Game 76, Athletics at Mariners
Jason Vargas vs. Travis Blackley, 7:10pm
Ah, Travis Blackley. It seems like it was only yesterday when the young Aussie left-hander made his debut with the 2004 Mariners. He’d torn up the Texas League in 2003 (at age 20), with a sparkling ERA and impressive strikeout totals for a guy whose fastball was basically 89-90.
He struggled a bit with his command in Tacoma, and his strikeout rate was down, but holy crap the 2004 M’s were terrible. It was one of Jamie Moyer’s worst years in Seattle, the year Joel Pineiro went from “phenom” to “problem.” All told, the M’s, playing in Safeco, gave up 5.1 runs per game. When the M’s traded Fredy Garcia, they brought up Blackley who’d been excellent in his first few months of AAA. We all remember what happened next – 26 terrible innings, followed by a demotion and another month or two of bad AAA performance followed by a shoulder injury that developed into a torn labrum. After rehab, he made a few appearances in the M’s system before being released and picked up by San Francisco. After 2007, he’s pitched almost anywhere people are paid to pitch baseballs, from Australia to Korea to :shudder: Reno. After being out of affiliated ball in 2011, he started off the season pitching like his 21-year old self for Fresno and earned a call-up with the Giants. A few games later, he was cut and then picked up by the A’s, who didn’t necessarily have a place for him, but it had been a few days since they’d made a roster move and Billy Beane needed a fix bad.
Blackley’s still got the same 89-91 mph fastball, though he’s using a two-seamer now to good effect. Always a fly-ball pitcher with the M’s, he’s got a 50% ground ball rate now with the A’s. His slow curve ball’s still there, though it’s never really been a great pitch. His change-up is his best pitch in terms of generating whiffs and grounders, so that’s something the M’s right-handers should look for (he’s thrown zero to lefties). The two-seamer’s helped his HR problems, and he’s also greatly improved his command somehow. He’s coming off of his best performance as a major leaguer, an 8IP no decision in which he essentially matched Clayton Kershaw pitch for pitch (OK, it’s more like he functioned as a slow-motion replay of each Clayton Kershaw pitch), finishing with 3 hits allowed, 1 run, 6 Ks to no walks. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t care, as an old Travis Blackley signed baseball sits on my desk. *
Jason Vargas gets to pitch at home and not Arizona, which is a positive, but I’d love to see some sign that he’s tweaked his delivery or is able to pitch down in the zone again. I’ve been worried with Vargas’ slide these past few months, and tonight would be a nice night to stop it.
1: Ichiro (DH)
2: Gutierrez (CF)
3: Seager (3B)
4: Montero (C)
5: Smoak (1B)
6: Saunders (LF)
7: Wells (RF)
8: Ackley (2B)
9: Ryan (SS)
SP: Jason Vargas
* It sits next to Bobby Madritsch and Chris Snelling signed baseballs. It is officially the saddest of all possible desks.
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165 Responses to “Game 76, Athletics at Mariners”
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Saunders should hit 5th, Wells 6th, and Smoak 7th. Or does Wedge make these things out in advance every two weeks at a time?
Nice start for Vargas. Let’s see if the bats can do something tonight.
Swap Ichiro for Montero as DH, and add Z at catcher, find a replacement for Smoak at first, and you have a decent defensive line up! I say swap Ichiro, cause he’s probably gone next year.
^ Maybe Wedge simply got confused. He heard that Smoak is the anchor OF the offense instead of Smoak being an anchor TO the offense.
I tip my cap to you Marc. Your choice of those autographs you display say a lot of good things about where you are coming from. Your desk doesn’t reflect sadness, it reflects possibilities. Cheers, man.
Doubtful we see Zunino this year, probably wont next year either. It took Ackley more than a year and he was a more advanced hitter.
MOVE THE FENCES IN!
Curious to see how they pitch Ackley. I predict down and away….all night long.
And let the hitters stand on 2B when they hit
Stupid MLB blackouts. If I pay for MLB TV I should get to watch!
They could put up a celebrity softball fence for the M’s innings?
Good streak here for Vargas, but he still looks like he can’t locate his fastball in the lower half of the strike zone…
Vargas is on a pace to get 22 strikeouts.
That was an odd broken-bat hit, but I’ll take it.
.200 or bust for Smoak
Or would that be .200 and “bust”?
How about .200 for bust? Kinda like something you’d see on a sign held by a hitch-hiker.
Wait, I screwed that up. You had it the first time, Mike
What about nick-names? ‘Smoak-dud’
I kinda thought you might have been trolling for chicks, Steve.
Well, in honor of the 4th of July, Smoak-bomb would be the easier cliched selection. It could have a double meaning, after all.
Haha, not that way. Got lucky traveling though. That’s how I met my fiance.
Smoak-bombed?
Did you sell your house yet, Steve? I know you are headed to Brasil soonish.
Big game time, Dustin.
I like “Smoakless in Seattle.”
Hmm, bet I’m the only one.
That was a tough pitch to hit. Nicely done!
I wish I could post a picture of the pitch selection to Ackley. Seems that he made an adjustment, and got that last pitch though! Good sign.
House is sold, sold the couch, a rug, and lawn mower today. Packed a lot today. We’ll likely leave on the 22nd of July. Had to get the cats a rabies shot, which requires a 30 day wait before the flight. It’s a set-back, but that’s ok.
Ackley’s looked a little better at the plate lately.
Ichiro! Nice to see him with a hot bat.
Dennisss, Smoakless in Seattle is great! I hated that damn movie.
Guti!
Still “crushing it”.
Guti looks good
Guti! If he stays healthy, we’re set in CF!
GUTI. >:-(
What’s with the epidemic of crappy baserunning?
Fucking giving away outs again. WTF
No offense to you personally, WTF
hahahaha Mike
Bad base-running seems to be a team epidemic.
Yep, cats. I understand. My wife is a crazy cat lady, too. Our Beagle loves ours, but they are not too fond of her.
None taken Mike! I really need a better nickname, but can’t find one. BTW, good pay Saunders!
Ackley looked Boggs-esque, Gutierrez punished a fast ball (big mistake, Blackley), and Seager did what he should. But the base running has been a joke. The guy in the 3B box should be doing something. Guti was looking right at him. Nice to score, FGS.
When watching the M’s games with my buddies, we always get a good laugh out of saying that it’s time for another Smoak-out when Justin is up. Simple, but still funny
I like that fence right where it is. Move it nowhere.
Smoak under water?
What do you need the cats for, Steve? I thought you said it was going to be a vegan place.
Safeco took a run away (Guti non homer) and it prevented a run by Oakland – in the same inning
Fair enough.
If Guti had not boned the baserunning, he might have scored last inning. Less boning (on the bases, do what you want on your own personal time) and less moaning about the fences, would be fine by me.
The cats will make nice throw-rugs, to go over the tile floors.
” Smoak under water … And fire in the sky … And a bad career gone by…
Duh duh duh dudududu
“Smoak out … Le freak say sheik”
Let’s not get fire science into this….
No strikes to Cespedes! He will chase!!
Perfect!
Vargas should beg the FO to not be traded. Unless it is to San Diego who will not pay him, he should beg to stay in Seattle.
Mike just reminded me…
When I was a teenager, one year for my birthday I got a new clock radio with a built-in electrical outlet. The idea was probably to use it for coffee, but being a teen I figured I’d use it to wake up to some music I liked by plugging in a cassette tape player (giving away my age here, you notice). So I queued up Deep Purple’s “Smoke on the Water”, and set what seemed to be a moderate volume on the tape player.
In the morning I discovered that “moderate volume” is a relative thing – it scared the bejeebers out of me! It seemed like it was about 150 decibels…
And he should beg them to only have to pitch against the A’s. It’s still hard to believe they have a better record
So, being at a M’s game, and hearing Smoak’s theme music, must be a reoccurring nightmare!
Even without the music, the M’s games are sometimes recurring nightmares…
Mike, it’s not so hard to believe the A’s have a better record. THEY don’t have to deal with outfield walls that “are just to far away”.
Gee Westy, I figured you were going to mention the 16 track player – in deference to your advanced years.
Always nice to see a lead-off walk.
Well I couldn’t fit the player piano into my bedroom, Mike.
The walls are fine. Home plate is the obvious problem. Move up home plate.
And give them all aluminum bats.
And let them put the ball on a tee maybe?
Give them shock-collars, too, so they can be zapped for stupid errors, like the one Wells just made.
Player piano … Nicely done, pard.
Regarding Wells’ pick off – doesn’t the pitcher have to step off the rubber before throwing to first?
