Will the Mariners Bat Well Against the Reds as they look to right the ship?

The Mariners welcome the Cincinnati Reds to town Monday, April 15 through Wednesday, April 17. Cincinnati is Luis Castillo’s former team.

The Reds in 2024

The Reds have had a strong start to the season. They swept the White Sox; won their series with the Nationals and Phillies; and lost their series with the Mets and Brewers.

After splitting the series with the Red Sox, the Mariners have lost the rest of their matchups. Cincinnati has a win-loss record of 9-6. The Mariners' record is 6-10.

Mariners vs Reds: Pitching Matchups

RHP George Kirby will be pitching against RHP Frankie Montas this evening. Kirby has not been his usual pitching self in the first weeks of the season, but the past does not necessarily predict the future. You may remember Montas when he pitched for Oakland from 2017 – 2022. Montas has an ERA of 2.16. Statcast says that Montas resembles Bryce Miller in velocity and movement.

On Tuesday, RHP Logan Gilbert will be facing RHP Hunter Greene, a hard-throwing 24-year-old, with a 4.86 ERA. Greene divides his time primarily between fastballs and sliders. He adds a splitter or a curveball here and there.

Wednesday will be a contest between RHP Bryce Miller and LHP Andrew Abbott, a second 24-year-old with a 2.60 ERA. Abbott will deliver fastballs half the time and then throw curveballs, sweepers, and changeups the other half.

Cincinnati Batters

Who will our pitchers be up against from the Reds?

The Reds have six players who have batting averages of .250 or above: RF Jake Fraley, .424; LF Spencer Steer, .346; Stuart Fairchild, .296; DH Nick Martini .290; SS Elly De La Cruz, .286; and C Tyler Stephenson, .250. Not all players in the Reds’ starting lineup, luckily, have BAs this high!

The Reds are primarily right-handed batters with a few exceptions. Jeimer Candelario and Elly De La Cruz are switch-hitters. Former Mariner Jake Fraley, Will Benson, and Nick Martini are lefties.

Elly De La Cruz, no. 44, is the 22-year-old batting, running, and base-stealing wonder you likely remember from last year’s games against the Reds. To date, he has a .962 OPS, 16 hits, and 10 RBIs.

Confidence and Concern

I am confident that the Mariners’ starting pitchers will do an excellent job of pitching. The key to the Mariners’ success, however, lies in their batting.

The Mariners have a run differential of -22. This means that their opponents have scored 22 more runs than the Mariners have. The Reds, have a +15-run differential, meaning that they have outscored their opponents by 15 runs. At this point in the season, the Reds have scored 41 more runs than the Mariners. Seattle has to bat well!

Let's hope that our guys take advantage of their at-bats. Go Mariners!