Two years into a five-year, $64 million contract, Adrian Beltre has produced a .262 average, 44 home runs, and 176 RBIs. However, after the All Star break in 2006, Beltre slugged .552 with a whopping 18 home runs. Does this strong second half bode well for a turn-around in 2007, or will Mariners fans have to deal with 'A-Drain' once again? This blog intends to follow the 2007 season for Adrian Beltre, and the Seattle Mariners, and promises to hold no punches.
And of course when I wrote that we shouldn't expect Jeff Weaver to stop the Mariners two week-plus streak without a win from their starting pitcher- much less a quality start- along comes none other than Jeff Weaver, all 0-6 and 10.97 ERA of him, comes along and merely tosses a complete game four-hit shutout versus the Pirates. This is why I love baseball.
Weaver threw pitches at a number of different speeds from a variety of arm angles. According to the AP story, Weaver was influenced from watching game film from when he won 14 games two years ago with the Los Angeles Dodgers. But I would also wager Weaver was just as influenced from the results opposing pitchers' had against the Mariners' offense the past few games. Just like the Astros' Wandy Rodriguez and the Pirates' Tom Gorzelanny had the Mariners' hitters flailing at off-speed pitches off the black, so did Weaver's selection of off-speed and breaking pitches returned the favor to the Pirates' bats. At one point, Weaver retired 16 consecutive Pirates batters as he put both his winless start to the season and the Mariners' six game losing streak to a dominating end.
Let's hope that his strong start instills in Weaver a sense of confidence for the rest of the season. And perhaps some confidence for the rest of the starting rotation as well. Hopefully, Felix was watching from the bench and got some inspiration from Weaver's performance to go out in tomorrow's game and pick up his first win in six starts.
Adrian Beltre went 1-for-4 on the evening, knocking in a run with a second-inning single to left fielder Jason Bay, who's throw home pegged Kenji Johjima in the back, allowing Johjima to score. After scoring on a Richie Sexson RBI single, Beltre ends the evening with a .270 batting average. Sexson also contributed his second home run in two days to deep left field, as he ends the evening with a .209 batting average- Big Sexy is now hitting nine points over .200! If he manages to repeat his .322 post-All Star batting average that he hit last season, his average would fall in line with last season's .262 average, despite the horrid start to this season. There's hope for Sexson yet!
Kenji Johjima added weight to his case for the All-Star game by picking up three hits in tonight's game, raising his average to .316. And Ichiro Suzuki continued his latest hitting streak to fifteen games with a third inning single. Suzuki's presence on the basepaths seemed to rattle Pittsburgh starter Paul Maholm, as Suzuki immediately stole second- on a pitch that bounced away from Pittsburgh catcher Ronny Paulino- and stole third, although Paulino's throw may have beaten Ichiro, if Kata-riffic Pirate third baseman didn't allow the throw to bounce away from him into short left field. Jose Lopez then had no problem knocking Ichiro home with a groundball to shortstop. Bautista had other fielding woes, including rushing a throw in the second inning deep into the stands behind first base, and had other miscues that didn't show up in the box score, besides helping the M's roll to an easy victory behind Weaver's dominating start.
Felix takes the mound for the rubber game of the series, looking to improve his 4.76 ERA during interleague so far this season. Felix has yet to face the Pirates so far in his career, so if he's able to repeat Weaver's "dream" performance, then the Mariners stand a good chance of taking the series. However, things aren't going to be particularly easy for the M's bats in tomorrow's game. Former first-rounder John Van Benschoten takes the mound for the Pirates, and due to injuries that have derailed his career, will be in the hunt for his first major-league victory in three years. Benschoten picked up the loss in his last outing versus the White Sox despite allowing just two runs in nearly six innings, as the Pirates' bats failed him in a 6-1 loss.
Still, I'm going with the Mariners in tomorrow's game. The Pirates' line-up is the perfect opportunity for Felix to dial in a vintage performance, and if he can mix up his speeds and keep the Pirates off-balance, then Felix will be able to chalk up his first win in a month. Still, I think pitching will control the tempo of tomorrow's game, with a final score of 3-2, Mariners.