Or a smoak-collar…. er, choke collar. Easy to mix those two up.
I can now literally see Smoak swinging through a ball on a tee. And then complaining about the height of it.
Lol Mike! I was picturing him looking like an 8 year old swinging and missing the tee too!
Honestly, I don’t it’s worth stressing much about Smoak. Much easier to replace a first baseman. Maybe Carp gets healthy and finds his swing? Either way, we might as well give them this season to try to figure things out.
The balk rule is too complicated to explain over this thread, but the only thing a left hander has to do is to “commit” to home or first. If his front leg crosses his back leg he has to go home. If he lifts his front leg and does not go behind his back leg, there is an imaginary 45 degree line that the umpire is supposed to gauge (without one actually being drawn on the ground). If the LHP crosses it, he must throw home.
Easy, huh?
“front foot” actually … Not the entire leg. Front foot. Plane of the back leg.
Google it
RAISE THE TEES UP!
Ichiro is hot!
High Tee at noon – Low Tee at dusk?
Booooooooooo, me
I can do better than that
Oh good, League is warming up.
Don’t throw him strikes, dumbass
Vargas – why are you throwing Cespedes strikes, EVER?!
Nice job by Ryan
Ryan!
Brendan Ryan is amazing.
Did Ryan snag that grounder between his legs before he spun or was I seeing things?
Yeah, Vargas didn’t learn from the first time we faced the A’s… or the second.
You’re seeing things!
I just replayed it in slow motion. Ryan started his pirouette before he even had the ball. He basically stepped over the ball before he caught it.
So not quite between the legs, but darned close to it.
In protest of the “move the fences in” mantra, I moved my couch back, so the TV is farther away, now. I would like to see the replay though.
I thought he had just gotten ahead of it a little.
Damned close to it, huh.
Good enough at this age
Yay me!
Hey League … Hold ‘this’!!!
So, League is the new BP pitcher? He sucks or is injured.
The Mets need relievers “bad” … But maybe not this bad.
I saw that article, too. I immediately starting looking at what they might have to offer. Then I though, what would we have to give up?! I don’t wanna see Charlie or Tommy go. Doubt League would interest them much.
Remember when Bobby Madritsch had to wear long sleeves to cover the tattoos on his arm? Whatever happened to that rule? Was it Overcome by societal happenstance?
That was almost an eephus pitch.
Darn tee was too LOW!
As Dave pointed out, Smoak is a sucker for the low curve down the middle.
Some pitcher should get tattoos of baseballs printed up and down his arm – see if the umps make him cover them up.
That’s the best looking god awful swing I have ever seen – by Smoak
You have got to be fucking kidding me
7th graders get benched for that shit.
Absolutely without clue and without a plan. Kudos for getting the bat in the ball, though
.200 or bust!
No idea when or how that rule was overcome. The sleeve thing is pretty weird though.
Has anyone considered that there is something in the clubhouse water making the m’s too stupid to play baseball?
” I knew we shouldn’t have used lead pipes!”
Smoak should have a tattoo of a baseball put on the barrel of his bat so he can see what one looks like.
So…consecutive quality starts from Noesi, Ramirez, and Vargas wasted.
When Gutierreze got thrown out at 3rd to end the 3rd, a close game was eminent. We’ve scored in one of the last 27 innings. I could be off by one. Saunders splits vs LHP are starting to take a little beating.
The “not just a LOOGY leprechaun?”
How about it?
Unfortunately Smoak seems to be a sucker for any pitch that gets thrown in the vicinity of home plate.
Yep, one run scoring inning in the last 30 or 31 innings, now
One
UNO
Blah!
Saunders needed help, he went to Josh Bard’s guy.
Smoak needed help, he apparently went to Miguel Olivo’s guy.
A LAJiminez prop.
Our answer to the minor league version of Prince Fielder
The round mound of Puget Sound.
The Tacoma Turbulence.
And easily, much better than Smoak at this point in time.
Sweet ass bender!
SWEET!
Nice job Charlie!
Put this game into motion. Good speed on bases. An alleged contact hitter.
Pitches at chin height: let them go by!!!!
Not fond of the bunt here.
That laughing jack-ass made the game!
Well that worked half way!
Blown hit and run that worked out due to A’s ineptitude.
Ryan!!
“Yeah, I’ll have an order of garlic fries, topped with blue-ringers please…. Haaahhhhaaa hhaaahahaa ehhhahhaaheee”.
