g135 | courting Felix....

Mariners 2 | Angels 1

And, for a change, he got exactly what he deserved - a hard fought WIN!
the court was over-flowing with joy...

AP PHOTO

The Halos have long been Felix's nemesis, so it was particularly pleasing the see him get the best of them and to see the M's get the best of Haren, especially after he retired 15 in-a-row at one point.  Guti and Dustin singled in the 8th and Mike delivered another clutch hit - a two out, two run double.

AP PHOTO

And then there was the King and his Prince, after the game...

@Mariners twitpic

Jacks | one to stay, one to go...

Good news for both Jacks, I'd say.

Earlier this afternoon, it was announced that Jack Zduriencik had agreed to a contract extension...
He'll be given (thankfully, IMO) the time and the resources to carry out his long term plan of rebuilding the farm system while continuing to evaluate all levels of the organization and deal from depth to build a winning franchise.

And, the "other Jack" departed.  Shortly before the game, it was announced that Jack Wilson was headed to the Atlanta Braves for a player-to-be-named-later.  He had been on the DL but was eligible to come off.  Here's hoping he gets the opportunity to play in post season - something he's never done in his 11-year big league career.

g134 | normally, six runs = a W

Mariners 6 | Angels 13

but oh, those base on balls...
of the SIX walks given up by the combination of Vasquez and Gray, FIVE scored - blah.

Good new is..

• Ichiro extended his hitting streak to 13 - now needs 46 to get to 200
• Dustin, Mike and Miggy all had multi-hit games and combined for 5 RBI
• Lueke with 3 scoreless innings and only one hit allowed

Just love this shot - if I were captioning it, I'd call it "Lunch-bucket love"

Getty Images

g133 | halting the halos

Mariners 5 | Angels 3

Blake cruised through the first three and then hit a rough patch in the fourth...
The encouraging part was his bounce back after the bad inning - he only gave up two hits over the next three innings but, thanks to some SUPERB defense, he only faced the minimum.  I also like, like, like the ZERO walks.

8th inning, enter The Bartender...
who merely retired the side in order, including two strikeouts.

9th inning, leave it to BLT - Brandon League Time...
(credit to Dave Simms)
despite allowing a double, Brandon notched his 32nd save.

Oh, we have O???

• the "old guys" (Ichiro, Miggy and Adam) each doubled and combined for three runs
• the "young guys" (Dustin and Mike) tripled and homered - Mike's homer went "into somebody's soup!" (as Rick called it) actually landed INSIDE the Hit it Here Cafe!
• Casper apparently admitted to being a big timid at the plate after getting hit in the nose and, as a consequence, he had no hits.  But, he posted all three walks the M's took (and, his defense likely saved at least a couple of runs)

Getty Images

Saving the best for last .... fabulous DEE!

• Casper's got a gun (TWO outfield assists!)
• Who says Kyle can't play 3B - he even did that Adrian thing (charged the bunt and bare-handed it)
• How 'bout that Carp s t r e t c h ? ! ?
• And, we know Brendan can look pretty spiffy at SS at times..

AP PHOTO

The Skipper had on a message for the guys prior to the game tonight re: "plenty to play for...
Casper Wells, for one, really took it to heart, "definitely pumped me up!"

g132 | swept away at home

Mariners 3 | White Sox 9

Jason season continues to erode.  Hard to believe he threw a complete game shutout vs the Phillies two months ago.

The O showed a little more life than yesterday, although Wedge didn't sound too pleased.  He seemed to be in a cap tipping mood for Danks yesterday but, was not real pleased with the approach today.

In come the Halos....

g131 | too much Danks

Mariners 0 | White Sox 3

Can't really complain about the pitching...
Michael has been better but, he was solid and the bullpen was decent.

Unfortunately, Danks was stellar ...
tossing a 3-hit complete game shutout.

