SEATTLE MARINERS NOTES:
TONIGHT’S TILT…the Mariners continue the brief road trip tonight with the 2nd of 4 games at the Los Angeles Angels (1-0)…Seattle is coming off a 3-game homestand vs. the Boston Red Sox (2-1)…following Sunday’s series finale in Los Angeles, the Mariners will return home for a 5-game homestand vs. San Diego (2 G, Aug. 8-9) and Baltimore (3 G, Aug. 11-13)…tonight’s game will be televised live on ROOT SPORTS with Dave Sims and Aaron Goldsmith on the call and broadcast live on Seattle Sports (710 AM) with Rick Rizzs and Gary Hill Jr. on the call.
ODDS AND ENDS…the Mariners won last night’s series opener vs. the Los Angeles Angels by a 5-3 score, their 3rd win of the season after trailing through 8 innings…Seattle is 7-2 over its last 9 games, 10-4 over its last 14, 15-9 over its last 24 and 18-11 over its last 29…the Mariners are 45-18 when scoring at least 4 runs and 12-35 when scoring 3-or-fewer…the Mariners are 31-26 at T-Mobile Park and 26-26 on the road this season…they are 20-19 in day games and 37-33 at night.
- Swing for the Ages – Cade Marlowe became the first Mariners player with a go-ahead grand slam in the 9th inning or later with his team trailing since Richie Sexson on Sept. 19, 2005 at Toronto.
- Homer then Happy – The Mariners are 47-30 this season when they hit at least 1 home run MARLOWE CAN YOU GO…Cade Marlowe has reached base safely in each of his first 9 starts to begin his Major League career (12 G, 9 GS), batting .333 (10×30) with 6 runs, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 2 home run, 6 RBI and 5 walks, while reaching base at a .429 clip and slugging .667 with a 1.095 OPS through his first 12 career games…Marlowe’s 1.095 OPS is the 5th-best mark by a Mariners player over their first 12 career games in franchise history, trailing Alvin Davis (1.140), Austin Nola (1.121), Kyle Lewis (1.114) and Willie Bloomquist (1.102)…Marlowe became just the 3rd player in Mariners history to hit a grand slam within his first 15 career games, joining José Marmolejos (10 G) and Orlando Mercado (3 G).
GENO THE RUN PRODUCER…Eugenio Suárez has recorded an RBI in 9 consecutive games (7/25-c), tying the franchise record (also: Edgar Martinez, Aug. 12-20, 1995)…it also marks the longest RBI streak in the Majors this season, ranking ahead of Nolan Arenado-STL (8 G, 5/10-5/18) and Justin Turner-BOS (8 G, 6/30-7/8)…Suárez is the first Mariners player with a 8+ game RBI streak since fellow third baseman Kyle Seager recorded RBI in 8 consecutive contests from July 25-Aug. 2, 2021, exactly 2 years ago to the date that Suárez has put together his streak…since the All-Star break, Geno’s 18 RBI rank tied for the 4th-most in the AL, while his 70 total RBI this season are tied for the 7th-most in the AL.
J.P. LOVES GETTING ON BASE…J.P. Crawford has walked in 8-consecutive games, the longest active streak in the Majors, and tied for the 4th-longest streak overall this season…the streak is also tied for the 9th-longest in franchise history, trailing a trio of 10-game streaks by Jay Buhner (5/21-31, 1994), Ken Griffey Jr. (8/8-24, 1993) and Gorman Thomas (4/13-25, 1984) for the Mariners record…in 17 games since July 16, Crawford is batting .328 (20×61) with 12 runs, 7 doubles, 1 home run, 3 RBI, 13 walks and 13 strikeouts while getting on-base at a .461 clip and slugging .492 (.952 OPS)…during that span, his .461 OBP ranks 10th in the Majors (min. 50 PA).