Nice job Ryan.
A lead!
But who’s that person laughing like a maniac witch that the radio feed keeps picking up?
A second baseman of average height would have caught that.
Ryan!!!
Again, Ryan!
Make them pay, Guti.
My wife just said: Brendan Ryan getting that hit was more miraculous of an event than me cooking dinner.
Nicely done, dear!
This may be the first time in his career that I don’t mind Ichiro getting an intentional walk.
Makem pay Guti!
I think the maniac in the stands is probably the advance scout analyzing Smoak’s swing.
No, he’s probably the scout that landed us Smoak!
I vote for Smoaks agent
Gutierrez is a totally different hitter. He’s pretty much driven everything he’s hit with authority. Wonder how that happened during his lengthy rehab. He has to have made some adjustment. Squaring up everything. Impressive.
Might be Wedge’s supply-guy. That would make a lot of sense.
I think my TV is broken, the Mariners have three runs?
I think League should close this out.
Both Guti’s and Seager’s drives were hit well. But how many times during this game have the A’s fielders been positioned exactly with the right jump on the ball?
Is Smoaks agent Inspector Clouseau’s boss, by any chance?
No Props for Wells on this site?
League already pitched tonight, Jordan.
No, we like Wells. Nothing not to like about Wells.
Sims seems to think Wells is covering both left AND right field.
Wilhelmson has been an amazing find so far.
BP, I think the question is do the Mariners go after another outfield when Ichiro is gone or do they go after another 4th outfield type, since Wells is showing signs of being a real outfielder.
Bullpen, yeah, we give him props, but we were busy making fun of the laughing guy.
@marinerbullpen
Read through past game threads and articles, you’ll find lots of support for Wells.
I don’t like Wells’ beard.
If there was ever a game to reinforce the idea of bringing the fences in, this one is it.
Man, that curve ball is awesome.
Wilhelmina has been money. M’s should rack this one up. I’m guessing that eventually Wells’ numbers vs. RHP will be superior to Saunders’ numbers vs. LHP. Unless for some reason, the “brain trust” goes belly up and doesn’t allow Wells a fair share of reps.
Hit Smoak 7th or 8th, please!
He has to appeal to Hargrove somehow right?
Willy Willy Willy!!!
BEE-A-UTIFUL CURVE!!
A bender to win it…NICE!
We’ve won the last two games when we’ve scored. That is rather sad to say.
How’s that, bradguy… we won!
Hit Smoak 7 or 8 times, please.
Somebody needs to tell Ryan that “beard” of his is NOT a good thing.
It’s like one of those “beards” we tried to grow in high school.
Westy, we do not knock Brendan Ryan when he just hit the gamewinner (and had a pretty spectacular play in the field, too).
Just play the young guys.
Olivo, Figgins, and Ichiro, Just say No.
As much as I usually hate Ryans plate awareness, I do feel he is a good teammate (Chemistry, which I know…..) and a great defender. I consider Ryan young.
Smoak, I’m concerned about, Ackley I’m not.
Ryan’s a good guy – hanging out in the dugout, signing autographs.
In case you didn’t notice, Ichiro has been hitting the ball really well lately.
I like what Wedge did tonight, having Montero catch, and Ichiro DH, so Wells was in the line-up, rather than Olivo.
Down on Ichiro. Thanks for the 12 great years.
Tired of the bat flip when we really need a drive.
I like Wedge, maybe not a popular choice here, let me know.
Yes, Ichiro is clearly still the problem and Wedge is a great purveyor of lineup creation.
Just out for a late evening trolling session, are we?
If you’re going to blast Ichiro, it’s probably wise to find another place to do that. Read what’s stated right below the header and it will make sense. I feel like a broken record.
Agreed. Not god to bust on the best player all-around, hat the M’s have ever had.
And, he’s picked up the hitting as of late, which gives me hope that e can help this team finish the year with a respectable “rebuilding year” record. Go Ichiro! Go M’s!
WOW, how the masses will stick together.
you gals are all delusional if you truly believe ichiro is helping us. Really?
Griffey >>>>>>> ichiro
We are talking about NOW, are we not?
Ichiro is not the nuts. I love his past performance, but not his current performance.
—WOW, how the masses will stick together.
you gals are all delusional if you truly believe ichiro is helping us. Really?—
—I love his past performance—
Sure you do, troll.