SEATTLE MARINERS NOTES:
TODAY’S TILT…the Mariners continue a 7-day, 6-game road trip (1-1) today with the finale of 3 games against the Minnesota Twins (1-1)…they will also face the Arizona Diamondbacks (3 G, 7/28-7/30) on the trip…Seattle recently wrapped up a 10-game homestand (5-5) against the Detroit Tigers (1-2), Twins (2-2) and Toronto Blue Jays (2-1)…today’s game will be televised live on ROOT SPORTS with Dave Sims and Mariners Hall of Famer Dan Wilson on the call and broadcast live on Seattle Sports (710 AM) with Aaron Goldsmith and Gary Hill Jr. on the call.
ODDS AND ENDS…the Mariners won last night’s middle game in Minnesota by a score of 9-7…Seattle is 4-2 over its last 6 contests and 13-8 over its last 21…the Mariners are 39-17 when scoring at least 4 runs and 12-33 when scoring 3-or-fewer…the Mariners are 29-25 at T-Mobile Park and 22-25 on the road this season…they are 17-19 in day games and 34-31 at night.
- Rubber Games – The Mariners are 4-8 in Rubber Games this season, having last played in a Rubber Match on July 2 vs. TB (W, 7-6).
- Road Rash – The Mariners are 7-14 (.333) on travel days this season.
- Series Record – Seattle owns a 14-16-2 series record (5-9-1 on the road) this season.
- Miller Time – Over his last 6 starts dating back to June 12, Bryce Miller is 3-0 with a 2.32 ERA (8 ER, 31.0 IP), while striking out 31, walking 10 and holding opponents to a .182 batting average against.
- Month #7 – Seattle is 44-25 (.638) in July games since 2021 (13-8 this season).
- Back Where It All Started – Julio Rodríguez made his MLB debut at Target Field on April 8, 2022…he recorded his first career hit on April 9, 2022, a double in the 9th inning of a 4-3 Mariners win.
COMEBACK KIDS…entering the 8th inning of last night’s game, trailing 6-2, the Mariners held a win probability of only 3.2% (via. Baseball Savant)…last night’s comeback win marked the first time since Sept. 27, 1991 at Chicago-AL that the Mariners overcame a deficit of 4+ runs in the 8th inning-or-later on the road (via. ESPN Stats & Info)…last night’s win was Seattle’s 23rd comeback win of the season and their 6th win of the season after trailing entering the 8th inning.
WE GO WITH JULIO…Julio Rodríguez recorded his 2nd career multi-HR game last night (also: Sept. 11, 2022 vs. ATL, 2 HR)…Julio’s 2nd home run of the night (8th inning) tied the game, 6-6, marking his 3rd career game-tying home run in the 8th inning-or-later (also: 9/11/22 vs. ATL & 8/24/22 vs. WSH)…the 8th inning home run was Julio’s first opposite field home run since May 26 vs. PIT and his 5th opposite field home run of the season…in 20 games during the month of July, Rodríguez is batting .277 (23×83) with 10 runs, 4 doubles, 3 home runs, 12 RBI, 7 walks, 5 stolen bases and 2 hit-by-pitch, while reaching base at a .348 clip and slugging .434 with a .782 OPS.
ALWAYS ON…J.P. Crawford reached base 3 times in last night’s game (2B, BB, HBP) and has now reached base safely multiple times in 8 of his last 11 games dating back to July 15 vs. Detroit…over his last 36 games (6/10-c), Crawford is batting .299 (41×137) with 21 runs scored, 12 doubles, 5 home runs, 13 RBI, 24 walks and 1 hit-by-pitch, while reaching base at a .405 clip and slugging .496 with a .901 OPS…J.P.’s .901 OPS since June 10 is his 2nd-best OPS over any 36-game span in his career, trailing only a .909 OPS from May 24-July 2, 2021…J.P.’s .901 OPS since June 10 is also 2nd-best among qualified MLB shortstops in that span, trailing only Corey Seager-TEX (1.126).
