The New Era - Seattle Mariners -

[K0ZZ]

Mariners drop 2 of three against A's again

OAK (4-4) 4
SEA (3-5) 2
WP: Brandon McCarthy (2-0) 1.06 ERA 16 K 3 BB 0.53 WHIP
LP: Jason Vargas (0-2) 5.25 ERA 9K 4 BB 1.58 WHIP

OAK (5-4) 12
SEA (3-6) 1
WP: Bartolo Colon (1-0) 1.17 ERA 8 K 2 BB 0.91 WHIP
LP: Blake Beavan (0-2) 7.45 ERA 8 K 4 BB 2.07 WHIP
S: Balfour (2)

OAK (5-5) 6
SEA (4-6) 9
WP: Erasmo Ramirez (1-0)
LP: Graham Godfrey (1-1)
S: League (3)

The Seattle offense has been anemic throughout the early part of the season. Usually drifting around 2 runs per game with a .231 average (27) they do however sit at 40 runs this season at 40, rookie Munenori Kawasaki leading the way with 7. Their true issue lies in their hit total with only 75, which sits at 29th in the league, only above the Rockies.

Oddly enough, the Mariners sit at third in the league in stolen bases, sixteenth in RBI's and the upper half of the league of home runs. Their stats are erratic across the board and fans really cannot have any true expectations of this team just yet.

Their issues go past the offensive end of things. The Mariners have 10 errors, sitting at only 29th in the league. The Mariners are also brought on by a 5.4 ERA for 28th, their best pitcher this season is trade aquisition Jeff Samardzija, Felix Hernandez just recently drifted below 5. They have surrendered 55 runs, with a league worst 52 earned.

After a blow out 12-1 loss, the series was regarded as a loss but the Mariners managed to pull together despite a minor injury to Scott Kazmir that made him leave in the first inning. They would escape with a win, thanks in large part to Kawasaki batting 3-4 with 3 runs and a RBI. Monterro continues to struggle, his batting average only better than Figgins anemic .090. Some changes could be on the horizon to bring in a slugger for the middle of the lineup, the Mariners need it.

[K0ZZ]

Mariners win first series of year

CLE (3-7) 3
SEA (5-6) 5
WP: Felix Hernandez (1-1) 4.5 ERA 18 K 4 BB 1.5 WHIP
LP: Jeanmar Gomez (0-2) 9.39 ERA 4 K 6 BB 3 WHIP
S: League (4)

CLE (3-8) 3
SEA (6-6) 5
WP: Jeff Samardzija (2-0) 3.09 ERA 18 K 10 BB 1.11 WHIP
LP: Ubaldo Jimenez (0-2) 6.06 ERA 26 K 8 B 1.71 WHIP
S: League (5)

CLE (4-8) 2
SEA (6-7) 1
WP: Justin Masterson (1-2)
LP: Brandon League (0-1) (BS)
S: Perez (2)

It was expected to happen eventually but in his sixth attempt, Brandon League couldn't close out the Indians to sweep the series. The Mariners can be happy that they sit only one game out of .500, which if they could maintain around a .500 record this season can be considered a success. Jeff Samardzija continues to impress with his second win going nearly the entire game.

Felix Hernandez in his third appearance would pick up his first win after a no decision and than a loss. His ERA leaves a lot to be desired but it's difficult to fault a win. Gutierrez and Suzuki are the only players remaining with a sub .200 batting average and there is a growing concern as Gutierrez was projected as one of the better Mariners.

The Mariners still don't have consistent bats but things will start to normalize soon and once other teams start using their trading abilities, the Mariners will leap on a short stop or third basemen, with left field a minor necessity. The Mariners are also rumored to be open towards a big name free agent pitcher if things continue their dismal trend.

