WASHINGTON NATIONALS NOTES:
No team release available.
SEATTLE MARINERS NOTES:
TONIGHT’S TILT…the Mariners play the first of 3 games tonight against the Washington Nationals… Seattle will also welcome the Tampa Bay Rays (3 G, 6/30-7/2) to T-Mobile Park on the homestand…the Mariners recently wrapped up a 6-game road trip (2-4) against the New York Yankees (1-2) and Baltimore Orioles (1-2)…tonight’s game will be televised live on ROOT Sports with Aaron Goldsmith and Mike Blowers on the call..the game will also be broadcast live on Seattle Sports (710 AM) and Mariners.com with Rick Rizzs and Dave Sims.
ODDS AND ENDS…the Mariners dropped yesterday’s series finale to the Orioles by a 3-2 score…the Mariners are 15-15 over their last 30 games (5/22-c)…Seattle is 28-14 when scoring at least 4 runs and 9-25 when scoring 3-or-fewer…the Mariners are 21-17 at T-Mobile Park and 16-22 on the road this season…they are 10-17 in day games and 27-22 at night.
- Lid Lifters – Seattle is 13-12 in series openers (6-6 at home) this season.
- All-Star Rock – Tonight’s starter Luis Castillo has a 2.89 ERA (28 ER, 87.1 IP) with a team-leading 101 strikeouts through 15 starts this season.
- How They’ve Fared – The Mariners (37-39) are 23-11 (.676) against below-.500 teams, and 14-28 (.333) against teams .500-or-better this season.
LIFE’S A PITCH…the Mariners pitching staff leads the Majors in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.43), walks-per-9 innings (2.63) and soft-contact percentage (18.5)…they rank 3rd in fWAR (11.1), 2nd in FIP (3.68) and 3rd in WHIP (1.19)…Mariners starting pitchers are tied for the Major League lead in quality starts (39) with Houston, and are 25-27 with a 4.00 ERA (188 ER, 423.0 IP) with 101 walks and 398 strikeouts overall this season…Mariners relief pitchers are 12-12 with 16 saves and a 3.49 ERA (99 ER, 255.0 IP) with 97 walks and 282 strikeouts this season.
LAST DOZEN HAVE BEEN BUZZIN’…the Mariners starting rotation is 5-4 with a 2.55 ERA (20 ER, 70.2 IP) with 24 walks and 65 strikeouts over the team’s last 12 games (6/12-c)…the 2.55 starters ERA leads the American League, ranking 2nd in the Majors during that span to Philadelphia (2.49)…the Mariners have put together 6 quality starts in that span, with their starters allowing 3-or-fewer runs in all 12 games and 2-or-fewer in 8 of the 12.
TEOSCAR IS NOT A GROUCH…in 20 games during the month of June, Teoscar Hernández is batting .316 (24×76) with 12 runs, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 5 home runs, 15 RBI and 7 walks, getting on base at a .374 clip, slugging .579 with a .952 OPS…his .952 OPS ranks 9th in the American League during the month (min. 50 PA).
FRANCE, FRANCE…over his last 29 games (5/22-c), Ty France is batting .310 (36×116) with 23 runs, 8 doubles, 5 home runs, 14 RBI, 6 walks and 6 hit-by-pitches, getting on base at a .375 clip, slugging .509 with an .884 OPS…overall this season, France leads the Majors with 13 hit-by-pitches and with his next HBP would break a tie for 2nd-most in franchise history with Kyle Seager, trailing only Hall of Famer Edgar Martinez (89 HBP).
TWO OUTS? NO PROBLEM…the Mariners have picked up 149 of their 327 RBI with 2 outs (45.6%) this season, highest percentage of total RBI with 2 outs in the Majors…they rank ahead of San Diego (43.3%, 138 of 318) and Houston (42.7%, 143 of 335)…in plate appearances with 2 outs this season, J.P. Crawford is batting .343 (23×67) with 5 doubles, 3 home runs, 18 RBI and 15 walks with a 1.016 OPS… Jarred Kelenic is batting .253 (20×79) with 6 doubles, 2 triples, 4 homers, 18 RBI and 18 walks with a .923 OPS…Teoscar Hernández is batting .304 (28×92) with 6 doubles, 2 triples, 3 homers, 14 RBI and 4 walks with an .871 OPS…Julio Rodríguez is batting .284 (29×102) with 6 doubles, 1 triple, 6 homers, 23 RBI and 7 walks with an .870 OPS.
PAUL IN THE FAMILY…Paul Sewald is 2-0 with 13 saves and a 2.67 ERA (9 ER, 30.1 IP) with 11 walks and 41 strikeouts in 31 appearances this season…the right-hander has been one of the most effective relievers in the Majors this season by Win Probability Added (2.16), trailing only Alexis Díaz-CIN (3.36) and Yennier Cano-BAL (3.03)…Sewald has posted a 0.99 WHIP and held opponents to a .178 batting average.
BAD MUÑ RISING…Andrés Muñoz has not allowed a run in 10 appearances this season, recording 1 save with 3 walks and 14 strikeouts in 9.0 innings out of the Mariners bullpen…since being reinstated from the 15-day Injured List on June 6, he has tossed 5.2 scoreless innings over 6 appearances, with 2 walks and 11 strikeouts…the right-hander has not allowed a regular season home run in over a calendar year (last HR: June 10, 2022)…his homerless streak of 53.2 innings is the longest in the Majors among pitchers who have appeared in a game during the 2023 season.