SERIES STUFF…Seattle has won 4 consecutive series dating back to a 3-game series vs. Toronto from July 21-23…the Mariners have won 7 of their last 9 series, owning a 7-1-1 series record since June 30… Seattle took 2 of 3 vs. Tampa Bay (6/30-7/2), 2 of 3 at San Francisco (7/3-7/5) and 3 of 4 at Houston (7/6- 7/9) heading into the All-Star Break…the Mariners lost 2 of 3 vs. Detroit (7/14-7/16) and split a 4-game series vs. Minnesota (7/17-7/20)…in their last 4 series, they have won 2 of 3 vs. Toronto (7/21-7/23), 2 of 3 at Minnesota (7/24-7/26), 2 of 3 at Arizona (7/28-7/30) and 2 of 3 vs. Boston (7/31-8/2).
IT STARTS WITH PITCHING…the Mariners pitching staff leads the American League in ERA (3.41) as a team since July 1, ranking ahead of Baltimore (3.49) and Toronto (3.61) in that span…overall this season, Seattle ranks 4th in the Majors in ERA (3.81), trailing San Diego (3.66), Houston (3.78) and Tampa Bay (3.80)…overall, the Mariners bullpen ranks 2nd in ERA (3.56) behind only the Yankees (3.06). J-ROD IS ALWAYS ON-BASE…Julio Rodríguez’s on-base streak ended yesterday at 27 games (7/1-8/2), tied for the 6th-longest on-base streak in the Majors this season…during the streak, Julio batted .287 (33×115) with 17 runs, 7 doubles, 4 home runs, 16 RBI, 7 walks, 3 hit-by-pitches and 7 stolen bases, getting on base at a .344 clip, slugging .452 with an .796 OPS…the 27-game on-base streak surpassed Julio’s previous-high on-base streak of 22 games (June 27-July 29, 2022) and was Seattle’s longest onbase streak within a single season since Robinson Canó reached safely in 34 consecutive games from April 30-June 5, 2016.
CAN YOU SMELL WHAT LA PIEDRA IS COOKING?…Luis Castillo takes the ball for the 23rd time this season and the 33rd time in a Mariners uniform in tonight’s game…”La Piedra” is 7-7 with a 2.88 ERA (42 ER, 131.1 IP), 149 strikeouts and 33 walks while limiting opponents to a .206 (100×486) batting average…among qualified American League starters, Castillo ranks 3rd in ERA trailing only Gerrit ColeNYY (2.64) and Nathan Eovaldi-TEX (2.69), 3rd in batting average against, trailing only Shohei Ohtani-LAA (.186/82×440) and Tyler Wells-BAL (.200/83×415) and is tied for 2nd in WHIP (1.01) with Eovaldi, trailing only Zach Eflin-TB (1.00)…Castillo has induced 357 swings-and-misses this season which ranks 2nd in the Majors, trailing only Spencer Strider-ATL (478).
LONG LIVE THE KING…following Sunday’s series finale against the Angels, the Mariners will return home for a 5-game homestand vs. San Diego (2 G, Aug. 8-9) and Baltimore (3 G, Aug. 11-13)…the homestand is highlighted by Félix Hernández Hall of Fame Induction Weekend, featuring Félix Hernández Mariners Hall of Fame Fireworks Night on Friday, Aug. 11, Félix Hernández Mariners Hall of Fame Induction Night on Saturday, Aug. 12 and Félix Hernández Mariners Hall of Fame Bobblehead Day on Sunday, Aug. 13…the homestand also includes Sesame Street Night on Tuesday, Aug. 8 and a Mariners Value Game on Wednesday, Aug. 9.
AS YOU KNOW…Mariners catchers Cal Raleigh and Tom Murphy have put up big numbers this season combining for 3.7 fWAR and a 124 wRC+ which ranks 4th and 2nd respectively among catcher groups in the Majors, but…DID YOU KNOW?…that since July 22 both Raleigh (10th, 1.161 OPS) and Murphy (9th, 1.192 OPS) rank in the top 10 among AL hitters in OPS?…they also rank 4th and 2nd respectivley among Major League catchers during the span…Raleigh is batting .325 (13×40) with 3 doubles, 5 home runs and 9 RBI, while Murphy is batting .417 (10×24) with 3 doubles, 2 home runs and 5 RBI during that span…overall this season, Cal’s 17 home runs are tied for the AL lead among catchers (also: Salvador Perez-KC), while Murphy is batting .300 (39×130) with a .340 on-base percentage and slugging .577, good for a .917 OPS which leads Major League catchers with at least 100 plate appearances this season.