[K0ZZ]

Mariners win another series and move to .500

CHS (9-5) 3
SEA (6-8) 2
WP: John Danks (2-0) 3.92 ERA 17 K 6 BB 1.21 WHIP
LP: Blake Beavan (0-3) 6.32 ERA 10 K 5 BB 1.72 WHIP
S: Thornton (8)

CHS (9-6) 4
SEA (7-8) 12
WP: Scott Kazmir (2-0) 2.35 ERA 11 K 5 BB 1.17 WHIP
LP: Philip Humber (2-1) 4.12 ERA 11 K 4 BB 1.12 WHIP

CHS (9-7) 5
SEA (8-8) 9
WP: Felix Hernandez (2-1) 4.85 ERA 23 K 5 BB 1.38 WHIP
LP: Chris Sale (2-2) 5.79 ERA 24 K 10 BB 1.5 WHIP

The bats came alive for the Mariners in their 2-1 series victory over the Chicago White Sox. In their final home stand before their road trip to close out the month, the Mariners opened up with a single digit loss as Beavan falls to 0-3. From there things only continued to pick up as Scott Kazmir pitches a great game The Mariners would hit four runs in game two, Chrone Figgins, Wells, Seger and Gutierrez all hit out of the park with Wells hitting a grand slam.

Smoak continues to press forward with a .340 batting average, the best on the team by far. His bat has been the lone consistent force on a team that has been anything but consistent. The Mariners will take on the new look Tigers in their next series as they travel to the Motor City.

[K0ZZ]

Oswalt finds work

There was some concern that the veteran Roy Oswalt wouldn't find another job after his tenure in Philadelphia ended. After all he was getting up in age, his talent was seemingly starting to begin it's decline. That didn't stop some teams from gauging his abilities and less than a month into the new season, the veteran will be taking his talents to Seattle.

The deal which figures were kept quiet is two years but must be lucrative for him to for-go going to a championship bound team and instead join a team that would be heading towards a bottom of the AL finish. This will be his first time in his career where he will be active in an AL rotation..

"They made some clear points, in the AL, I wouldn't have to bat which gives my body a little extra time to recoup. The contract offer was well enough and short enough that I could still play somewhere else if I feel the need to do so, and I fit into the middle of the rotation. I may not walk away with a championship trophy this year but to be part of the foundation of a team looking to go on the rise.. to be included in the history, would be huge" Spoke Oswalt at an introductory press conference, he is projected to start in the second game of the Tigers series if his arm is well enough to go.

[K0ZZ]

Mariners swept in Motor City

SEA (8-9) 3
DET (11-6) 5
WP: Doug Fister (2-1) 3.42 ERA 14 K 6 BB 1.44 WHIP
LP: Jeff Samardzija (2-1) 4.13 ERA 22 K 11 BB 1.36 WHIP
S: Valverde (8)

SEA (8-10) 0
DET (12-6) 14
WP: Matt Scherzer (2-1) 3.2 ERA 21 K 11 BB 1.50 WHIP
LP: Roy Oswalt (0-1) 18 ERA 0K 0 BB 3 WHIP

SEA (8-11) 3
DET (13-6) 4
WP: Rick Porcello (2-2) 6.41 ERA 12 K 14 BB 2.39 WHIP
LP: Scott Kazmir (2-1) 3.72 ERA 11 K 8 BB 1.34 WHIP
S: Valverde (9)

This series got ugly at times but for two of three, the Mariners were able to hold in tight against the AL Central favorites. In the first game, two home runs would be the difference, as the Tigers would pick up three of five runs on home runs, a ninth inning rally that included an Ichiro home run and very nearly a blown save would be blown from poor baserunning.

In Roy Oswalt's first pitching performance of the season, he wouldn't get a single strike out and would completely get dismantled for a 18 ERA that proved to be outright embarrassing for the veteran ace. Caberra would get a pair of home runs and five RBIs with Prince Fielder adding another home run, double and two RBIs as the Tigers put on a hitting clinic on the Mariners. Oswalt would only last 3 innings allowing 6 earned runs, with no other pitcher fairing too much better.

Despite Porcello allowing 7 hits and 3 earned runs through six innings, the Mariners were unable to capitalize on a rather pedestrian pitching performance. This series as a whole was disappointing and difficult for Mariners fans to even watch, the lack of bats is apparent especially in the 0-14 throttling.

