House of Houston
Fansided

Houston Astros: Mariners push intriguing but, should not be surprising

By Kenneth Cline

SEATTLE, WA - APRIL 19: Daniel Vogelbach #20 of the Seattle Mariners tags Evan Gattis #11 of the Houston Astros out for a triple play as Gattis walks off the field thinking there were already three outs in the fourth inning at Safeco Field on April 19, 2018 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Lindsey Wasson/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WA - APRIL 19: Daniel Vogelbach #20 of the Seattle Mariners tags Evan Gattis #11 of the Houston Astros out for a triple play as Gattis walks off the field thinking there were already three outs in the fourth inning at Safeco Field on April 19, 2018 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Lindsey Wasson/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 4
Next
Houston Astros competition the Seattle Mariners
SEATTLE, WA – JUNE 16: Dee Gordon #9 and Guillermo Heredia #5 of the Seattle Mariners celebrate after defeating the Boston Red Sox 1-0 during their game at Safeco Field on June 16, 2018, in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images) /

Drama Made For Television

This is a Mariners’ franchise that is currently the titleholders of the longest drought in which they haven’t made the postseason. When the Buffalo Bills made the playoffs last year, the Mariners took over as they are still waiting for their first playoff berth since 2001.

That year saw Seattle win a major league record 116 games led by rookie of the year and MVP Ichiro Suzuki. This would overtake one game in 2001 where the Mariners blew a 14-3 lead against the Cleveland Indians.

But Seattle’s chances of winning the World Series that year ended when they fell in five games to the New York Yankees. Some fans might blame September 11th, 2001 as the reason they lost because it gave the Yankees the motivation they needed to attempt to win their fourth title in a row.

Raining in Seattle

Since then, things haven’t gone well for Seattle. It’s been 17 years since they last made the postseason. The chances of them making it are pretty high especially at the rate they’re going. But this franchise has endured drama.

First, Ichiro returns to Seattle to play. Then he retires midseason to move into the front office. It wasn’t like he was going to be the same player he was in his early career. But the transition from player to management in the middle of the season is definitely something to ponder about.

But just when it can’t get worse for the Mariners, they are playing without their superstar Robinson Cano. Cano is currently serving an 80-game suspension for testing positive on PEDs. You would think that his absence will have a major negative impact for the Mariners. But it’s been the complete opposite for the Mariners. They’ve played some of the best baseball this season.

Are they as explosive as the Houston Astros on offense? No! Do they have a dominant pitching rotation like the Houston Astros? No! But have they been given breaks and taking full advantage of them? Absolutely!

This is a team that right now is fighting to win every single game. The fact that you have to earn wins against them can show some great respect. But those qualities can take you so far.

Related Story: The case for Evan Gattis to be an All-Star

Seattle’s Best Players

Jose Altuve is locked in a race with Jean Segura. As it stands (pending any updates) both men are at 98 hits apiece and seem to be on pace for 200. Segura is batting .343 and has driven in 43 RBI and hit six homers while Altuve is hitting .337 with 37 RBI and 5 HR.

So in a way, Seattle might have found their answer to the recent MVP. It’s a coin toss to say, which player is having a better year. But to say Segura is a better player than Altuve would be stretching it. He’s contributing better numbers for now and has Seattle locked in a race with the Astros.

You also have Nelson Cruz (.248 BA, 39 RBI) and Mitch Haniger (.272 BA, 53 RBI) with 16 homers each while Dee Gordon is hitting .284 right now. In contrast, Evan Gattis (.245 BA, 14 HR) leads the Astros with 46 RBI while Carlos Correa (.270 BA, 12 HR) and George Springer (.287 BA, 14 HR) have 44 and 41 RBI respectively.

On the mound, Marco Gonzales (7-3) leads the team with a team-low 3.42 ERA while our friend James Paxton (6-1) is second with a 3.44 ERA. Wade LeBlanc is coming off a start against the Red Sox, which he retired 22 straight batters. But in 14 games, despite a 2.63 ERA, he’s only 3-0.

The Houston Astros have the best-run differential in all of baseball with +154 while the Mariners have a run differential of +28.

One More Factor

But there is also one more factor playing into this stretch. The Houston Astros have the second toughest strength of schedule in 2018. 33 of 36 games from the end of April to now came against teams with a .500 record or more.

This is why they went through a difficult stretch against the Yankees, Red Sox, Indians, and Mariners going 6-7. Which they should have won 9 games in that stretch. Now they’re taking on teams we should be expected to beat. Meanwhile, Seattle seems to have the 22nd toughest strength of schedule and are going against teams with a .500 record or better.

So while Seattle is playing good baseball now, they’ll have to deal with a grueling task to try and keep up the consistency. As impressed as we should be for their run, we really shouldn’t be concerned. Why? Because we know how it feels like to be on their end.

Home/Houston Astros