MARINERS STARTER – RHP LUIS CASTILLO
2023 MLB Breakdown:
W-L ERA G/GS IP H R ER BB SO HR
Overall 7-7 2.88 22/22 131.1 100 50 42 33 149 19
Home 5-3 2.79 13/13 77.1 56 27 24 18 96 11
Road 2-4 3.00 9/9 54.0 44 23 18 15 53 8
vs. LAA 1-1 2.31 2/2 11.2 8 5 3 3 16 2
Career MLB Breakdown:
W-L ERA G/GS IP H R ER BB SO HR
Overall 55-62 3.49170/170989.0 822428 384 3371086 117
Home 32-29 3.05 88/88 533.1 410205 181 160 619 61
Road 23-33 4.01 82/82 455.2 412223 203 177 467 56
vs. LAA 2-1 2.55 4/4 24.2 17 9 7 5 38 5
ABOUT CASTILLO…
- The 30-year-old right-hander is set to make his 23rd start of the season, 3rd against the Angels…he is also making his 171st Major League start and 5th career start against Los Angeles-AL.
- 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…W#7 in last start on 7/30 at ARI…tossed 6.0 scoreless innings and allowed just 2 hits and 1 walk with 7 strikeouts.
HIT THE ROAD…through 9 starts on the road this season Castillo owns a 3.00 ERA (18 ER, 54.0 IP) with 15 walks and 53 strikeouts and opponents are batting just .219 (44×201) against him…Luis is averaging 8.8 strikeouts-per-nine through his 9 road starts.
HEY NOW, YOU’RE AN ALL-STAR…was named to his third All-Star team on July 2 (also: 2019, 2022)…he was joined by teammates George Kirby and Julio Rodríguez.
INNINGS EATER…has made 6 starts this season where he has pitched at least 7.0 innings…his 6 starts of 7.0+ innings pitched are the tied for the 3rd most in a season in his career (also: 2022)…his career high in games with 7.0+ IP is 9 which he achieved in 2019 as a member of the Cincinnati Reds.
SEASON-HIGH PUNCHIES…set a new season-high in strikeouts with 11 against the Twins on July 19….this marked the 3rd time this season and the 18th time in Castillo’s career that he has recorded 10+ strikeouts in a game (last: 6/6 vs. LAA)…his career-high in strikeouts in a single game is 13 which he achieved on 8/5/19 vs. LAA.
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 allowed 33 walks while striking out 149 batters in 22 starts this season…his 33 walks are tied for the 8th fewest in the majors…his 149 strikeouts on the season rank 7th in the majors…Castillo’s 4.52 strikeout-to-walk ratio ranks 8th in the majors among pitchers with at least 22 starts.
OFF TO A GOOD START…his 199 strikeouts through his first 30 Mariners starts are the 2nd most in Mariners history through a pitchers first 30 starts…he ranks behind Robbie Ray (201).
MAKING THEM EARN IT…has allowed 42 earned runs through 22 starts this season which is tied for the 2nd fewest in the Major Leagues…his 2.88 ERA (42 ER,
131.1 IP) ranks 5th in the Major Leagues among qualified pitchers…he ranks behind Nathan Eovaldi-TEX (2.69).
KEEPING THE BASES CLEAN…has allowed 143 runners to reach base safely through 22 starts this season which is the fewest in the Major Leagues…he also ranks among Major League leaders (min. 100.0 IP) in opponents average (5th, .206/100×486) and WHIP (3rd, 1.013).
DOMINATE THE ZONE…recorded 41 strikeouts in July which matched his career-high for strikeouts for that month…he also struck out 41 batters in July 2021…his career-high in strikeouts in a single month is 50 which he achieved in March/April 2019…Castillo has now recorded at least 30 strikeouts in each month this season…this marks the second time in his career where he has recorded 30+ strikeouts in each month he has pitched in a season.