[K0ZZ]

Mariners end month one game shy of .500

SEA (9-11) 14
TOR (12-8) 5
WP: Jason Vargas (1-2) 4.91 ERA 14 K 8 BB 1.45 WHIP
LP: Joel Carreno (1-2) 4.50 ERA 11 K 11 BB 1.46 WHIP

SEA (10-11) 3
TOR (12-9) 1
WP: Felix Hernandez (3-1) 3.86 ERA 32 K 6 BB 1.11 WHIP CG
LP: Ricky Romero (3-1) 2.27 ERA 29 K 14 BB 1.35 WHIP

SEA (10-12) 2
TOR (13-9) 7
WP: Brandon Morrow (3-0) 3.47 ERA 40 K 16 BB 1.35 WHIP
LP: Roy Oswalt (0-2) 14.85 ERA 3 K 1 BB 2.85 WHIP

SEA (11-12) 6
TB (8-15) 5
WP: Jeff Samardzija (3-1) 4.33 ERA 29 K 13 BB 1.16 WHIP
LP: Matt Moore (0-2) 6.18 ERA 34 K 15 BB 1.59 WHIP
S: League (7)

It seemed the Mariners were far from happy after their sweep against the Tigers, coming out on a tear scoring a team high 14 points against the East leading Blue Jays en route to a blow out victory in Toronto. Following up with a beautiful pitching performance by Felix Hernandez where he would go the distance leading the Mariners to a victory despite a quieter day from the bats.

Things didn't maintain their high quality as Roy Oswalt continues to struggle in Seattle. Allowing 9 hits in 3.2 innings as well as 5 earned runs with only 3 strike outs. His performances thus far has not warranted the level of his contract and he has been no where near the level he should be playing at, the two year deal with the veteran ace might've been a mistake.

Traveling to Tampa Bay where the Devil Rays have oddly been completely struggling, closing the first month six games behind the Blue Jays and Yankees whom are atop of the East, dropping a single point decision against the Mariners with Jeff Samardzija quietly being a huge acquisition to improving the Mariners rotation.

[K0ZZ]

MLB Standings - Updated: May 1, 2012
AL EAST	W	L	GB	RS	RA
Toronto Blue Jays	14	9	-	104	109
New York Yankees	14	9	-	96	85
Boston Red Sox	12	11	2	118	106
Baltimore Orioles	9	14	5	72	78
Tampa Bay Devil Rays	8	15	6	84	111
AL CENTRAL	W	L	GB	RS	RA
Detroit Tigers	14	9	-	93	79
Chicago White Sox	13	10	1	105	107
Kansas City Royals	12	11	2	119	75
Minnesota Twins	11	12	3	87	102
Cleveland Indians	7	14	6	102	126
AL WEST	W	L	GB	RS	RA
Texas Rangers	14	9	-	100	76
Los Angeles Angels	11	12	3	81	80
Seattle Mariners	11	12	3	105	116
Oakland Athletics	10	13	4	92	108
NL EAST	W	L	GB	RS	RA
Miami Marlins	14	9	-	105	92
Washington Nationals	14	9	-	88	73
Atlanta Braves	12	11	2	86	90
Philadelphia Phillies	10	13	4	66	82
New York Mets	7	16	7	63	94
NL CENTRAL	W	L	GB	RS	RA
St. Louis Cardinals	14	8	-	104	96
Houston Astros	13	10	1.5	101	95
Cincinnati Reds	11	11	3	92	73
Pittsburgh Pirates	10	12	4	75	79
Chicago Cubs	8	15	6.5	71	95
Milwaukee Brewers	8	15	6.5	104	112
NL WEST	W	L	GB	RS	RA
Arizona Diamondbacks	17	6	-	103	85
San Fransisco Giants	14	8	2.5	81	58
Colorado Rockies	11	11	5.5	96	86
Los Angeles Dodgers	10	13	7.0	90	99
San Diego Padres	9	15	8.5	86	102

