I think we all know the feeling. The other team's Ace is set to pitch against the Mariners, and it just isn't going to turn out well for Seattle's hitters. It isn't always an Ace, though, and some guys just have IT against the Mariners. I wanted to punish myself and look at the top ten pitchers against the Mariners in their history. I'll warn you, the most dominant guy on here is going to give you nightmares once again once we get to the end of the list.
Chad Qualls: 20 G, 16.2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.78 WHIP, 20 K, 11 H, 2 BB, 1 SV
We start with Qualls, who easily and without argument was the most dominant pitcher to ever pitch against the Mariners. 20 appearances, 16.2 IP, only 2 hits and 11 walks... and he never gave up a run. That's an OPS+ against him of 11. That's three times worse than Kolten Wong as a Mariner in 2023. Not a single earned run that entire stretch. He was a good pitcher, with a 3.89 ERA in 844 appearances, but the Mariners were his whipping boy.
Craig Kimbrel: 15 G, 15.0 IP, 0.60 ERA, 0.53 WHIP, 29 K, 4 H, 4BB, 1 ER, 2 W, 10 SV
This almost makes me want the Mariners to try and acquire Craig Kimbrel even more, just so it is one less person out there that can come in and effectively close a game against the Mariners. The 29K is insane, one shy of 2 per inning. Just eight baserunners means you are 3.6 times as likely to strikeout against Kimbrel as you are to get on base. That's pure dominance right there.
Jeremy Hellickson: 5 G, 36.1 IP, 0.99 ERA, 0.80 WHIP, 1 HR, 25 H, 19 K, 3-1 record
This one surprised me a bit. Not because Hellickson wasn't good, but because he had some rough stretches in his career. The single homer allowed and 19 Ks allowed really stands out, showing how tough it was for the Mariners to make good contact against him and do anything with it.