Seattle Mariners Series Preview: v. Texas Rangers

The M’s are coming home again after completing the sweep at Fenway yesterday. Our beloved Mariners finished that road trip 6-3 with the only blemish being a series loss in Philadelphia, which should definitely have been a win.

In the mean time, things continue to heat up in the wild card race and the Mariners have another soft week here at home. The Rangers are the worst team in the MLB right now, which should bode well for the Mariners as they head into a September that has them pitted up against the Angels and A’s multiple times. Getting as much of a lead as possible is going to be important. Here’s your Mariners Series Preview for this week’s matchup against the Texas Rangers.

More from Mariners News

• 2023 Steamer Projections: Teoscar Hernandez could see a drop in Seattle
• Steamer Projections: Julio Rodriguez to enter rarified air in 2023
• What if the Mariners traded FOR Tyler O’Neill this time?
• Mariners starting pitching is being overlooked by MLB
• Baking the Cake: An Adjusted Mariners Offseason Plan

Matchups

Game one: Miles Mikolas (1-5, 7.48 ERA) v. Roenis Elias (9-10, 4.09 ERA)

Mikolas’ numbers leave much to be desired. Though Elias hasn’t been stellar in recent weeks, he has the edge in this game against a Texas team that continues to plummet in the standings as injuries mount.

Game two: Nick Martinez (3-9, 5.13 ERA) v. James Paxton (3-1, 2.20 ERA)

Paxton lost his first ever Major League game in his last outing, but he still sports a sub-3.00 ERA on the season and for his career. Nick Martinez has struggled this season having been thrust into the rotation with all the injuries. Paxton could very well deal against this lineup, and if the Mariners keep hitting, this game could be a blowout in Safeco.

Game three: Colby Lewis (8-11, 5.54 ERA) v. Felix Hernandez (13-4, 2.07 ERA)

That three-run homer Felix surrendered to Yoenis Cespedes last week against the Red Sox pulled his ERA over 2.00 for the season. But that doesn’t mean the King doesn’t still reign supreme. He faces off against Colby Lewis who has struggled mightily this year (this seems like a trend in the Rangers organization). Look for Felix to get back on track at Safeco this week.

Series Notes:

The Mariners are going to have to win a lot this week to keep pace with the Oakland Athletics and L.A. Angels of Anaheim. The Angels are playing the Marlins, and the A’s are playing Houston, which means those should be series wins for those respective teams. But this series against Texas should be a series win for the Mariners as well. This is that part of the year the M’s need to flex their muscles, because good, playoff-caliber teams beat the teams they are supposed to beat.

Wild Card Roundup

Things couldn’t have gone much better for the Mariners on that road trip as they beat the Tigers and then swept the Red Sox. Moreover, the 20-something drumming that the Tigers took at the hands of the Twins on the weekend was just good for my self-esteem. The Mariners are a whole game over the Tigers for that second spot right now, and Oakland continues its slide, going 3-7 in the last ten.

• Oakland has a shot at turning things around as they head to Houston for a three game series. Houston is coming off of a series loss to the Indians, who are back in the mix.
• The Mariners are hosting the Rangers
• An important series is taking place in Detroit this week as the Yankees are headed to the Motor City for a three gamer against the Tigers. Yet again the Tigers find themselves in a pivotal series against a wild card competitor. With the Yanks only 2.5 games behind the Tigers, there’s potential for some flip-flopping. Best case scenario for the Mariners would be a Yankees series win pushing both teams back.
• The Cleveland Indians, fresh off a series win against the Astros, jumped over the Jays and are now 5.0 games behind the M’s for that last spot. They are headed to Chicago to take on the White Sox for the week. The Sox are riding a 6 game losing streak right now.

WILD-CARD STANDINGS: