The Mariners Visit a Winning Cardinals Team in St. Louis

The St. Louis Cardinals have won their last five series against Milwaukee (twice), Minnesota, San Diego (split four-game series), and the Yankees. Can our guys rally to beat this team?

What Should Seattle Batters Expect From the Cardinals' Pitchers?

Tonight, RHP Erick Fedde will pitch against RHP Bryce Miller. Tomorrow, RHP Kyle Gibson will throw against RHP Logan Gilbert. Sunday, RHP Luis Castillo will pitch for the Mariners while RHP Miles Mikolas will pitch for St. Louis.

RHP Erick Fedde is unusual in that he throws fastballs fewer than one percent of the time. All his pitches are breaking balls. Both he and Victor Robles, formerly of the Nationals, started with their current teams this year so he could give our batters some tips for hitting Fedde's favorite cutter and sinker, accounting for over 50 percent of his pitches. Fedde has a 3.43 ERA and WHIP of 1.61. In an August 30 game against the Yankees, Fedee struck out eight players and allowed four runs over 5.2 innings. The Mariners will need to be on their toes for this challenging arsenal.

RHP Kyle Gibson has been inconsistent lately. When he pitched against the Padres on August 27, he struggled with command and allowed walks. He allowed more runs in a game than he had the whole season. Then on August 31, he achieved a milestone by winning at Yankee Stadium. The last St. Louis player who did this was a man with the same last name, Bob Gibson, during the 1964 World Series. Which Kyle Gibson will show up tomorrow night?

On Sunday, the Mariners will bat against Miles Mikolas. Mikolas is in his sixth season with the Cardinals. On August 22, Mikolas threw six innings without a score when he faced the Milwaukee Brewers. This strong start set the Cardinals up for their 3-0 win.

For the Mariners, Bryce Miller, Logan Gilbert, and Luis Castillo will shine for the M's. While the St. Louis pitchers are talented, the Mariners' starting five are first in baseball for ERA.

What Should the M's Pitchers Expect from the St. Louis Batters?

The Cardinals have some young and hardworking position players.

Masyn Winn is a 22-year-old shortstop from Katy, TX in his second season with St. Louis. He holds the team's highest batting average. He also has the most hits and runs on the team and 10 stolen bases.

Twenty-five-year-old Michael Siani is 25 and has stolen 15 bases this season. He recently returned from an oblique injury that kept him from playing for several weeks and made him cranky, he confessed. On August 3, he hit a single in the twelfth inning that brought in two runs and won the game against the Brewers!

Alec Burleson is also 25 and plays right field. He has a .275 BA and ties Paul Goldschmidt for the most home runs this season at 21. He has 73 RBIs thus far.

Former MVP Paul Goldschmidt is not quite so young but does not want to retire. Will the Cardinals re-sign him? His overall performance this season has been unimpressive but he has been hitting .290 since the All-Star break.

This Series with the Cardinals

No MLB team late in the season feels rested, but I wish our guys did not have to play in Oakland and then travel to St. Louis while the Cardinals had the day off. Seattle has been struggling. In addition to our stellar pitching, I am counting on Robles, Raley, and Raleigh (the three Rs) to energize the team for the final stretch.