Well, at least the Sounders put on a thrilling match in their 6-2 victory over the Columbus Crew earlier in the day.  My husband and I attended both events as part of our 28th anniversary celebration.

g130 | oh those ducks on the pond

Mariners 2 | White Sox 4

Charlie had a rough first, giving up two runs and throwing a ton of pitches...
but, he managed to hang in there for five full (to get the loss).

The bullpen was great...
Tom and Jeff combined for FOUR shutout innings, allowing only TWO hits, TWO walks and striking out FOUR.

The O had their chances, racking up another double-digit night of hits (10)...
but, they stranded way too many runners (bases loaded TWICE and didn't score)

Sorry for the boring recaps (and I know it hasn't been the only one lately) life is busy...

g129 | you think Felix's day was happy, take a look at Kyle's!

Mariners 9 | Indians 2

What a great series in Cleveland (for a change) taking three of four and the offense having a bit of an explosion.

M's pounded out another SIXTEEN hits in the finale - and once again, the rooks play a BIG roll....
Especially Kyle!  4/4 with THREE doubles, THREE runs scored, ONE RBI and ONE walk

Felix recorded his 12th win...
It took him 103 pitches to get through SIX, striking out TEN, giving up TWO runs and TWO walks

g128 | DH2 - rooks making a case

Mariners 12 | Indians 7

Everyone had a hit except the DH (Willie Mo) and most had multiple hits.

• Of the TWELVE runs the M's scored - FIVE were by rookies.
• Of the SEVENTEEN hits the M's recorded - TEN were by rookies.
• Of the SIX extra base hits the M's tallied - FOUR were by rookies.

Are you sensing a theme here?

Oh, and for good measure, the victorious starting pitcher wasn't only a rookie, it was his first start... congrats to Anthony Vasquez on his first major league win in his major league debut

Good to see Guti and Ichi wreaking havoc at the top of the order...
FIVE hits, FOUR runs, TWO rbi and TWO walks between them.

g127 | DH1 - beleaguered League

Mariners 5 | Indians 7

shhhhhucks!

Blake definitely kept 'em in it, with yet another quality start (which 7 of his 9 big league starts have been).
He struggled big time vs. the Red Sox and the Blue Jays but, pitched very well in all his other starts.

Trayvon and Kyle went a combined 5/8 with 2 runs scored and 2 runs battted in and it was a back and forth game right up until the bitter end - when Brandon pitched forth and Choo went back, back, back, back!


And all this after a 5.9 magnitude earthquake that was centered in Virginia but felt from North Carolina to New York.

g126 | finally, a win vs. the Tribe!

Mariners 3 | Indians 2

Too bad Jason (viva la) Vargas, didn't get the win...
He certainly pitched well enough to - 7 innings and 2 UNearned runs usually gets you the W
But, at least the bullpen was able to hold the Tribe where Jason left them.

And, the O was able to score the requisite "one more"...
~Ichiro with a lead-off homer in the first.
~Casper scored on a throwing error (hit-by-a-pitch and got to 3B on Adam's single) in the second
~Guti hit a sac-fly to score Miggy in the ninth to break the tie and ultimately win the game

Brendan was back...
and made all three put-outs in the first, before committing TWO errors in the second :-(

Three DP's turned by the M's in this one...
including the ever intriguing 1-2-3


Mike's streak came to an end :-(

g125 | heart-break in St. Pete...

Mariners 7 | Rays 8

Michael deserved much better...
six innings - 6 hits - 2 earned runs - ZERO walks and 5 strikeouts

and then, Jamey comes in and allows FOUR runs on THREE walks in ONE inning :-(

but, the guys fight back and tie it up with Willie Mo's first homer as an M!
Only to see JD break their hearts on the first pitch in the bottom of the 9th

Other encouraging things...
~Multiple hits from guys who will be here next season (as opposed to the runs given up by one that won't)  Dustin, Casper and Kyle each had two hits apiece (and 2 RBI and 4 runs scored among them).
~Mike with ANOTHER hit to extend his streak to a nice round TWENTY
~Guti's still making progress at the plate with another multi-hit game

g124 | blow-out in Tropicana

Mariners 0 | Rays 8

Well, clearly nothing was working on EITHER side of the ball tonight.