HOT BAT AT THE HOT CORNER…Eugenio Suárez picked up his 9th game-winning RBI of the season with a double in the 9th inning of last night’s game…with runners in scoring position this season, Geno is batting .274 (26×95) with 47 RBI…Geno has reached base safely in 15 of his last 16 games (7/6-c), posting a .946 OPS during that stretch…in those 16 games, Geno is batting .236 (13×555) with 10 runs, 3 doubles, 5 home runs, 11 RBI and 10 walks, getting on base at a .382 clip and slugging .564…his 5 homers since July 6 are tied for 2nd-most in the American League during that span, trailing only Giancarlo Stanton-NYY (6 HR).
MAJOR LEAGUE DEBUTS…nine players (7 pitchers) have made their Major League debut with Seattle this season: INF José Caballero (4/15 vs. COL), RHP Bryce Miller (5/2 at OAK), RHP Juan Then (5/6 vs. HOU), RHP Bryan Woo (6/3 at TEX), RHP Ty Adcock (6/12 vs. MIA), RHP Isaiah Campbell (7/7 at HOU), RHP Devin Sweet (7/19 vs. MIN), OF Cade Marlowe (7/20 vs. MIN) and RHP Prelander Berroa (7/21 vs. TOR).
HOME SWEET HOMESTAND…following Sunday’s series finale in Arizona, the Mariners will return home for a brief 3-game homestand vs. the Boston Red Sox (Aug. 31 – July 2)…the upcoming Homestand opens with Harry Potter Night on July 31, followed by Seattle University Night on Aug. 1…Seattle’s recent homestand (July 14-23) drew 349,024 fans to T-Mobile Park, the most fans attending a single homestand since June 20-30, 2017 when the Mariners drew 351,272 over a 10-game ‘stand.
AS YOU KNOW…Cade Marlowe hit his first career home run in last night’s game, going 2-for-3 with 2 runs scored, 1 double, 1 home run, 1 RBI, 1 walk and 1 stolen base in the contest, and…AS YOU MAY KNOW…Marlowe is 1 of 4 members of the Mariners 2019 draft class to appear in the Majors with Seattle so far: George Kirby (1st round), Isaiah Campbell (3rd round), Ty Adcock (8th round) and Marlowe (20th round), but…DID YOU KNOW?…Marlowe is the 7th player in franchise history to be Selected in the 20th round-or-later by Seattle and also hit a home run with the Mariners?…he is the first player to accomplish the feat since 2 members of the Mariners 2002 draft class: T.J. Bohn (30th round) and Bryan LaHair (39th round)…Raúl Ibañez (36th round, 1992 Draft) hit 156 career home runs with the Mariners, most in club history by a player selected by Seattle in the 20th round-or-later.
MARINERS STARTER
RHP BRYCE MILLER
2023/Career MLB Breakdown:
W-L ERA G/GS IP H R ER BB SO HR
Overall 6-3 3.50 13/13 69.1 52 27 27 15 64 7
Home 5-1 2.70 8/8 43.1 29 13 13 9 41 5
Road 1-2 4.85 5/5 26.0 23 14 14 6 23 2
vs. MIN 0-0 0.00 0/0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ABOUT BRYCE MILLER…
- The 24-year-old right-handed pitcher is scheduled to make his 14th career start, and his 1st against the Minnesota Twins. • Selected by Seattle in the 4th round (113th overall) of the 2021 MLB First-Year Player Draft; signed by Mariners scout Derek Miller. • Spent 3 seasons at Texas A&M from 2019-21…also spent 2 seasons playing for Brazos Valley Bombers of the Texas Collegiate League in 2018 and 2020, and 1 season with the Falmouth Commodores of the Cape Cod League in 2019. • Was born in Mount Pleasant, Texas and attended New Braunfels High School in New Braunfels, Texas.
