Game of the Week: June 20: KC @ SEA

[Commissioner Erick]

Kansas City Royals (42-29) @ Seattle Mariners (47-27)


KC: Taylor Lehman (4-2, 4.20)
SEA: Steve Connor (6-6, 3.03)



Two AL juggernauts square off today with the Seattle Mariners facing the Kansas City Royals. With Raimfer Salinas and Ivan Johnson in the AL Central, the Mariners’ offense hasn’t been quite as prodigious as last year, as the club is fifth in runs scored. There’s been nothing wrong with their run prevention though, as the team leads the league in ERA, Zone Rating, and Defensive Efficiency.

The back of the bullpen will be the focus today. Mike Holbrook is 4-0 with six saves and a 1.35 ERA. Dan Farris hasn’t allowed an earned run in 14 innings off the IL. Rafael A. Gomez has a 1.47 ERA in 30.2 innings. That back of the pen has simply locked games up. However, Gomez is dealing with a dead arm and may need time on the IL. Will that effect the end of games today?

Kansas City has been similar to Seattle in that it has an elite run-prevention unit, but the offense has taken a step back. Jorge Vargas has recovered from a dreadful start, but is still hitting only .227. Jonathan Bakos is only hitting .255. Luis Nunez is batting .172. Roderick Dalton is having a great year, but runs have been harder to come by. They hope the addition of Brian Radcliffe can juice their offense.

They’ll send Taylor Lehman to the mound, an arm that hasn’t allowed more than one run a start in his last four games. He’s been a steady influence his entire career, and has had his recent hot streak against some tough opponents, like Detroit, and Boston. He should be able to keep things close.


Questions for the GMs:


For Daniel Kent, Luis Nunez is nicked up. Will he play today?

You traded Bob Beasley, who has been solid this year, for Brian Radcliffe. Why did you make that move?

Jayden Harris has been elite in relief. How long until he’s starting games?

For Jay Bigs, Rafael A. Gomez has a dead arm. How will he be replaced?

Your pitching has been great, do you feel you have the offense for a deep run?

Bryce Zettel is struggling to hit in Tacoma. Is his Mariners career over?


TRIVIA: Who has the most career RBIs in Seattle Mariners history?

[Jay Bigs]

1. Rafael A. Gomez has a dead arm. How will he be replaced? Unfortunately theres no good replacement for him, since he joined hes been that good but McCracken will likely come backup to play a role as a long man, with Farris recovering from his recent injury, he will take on the role at the back end of the pen.

2. Your pitching has been great, do you feel you have the offense for a deep run? Not every team can be the best in every area, while last year we may have been very productive offensively it was not sustainable with the reduction in budget from the owner and we had to let some talented guys goes. We leaned into our strength even more this year replacing that offensive production with great defensive reliability. I do think we still have some serious bright sparks on offense with reigning MVP Santiago, Super star Sierra, and a Phenominal prospect in Kitchel so all we need is good enough from everyone else and we can win some games.

3. Bryce Zettel is struggling to hit in Tacoma. Is his Mariners career over? Oh ye hes unlikely to see any play back in the Majors, his streaky nature and lack of a glove means he doesnt have much use to us and is behind a couple other guys should we need batting cover. Hes available for anyone that wants to take a chance that he can find his good form again. 

[Commissioner Erick]

TRIVIA: Jay correctly guessed Francisco DeJesus

[Commissioner Erick]

Royals 6 - Mariners 2


WP: T. Lehman (5-2)
LP: S. Conner (6-7)


The Kansas City Royals topped the Seattle Mariners by a score of 6-2. Leading the way was first baseman Roderick Dalton. Dalton went 2 for 3 with a home run and a walk. He drove in 4 runs and scored once for the Royals. Kansas City has run its win streak to 4 straight.

With Kansas City trailing 1-0 in the top of the fifth, Dalton hit a fastball from Steve Conner for a grand slam home run. It was his 12th home run of the season and put the Royals ahead, 4-1.

Dalton called the win the result of "everyone being in sync."


Questions for the GMs:


For Daniel Kent, Taylor Lehman had another fantastic game. Have you been surprised he's been so successful this year, and will he maintain a rotation spot going forward?

How did Juan Moreno look in his first start for you?

How do you feel about your draft that just concluded?

For Jay Bigs, Bobby O' Keefe started for you and went 0-2, and is doing nothing offensively. Do you plan on upgrading his roster spot?

Mitch Wilson had a big day, but it was a surprise to see him hitting third. Why did you bat him so high in your lineup?

You gave up many of your early draft picks, how do you feel about how the draft went for you?


TRIVIA: Who is the only pitcher Jorge Vargas has faced more than 30 times, but hasn't homered against?

[Commissioner Erick]

TRIVIA 2: Luke correctly guessed Josh Woodward

[Jay Bigs]

Oh thought i replied.

1. Bobby O' Keefe started for you and went 0-2, and is doing nothing offensively. Do you plan on upgrading his roster spot?
No, Bobby is giving us exactly what we want and expect. He can backup every position defensively and thats why hes on the roster to give people days off when they need it. Its a long season and these off days are key, what he provides offensively doesnt really matter to us.

2. Mitch Wilson had a big day, but it was a surprise to see him hitting third. Why did you bat him so high in your lineup?
Ye the manager tend to do this sometime when someone has a rest day he likes to mix up the entire batting lineup, he was spoken to about it but refuses to listen. Plus its hard to argue with the results. We like Mitch, good in the field and provides some run support sometimes. Defense first has generally been our play when acquiring talent at key positions.

3. You gave up many of your early draft picks, how do you feel about how the draft went for you?
Oh there was a draft? Joking aside we didnt put too much emphasis on the draft and will use them as an when needed if the right guys become available. This offseason we were a bit more aggressive as the team is so close to that big world series win after progressing 1 step further than the year before, I for sure hope that pays off as we get into the business end of the year. Some of the targets we wanted unfortunately we couldnt get done but still had to use the draft capital to strengthen any way we could. Expect to keep seeing more of that until its no longer a viable option for us.