Back-to-back shutout wins by the Mariners and Andres Munoz makes history

The Mariners are frusturating. I don't know that there is a better way to put it. You watch them get swept by the Angels, and then they beat the Phillies in a series. You watch them salvage a series against the Tigers and eek out a single win and then they open the Mets series with two dominating outings by their pitching staff.

That pitching staff is the focus of today's article. Through the first two games of the series, the Mets are hitting just .175 with three walks and 22 strikeouts. That sounds like something the Mariners would do, and yet it's the Mets who have failed to score a single run so far in the series.

That's right. The Mariners have shut the Mets out in back-to-back games to open the series, earning wins of 6-0 and 4-0. The Mariners only have 12 hits in the series, but they have accumulated 11 walks. Putting 23 runners on through 2 games is good no matter how you look at it, especially when you are knocking pitchers out of the game early and eating through the other teams pen.

For the Mariners, it was Bryce Miller in game one. He went six scoreless, and was backed by Snider, Voth, and Thornton who each through an inning to earn the first shutout. In game Two, Logan Gilbert continued his dominant season by throwing 92 pitches through seven scoreless innings. Funny enough, both pitchers gave up three hits, one walk, and struck out zone. Gilbert just threw the extra inning.

What's wild is that the back-to-back shutouts aren't the most important stat to come from the Mariners pitchers this series. That honor belongs to Andres Munoz. He lowered his season ERA to 1.19, and has done so backed by 11 consecutive hitless outings, setting a team record.

That means that he hasn't given up a hit since July 4th, going 11.2 innings since then over 11 appearances. He's actually walked six over that time span, but when no one is getting a hit, it doesn't seem to matter. Munoz is on fire this season, and is pushing towards a WAR of 3 for the year if he can keep it up. He's only given up one run since June 5th, throwing 18.1 innings in the time.

Between the starting pitching and Munoz at the end of games, it's still a lot of fun to watch the Mariners even when they struggle to score. When they continue to get guys on base and do something about it, it becomes a true joy. Congratulations to Miller, Gilbert, and Munoz on the fantastic series!