KEEPING THEM IN THE YARD…gave up his first home run of the season on 4/28, breaking a 5-game span of allowing no home runs…this was his longest span of games to start a season without giving up a home run in his career.
NEARLY PERFECT…carried a perfect game into the 7th inning in his start against Colorado on 4/16…earned his second win of the season after pitching 7.0 scoreless innings and allowing only 2 hits while striking out 9 batters…the last Mariners pitcher to throw a perfect game was Félix Hernández on 8/15/12.
HOT START…did not allow a run in either of his first 2 starts to begin the season, becoming just the third Mariners pitcher to do that, joining Félix Hernández (2007) and James Paxton (2017).
LOS ANGELES ANGELS NOTES:
LEADING OFF: Today, the Angels play the second (0-1) of seven games on a homestand against the Seattle Mariners (0-1; Aug. 3-6) and San Francisco Giants (Aug. 7-9)…Halos went 5-4 on last road trip against Detroit (3-0), Toronto (1-2) and Atlanta (1-2)…LAA was 6-3 on last homestand against the Astros (1-2), Yankees (3-0)
& Pirates (2-1).
TODAY’S TRANSACTIONS: Today, INF Brandon Drury returned from his rehab assignment and was reinstated from the injured list…In a corresponding move, INF Zach Neto (low back inflammation) was placed on the 10-day injured list…Additionally, INF Kevin Padlo cleared outright waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Salt Lake.
BACK-TO-BACK: Shohei Ohtani was named American League Player of the Month for July, marking his second straight month taking home those honors…Since 2013, he is the only MLB player to win consecutive Player of the Month Awards and has now done so twice (also, June/July 2021)…In Angels history, only Mike Trout (5) has more Player of the Month Awards for a career.
WELCOME TO THE SHOW: OF Jordyn Adams made his Major League debut Wednesday at Atlanta…He was the Halos first round selection (17th overall) in the 2018 Draft out of Green Hope HS (Cary, NC).
STREAKING: C.J. Cron has hit safely in each of his last 13 games…It’s the longest active hit streak in the Majors and the longest streak of his career (previous high was a 12-game hit streak for the Angels from Aug. 24-Sept. 5, 2016).
WINNING MONTHS: Angels secured a winning record for July (12-11), after going 14-13 in June, 15-13 in May and 15-14 in March/April (15-13 in April)…Halos have a record above .500 in four straight months for the first time since April – July 2015.
THE INJURED LIST: Angels currently have 18 players on the injured list and have used the IL a total of 28 times this year for 25 different players…The 18 players
currently on the IL are the most in the Majors.
FIRST TO 40: Shohei Ohtani has recorded his second career 40+ HR season (he hit 46 HR in 2021) and is the first player in the Majors to reach 40 HR this year…Is the third player in Angels history with multiple 40+ HR seasons, joining Troy Glaus (2000 & 2001) and Mike Trout (2015, 2019 & 2022).
LEAGUE LEADER: As a hitter, Shohei Ohtani leads the Majors in home runs (40), total bases (276), slugging percentage (.685) and OPS (1.098) and is tied for the MLB lead in triples (7) and XBH (64)…On the mound, he leads the Majors in opponent batting average (.186), is fourth in strikeouts (160) and is seventh in WHIP (1.07).
SHO OFF: Last night, Shohei Ohtani made his 21st career pitching start (seventh this season) while also leading the Majors in home runs as a batter…In 2021 he became the first player with multiple pitching starts in a season while leading Majors in homers since Babe Ruth in 1919.
HOME RUN LEADERS: Angels lead the American League and rank third in the Majors with 167 home runs this season…Only the Braves (206) and Dodgers (174) have homered more.
VS. SEATTLE: Angels lead the season series 4-3 after taking two of three games in each of the first two meetings this year (April 3-5 at T-Mobile Park and June 9-11 at Angel Stadium), before Seattle won last night’s series opener.
RECORD SETTING PACE: Shohei Ohtani’s 40 home runs through the first 110 team games of the season are the most in Angels history (Ohtani held the previous record with 37 HR through 110 (and 111) team games in 2021).
