Seattle Mariners Halfway Report: Facts, and Opinions
Pitching
Facts
The Mariners rank on the lower end of mediocre compared to the rest of the league in the major pitching statistics. This season, the Seattle Mariners ERA is 4.42 (20th), FIP is 4.29 (17th), 1.28 WHIP (15th), 3.3 walks per 9 innings (11th), etc. Overall the Seattle’s pitching has been okay but suffered through a myriad of injuries. Losing James Paxton for the season hurt quite a bit. Marco Gonzales going on the injured list for an extended period of time put the M’s down their top two rotation-mates in the early going.
Starting pitching has been a struggle outside of Yusei Kikuchi, Chris Flexen, and the recent performance of rookie Logan Gilbert. In fact, their performance has brought the starter’s overall ERA down to 4.63, which ranks 19th in the league. Seattle starters rank near the bottom of the league in strikeouts per nine innings (24th), strikeout to walk ratio (27th), home runs given up (26th), etc.
Seattle’s bullpen was one of the best in the league for the month of April. But injuries piled up there too, and they cooled off. For the season the relievers rank 18th in ERA (4.14), 7th in WHIP (1.22), 16th in BAA (.230), etc. Many of their woes are from Rafael Montero who ranks dead last in closer efficiency (app/saves/blown saves/ERA/WHIP). Meanwhile, Kendall Graveman, who has received more save opportunities since his return from the IL than Montero, ranks in the league’s top 10 among closers.
Opinion
The M’s put a lot of pressure on their pitching to perform and many times they do. They have the best record in extra-inning games (8-1), won the most one-run games (17), and have the best record in those games at 17-7. That does lend to a lot of opportunities for relievers to be successful in pressure situations. While Kikuchi and Flexen are currently the best in the rotation and putting up strong 2021 campaigns, the rest of the rotation needs to step up and compete, especially Justus Sheffield.
A complete change over to Kendall Graveman at closer is also important for the Mariners to sustain their current record. The development of Gilbert and the re-emergence of Marco Gonzalez as the Mariner’s ace will also help. Having four to five solid starters that can put the team in a position to win is going to be at a premium as offenses continue to improve with the warmer months ahead.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0IXC5ymq3A