Charlie had an extremely rough night...
part of the bullpen - Tom and Chance picked him up a bit but, Josh was no help whatsoever.

O once again 0 fer w/RISP (this time with seven chances squandered), but...
Mike collects his 19th hit-in-row to keep his streak alive and Dustin and Tray add to the rookie totals.

Turn the page...

g123 | sad Felix day...

Mariners 2 | Rays 3

I didn't see the game (or even a replay) but heard that a couple of the Rays seven "hits" could have easily been scored errors.  Heartbreak, once again, for Felix.  But, as usual, he takes it in stride all in stride...
8IP - 7H - 3ER - 3BB - 9K

~Mike extended his streak to 18...
~Kyle hammered his first major league homer...
~Trayvon had a double....

BUT, M's were 0-FIVE w/RISP

g122 | bad Blake, good Chance, super Mike

Mariners 1 | Blue Jays 5

Blake's second rough start in-a-row...
he seems to have a bit of long-ball-itis of late - all the Blue Jays runs coming via the long ball.
I guess when half of your hits are homers, it usually bodes well for a win - Jays had only six hits but three of them left the yard. Also helps when the opposition (that would be the M's) doesn't get their first hit until the 4th inning, only three hits total and only one for extra bases.

As for the bright spots....

• the bullpen of Cortes, Ruffin and Wright combined for four hit-less innings with one walk and one strikeout.  Great to see Chance in there right away (the PTBNL in the Fister/Pauley deal), he only joined the team on Wednesday and Dan to go more than one IP.
• Mike Carp extended his hitting streak to 17 with his single in the 4th that broke up Morrow's no-no.
• Guti doubled in the 6th to drive in the only M's run (Ichiro)
• Ackley-Wilson-Carp DP

And then for the scary, scary stuff...
Casper was hit ON THE NOSE by a pitch from Brandon Morrow.
Apparently, amazingly, it's not broken and he'll be ok - whew!
And just when he was going for his 5th homer in as many games...

g121 | who says Safeco Field plays big?

Mariners 7 | Blue Jays 13

Things were looking pretty bleak by the end of the first inning, Jason having given up SIX runs.  But, the boys in navy and teal would put up a bit of a fight and tie it up by the end of the third...
~Mike extended his hitting streak to SEVENTEEN
~Trayvon and Kyle both checked in with 2 hits and 2 RBI
~Casper with ANOTHER homer (his FOURTH in as many games) coming before Miggy's in the 2nd

But, after Jason's early departure, his initial contingent of relief (Wilhelmsen and Laffey) didn't fair much better, combining to give up FIVE runs on FIVE hits.  The real killer for the entire pitching staff was the walks ... SIX of the SEVEN walks scored ~ precisely the difference in the score.

Lost a bit amid the home run barrage was Lueke's appearance...

he only gave up THREE hits in THREE scoreless innings

g120 | flying away vs. the Jays

Mariners 6 | Blue Jays 5

Needless to say, not Michael's best effort...
Blue Jays were 0-4 w/RISP, but pretty good in the "walk & homer" department, so Michael only made it through 5 innings.

The bullpen was STELLAR...
throwing FOUR innings of FOUR hit, NO walks, shutout ball.  Cortes for TWO, Wilhelmsen for ONE (and his first major league win) and Brandon for ONE (and his 30th save)

And the hits just kept on coming!
from the youth...
~Mike extended his hitting streak to SIXTEEN
~Casper hit ANOTHER home run - his THIRD one in as many games
~Trayvon had THREE hits and an RBI
as well as the "old" guys...
~JW with another TWO hits (really picking it up off the bench since BR's been out)
~Guti collecting another hit (8-game hitting streak)

Something about Toronto this season...
getting down early, but coming back strong.

g119 | second series win vs. the sox!

