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.
Upon first glance, the 5-1 score that the Astros beat the M's by gives the impression of a pitcher's duel, but the truth belies that initial glance. Despite throwing nearly 75% of his pitches for strikes (74 out of 99) Felix Hernandez was unable to finish off Astros' hitters, as they collected 12 hits off him in six innings. Nine of those hits, luckily, were singles and Felix only walked one batter, otherwise the Astros batters- who have been struggling all year long- would've put up some numbers that more effectively represented just how much they dominated Felix's offerings.
Six Astros finished with multiple hits. Craig Biggio went 3-for-5 to finish the game 12 hits shy of 3,000. Despite struggling most of the year, Biggio's bat has come alive of late, as he's hit .500 over a modest four-game hitting streak. Mike Lamb finished the evening 4-for-4, with a two-run home-run in the sixth inning off of Felix. Lamb has only increased his average 41 points in his last two games versus AL West rivals Seattle and Oakland, going 7-for-12 to lift his average from .248 to .289.
Meanwhile, in the other line-up, Willie Bloomquist's exciting sixth-inning inside-the-park home-run past Houston centerfielder Hunter Pence was all the Mariners were able to muster. The M's have consistently taken left-handed pitchers to town so far this season, but last night they were stymied by lefty Wandy Rodriguez, who mixed up speeds and locations to leave the Mariners' batters befuddled all evening. They were only able to collect five singles besides Willie's mad dash around the bases, though Ichiro did extend his hitting streak to ten games, the 24th time he's done so, which is the most of any active major leaguer.
What happened to the M's' offense? Where did it go? In winning the first five games of this road trip, the M's averaged nearly six runs per game as they batted .307. As their five-game winning streak morphed into a three-game losing streak, they've been averaging half as many runs while hitting .172. It should be pointed out that those five wins were gathered in late-inning clutch situations, with the game on the line. Despite the early 7-0 lead that the Mariners jumped out to against the Cleveland Indians, which was squandered by Cha Seung Baek, the Mariners' offense has not been able to put games away decisively and early. To put that in a different perspective, with last night' loss to Houston, the current streak is eleven games without a victory from a Mariners' starter, since Ryan Feierabend held the Rangers in check for four runs in seven innings on June 3rd.
Today's game will probably be the Mariners' last best chance to finish the ten game road trip above .500, rather than coming home with a five-game losing streak on the heels of a five-game winning streak. Woody Williams, who has struggled all season for the Astros, takes the mound in this evening's game against the Mariners. The Mariners have given the right-hander fits in his career, as he holds a 3-5 career record with a 5.12 ERA in 70 innings, and Woody has allowed an eye-catching 16 home runs against the Mariners in that small number of innings. Against a pitcher with that type of track record, it could portend well for the Mariners' offense to break out of its slump. However, most of the current Mariners have a mixed bag of results against Williams. Raul Ibanez is hitless in ten at-bats versus Woody, while Richie Sexson is hitting .222 (6-for-27) and Jose Guillen has four hits in thirteen at-bats, except both Richie and Sexson and Guillen have homered off of Woody.
Don't expect the Mariners' streak of games not won by their starter to end in today's game, as Cha Seung Baek takes the mound for the M's. Still smarting from coughing up that 7-0 lead versus the Indians, Baek will probably be looking to compensate for that poor outing. However, it is now sorely obvious that Baek is nothing much more than a five-inning pitcher, at best. Like Felix yesterday, this will be Baek's debut against the Astros, but pitchers making their first appearance against a team never seems to work out for the Mariners as it does for opposing pitchers making their first start against the Mariners' bats. There are two batters in the Astros' line-up who have faced Baek before: Mark Loretta and Carlos Lee, who have combined to go 1-for-9. But the Astros collected 12 hits off a pitcher they had never seen. but as Felix was consistently around the strike zone last night, perhaps Baek needs to exhibit some wildness to keep the Astros' hitters in check.
Tonight's game has the markings of a slugfest, which will, once again, be decided by the teams' bullpens. But I'm predicting the M's will jump out to an early lead, which will be able to hold up. My final: 10-8, Mariners.
Six Astros finished with multiple hits. Craig Biggio went 3-for-5 to finish the game 12 hits shy of 3,000. Despite struggling most of the year, Biggio's bat has come alive of late, as he's hit .500 over a modest four-game hitting streak. Mike Lamb finished the evening 4-for-4, with a two-run home-run in the sixth inning off of Felix. Lamb has only increased his average 41 points in his last two games versus AL West rivals Seattle and Oakland, going 7-for-12 to lift his average from .248 to .289.
Meanwhile, in the other line-up, Willie Bloomquist's exciting sixth-inning inside-the-park home-run past Houston centerfielder Hunter Pence was all the Mariners were able to muster. The M's have consistently taken left-handed pitchers to town so far this season, but last night they were stymied by lefty Wandy Rodriguez, who mixed up speeds and locations to leave the Mariners' batters befuddled all evening. They were only able to collect five singles besides Willie's mad dash around the bases, though Ichiro did extend his hitting streak to ten games, the 24th time he's done so, which is the most of any active major leaguer.
What happened to the M's' offense? Where did it go? In winning the first five games of this road trip, the M's averaged nearly six runs per game as they batted .307. As their five-game winning streak morphed into a three-game losing streak, they've been averaging half as many runs while hitting .172. It should be pointed out that those five wins were gathered in late-inning clutch situations, with the game on the line. Despite the early 7-0 lead that the Mariners jumped out to against the Cleveland Indians, which was squandered by Cha Seung Baek, the Mariners' offense has not been able to put games away decisively and early. To put that in a different perspective, with last night' loss to Houston, the current streak is eleven games without a victory from a Mariners' starter, since Ryan Feierabend held the Rangers in check for four runs in seven innings on June 3rd.
Today's game will probably be the Mariners' last best chance to finish the ten game road trip above .500, rather than coming home with a five-game losing streak on the heels of a five-game winning streak. Woody Williams, who has struggled all season for the Astros, takes the mound in this evening's game against the Mariners. The Mariners have given the right-hander fits in his career, as he holds a 3-5 career record with a 5.12 ERA in 70 innings, and Woody has allowed an eye-catching 16 home runs against the Mariners in that small number of innings. Against a pitcher with that type of track record, it could portend well for the Mariners' offense to break out of its slump. However, most of the current Mariners have a mixed bag of results against Williams. Raul Ibanez is hitless in ten at-bats versus Woody, while Richie Sexson is hitting .222 (6-for-27) and Jose Guillen has four hits in thirteen at-bats, except both Richie and Sexson and Guillen have homered off of Woody.
Don't expect the Mariners' streak of games not won by their starter to end in today's game, as Cha Seung Baek takes the mound for the M's. Still smarting from coughing up that 7-0 lead versus the Indians, Baek will probably be looking to compensate for that poor outing. However, it is now sorely obvious that Baek is nothing much more than a five-inning pitcher, at best. Like Felix yesterday, this will be Baek's debut against the Astros, but pitchers making their first appearance against a team never seems to work out for the Mariners as it does for opposing pitchers making their first start against the Mariners' bats. There are two batters in the Astros' line-up who have faced Baek before: Mark Loretta and Carlos Lee, who have combined to go 1-for-9. But the Astros collected 12 hits off a pitcher they had never seen. but as Felix was consistently around the strike zone last night, perhaps Baek needs to exhibit some wildness to keep the Astros' hitters in check.
Tonight's game has the markings of a slugfest, which will, once again, be decided by the teams' bullpens. But I'm predicting the M's will jump out to an early lead, which will be able to hold up. My final: 10-8, Mariners.
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