Oh, and some Mariners news update. The next big pipeline to players from the Far East, and the Mariners have signed their first two Chinese players to share their Japanese-influenced roster. Signed by the M's are infielder-outfielder Yu Bing Jia and catcher Wei Wang, both members of China's national team. Welcome to The Show, fellas, and let's see how Chinese ballplayers can translate to the American game....
Weaver threw pitches at a number of different speeds from a variety of arm angles. According to the AP story, Weaver was influenced from watching game film from when he won 14 games two years ago with the Los Angeles Dodgers. But I would also wager Weaver was just as influenced from the results opposing pitchers' had against the Mariners' offense the past few games. Just like the Astros' Wandy Rodriguez and the Pirates' Tom Gorzelanny had the Mariners' hitters flailing at off-speed pitches off the black, so did Weaver's selection of off-speed and breaking pitches returned the favor to the Pirates' bats. At one point, Weaver retired 16 consecutive Pirates batters as he put both his winless start to the season and the Mariners' six game losing streak to a dominating end.
Let's hope that his strong start instills in Weaver a sense of confidence for the rest of the season. And perhaps some confidence for the rest of the starting rotation as well. Hopefully, Felix was watching from the bench and got some inspiration from Weaver's performance to go out in tomorrow's game and pick up his first win in six starts.
Adrian Beltre went 1-for-4 on the evening, knocking in a run with a second-inning single to left fielder Jason Bay, who's throw home pegged Kenji Johjima in the back, allowing Johjima to score. After scoring on a Richie Sexson RBI single, Beltre ends the evening with a .270 batting average. Sexson also contributed his second home run in two days to deep left field, as he ends the evening with a .209 batting average- Big Sexy is now hitting nine points over .200! If he manages to repeat his .322 post-All Star batting average that he hit last season, his average would fall in line with last season's .262 average, despite the horrid start to this season. There's hope for Sexson yet!
Kenji Johjima added weight to his case for the All-Star game by picking up three hits in tonight's game, raising his average to .316. And Ichiro Suzuki continued his latest hitting streak to fifteen games with a third inning single. Suzuki's presence on the basepaths seemed to rattle Pittsburgh starter Paul Maholm, as Suzuki immediately stole second- on a pitch that bounced away from Pittsburgh catcher Ronny Paulino- and stole third, although Paulino's throw may have beaten Ichiro, if Kata-riffic Pirate third baseman didn't allow the throw to bounce away from him into short left field. Jose Lopez then had no problem knocking Ichiro home with a groundball to shortstop. Bautista had other fielding woes, including rushing a throw in the second inning deep into the stands behind first base, and had other miscues that didn't show up in the box score, besides helping the M's roll to an easy victory behind Weaver's dominating start.
Felix takes the mound for the rubber game of the series, looking to improve his 4.76 ERA during interleague so far this season. Felix has yet to face the Pirates so far in his career, so if he's able to repeat Weaver's "dream" performance, then the Mariners stand a good chance of taking the series. However, things aren't going to be particularly easy for the M's bats in tomorrow's game. Former first-rounder John Van Benschoten takes the mound for the Pirates, and due to injuries that have derailed his career, will be in the hunt for his first major-league victory in three years. Benschoten picked up the loss in his last outing versus the White Sox despite allowing just two runs in nearly six innings, as the Pirates' bats failed him in a 6-1 loss.
Still, I'm going with the Mariners in tomorrow's game. The Pirates' line-up is the perfect opportunity for Felix to dial in a vintage performance, and if he can mix up his speeds and keep the Pirates off-balance, then Felix will be able to chalk up his first win in a month. Still, I think pitching will control the tempo of tomorrow's game, with a final score of 3-2, Mariners.
Oh, and some Mariners news update. The next big pipeline to players from the Far East, and the Mariners have signed their first two Chinese players to share their Japanese-influenced roster. Signed by the M's are infielder-outfielder Yu Bing Jia and catcher Wei Wang, both members of China's national team. Welcome to The Show, fellas, and let's see how Chinese ballplayers can translate to the American game....
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