Mariners 5 | Red Sox 3

A little light on the recap, since I was exploring Orcas Island with my daughter and her boyfriend (who are visiting from Austin, TX)

Way to go, Charlie!
His best start, so far, as a Mariner comes against one of the most powerful lineups in baseball!
95 pitches ~ 7 innings ~ 4 hits ~ 1 earned run ~ 2 walks ~ 6 strikeouts

AP

Jeff had a bit of an issue in the 8th, giving up a couple of runs on a Youkilis homer but, Brandon came in again in the 9th and retired the side in order for his 29th save.

Miggy was the only Mariner to not record at least one hit, so all the "streaks" remained in tact (Mike at 14, Ichiro at 10 and Guti at 7).  Willie gets his first hit (a double) as a Mariner and Casper hits his second homer in as many games.

A sweep would have been nice, but great to see "the kids" getting the job done :-)

g118 | super-duper DEE rips the sox

Mariners 5 | Red Sox 4

Clearly, I picked the wrong M's/RS game to attend ... what a crazy one!

The M's scored all their runs in the 1st inning...
FIVE (count 'em FIVE!) runs off of Josh Becket, including a first pitch homer by Ichiro and a 2-run shot by Casper!  Mike, Dustin, Guti, and even JW, continued their hot-hitting.

The Red Sox scored all their runs in the 6th inning...
when Felix had a more than momentary lapse, allowing a lead-off triple, and two homers and a couple of singles.  Luckily, he limited the damage to one less run than the M's had scored and recovered by retiring the side in order in the 7th.  Then Jamey and Brandon came in and shut them down in the 8th and 9th respectively - Brandon notching his 28th save.

The REAL story of the game was the AWESOME defense by the M's...
FOUR double plays, including a play at the plate that will be talked about for a long time to come!
In the 4th inning, Ellsbury led off with a walk, got to 2B on an error by Carp and to 3B on a single by Crawford.  After Gonzales grounded out, Pedroia flied out to Ichiro who threw a one-hop STRIKE to Bard who fielded, blocked ~got NAILED in the face by Ellsbury's knee~ but hung onto the ball with his pinkie finger!  It was a fantastic play all around - great throw, great catch and tag and great clean, hard slide.  The memorable thing is that Ellsbury he was originally called SAFE, but after conferring, the umps got it right and changed the call to OUT!

g117 | a loss at Fenway Northwest

Mariners 4 | Red Sox 6

Mariners started 5 rookies in this game (including the starting pitcher) and another came in from the pen.

All things considered, despite the loss, there were plenty of positives....
~Mike extending his hitting streak to TWELVE, going 3 for 5 w/3RBI
~Dustin keeps on keepin' on going 2 for 4 with an RBI
~Guti getting back in the grove (and batting 2nd) with 2 hits, 2 stolen bases and 2 runs scored
~all together TWELVE hits and THREE walks
~the bp did a nice job keeping the score where it was

But, it wasn't without its disappointments...
~Blake posting the first "non-quality" start of his big league career
~WAY too many ducks left on the pond - 12 hits needs to net more than 4 runs

And, above and beyond the loss, the worst thing was...
Justin taking a wicked hop grounder to the face, suffering a broken nose (under-going a CT scan as a precaution after the game) in his first start after missing seven games with a bruised thumb.  He was so anxious to be back out there and finish the season strong and, his first swing (on the first pitch he saw) looked awesome - a deep fly ball to center but it was chased down by Ellsbury.

And, by the way, getting home from the game was a bit of an adventure tonight...
Apparently, there was a "security situation" at the link station where my car was parked.  I had to get off at the next station and call my husband (awaken him from a sound sleep) to come pick me up.  Of course, the "all clear" came through just about the time I sat down to write the recap.  Thankfully, the situation was "defused" (suspicious package removed).  No update so far as to if it was an actual bomb or a false alarm.

g116 | a WIN in TEXAS!

Mariners 4 | Rangers 3

Second nice start in-a-row for Jason...
't would be great for him to finish strong and solidify himself in the rotation for a coule more years.

