Fantasy Baseball: Seattle Mariners limping into the Playoffs

Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Now is not the time to panic if you’re a Seattle Mariners fan. True to the blue simply doesn’t bail on their team when it matters the most. Yes, Fernando Rodney blew a game yesterday. And yes, it’s now football season. September rarely has relevance for the Mariners, but it does right now.

Seattle lost a tough one last night, and Rodney Fantasy Baseball owners are literally begging that their WHIP does jump to 9.47. That last one was a joke. But seriously; it’s become the norm to see two or three base runners in the ninth. That came back and beat the Mariners in an ugly way last night.

I know what September means in Seattle. Time to turn off the Mariners and turn your attention to the Seattle Seahawks. It’s time to ignore the dog days in fantasy baseball, and join the fantasy football obsession. I’m here to tell you this is the year we change that tradition.

The Seattle Mariners are very much still in the playoff hunt. There are many good situations to be in with fifteen games left in the season, and being one game out of the wildcard playoffs is solid.

The Mariners are thirteen games over .500, but are tripping into the post season. It’s becoming difficult to find consistent offense, but there are some stars that are stepping it up for our fantasy baseball teams down the stretch. Let’s take a look at those that are making that extra effort to get their team into the playoffs.

Robinson Cano has been earning his paycheck. We all knew his defense was effortlessly solid, and his batting is guaranteed to be tops in the league, but his power is finally starting to step it up. Cano smashed two home runs this week, but only has two RBI to show for it.

This is the time where the top of the lineup needs to get on base. Cano is hitting with a .391 BA in the past seven games. It goes to show how much the others in the lineup are struggling to hit when your #3 hitter is batting near .400 for the week yet only musters 2 runs and 2 RBI.

After the Mariners win the series today against the Oakland Athletics (see what I did there), expect Cano to turn up the hitting against the league leading Los Angeles Angels. Great hitters are known for stepping up their game when it matters the most. Cano is no different. Below are this week’s forecasted numbers for the Mariners top hitter.

WEEKLY FANTASY PROJECTION: ROBINSON CANO

.350 BA, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 4 RUNS, 0 SB

Felix Hernandez pitched lights out this week, but has no wins to show for it. Fantasy owners saw two starts from their top pitcher, and received great numbers from both games. Felix finished the week with 13 IP, 16 Ks, 1.38 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP.

The first game ended well for the Mariners. Felix pitched 6 innings of shutout baseball with 8Ks to show for his efforts. The bullpen came in and held off the Houston Astros to give the offense enough time to score four runs for the victory.

Last night was a different story. Rodney blew the game in the 10^th, and that’s how fans will see it. But what about Lloyd McClendon using 4 relievers in the 8^th inning? Or the offense not able to just score just 3 runs? It’s amazing how we pick apart our closer. The game is on the line every time he takes the mound, and the Mariners simply wouldn’t be in the playoff hunt without his 45 successful league leading saves.

This week we get to celebrate ‘Happy Felix Day’ this Thursday for game four against the Angels. To say this game will be big, would be an understatement. Felix typically has the Angels’ number and we expect another big game by The King.

These are the starts that will give Felix that push to win the CY Young Award. Below are the fantasy baseball numbers predicted for the Mariners ace this week.

WEEKLY FANTASY PROJECTION: FELIX HERNANDEZ

7  IP, 1 W, 8 K, 1.00 ERA and 1.00 WHIP

This week’s sleeper pick goes to Kendrys Morales. His role to be an offensive juggernaut could not come at a more important time. The season is winding down, and the offense needs their power hitting clean-up hitter to earn his playing time.

Morales simply hasn’t been making great contact. He’s only hit with a .100 BA this past week with only one HR. It may be a blessing in disguise with Morales visiting his former team this week in LA to restart the offense engine.

Expect to see some power from the four hole in the lineup this week. Let’s just hope there are some runners on base when those hits finally start to drop.

WEEKLY FANTASY PROJECTION: KENDRYS MORALES

.333 BA, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 2 RUNS, 0 SB