Seattle Mariners Team Ranks
Batting AVG: .274 (6)
Runs: 105 (3)
Hits: 216 (6)
Home Runs: 23 (13)
RBIS: 104 (3)
ERA: 4.87 (29)
Hits Allowed: 216 (21)
Runs Allowed: 116 (29)
Strikeouts: 145 (25)

2012 Seattle Mariners Stats - Hitting
NAME	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	SB	CS	BA	OBP	SLG
Ichiro Suzuki	98	14	21	6	4	4	13	7	16	1	3	.214	.267	.480
Munenori Kawasaki	73	13	22	3	1	2	11	10	18	4	0	.301	.376	.452
Andy Laroche	78	11	21	6	0	1	12	5	14	1	0	.269	.329	.385
Jesus Montero	74	6	21	1	1	2	6	10	18	0	0	.284	.384	,405
Franklin Gutierrez	75	11	18	2	1	4	11	5	7	0	0	.240	.287	.453
Dustin Ackley	68	8	22	6	0	0	8	14	10	4	1	.324	.452	.412
Justin Smoak	71	16	22	1	0	4	8	7	15	0	1	.310	.378	.493
Brendan Ryan	68	5	18	0	0	0	7	6	13	3	0	.265	.324	.265
Casper Wells	81	10	20	2	0	3	12	4	25	0	0	.247	.282	.383
John Jaso	31	2	11	2	0	1	7	2	5	0	0	.355	.382	.516
Sam Fuld	27	1	9	2	0	0	4	1	5	0	0	.333	.357	.407
Kyle Seager	22	4	7	1	0	1	4	0	3	0	0	.318	.318	.500

2012 Seattle Mariners Stats - Pitching
NAME	GP	GS	W	L	SV	QS	HLD	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	SO	WHIP	ERA
Tom Wilhelmsen	9	0	0	0	0	0	2	13.1	10	5	1	1	11	0.83	3.38
Brandon League	8	0	0	1	7	0	0	6.1	8	2	1	1	5	1.42	2.84
George Sherrill	8	0	1	0	0	0	5	7	7	3	2	0	8	1.00	3.86
Erasmo Ramirez	6	0	1	0	0	0	0	17	21	8	1	11	10	1.88	4.24
Felix Hernandez	5	5	3	1	0	3	0	35	33	15	4	6	32	1.11	3.86
Jeff Samardzija	5	5	3	1	0	2	0	35.1	28	17	5	13	29	1.16	4.33
Lucas Luetge	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	4.2	5	3	0	2	1	1.5	5.79
Scott Kazmir	4	4	2	1	0	2	0	19.1	18	8	4	8	11	1.34	3.72
Jason Vargas	4	4	1	2	0	1	0	22.0	24	12	2	8	14	1.45	4.91
Blake Beavan	4	4	0	3	0	1	0	18.0	26	13	3	5	10	1.72	6.5
Roy Oswalt	2	2	0	2	0	0	0	6.2	18	11	3	1	3	2.85	14.85
Hector Noesi	2	0	0	0	0	0	1	2.1	1	0	0	0	1	0.43	0.00

Storylines
~ The Angels struggle out of the gate after an aggressive offseason and oddly find themselves tied with the Mariners for second in the AL West.

~ The Devil Rays overperformance over the past few years may have finally caught up with them with a rough April.

~ Joe Mauer is batting .419 at the end of one month. Albert Pujols is at 47 in the AL with .269. He would fit into 97th in the MLB.

~ Ichiro leads the AL with 4 triples, double of second place Carl Crawford (BOS)

~Detroits new acquisition Prince Fielder leads the MLB with 9 home runs

~ Colby Lewis is pitching with a 1.06 ERA and has the most wins in the MLB with 4, despite their pitching shortcomings, the Mariners have two pitchers tied for second with three wins. Mitchell Boggs has managed 4 wins out of the relief pitching slot for the Cardinals.