Lovin' the DEE!
TWO double-plays and some great unassisted plays all 'round the infield.

ELEVEN hits...
including THREE for extra bases (granted, that should have netted more than FOUR runs)

Brandon shuts the door for his 27th save.

And the gravy, at least for THIS season, is the W

g115 | Michael struggles early, shines late - but takes the loss

Mariners 6 | Rangers 7

I'm thinking I'd have to look long and hard to find a game where the Mariners scored in each of the FIRST THREE innings!

Things were looking good early on but, the Rangers were keeping pace...
M's scored TWO in the top of the first, Rangers scored TWO in the bottom of the first
M's scored ONE in the top of the second, Rangers scored ONE in the bottom of the second
M's scored THREE in the top of the third, and the Rangers eventually would score FOUR (two in the 7th and one each in the 8th ant 9th) to win it.

Michael looked pretty out of sorts to start off (and threw a ton of pitches early) but, the bats kept him in it (another FOUR extra base hits) and he ended up going SIX and posting a quality start - he retired 13 of the last 14 batters he faced.  Unfortunately, his bullpen wasn't quite up to the challenge of the heat in Texas or the hot bats in Texas Rangers hands.

g114 | oh those base on balls...

Mariners 2 | Rangers 9

The good news is that 50% of the Mariners hits were for extra bases.
The bad news is they only had SIX hits.

The REALLY bad news is that Mariners pitchers walked SEVEN Rangers and FIVE of them scored.
Suffice it to say that Charlie's second start with the M's wasn't quite up to par with his first.  But, these are the Texas Rangers and boy, can they hit.

g113 | feel for Felix

Mariners 1 | Angels 2

Hey, they won the series in the aggregate scoring (6-4) :-)

Felix went the distance...
EIGHT innings -FOUR hits - TWO runs - ZERO walks - TWELVE strikeouts - what a shame he had to take the loss (now at 10-10 on the season).

Getty Images

Unfortunately, so did Santana...
And he shut down the M's bats - scattering SEVEN hits and allowing only one of the extra base variety -  - Mike's solo shot in the 9th.  In a very rare occurrence, Dustin was held hit-less AND walk-less.

Getty Images

Now it's off to Arlington ...

g112 | what's this? a win in Anaheim?!?

Mariners 5 | Angels 1

While I was at the wedding and reception for a dear, longtime friend, it sounds as if I missed one of the better games of the season.  According to the box score and the highlights...

Blake was super stellar...
EIGHT innings pitched - 103 pitches - EIGHT hits - ONE earned run - ZERO walks
That was good enough for his SIXTH straight quality start to begin his major league career, as well as THIRD victory.

Getty Images

't wasn't a save situation...
but Brandon came for the NINTH - recording a fly out, a walk and a DP

And, whadaya know?  the offense clicked a bit...
only eight hits but, four were for extra bases - and it started early.  Adam hit a two-RBI double in the 1st inning to score Ichiro and Dustin.  Mike had his double in the 3rd, scoring Jack (who was subbing for Brendan - sore shoulder).  After Adam was hit by a pitch, Miggy singled to drive in Mike.  And then in the 7th, Trayvon collected his only hit of the night - a solo shot to center for his first major league home run.

Getty Images

g111 | pitching and catching...

Mariners 0 | Angels 1 (10)

Missed most of the game, as I was at "the race track" with "the girls"...  
As impotent as both the M's and the Halos offenses were tonight - my betting was even moreso ;-)

Weaver was on.  What else is new?
Certainly not a great match up to an M's offense that has struggled so mightily all season - and then the get to face the best pitcher in the AL - and just when they were starting to put something together (26 hits and 19 runs in the series sweep of the A's).

At least it was good to see Jason bounce back a bit after some extremely rough starts of late...
He was solid through six, scattering seven hits and walking only one - he was also able to escape when necessary.  Aaron, Jamey and Josh combined for three scoreless innings, surrendering only one hit and one walk.  Dan had no fun in the 10th - giving up a single to Hunter, who then advanced on a wild pitch (Wedge non too happey about the "crossed up" situation) and scored the winning, and only, run of the game on Well's single (outside, practically in the dirt).

