Game 16, Mariners At Royals

Dave · April 17, 2011 at 9:22 am · Filed Under Mariners 

Pineda vs Francis, 11:10 am.

No line-up as of yet, but I’m going to go out on a limb and say it’s not going to be full of sluggers. Francis was a guy I lobbied for hard this winter, and he’s off to a great start for the Royals. As a strike-throwing lefty, the M’s aren’t going to be able to work the count against him much, so they’re actually going to have to get hits to score runs. Will be interesting to see how Pineda does against a line-up that is likely to have five left-handed bats in it. So that’s one reason to watch. Probably the only one, honestly.

Comments

120 Responses to “Game 16, Mariners At Royals”

  1. Westside guy on April 17th, 2011 1:50 pm

    Speaking of Smoak – I think it’s pretty obvious that’s ONE thing that’s going right for the Mariners this year.

  2. msfanmike on April 17th, 2011 1:53 pm

    Great play by Ryan – and a great scoop by Smoak!

  3. msfanmike on April 17th, 2011 1:54 pm

    Speaking of Smoak – I think it’s pretty obvious that’s ONE thing that’s going right for the Mariners this year.

    Affirmative

  4. Westside guy on April 17th, 2011 1:55 pm

    C’mon League, let’s get that groundball percentage back up where it belongs!

  5. juneau_fan on April 17th, 2011 1:55 pm

    Oh right. We don’t have a closer. Not that we’ve needed one this year.

  6. msfanmike on April 17th, 2011 1:55 pm

    Nice hit by Betemit. We need him – by the way.

    Come on League – strike this guy out!

  7. SonOfZavaras on April 17th, 2011 1:55 pm

    Speaking of Smoak – I think it’s pretty obvious that’s ONE thing that’s going right for the Mariners this year.

    Couldn’t agree more. I don’t know if he’s got All-Star Games in his future, but I’m PRETTY sure he’ll be a productive presence.

    And his defense sure isn’t killing us.

  8. Westside guy on April 17th, 2011 1:56 pm

    Great play by Ryan – and a great scoop by Smoak!

    Wow, no kidding.

  9. Westside guy on April 17th, 2011 1:58 pm

    If Smoak keeps this up, and Ackley comes up and hits as expected (and reasonably quickly) – it will make a big difference in this team’s offense.

  10. msfanmike on April 17th, 2011 1:58 pm

    I don’t know if he’s got All-Star Games in his future, but I’m PRETTY sure he’ll be a productive presence.

    I don’t know either, but he has shown substantial improvement since last season and he is only going to get better. He will probably be both at some point in his career.

  11. Westside guy on April 17th, 2011 2:00 pm

    Yay!!

  12. SonOfZavaras on April 17th, 2011 2:00 pm

    I’ll also say that Brendan Ryan offers that nice glove and a much-needed injection of personality.

  13. Westside guy on April 17th, 2011 2:03 pm

    If Brendan stays healthy, he’ll basically be what we were hoping Jack Wilson would be.

  14. greentunic on April 17th, 2011 3:51 pm

    Prince Pineda?
    ….?

    no. I don’t think so.

  15. Chris_From_Bothell on April 17th, 2011 10:21 pm

    Now all he needs is a nickname.

    Lord Pineda.

    King Felix, Lord Pineda, Sir Erikkkk, and then a couple of princesses.

  16. andym34 on April 17th, 2011 10:31 pm

    Hi, I have been following this blog for a long time, but I finally decided to chime in. I agree Pineda does deserve a nickname but he may have already been given one by the great Dave Niehaus..Diabolical

  17. the tourist on April 18th, 2011 1:54 am

    I like Prince Pineda myself.

    Oh, and I love what Smoak is doing at the plate (ugly swings aside). Now give us Ackley in June, Rendon the following June, and Franklin the following June and I’ll be ecstatic!

  18. MrZDevotee on April 18th, 2011 7:29 am

    How ’bout just “The Prince”

    As in “heir to the throne”…

    King Felix & The Prince

    “The Prince takes the mound against the mighty Yankees…”

    “The Prince currently with the most wins on the Mariners staff…”

    I like the way Wedge set it up so there was no pressure on the Prince, and as soon as he showed he could handle the pressure, they could flip Felix and Pineda so that he’s actually #2 in our rotation now…

    That’s pretty nasty to face… Imagine that coming to town…

    Felix
    Pineda
    Vargas

    (and if Bedard pulls it together, that’s a playoff caliber starting rotation– King, Prince, Bedard– granted, it would need a team with offense, but still…)

  19. Westside guy on April 18th, 2011 9:40 am

    I’m still partial to El Jefe. 😉

  20. Mathball on April 18th, 2011 10:38 am

    I’d go with “Diabolical”. Actually I prefer “The Staaank” but that might be taken wrong.

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