Even With The Most Garbage Offense, Mariners Will Coast

Mariners vs. Athletics, 9:40 ET

I hope everyone had a fun and safe Labor Day Weekend. I personally am a proponent of the four-day work week even if it meant we needed to work 10-hour days instead. Having worked in offices for a bunch of years, I know that people are wasting at least two hours a day so really four eight-hour days would be fine for most people. It is nice to have enjoyed the extra day off yesterday though. Now we head back into focus on today's game between the Mariners and Athletics. 

You know what is a tough job and requires work? Being a Seattle Mariners fan. This team has probably the best pitching staff in all of baseball and they are just .500 because their offense is, well, offensive. Just how bad is the offense? Their team is hitting .216, which is three points lower than the White Sox who are on pace for a historically bad season and have already lost 108 games. They lead the league in strikeouts with 1,406 which is sixty more than the next closest team, the Rockies. The Mariners have 13 more runs than the Angels, and fewer 17 fewer than the Athletics. Only the White Sox, Rays, and Angels have scored fewer runs than Seattle in the American League. I'm not really sure I need to spell it out for you about their pitching staff - the Mariners have that offense and are still 69-69 for the season, so clearly the pitchers are keeping them afloat. Tonight, they put Luis Castillo on the mound. Castillo was acquired last year and looked like he might've been the ace of the rotation, but he is probably the third or fourth best pitcher for the team this season. For the season, he is 11-12 with a 3.65 ERA, 167 strikeouts, and a 1.17 WHIP. Those numbers are all within the top 35 of pitchers in the Majors, and like I said, he is the third or fourth best pitcher on the team! Castillo has faced Oakland just once this season, going six innings and allowing two solo homers. 

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 22: Shea Langeliers #23 and Mason Miller #19 of the Oakland Athletics celebrate defeating the Tampa Bay Rays 3-1 at the Oakland Coliseum on August 22, 2024 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

The Athletics are one of the better stories in the league if you are paying attention. This is a franchise that has struggled to get fans to attend games, was one of the worst teams in the league last season. While there are still issues with the fans and threats of losing the team to Las Vegas, the Athletics have at least addressed being competitive. They are 18 games under .500 which doesn't sound competitive, but at least they won't lose 100 games this year, and they are showing signs of some progress with their pitching staff and hitting. Tonight, they put J.T. Ginn on the mound. This will be Ginn's fourth appearance of the season and just his second start. He went five innings against the Reds and allowed four earned runs in his last game, the first time he pitched on the road this season. In the first two games of his season, he was at home and threw 3.2 innings, allowing just one earned run. Ginn doesn't have a ton of experience, but he doesn't walk many hitters or allow a ton of hits. It is still early, so we will see, but he isn't some pitcher that will just allow a ton of runs, either. 

No matter which way you look at this game, you have to assume that the Mariners are the better team. It is hard to ever be overly confident in their game since they score such a low total of runs. Going back through the season, their wins have only been by one run in 23 of their 69 wins which means that in two-thirds of the games they are winning by two or more runs. Obviously most of this is due to the pitching staff, and I think they once again get there tonight. I'll back the Mariners -1.5 at +110.

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