Sounds like base-running was more than bit of an issue for the M's tonight...
Ichiro picked off 1B, Mike thrown out trying to steal 2B, Casper caught off 3B - argh!!

But hey, there's (ANOTHER) new kid in town...
Welcome to the bigs, Trayvon Robinson!  He struck out in his first AB and collected his first major league hit in his second AB - a solid single to left - off Jered Weaver, no less.  But, what he will be remembered for is his thievery of Torii Hunter - what a  catch!

AP PHOTO

g110 | series sweep!!!

Mariners 7 | Athletics 4

Welcome to Seattle Charlie!
Nice to see Mr. Furbush get a victory in his first Seattle start.  He only went 5 innings (65 pitches) but also only allowed two hits and one run and NO walks with three strikeouts.  It was his first start since July 9th (when he was with the Tigers) where he only made it 2.2 innings in a loss to the Royals.  Previous to that, on July 4th, he took a loss vs. the Halos (and only went 4.2IP).  Charlie retired the first 12 batters he faced and then allowed back-to-back doubles before getting the next batter to fly out to Guti who then apparently (I read in a tweet since I didn't see the game) made an awesome throw to get Sizemore at 3B.

And how 'bout those bats?
FOURTEEN hits - granted, they were all singles, but not a bad single to run ratio.  Everyone 'cept Greg (0-4 w/3 K's - ouch!) contributed.  Guti went 0-fer as well, but did have an RBI.  Jack and Josh each had one hit (Josh's good for 2-RBI).  And, apparently, Jack played a pretty mean 3B (his first time ever).  Everyone else in the lineup had multiple hits.  Ichiro and Mike both went 3-5, Casper and Mike each good for 2 RBI.  Yes - a good day it was.

And then the 'pen...

Josh Lueke and Jamey combined for 3 scoreless innings, allowing 2 hits and 2 walks.

Jeff Gray had a bit of a rough go in the 9th though...
leading by 5 runs (6-1) he allowed 2 singles and a home run.  Cortes came in and got a pop-up and then walked a batter.  By then it was a close situation - enter Mr. League for his 26th save.

So far, seems like the Seattle/Detroit trade has been a win-win.  

the players from D to S...
In his three games as a Mariner, Casper has five hits (including a homer), three runs, four RBI and a stolen base - not too shabby! And, as already mentioned, Charlie got his first win in his first start.
(and, there's still Martinez and the PLTBNL!)

the players from S to D...

Nice to see that our old friend Mr. Fister finally got his 4th win today in a Tiggers uni.

David has only pitched 2/3 of an inning in Detroit so far, but got a hold.

g109 | series win!!!!!

Mariners 4 | Athletics 2

Back-to-back wins for the first time since before the break - July 4th and 5th in Oakland.

Some weird plays to start this one.

In the bottom of the 1st...
Brendan hits an infield single and takes 2nd AND 3rd on a fielder's choice (since there were no fielders by the bags).  Dustin followed that up with a walk and Mike with a 2-RBI double.

AP

In the bottom of the 3rd...
Dustin hit a line shot up the 1B line that was fielded by a fan (the "Ichi" double) and was awarded 3rd (much to Melvin's dismay) when the ump said that Dustin was well past the bag at second when the fan interfered. Dustin's FIFTH triple in 39 games.

Then not much action until the bottom of the 6th...
when the "new guy" Casper Wells hit a 2-run shot over the hand-operated scoreboard in left field.  Welcome to Safeco Field Casper!

Getty Images

In the top of the 7th...
Sizemore homered with one out and one on and Felix's night was done.  He took 113 pitches to get through 6.1, walked 3 and struck out 9 along the way to his 10th victory.  Jeff finished the inning quickly, getting two outs with five pitches.