SAVE STREAK SNAPPED: Last night was the first blown save of the season for Carlos Estévez, which ended his franchise record streak of 23 consecutive save conversions to begin the season…It also finishes as the second-longest save streak at any point in a season in Angels history (Francisco Rodriguez had a 25 game streak in 2008).
THE MICK: Since July 2, Mickey Moniak is batting .316 (31/98) with five doubles, three home runs and 14 RBI…He had his career-high 18-game hit streak snapped on Saturday at Toronto
SO EXTRA: The Angels have won each of their last five extra-inning contests (started the year 1-4 through first five extra-inning games)…This is Halos longest extra inning win streak since a five-game streak from Aug. 4, 2012 – April 23, 2013.
TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER – LHP REID DETMERS
2-8, 4.35 ERA
Has held opponents to two-or-fewer runs in seven of last nine starts.
TODAY’S GAME: Making 20th start of the season today and 12th at home…Second start of 2023 vs. Mariners… Made Opening Day roster for second consecutive season…Is in third Major League season with Angels.
- HOME COOKING: In last six home starts, is 1-1 with a 2.45 ERA (36.2 IP – 10 ER) and 50 strikeouts • SUPPORT ME: Averaging 3.02 runs of support per nine innings this season, which is third-fewest in Majors (min. 100 IP).
- LAST TIME OUT: Took the loss in last start on July 22 at Toronto after tossing 4.2 innings and allowing two earned runs on three hits with two walks and five strikeouts…Held Blue Jays scoreless through first four frames.
- WINNING STREAK: With victories on June 8 and July 2, won consecutive decisions for third time in career.
- STAY UNFAMILIAR: This season, opponents are batting .208 (64/307) the first two times through the order, but are batting .354 (28/79) the third time through the batting order.
- EARLY SUCCESS: Has a 3.47 ERA (57 IP – 22 ER) in the first three innings of games, compared with an 5.48 ERA (44.1 IP – 27 ER) from the fourth inning on.
- GOING OFFSPEED: In 2023, is holding opponents to a .222 (54/243) average against offspeed pitches, including a .155 (9/58) clip on curveballs.
- VS. SEATTLE: In four career games against the Mariners, is 2-0 with a 2.79 ERA (19.1 IP – 6 ER) and 19 strikeouts…Took no decision in last start vs. Seattle, pitching 4.2 innings and surrendering three runs (two earned) on four hits, three walks, and seven strikeouts on April 3…In 2022, won both of his two starts against Seattle and pitched to a 1.38 ERA (13 IP – 2 ER) and 10 strikeouts.
- AT ANGEL STADIUM: In 26 career games at Angel Stadium, is 7-7 with a 3.60 ERA (145 IP – 58 ER) and 161 strikeouts…This year, is 2-3 with a 3.63 ERA (62 IP – 25 ER) in 11 home starts…Last season, was 4-3 with a 3.22 ERA (72.2 IP – 26 ER) in 13 home starts, including no-hitter on May 10 vs. Rays (seventh individual no-hitter in Angel Stadium history).
- WHIFF SPECIALIST: Ranks fourth in American League with 29.3% strikeout rate (min. 100 IP)…Has struck out eight-or-more hitters in six of last nine starts…Ranks second on Halos with 127 punchouts in 2023.
- HISTORIC STRETCH: From June 8 – July 2, had five straight starts with 8+ strikeouts and two-or-fewer runs allowed…The only other player in Angels history with such a streak was Nolan Ryan (seven games; his final three games in 1972 and first four in 1973).
- 12K: Matched career high with 12 strikeouts on May 19 vs. Minnesota and carried a no-hitter through 5.2 innings…Previously tallied 12 strikeouts on July 31, 2022 vs. Texas.
- STREAKS SNAPPED: Victory on June 14 ended a career-high streak of five consecutive losing decisions…Also ended streak of 10 straight winless starts to begin a season, which finished tied for third-longest in Angels history (Rickey Clark – 12 starts in 1968 and Hector Santiago – 11 starts in 2014).