TEETER-TOTTER…the Mariners have stayed within 2 games above-or-below the .500 mark across 46 of their last 47 games (5/3-c)…the lone exception was when they were 3 games above .500, holding a 28-25 record following a May 28 win vs. Pittsburgh…the previous occurrence of being more than 2 games above-or-below .500 was May 2, when they held a 13-16 record.
J-ROD TO PARTICIPATE IN 2023 HOME RUN DERBY…it was announced on Friday that outfielder Julio Rodríguez is expected to participate in the 2023 T-Mobile Home Run Derby on July 10 at T-Mobile Park…it will be the second Derby for Rodríguez, who hit a contest-high 81 home runs in last year’s event at Dodger Stadium, finishing in 2nd place to Juan Soto…Julio is set to be the first Mariners player to appear in the event in back-to-back years since Ken Griffey Jr. did it in 3 consecutive seasons (1997-99), winning the contest in both the 1998 and 1999 seasons.
HOME SWEET HOMESTAND…the Mariners open tonight’s homestand against the Washington Nationals (June 26-28) and Tampa Bay Rays (June 30-July 2)…the upcoming homestand is highlighted by Patriotic Fireworks Night on Friday, June 30, Patriotic “Cal-Boy” Hat Day on July 1 and Stars & Stripes Fanny Pack Day on July 2…Mariners fans also have the opportunity to Work from Home(plate) with a ticket special on June 28 which includes tickets and lunch in the Hit-It-Here Café…for more information about upcoming special events, or to buy tickets to any upcoming Mariners games, fans can visit Mariners.com/ Promotions or Mariners.com/Tickets.
AS YOU MAY KNOW…Cal Raleigh blasted a home run off Baltimore starter Kyle Bradish in yesterday’s game…it was Raleigh’s 11th home run of the season, but…DID YOU KNOW?…that it was the hardesthit (113.7 miles per hour) base hit of the season for the Mariners?…it was the 2nd-hardest hit batted ball overall for Seattle, trailing only a Julio Rodríguez lineout (115.5 mph) on May 6 vs. Houston…it was the 4th hardest-hit base hit by a catcher this season.
MARINERS STARTER – RHP LUIS CASTILLO
ABOUT CASTILLO…
- The 30-year-old right-hander is set to make his 16th start of the season, 1st against the Nationals…he is also making his 164th Major League start and 7th career start against Washington.
- Has been named an All-Star in 2019 and 2022.
- Originally signed as an international free agent by the San Francisco Giants on 12/23/11.
- Made MLB debut on 6/23/17 vs. Washington (w/ Cincinnati)
- Signed a 5-year contract extension with the Seattle Mariners on Sept. 24, 2022 after being acquired in a trade with Cincinnati on July 30, 2022.
LAST TIME OUT…L#6 in last start on 6/21 at NYY…allowed 3 runs on 4 hits (2 HR) and 4 walks in 5.0 innings pitched while striking out 3.
FEELING RIGHT AT HOME…is set to make his 15th start at T-Mobile Park where he has a 6-2 record with a 1.80 ERA (17 ER, 85.0 IP) and has only given up 5 home runs and 21 walks while striking out 109 batters…Castillo’s 1.80 ERA is the lowest in franchise history among pitchers with at least 12 starts at T-Mobile Park ranking ahead of Chris Young (2.40).
INNINGS EATER…has made 8 starts this season where he has pitched at least 6.0 innings including 4 of his last 6 starts…in those 4 starts Castillo has a 1.44 ERA (4 ER, 25.0 IP) and has allowed 16 hits and 6 walks while striking out 34…his career-high for games with at least 6.0 innings pitched in a season is 22 which he achieved in 2019.
SEASON-HIGH PUNCHIES…matched a season-high 10 strikeouts in his start on 6/9 against the Angels….this marked the 17th time in Castillo’s career that he has recorded 10+ strikeouts in a game (last: 5/27 vs. PIT).
1,000 AND COUNTING…recorded his 1,000th career strikeout in his outing on 5/22 against Oakland after striking out Shea Langeliers to begin the 5th inning…Castillo finished the night with 8 strikeouts.
STILL ROLLING…has only allowed 27 walks while striking out 101 batters in 15 starts this season…his 27 walks are tied for the 13th fewest in the American League…his 101 strikeouts on the season ranks tied 7th in the AL…Castillo’s 3.74 strikeout-to-walk ratio ranks 10th in the AL among pitchers with at least 15 starts.
OFF TO A GOOD START…his 175 strikeouts through his first 25 Mariners starts are the most in Mariners history through a pitchers first 25 starts…he ranks ahead of Robbie Ray (173) and Michael Pineda (156).
MAKING THEM EARN IT…has allowed 28 earned runs through 15 starts this season which is tied 10th in the Major Leagues…his 2.89 ERA (28 ER, 87.1 IP) ranks 10th in the Major Leagues behind Zac Gallen-ARI (2.84).
KEEPING THE BASES CLEAN…has allowed 97 runners to reach base safely through 15 starts this season which is the 4th fewest in the Major Leagues…he also ranks among Major League leaders in opponents average (2nd, .202/65×321) and WHIP (7th, 1.053).