~ Four players are tied for first in the MLB with ten saves, Sergio Santos (TOR) and Mariano Rivera (NYY) of the AL and Craig Kimbrel (ATL) and Heath Bell (MIA).

~ Barry Zito (SF) has the best ERA in the MLB with 0.59

~ Stephen Strasburg leads the MLB with 46 strike outs despite posting a 1-2 record

~ In a recent financial statement the Colorado Rockies somehow find themselves the richest team in the MLB with 41 million in surplus.

~ The Cardinals stay in first despite losing Albert Pujols in the offseason, where as Milwaukee falls to a tie for last after losing Prince Fielder.

~ Blue Jays sit atop the East after one month and could end the Red Sox/NYY dominance of the division. Aside from a few seasons of Tampa dominance, it has been the duo atop the conference, this could be Toronto's year.

~

[K0ZZ]

Mariners manage to escape in extras

Mariners at Rays |
May 1, 2012	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Extras	R	H	E
Seattle (12-12)	1	0	0	3	0	0	1	0	0	0-0-1	6	17	3
Tampa Bay (8-15)	0	0	0	2	1	1	0	0	0	0-0-0	5	16	1
W: Luetge (1-0) L: McGee (1-2) S: Ramirez (1)

Scoring Summary
SCORING DETAILS			SEA	TAM

Seattle Mariners
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
Suzuki, RF	5	1	1	0	1	2	0	.213
Ackley, 2B	6	1	4	1	0	0	0	.351
Montero, C	5	0	2	1	0	1	0	.291
Wells, LF	5	0	1	1	0	2	0	.244
Smoak, 1B	5	2	3	0	1	1	0	.328
LaRoche 3B	6	1	2	1	0	1	0	.273
Kawasaki, DH	6	0	2	1	0	1	0	.303
Gutierrez, CF	5	1	1	0	0	1	0	.237
Ryan, SS	5	0	1	1	0	1	0	.260

Tampa Bay Rays
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
Zobrist, RF	5	1	2	1	0	0	1	.247
Jennings, RF	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.171
Keppinger, 2B	6	1	3	0	0	0	0	.250
Longoria, 3B	6	1	3	1	0	1	0	.244
Pena, DH	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	.241
Joyce, CF	6	2	2	0	0	0	0	.329
Scott, 1B	6	0	2	1	0	0	0	.217
Olivo, C	3	0	1	1	0	0	0	.193
Molina, C	3	0	1	0	0	2	0	.086
Brignac, SS	5	0	2	0	0	1	0	.292
Rodriguez, LF	5	0	0	0	0	1	0	.194

Seattle Mariners
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Kazmir	5	11	5	5	0	3	1	4.80
Beavan	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	5.85
Noesi	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	0.00
League	2	1	0	0	1	1	0	2.16
Luetge (W)	1	1	0	0	0	2	0	4.76
Ramirez (S)	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	4
TEAM TOTALS	12	16	5	5	1	7	1

Tampa Bay Rays
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Hellickson	3.1	10	4	4	2	1	0	4.9
Niemann	1.2	0	0	0	0	2	0	0.58
Badenhop	2.0	2	1	1	0	3	0	7.04
Rodney	4.0	3	0	0	0	3	0	0.00
McGee (L)	0.2	2	1	1	0	1	0	6.75
Howell	0.1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1.58
TEAM TOTALS	12	17	6	6	2	10	0

The Mariners embarrassed Hellickson in his start, forcing the Rays to move to the Bullpen in only the fourth inning. Bad enough for the Mariners was that Scott Kazmir was less than impressive in his return to Tampa Bay, not lasting too much longer and even surrendering a lead that seemed to be near uncatchable after the bats came to life as early as they did.

The Mariners looked like a completely different team early in this game, working the counts and swinging at smart pitches, by the middle of the game that was gone and it wouldn't return until the 12th inning. By then things were already on the fringe of implosion. The Mariners had managed to tie it up in the seventh and in the 11th, with bases loaded, and only one out the Mariners would turn a double play and in their next at bats, it was the Mariners putting up a point on the board that would send them out with a win to open the month of May.