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Mariners Game Notes: Robinson Cano Returns to M’s Lineup

By Brian Helberg

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The Seattle Mariners (47-57) will take on the Minnesota Twins (53-49) on Saturday evening in the twin cities. First pitch is scheduled for 4:10 pm PST from Target Field in Minneapolis. Mike Montgomery (4-4, 3.20 ERA) will get the ball for the M’s as they look to take a 2-1 series lead. Kyle Gibson (8-8, 3.41 ERA) will toe the rubber for the home side. Root Sports Northwest will broadcast the game live locally, and MLB.tv subscribers can watch worldwide on connected devices.

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Last night’s win snapped a 4-game losing streak for Seattle. The Mariners are still 11 games behind the Houston Astros in the American League West, but Friday’s win was encouraging. This season may well be over for the M’s, but hopefully they can play better during the final couple months and build some momentum for next year.

Mariners’ skipper Lloyd McClendon and Twins’ manager Paul Molitor have announced the following lineups for tonight’s game:

Robinson Cano Returns to Mariners’ Lineup

Robby Cano has been dealing with an abdominal strain all week, and has not played since July 28th. However, he will get back on the field for Seattle this evening functioning as the M’s designated hitter. Cano was on fire in July, hitting .337 with 5 doubles, 1 triple, 7 home runs and 18 RBI’s. Hopefully he can stay hot now that the calendar has flipped to August.

Jul 18, 2015; Bronx, NY, USA; Seattle Mariners shortstop Brad Miller (5) throws out New York Yankees right fielder Garrett Jones (not pictured) during the ninth inning at Yankee Stadium. The Mariners defeated the Yankees 4 – 3. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports

Pick to Click

Shockingly, scoring runs has not been the issue for the Mariners as of late. Since July 21st, Seattle has averaged 4.9 runs per game. They exploded for 6 last night, and everyone contributed something to the cause. Brad Miller went 0 for 2, but drove in 2 runs on a pair of sacrifice flies. Crazy Legs only hit .243 in the month of July for the M’s, but he is a career .400 hitter against Gibson. I predict the 25-year-old will finish 2 for 4, and come through with a key triple in the late innings.

Final Score Prediction

Despite the increase in run support, Seattle is just 5-5 in their last 10 games. The Mariners have had trouble playing consistent baseball in 2015, and right now the pitching is letting the offense down. After going 3-2 with a 1.62 ERA across 6 starts in June, Mike Montgomery went 1-2 with a 5.88 ERA in the month of July. However, he fared much better his last time out, and I think he will start August with a win for the Mariners. Kyle Gibson failed to escape the 4th inning in his last start for the Twins, and hopefully the hot M’s bats will rough him up again. I predict a 5-2 win for Seattle tonight in Minneapolis.

Next: Update on James Paxton

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