LAST TIME OUT…ND on 7/21 vs. TOR after tossing 5.1 innings and allowing 1 run on 3 hits (1 HR) and 2 walks with 6 strikeouts.
MILLER IN JULY…in 2 starts in the month of July Miller owns an 0.87 ERA (1 ER, 10.1 IP) and has allowed 8 hits and 3 walks with 9 strikeouts…this is the lowest ERA among Mariners starting pitchers this month…Logan Gilbert ranks 2nd with a 2.77 ERA (8 ER, 26.0 IP) in 4 starts.
WINNING NUMBERS…his 6 wins are tied for the 2nd most in the Majors among rookie starting pitchers this season…in games where Miller gets the win opponents are batting .136 (17×125) against him.
MAKING MORE HISTORY…became the 1st pitcher since at least 1901 to go 6.0+ innings pitched and allow 2-or-fewer hits in at least 4 of his first 10 career appearances.
ROOKIE DOMINATION…allowed 70 runners to reach base safely through his first 13 career starts which is the 2nd fewest in a pitcher’s first 13 starts in franchise history (min. 40.0 IP)…he trails only Justin Dunn who allowed 69 baserunners through his first 13 career starts.
WATCH ME WHIP…his 0.966 WHIP ranks 1st in the Major Leagues among pitchers with at least 13 starts…he currently ranks ahead of Eduardo Rodriguez-DET (0.0968).
KEEPING THE BATS QUIET…has only allowed 52 hits through his first 13 career starts which ranks 6th among all rookie starters (min. 50.0 IP).
ON THE LEADERBOARD…his 49 strikeouts through his first 10 career starts ranks tied 7th in franchise history with George Kirby…his 11 walks allowed rank as the 5th fewest in franchise history in a pitcher’s first 10 career starts.
FIRST 5 STARTS…became the 4th pitcher in franchise history to not allow a home run over his first 5 career starts, joining Michael Pineda, Jim Converse and Brian Snyder…his 4 earned runs allowed are tied for the fewest in a pitcher’s first 5 career starts in franchise history, joining James Paxton (4 ER, 31.1 IP) and Justin Dunn (4 ER, 9.2 IP).
MINNESOTA TWINS NOTES:
THE TWINS: The Twins have gone 4-1 through five games on their current six-game homestand, sweeping the White Sox in three over the weekend, followed by a win and a loss against the Mariners this week…Minnesota will complete the homestand today with the three-game series finale against Seattle…after today’s game, the Twins will travel to Kansas City to begin a six-game, eight-day roadtrip with an off-day tomorrow, a three-game series with the Royals this weekend, an off-day in St. Louis on July 31, then three games against the Cardinals from August 1-3…the Twins have gone 30-23 at home and 24-26 on the road.
AOf the Twins’ 59 remaining games, they have an opponent winning percentage of .475, the second-lowest strength of schedule, trailing only the White Sox (.465).
‘PEN PROBLEMS IN GAME TWO: The Twins lost to the Mariners last night at Target Field by a score of 9-7…Pablo López was the starter but did not factor into the decision, allowing two runs on six hits in 7.0 innings pitched, with one walk and eight strikeouts…Jovani Moran, Emilio Pagán and Oliver Ortega combined to allow seven runs in 2.0 innings of relief, losing a four-run lead…the offense recorded eight hits, walked five times and struck out a sea- son-high 18 times – their most since June 27, 2019 vs. Tampa Bay, when they struck out 22 times in 18 innings; their most strikeouts in a 9.0-inning game since fanning 19 times on August 17, 2017 vs. Cleveland (Game 1)…Matt Wallner (2) and Michael A. Taylor (12) each hit home runs for Minnesota.
