SEATTLE - The Seattle Mariners have spent the last 40 games bleeding runs at a pace that has pushed their season into a dangerous place, and manager Dan Wilson didn’t sugarcoat the problem Saturday at T-Mobile Park.
After dropping the first two games of a four-game set against the Athletics, Seattle entered Saturday seven games back in the American League West and six behind the final wild card spot in the American League. The Mariners and A’s were set to meet again in the third game of the series at 6:40 p.m. PT.
What’s been especially costly is how often the Mariners have had leads early, only to watch them disappear because the pitching never settled in. The starting rotation has taken the biggest hit, and the club’s recent slide has turned into a broader staff-wide issue.
A post from Codify on X (@CodifyBaseball) said the Mariners own the worst ERA in the majors over their last 40 games at 5.89. For the full season, Seattle’s 4.22 ERA ranks 19th in baseball.
“It seems like different guys have gone through it at different times,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said in a pregame interview Saturday at T-Mobile Park. “That's always difficult.
We talked a little bit about some of the bullpen guys and giving up home runs and it's been balls that have found the middle of the plate. Those are the ones that get hit.
I think in terms of starters, not getting yourself into good counts, not attacking. Finding yourself behind in the count and having to give into hitters is a difficult place to pitch, and we've seen some of that.
You could point your finger at a lot of reasons. But we need to make the adjustments.”
The rotation’s problems have been compounded by the reality that help may not be coming. High-leverage reliever Matt Brash is shut down and will miss the rest of the season after an MRI showed returned inflammation in his lat.
Seattle’s pitching woes also come against a backdrop of more injury disruption than the club wanted to absorb. Last season, Gilbert, George Kirby, Bryan Woo, Bryce Miller and Logan Evans all missed time because of injuries. And the year before that, the Mariners had the only rotation in baseball with at least four pitchers making 30 or more starts.
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