Mariners Game Notes — May 28 vs. Pittsburgh

AS YOU MAY KNOW…Paul Sewald has made 150 appearances in a Mariners uniform…in those 150 games (2021-c), he is 17–7 with 42 saves and a 2.91 ERA (49 ER, 151.1 IP) with 46 walks and 206 strikeouts, but…DID YOU KNOW?…that Sewald ranks in the top-5 in several pitching categories through a Mariners pitcher’s first 150 games with the team?…among 42 different pitchers to appear in 150+ games with Seattle, Sewald’s 2.91 ERA ranks T4th within a pitcher’s first 150 appearances, tied with Shigetoshi Hasegawa (2002–04) and trailing Ed Vande Berg (2.78 ERA, 1982–84), Kazuhiro Sasaki (2.80, 2000–02) and Mike Schooler (2.88, 1988–90)…Sewald’s 0.89 WHIP is the best in franchise history through 150 games, ranking ahead of Sasaki (0.99)…Sewald’s .165 opponent batting average is also the best in franchise history through 150 games…Sewald’s 4.48 strikeout-to-walk ratio is the best in franchise history through 150 games, ranking ahead of Nick Vincent (4.06, 2016–18).

TODAY’S TILT…the Mariners continue a 10-game homestand (5–1) with the last of 3 games against the Pittsburgh Pirates (1–1)…Seattle opened the homestand with a 4-game sweep over the Oakland Athletics (4–0) and will also host the New York Yankees (3 G, May 29–31) following the current series vs. Pittsburgh…today’s game will be televised live on ROOT SPORTS with Aaron Goldsmith and Ryan Rowland-Smith on the call…the game will also be broadcast live on Seattle Sports (710 AM) and Mariners.com with Rick Rizzs and Gary Hill Jr.

ODDS AND ENDS…the Mariners beat the Pirates by a 5–0 score in yesterday’s middle game…the Mariners are 5–1 over their last 6 games…Seattle is 20–9 when scoring at least 4 runs and 7–16 when scoring 3-or-fewer.

• Winning Ways — The Mariners look to be 3 games above .500 for the first time this season.
• Series Record — Seattle comes into today’s rubber game with a 7–9 series record (4–4 at home)…the Mariners are 1–5 in rubber games this season.
• I Just May — The Mariners are 15–9 in the month of May, clinching a winning month…this season marks their first winning May since going 18–11 in May 2018.
• Double Trouble — Seattle recorded a season-high 6 doubles in yesterday’s win: Ty France (2), J.P. Crawford, Teoscar Hernández, Jarred Kelenic and Julio Rodríguez.

DISCIPLINED PITCHING STAFF…the Mariners pitching staff leads the Majors in several categories this season, including FanGraphs Wins Above Replacement (10.0), WHIP (1.15), strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.68), walks-per-9 innings (2.45), home runs-per-9 innings (0.79) and Fielding Independent Pitching (3.33)…Seattle pitchers have also allowed the fewest walks (127) and home runs (41)…Seattle pitchers lead the Majors in opponent on-base percentage (.287), slugging percentage (.352) and OPS (.639)…no team has limited hard contact better than the Mariners, limiting opponents to 84 barrels, 4.4 barrels-per-plate appearance and a 30.5 sweet-spot percentage, all lowest in the Majors.

THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME FOR JULIO…Julio Rodríguez went 2-for-4 with a double, RBI and stolen base in yesterday’s win…he’s hit safely in all 6 games on the homestand (5/22-c), batting .480 (12x25) with 5 runs, 4 doubles, 1 home run, 6 RBI, 1 hit-by-pitch and 1 stolen base, while getting on base at a .500 clip, slugging .760 with a 1.260 OPS during that span…in 28 games at T-Mobile Park this season, Julio is batting .270 (31x115) with 21 runs, 9 doubles, 1 triple, 5 homers, 18 RBI and 4 stolen bases with an .818 OPS…in 22 road games, he’s batting .198 (18x91) with 13 runs, 3 doubles, 3 homers, 9 RBI and 5 stolen bases with a .614 OPS.

JARRED KELENIC: ALL-STAR OUTFIELDER?…Jarred Kelenic is batting .277 (51x184) with 25 runs, 13 doubles, 1 triple, 10 home runs, 25 RBI, 6 stolen bases and 14 walks, getting on base at a .330 clip, slugging .522 with an .852 OPS in 50 games this season…the 23-year-old outfielder has mashed left-handed pitchers this season, batting .327 (16x49) with 3 doubles, 1 triple, 4 home runs and 12 RBI with a 1.026 OPS in 51 plate appearances against southpaws…overall, Kelenic leads the Mariners in total bases (96), extra-base hits (24), home runs, slugging percentage and OPS…Jarred’s 137 OPS+ ranks 5th among qualified American League outfielders, trailing Aaron Judge-NYY (176), Randy Arozarena-TB (165), Mike Trout-LAA (146) and Austin Hays-BAL (138).

PITCHING STUDS…the Mariners have 4 pitchers who rank in the top-16 in the American League in fWAR…Luis Castillo (1.9 fWAR) and Logan Gilbert are tied for 6th…Bryce Miller (1.4) and George Kirby (1.4) are tied for 11th…Miller has compiled 1.4 fWAR despite making just 5 starts (31.1 IP)…Seattle relievers Trevor Gott (0.9, T28th), Matt Brash (0.8, T32nd) and Paul Sewald (0.8, T32nd) also rank in the top-50 in the AL in fWAR…the Mariners lead the AL with 7 pitchers who rank in the top-50, ranking of the Yankees (6) who have the next-most.

SOLID AT THE CORNERS…Third baseman Eugenio Suárez (52 G) and first baseman Ty France (51 G) both have not committed errors this season…France has the most total chances (407) in the Majors among players with no errors…Geno has the most total chances (128) among Major League third basemen with no errors.

HOW DEEP IS YOUR GLOVE?…the Mariners defense is the best in the American League by Outs Above Average (11) this season, ranking 2nd in the Majors behind only San Diego (16)…Seattle’s .990 team fielding percentage is tied for 4th-highest in the Majors…their 18 errors are tied for 4th-fewest in the Majors.

J.P.: JUST PUMMELING…J.P. Crawford went 2-for-4 with 2 runs and a double yesterday…in 6 games on the homestand, the Mariners shortstop is batting .308 (8x26) with 6 runs, 1 double, 2 home runs, 5 RBI and 1 walk, getting on base at a .333 clip, slugging .577 with a .910 OPS.

DEAR CABBY…José Caballero is batting .277 (18x65) with 12 runs, 3 doubles, 2 home runs, 10 RBI, 6 stolen bases in 7 attempts, 11 walks and 3 hit-by-pitches in 27 games this season…he’s gotten on base at a .395 clip, slugging .415 with an .810 OPS.

I’M ON MY WAYYY, JUST SET ME FREE, HOME SWEET HOME…the Mariners continue a 10-game homestand (5–1) today with Little League Day, before the Mariners wrap up the homestand with 3 games against the New York Yankees from May 29–31…tickets for all upcoming games can be found at Mariners.com/Tickets.