SUMMER SLAM: Since the All-Star break, the Twins have gone 9-3, leading baseball in wins in that span…below are the offensive numbers and MLB ranks pre-All-Star break vs. post All-Star break:
AVG R/G H HR BB OBP SLG OPS TB BA/RISP
PRE: .232 (25) 4.2 (24) 708 (22) 115 (8) 297 (16) .309 (25) .400 (20) .709 (22) 1219 (20).242 (25)
POST: .266 (8) 5.8 (5) 111 (T-3) 20 (T-2) 53 (2) .354 (6) .494 (3) .848 (3) 206 (1) .295 (9)
STARTER STRENGTH: Pablo López gave the Twins their MLB-best 52nd quality start last night… Twins starters have combined to go 30-30, 3.77 ERA (585.1 IP, 245 ER) with 155 walks, 643 strikeouts and a .234 opponent batting average…below are Twins starting pitching ranks among the other MLB teams:
INNINGS ERA BAA BB/9.0 FIP WHIP K’s OPS
MIN – 585.1 TB – 3.61 TB – .231 SEA – 2.08 TB – 3.54 SEA – 1.13 MIN – 643 TB – .672
HOU – 572.2 HOU – 3.74 MIN – .234 MIN – 2.38 MIN – 3.62 MIN – 1.15 CWS – 595 MIN – .677
TEX – 568.2 MIN – 3.77 MIL – .235 SF – 2.39 SEA – 3.84 TB – 1.16 TOR – 581 SEA – .680
SEA – 567.0 SD – 3.77 SEA – .235 PHI – 2.46 MIA – 3.92 PHI – 1.20 LAA – 569 PHI – .698
MIL – 557.2 TEX – 3.83 SD – .242 CHC – 2.58 PHI – 3.92 MIL – 1.21 MIA – 560 MIL – .707
NOT AT THE TABLE, CARLOS: Carlos Correa has led off in 20 of the club’s last 21 games, since June 30…since that date, he has reached safely in 18 of 20 games, hitting .296 (24-for-81) with a .376 on-base percentage and a .796 OPS, while leading the team in hits and times on base (35)…below are his numbers prior to June 30 and after that date.
AVG R H 2B HR RBI BB% K% OBP SLG OPS
FIRST 71 .212 25 58 15 11 37 9.6 24.1 .287 .403 .690
LAST 20 .296 13 24 7 1 8 9.7 18.3 .376 .420 .796
ROSTER MOVE: The Twins have recalled right-handed pitcher Josh Winder from Triple-A St. Paul…Winder, 26, went 0-2, 7.36 ERA (7.1 IP, 6 ER), four walks and 12 strikeouts in five ap- pearances for the Saints since July 5…he has gone 1-0, 4.76 ERA (5.2 IP, 3 ER), three walks and seven strikeouts in four games across three prior stints with the Twins this season…to make room for Winder on the 26-man roster, the Twins optioned right-handed pitcher Oliver Ortega to the Saints last night…Ortega went 0-1 with one hold, a 4.50 ERA (14.0 IP, 7 ER), four walks and 14 strikeouts in nine appearances for Minnesota this season.
SEATTLE’S BEST: The Twins and Mariners are playing each other for the seventh and final time this season…a win today would secure the season series for the Twins for the second-consecutive season after going 4-3 in 2022.
The Twins are 7-4 in their last 11 vs. Seattle, dating back to April 10, 2022.
Donovan Solano is a career .340 (17-for-50) hitter with three doubles, one triple, five RBI, three walks, 10 runs scored and an .822 OPS in 15 games vs. the Mariners.
Notable individuals vs. Seattle this season: Edouard Julien is 10-for-19 (.526) with two home runs and five walks…Max Kepler is 11- for-22 (.500) with three doubles, two home runs, eight RBI and one walk…Ryan Jeffers is 4-for-11 (.364) with two walks…Willi Castro is 6-for-19 (.316) with three RBI and two walks.
SERIES BUSINESS: The Twins are seeking their 16th series victory this season…they are 15-13-4 in series play in 2023, going 9-5-2 at home and 6-8-2 on the road.
