.3 he put up in Tacoma. Carlson's put up some good batting averages in the minors, but he's never hit for enough power, nor been a standout on defense. If Seattle carries a late lead, he won't have to worry about his bat. He'll just have to be a better defender than Tyler O'Neill.
SP—Roniel Raudes:
Raudes is an extreme control pitcher at the back of Seattle's rotation, and he's yet to make a difference in the majors. He gave up 13 home runs in 59.2 innings last season, and has allowed 10 more in 41.1 this year, which are just unacceptable numbers. While he doesn't walk hitters, he only has a 17% strikeout rate, meaning he's not fooling a lot of hitters. Seattle has a good outfield defense, but not a great one that can mitigate against Raudes' propensity to yield deep fly balls. Tampa Bay has a lot of sluggers on the roster, so this game could get ugly.
Rays
RP—Rodolfo Martinez:
Martinez was acquired early in the year to bolster Tampa Bay's pen. He has exceptional stuff, but lacks command on the hill, and tact in the clubhouse, a reason San Francisco offered him away. Martinez generally doesn't give up homers, though the 2020 version was heavy on the walks and strikeouts, while last year's version was a pitch-to-contact guy. With Tampa in the early going, Martinez has been dominant, yielding just one home run and two walks with 14 strikeouts in 11.2 innings. Martinez has always struggled with lefties far more than righties, so if he used properly, he should only be in to handle the top of the Seattle lineup.
SP—Blake Snell:
Snell has struggled to a 3-4, 5.53 ERA in the early going, with indicators suggesting he's lost a little bit of bite. He's still striking guys out, and he still doesn't walk hitters, but his home run rate has doubled from where it was the past two years. It may have just been early-season hiccups. He's allowed three runs in each of his past three starts, which isn't dominant, but is better than a disastrous beginning to the year. He's fanned nine in each of those three starts, and has allowed two total home runs. Those starts were in pitchers parks in Tampa and Atlanta, but today's start is also in Tampa. Expect another outing where he yields only three runs.
RF—Jake Bauers:
Bauers is still struggling through a .228 average with only three home runs, as he leads the league in double plays grounded into. He homered on Saturday, which was a good sign, but he hasn't had a multi hit day since May 14, and he has just three extra base hits in that time. His defense has been fine and he's drawing the occasional walk, but it does seem like he's struggling. One thing that mitigates that is his spray chart. Bauer has hit a number of balls this year that have been caught at or just shy of the warning track. Maybe against a pitcher as dedicated to finding the middle of the plate, Bauers can find the extra 15 feet to start producing home runs.
TRIVIA: Seattle has had six primary starting second basemen in six seasons. Which of those six produced the worst WAR.
SEA: Roniel Raudes (0-4, 5.88)
TB: Blake Snell (3-4, 5.51)
The Seattle Mariners and Tampa Bay Rays each come into this Game of the Week struggling. Seattle was atop the AL West earlier this month, but has lost eight in a row, and 15 of 18. Tampa Bay meanwhile, has lost nine of 12 to relinquish their lead in the AL East to the Toronto Blue Jays. Tampa Bay's been much better at home this year, with a 15-9 mark at Tropicana Field, that should give them an edge against the road-weary Mariners. Tampa Bay is also facing a pitcher addicted to yielding homers in Roniel Raudes. On the surface this should be an easy matchup for Tampa Bay, but the Rays have performed worse than expected this year.
Players to Watch
Mariners:
2B—Aramis Ademan:
Ademan has had a spectacular start to his first full year, with that start driving much of Seattle's success. He was hitting .300 until May 22, though he hit .111 last week, right in the midst of Seattle's broader eight-game losing streak. That being said, the former top 100 prospect has drawn one fewer walk than strike out, and he's third in the league in doubles. Plus, his defense gives him a high floor, as Ademan is fourth in the league in shortstop zone rating. Blake Snell doesn't issue many walks though, and has some of the best stuff in baseball. As a result, Ademan's offensive struggles may persist one more day.
RF—Dylan Carlson:
Carlson struggled in Triple-A this year, has struggled in the majors, and has struggled defensively, yet he's on Seattle's roster as a right field defensive replacement. He likely won't get into the game for his bat, so he'll need to produce a zone rating better than the -1.3 he put up in Tacoma. Carlson's put up some good batting averages in the minors, but he's never hit for enough power, nor been a standout on defense. If Seattle carries a late lead, he won't have to worry about his bat. He'll just have to be a better defender than Tyler O'Neill.
SP—Roniel Raudes:
Raudes is an extreme control pitcher at the back of Seattle's rotation, and he's yet to make a difference in the majors. He gave up 13 home runs in 59.2 innings last season, and has allowed 10 more in 41.1 this year, which are just unacceptable numbers. While he doesn't walk hitters, he only has a 17% strikeout rate, meaning he's not fooling a lot of hitters. Seattle has a good outfield defense, but not a great one that can mitigate against Raudes' propensity to yield deep fly balls. Tampa Bay has a lot of sluggers on the roster, so this game could get ugly.
Rays
RP—Rodolfo Martinez:
Martinez was acquired early in the year to bolster Tampa Bay's pen. He has exceptional stuff, but lacks command on the hill, and tact in the clubhouse, a reason San Francisco offered him away. Martinez generally doesn't give up homers, though the 2020 version was heavy on the walks and strikeouts, while last year's version was a pitch-to-contact guy. With Tampa in the early going, Martinez has been dominant, yielding just one home run and two walks with 14 strikeouts in 11.2 innings. Martinez has always struggled with lefties far more than righties, so if he used properly, he should only be in to handle the top of the Seattle lineup.
SP—Blake Snell:
Snell has struggled to a 3-4, 5.53 ERA in the early going, with indicators suggesting he's lost a little bit of bite. He's still striking guys out, and he still doesn't walk hitters, but his home run rate has doubled from where it was the past two years. It may have just been early-season hiccups. He's allowed three runs in each of his past three starts, which isn't dominant, but is better than a disastrous beginning to the year. He's fanned nine in each of those three starts, and has allowed two total home runs. Those starts were in pitchers parks in Tampa and Atlanta, but today's start is also in Tampa. Expect another outing where he yields only three runs.
RF—Jake Bauers:
Bauers is still struggling through a .228 average with only three home runs, as he leads the league in double plays grounded into. He homered on Saturday, which was a good sign, but he hasn't had a multi hit day since May 14, and he has just three extra base hits in that time. His defense has been fine and he's drawing the occasional walk, but it does seem like he's struggling. One thing that mitigates that is his spray chart. Bauer has hit a number of balls this year that have been caught at or just shy of the warning track. Maybe against a pitcher as dedicated to finding the middle of the plate, Bauers can find the extra 15 feet to start producing home runs.
TRIVIA: Seattle has had six primary starting second basemen in six seasons. Which of those six produced the worst WAR.