Diamondbacks are in Seattle to get revenge on the Fishermen

Diamondbacks are in Seattle to get payback on those Fishermen

Last weekend, the Dbacks got swept by the Mariners at Chase Field. Now the Diamondbacks are looking to do that exact thing to the fishermen of the northwest. They play Friday-Sunday at Tmobile Park. This is the final time the two teams will meet for a while most likely. The Mariners enter Friday’s game with a record of 76-64. They are fighting for the second Wild Card spot. Seattle is 2.5 games behind the Boston Red Sox and only 3 games back of the New York Yankees who occupy the #1 spot. They are also contending with Oakland and Toronto for those two spots. Toronto’s currently a 1/2 game ahead of the M’s. Oakland’s a game back.

Meanwhile, for the Dbacks, they are contending with the Orioles for the worst record in the MLB. That would give them the #1 pick. They are currently 1 game back of the Orioles for whatever that is worth. It sure would be nice to ruin the playoff odds for the Mariners. The Dbacks have been decidedly worse on the road than at home as they have a record of 17-52 on the road. At home, they are 28-43. On the other side, the Mariners are 40-29 at home whereas on the road they are 35-35. The Diamondbacks have suffered in interleague play so far as they are 1-13. OUCH!

Onto the pitching match-ups for this series.

Madison Bumgarner vs TBD = Friday, 09/10 7:10 PM AZ Time

Madison Bumgarner is on the mound for the first time since his last start, coincidentally against the Mariners. He will look to improve upon that start where he gave up 5 runs and 5 walks in only 6 innings of work. His overall stats for the year are 7-9, 4.52 ERA, 4.46 FIP, 1 shutout, 35 walks, 112 hits, 106 K’s, and 123.1 innings pitched.

The Mariners have some experience against Madbum. Kyle Seager is 0-2 against Madbum lifetime. Ty France is 1-8. Jarred Kelenic and Mitch Haniger each have a home run and 2 RBI’s off of Madbum. His goal should be to not allow those two to do the damage like they did Friday.

For the Mariners, it’s yet to be determined. If I had to guess, it will be Marco Gonzales who got rocked by the Dbacks on Saturday for 5 runs in 5 innings. That’s my hypothetical guess though.

Humberto Castellanos vs TBD= Saturday, 09/11  6:10 PM AZ Time

Let’s get the fish out of the room. Yes, the Mariners haven’t announced yet who is pitching. If I had to make a guess, I’d say it’s Chris Flexen who last pitched Sunday against the Dbacks. He gave up 3 runs. Again, just a guess just like how many jelly beans are in a jar.

As for Humberto Castellanos, the Mariners have only played one game against him. However, that one game was a doozy. Kyle Seager has a 3-run homer off him. Additionally, nearly every regular Mariners’ hitter has a hit off of Humberto. Here’s hoping the second time goes better than the first.

This will be Humberto’s 4th start for the Dbacks. He’s had mixed success in the games he has started with 2 games combined allowing one run and then the last start in which he gave up 5 runs. Encompassing his starts and relief appearances, his stat line is 1-1, 22 hits, 10 walks, 17 K’s, 24.2 innings, 3.65 ERA, and a 4.18 FIP.

Tyler Gilbert vs TBD = Sunday, 09/12 1:10 PM AZ Time

The magical Tyler Gilbert will be making his 6th start of his career and 2nd vs the Mariners. He pitched great this past Sunday by going 7 innings and allowing only 3 runs. It was the best start in the series by any Dbacks pitcher. Besides his No-Hitter, he’s pitched really well for a rookie.

His stats on the year are 1-2, 34.2 innings, 12 walks, 23 K’s, 3.12 ERA, and 3.71 FIP. The Mariners are well-versed on him after facing him a mere week ago. Yet, only Ty France has more than 1 hit off him. In fact, he and only two other players have hits off of Gilbert. Let’s hope that continues for Sunday!

The Mariners haven’t announced the pitcher for Sunday. In my opinion and looking at the past week of games, I bet it is Yusei Kukuchi. He had a miserable last start against the Astros as he gave up 6 runs in 1.2 innings. Overall, he’s 7-8, 146 innings, 4.32 ERA, 57 walks, 149 K’s, and a 4.80 FIP.

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Venomous Bites:

Merrill Kelly is going to be doing another rehab start before returning to the MLB. Hopefully, in a week, he’ll be starting for the Dbacks down the stretch.

As always,

May the Force be with You…