Twins are seeking their first series win over the Mariners since June 13-15, 2022 at T-Mobile Park…they are 1-0-2 in their last three series’ vs. the M’s, their last loss coming in a three-game series from June 14-16, 2021 in Seattle (1-2).
Entering today, the Twins have gone 5-2-1 in their last eight series’, dating back to their June 23-25 series at Detroit.
KEEPING UP WITH KEPLER: In his last 21 games, since June 30, Max Kepler is hitting .316 (24-for-76) with four doubles, four home runs, 15 RBI, 13 runs scored, six walks, a .361 on-base percentage, a .526 slugging percentage and an .888 OPS…in that span, he is slashing .340/.390/.642 with a 1.031 OPS vs. right-handed pitching.
JUNE, JULY, JULIEN: Edouard Julien hit his first career triple last night and is hitting .352 (37-for-105) with nine doubles, one triple, five home runs, nine RBI, 17 walks, 20 runs scored, a .439 on-base percentage and a 1.039 OPS in his last 35 games since June 10…in that span, he ranks among the major league leaders (minimum of 100 at-bats) in on-base percentage (4th), batting average (6th) and OPS (8th).
HOLDING DOWN THE FORT: The Twins, in conjunction with Major League Baseball, yesterday announced the home schedule for their 2024 spring training campaign, the club’s 34th at Lee County Sports Complex in Fort Myers, FL…the Twins’ 2024 spring schedule features 34 total games (18 home, 16 road), a slate that begins with a home exhibition contest at Hammond Stadium against the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers on Friday, February 23…the first of 33 official Grapefruit League games occurs the next day, Saturday, February 24, when the Twins host the Pittsburgh Pirates at Hammond…the Twins conclude their spring training schedule on Tuesday, March 26 with a home game against Atlanta, before beginning the 2024 regular season on Thursday, March 28, with an Opening Day contest against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium.
STARTING PITCHER – #41 JOE RYAN
2023: 9-6, 3.88 ERA CAREER: 24-15, 3.73 ERA
Making his 21st start and appearance of 2023 and his 11th home start of the year…also his 53rd career start and appearance.
Facing Seattle for the first time this season and third time in his career; is 0-2, 6.23 ERA (8.2 IP, 6 ER) with five walks and seven strikeouts in two previous starts vs. the Mariners.
Owns the most strikeouts (322) and is tied for the fifth-most wins (24) through a pitcher’s first 52 career games in Twins history (since 1961).
LAST TIME OUT: Earned the win on July 21 vs. Chicago-AL, a 9-4 Twins’ victory at Target Field…pitched 6.0 innings and allowed four runs on seven hits (2 HR), with one walk and a season-high-tying 10 strikeouts… allowed a leadoff homer to leftfielder Andrew Benintendi, the third of his career (also, June 27 at Atlanta – Ronald Acuña Jr; July 3 vs. Kansas City – Maikel Garcia)…received five runs of support in the bottom of the first, then tossed scoreless innings in the second, third and fourth innings, allowing just two hits and a walk…yielded a two-out RBI single to shortstop Tim Anderson in the top of the fifth and a two-run homer to catcher Yasmani Grandal in the sixth…was relieved by Emilio Pagán to begin the top of the seventh; Pagán (1.0 IP) and Jovani Moran (2.0 IP) kept the White Sox off the board, and the Twins scored nine runs on nine hits to win the series opener.
Struck out a season-high 10 batters for the fifth time this season (also, April 8 vs. Houston, April 13 at New York-AL, May 13 vs. Chicago-NL and July 9 vs. Baltimore)…was one short of his career high of 11 (September 22, 2021 at Chicago-NL).
Ryan’s 11 homers allowed in his last five starts are the most by a Twin in a five-game span since Martín Pérez did so from July 17-August 8, 2019.
