Trouble with the curve

[D-train]

Embarrassing....

By Ryan Divish
Seattle Times staff reporter
In the hours before Saturday’s game at T-Mobile Park, a professional scout for an opposing team was discussing what he’d seen from the Mariners in the first two games of the season as compared to scouting them this spring and all of last season.

“Looks like it is still ‘spin to win’ to beat them again,” he said.

After the first four games — an admittedly small sample size — it appears that three-word plan of attack is still effective against the Mariners’ retooled lineup that was expected to generate more contact and fewer strikeouts.

The “spin” that the scout was referring to was breaking pitches of any sort. It’s a play off pitchers spinning the breaking ball. Many a hitter that dominated in the minor leagues saw their production decline and approach devolve due to properly executed breaking pitches from established MLB pitchers.

A year ago, the Mariners were susceptible to spin, leading to swinging at pitches out of the strike zone and strikeouts, so many damn strikeouts.

“That’s the difference between the minor leagues and the major leagues,” manager Scott Servais said before Sunday’s frustrating 5-1 loss. “The pitchers in the big leagues can actually land those pitches and throw them for strikes. In the minor leagues, you can take those pitches because two out of three are probably going to be balls whereas two out of three strikes in the big leagues. That’s the biggest difference.”

Over the opening four-game series at T-Mobile Park, Boston pitchers attacked the Mariners hitters with breaking pitch after breaking pitch. From knuckle curveballs to sliders, from cutters to sweepers and a few changeups tossed in, the Mariners saw predominantly off-speed pitches. It left them off balance and chasing pitches that weren’t strikes.

The overall results: a .178/.226/.271 slash line in 137 plate appearances with 10 runs scored (third fewest in MLB) on 23 hits (three doubles, three homers), six walks and 45 strikeouts.

Per MLB Statcast data from Baseball Savant, the Red Sox threw 426 pitches in the first three games. Of that total, 256 of the pitches (60.1%) were either cutters, variations of the slider or curveballs. Only 55 were classified as four-seam fastballs (12.9%) and 64 were two-seam fastballs (15%), the rest were off-speed pitches.

“We’re not getting a ton of fastballs,” Servais said. “Until you start hitting the breaking pitches or the changeup, that’s what they’re gonna keep throwing. We know that.”

On Sunday, Red Sox starter Garrett Whitlock threw 81 pitches with only 23 two-seam fastballs. The rest were either changeups (25), sliders (15), sweepers (13) or cutters (5).

“They spun us to death in this series,” said Ty France, who had two hits in the game.”


Mitch Haniger crushed a double off a two-seamer from Whitlock to start the second inning.

“I don’t think we saw another fastball for like 20-25 pitches,” Servais said.

Well, it was 23 pitches to be exact.

Whitlock was able freeze Haniger with a 3-2 two-seam fastball in the third inning because he simply hadn’t been throwing them.

So what to the Mariners need to do?

“I think it’s one of those things where you have to realize what they’re going to do to you and either lay off of it or get it where you need it and swing at the good ones,” France said. “Until we prove we can hit it, they’re going to keep doing it.”

Lend ’em a hand, or a paw
The Mariners, along with Servais and his wife, Jill, are hosting the “All Paws On Deck” fundraising banquet to benefit Team Okanogan Animal Rescue — an organization that “brings awareness and solutions to the overpopulation problem of cats and dogs in Okanogan County.”

The banquet, which is $125 per ticket, features “an evening of baseball, food, drinks and auction items” with Servais, shortstop J.P. Crawford and catcher Cal Raleigh.

Two of the main auction items are a fishing trip with Luis Castillo and autographed framed jerseys of Ichiro Suzuki and Julio Rodriguez.

The event will be held on April 11 at 6 p.m. at the Moss Bay Hall in Kirkland.

[Sibelius Hindemith]

Why does this work better against the Mariners than other teams? Plenty of veteran hitters in the line-up.

[Coeurd’Alene J]

I thought we had the pitching machine that gave our team an advantage with this After reading this I feel dumber. Who the hell can’t make an in game pitch reaction. It’s like they are in a cheap horror movie where everyone watching knows the bad guy with the chainsaw is right there.Except for the worst actors stupidly playing the part


Run for the cemetery………..

[desbcoach]

Lookout Landing did post a price while their SO haven’t been down they do rate 20th in league in chase and even better if you took Canzone out of equation. Better decision making will lead to better results if they start making contact. You think for now they would go up to plate hunting the off speed

[D-train]

ONE guy in the Rainiers lineup hitting over .200

https://www.milb.com/gameday/baseball-c ... /final/box

[Sibelius Hindemith]

Who the hell can’t make an in game pitch reaction?

That's what i'm wondering. If the pitcher threw 23 straight off-speed pitches following the 2nd inning double by Haniger what more information do you need that you should change your approach?

[D-train]

Who the hell can’t make an in game pitch reaction?

That's what i'm wondering. If the pitcher threw 23 straight off-speed pitches following the 2nd inning double by Haniger what more information do you need that you should change your approach?

Are off speed pitches banned in Arizona or what??

[Donn Beach]

Spring training they aren't working on strategies to win the ballgame

[Sibelius Hindemith]

Spring training they aren't working on strategies to win the ballgame

Should they be? Do other teams do that, because this aeems to be exclusively a Mariners problem.

[D-train]

If they would just LISTEN to these Pearls of wisdom we could go back to being the hottest hitting team in baseball.