AP

AP

In the 8th...
Jeff struggled - just a tad - he loaded the bases with only one out - and proceeded to recored 2 strikeouts. In the bottom of the frame, Kyle Seager pinch-hit for Justin with 2-outs.  Justin had hurt his thumb trying to field a ball earlier in the game.  Kyle had just been called up from the Rainiers this afternoon, having played in a game earlier today.  Unfortunately, he struck out, but in the end it wouldn't matter.

In the bottom of the 9th...
Brandon retired the side in order for his 25th save.

AP

(p.s.  good to see Guti get an other couple of hits ... slow and steady improvement)

g108 | Blake and Dustin and Guti, oh my!

Mariners 8 | Athletics 4

Blake earned some MAJOR brownie points tonight...
He loaded the bases with NO outs in the 1st inning on 3 straight singles.  And then proceeded to get out of the inning unscathed (except for his pitch count) via two strikeouts and a fly out.  Way to go, Blake!  He went on to throw 113 pitches in 6.2 innings scattering 7 hits, allowing 3 runs, striking out 3 and walking 2.

DEAN RUTZ / THE SEATTLE TIMES

Dustin is apparently joining some elite company with his propensity for extra base hits since arriving on the scene.  After tonight's 3-run triple and one double, he has 19 extra base hits in 38 games.  Griffey had 18 in his first 50 and Alvin Davis holds the club record for extra base hits in first 50 games - 26.  Keep it going, Dustin!

And then there was death-to-flying-things...
Guti was AWESOME in the field tonight - one of his catches even made SC Top Ten! (#10)
He made a total of NINE put-outs - never gets old.  AND, he had an RBI double and scored a run.

Justin came in after Figgy left with an injury...
and had two hits (including a double), a walk and scored 2 runs - very nice to see!

July ... sorta made me cry

July Tid-Bits

• 17 will get you 20 - the 17 game losing streak gave the M's a 6-20 mark for the month of July
• Still last in nearly every major offensive category 
• And, even the pitching fell apart - 2nd highest ERA in the AL
• -54 run differential for the month, -67 overall

AT THE PLATE

OK, we all know the sad story about the abysmal offense as a whole so, let's focus on the successes, shall we?  Two Mariners batted .300+ in the month of July...
they would be: Dustin (.308) and Mike (.349) each with a triple and Dustin also led the team in doubles (8) and homers (3).

ON THE MOUND

Usually, we've at least got pitching to brag about.  Not this month.  The M's starters combined for a 5-16 record.  Newbie, Blake Beavan performed the best of the rotation, posting a 1-2 record with a 3.03ERA.  Felix and Fister each had sub-4 ERA's, but, for them not too stellar (poor Doug - 0-4 through really no fault of his own).  And then there's Jason ... who just flat out imploded in July. 

IN THE PEN

Brandon only had 7 appearances in July - converting 3 of 4 save opportunities (one blown, but got the win) and posting a 1.79 ERA for the month.  He has recovered nicely from that rough patch in May, lowering his overall ERA to just a smidge over 3, while most of the other relievers saw their ERAs go the wrong direction in July. 

OF BASE PATHS AND LEATHER WORKS

One offensive area the M's excelled at in July - thievery!
Ichiro, Guti, Brendan and Chone combined for 22 stolen bases.
M's had 27 total in July - tied for 3rd in the AL

JULY STARS

No question about the hitting star...
Dustin Ackley! (see above)

The pitcher is less clear, I'll call it a tie between a couple "B's"...
Brandon and Blake.  The closer helped the M's to 4  of their 6 victories (3 saves and a win) and the rookie only notched one win (vs the Pads) but, showed a LOT of poise against some good to great teams -
Angels, Rangers and Red Sox.

DEPARTURES

It's always sad to see guys go but, I understand the reasoning.  Best of luck to Doug Fister and David Pauley with the Tiggers and Erik Bedard with the Red Sox.  Here's hoping they all pitch well, stay healthy and really contribute to their new teams - who both appear likely headed for post season play!

Definitely glad to turn the Calendar to August!