Through 20 starts, Ryan is among the American League leaders in walks-per-9.0 innings (1.67 – 4th), WHIP (1.07 – 8th), quality starts (12 – T-6th), strikeouts (141 – 6th) and WAR (2.4 – 11th).
TWO STARTS AGO: Did not factor into the decision on July 16 at Oakland in the Twins’ 5-4 win over the Athletics…pitched 5.1 innings and allowed three runs on five hits (1 HR), with a season-hightying three walks and seven strikeouts…allowed a solo home run to designated hitter Jordan Diaz in the second inning…later permitted two runs on three hits, one walk and a sacrifice fly by Diaz in the bottom of the fourth…struck out the side in the fifth inning…was relieved by Jorge López with two on and one out in the sixth inning and Minnesota trailing 3-2; López induced an inning-ending double play to escape the jam…Twins scored three runs in the top of the seventh to complete the comeback win and the three-game series sweep over Oakland.
Tied his season high with three walks issued, also walking three on May 30 at Houston.
Threw only 55 of his 91 pitches for strikes, a 60.4 strike percentage; marked his lowest strike percentage of the season and second lowest of his career (70/42 – 60.0% on April 8, 2022 vs. Seattle).
SEA SICK: Seeking his first career win vs. the Mariners today; is 0-2, 6.23 ERA (8.2 IP, 6 ER) with five walks and seven strikeouts in two career starts against Seattle, both in the 2022 season…lost to the Mariners on Opening Day last season in the Twins’ 2-1 defeat on April 8, 2022; pitched 4.0 innings and allowed two runs on two hits (1 HR), with four walks and four strikeouts…marked his first career Opening Day start…also lost to Seattle on June 14, 2022 at T-Mobile Park, a 5-0 Minnesota defeat; allowed four runs on five hits (2 HR) in 4.2 innings, with one walk and three strikeouts…his 6.23 ERA against the Mariners is his second-highest ERA against any opponent in his career in which he has faced at least twice (8.36 ERA vs. HOU in 3 GS).
Is 1-5, 5.89 ERA (44.1 IP, 29 ER) with 24 walks and 53 strikeouts in nine career starts vs. Ameri- can League West opponents…Twins have gone 2-2 in his four starts vs. the AL West this year.
ON TARGET: In 10 home starts this year, Ryan is 6-3, 3.57 ERA (63.0 IP, 25 ER) with nine walks and 80 strikeouts, recording a quality start in five of his 10 home outings…Twins have gone 7-3 in his starts at Target Field this season…owns an 8.89 strikeout-to-walk ratio at home in 2023, the third highest among qualified American League pitchers (SEA’s George Kirby – 12.80, TB’s Zach Eflin – 10.29)…is 3-3, 4.23 ERA (55.1 IP, 26 ER) with 13 walks and 61 strikeouts in 10 road starts this year.
Ryan is 13-8, 3.53 ERA (160.2 IP, 63 ER) with 42 walks and 185 strikeouts in 28 career starts at Target Field…among pitchers with at least 10 career starts at Target Field, he owns the lowest WHIP (0.99) and opponent batting average (.196), fifth-lowest opponent OPS (.601), and 10th-lowest ERA since the park opened in 2010.
Is 11-7, 3.97 ERA (131.1 IP, 58 ER) with 32 walks and 137 strikeouts in 24 career road starts.
LEFT LEADER: Left-handed hitters are batting just .199 (42-for-211) with a .568 OPS and 56 strikeouts against Ryan this year…his .568 opponent OPS against left-handed hitters is the sixth lowest in the American League this season (min. 15 GS)…right-handed hitters are hitting .252 (60-for-238) with a .744 OPS and 85 strikeouts against Ryan in 2023…his .227 (102-for-449) overall opponent batting average in 2023 ranks 10th in the AL among qualified starters.
Over his career, lefties are batting .196 (103-for-525) with a .605 OPS against him…right-handed hitters are hitting .230 (130-for-565) with a .699 OPS off Ryan.
