Seattle Mariners (43-52) AT Toronto Blue Jays (47-49)
July 19, 2011 at 7:05 PM EST
Opening Line: EVEN
Current Line: EVEN
Opening Total: 8
Current Total: 7.5
SP: SEA- Michael Piñeda, TOR: Brett Cecil
For a team like the Blue Jays, who are still in the hunt, but needing a win streak to get them into contention for a wild card slot, will get just the help they need tonight, as Jose Bautista is set to return. Bautista leads the league in home runs with 31, but missed the last three games with a bum ankle. He took some swings before Sunday’s match against the Yankeese and should be returning tonight, if all has gone according to schedule.
The Blue Jays defeated the Yankees 7-1 on Friday night without Bautista, but lost the last two games of the series by producing only 3 runs between the two games.
“His absence in the lineup is a hole to fill,” Blue Jays’ manager John Farrell said. “He’s our leader, he’s our most productive offensive player. That’s a substantial loss when he’s not in there.”
Bautista has an 11 game hitting streak going against the Mariners, in which he is batting .375 and has dialed up 4 HRs and 10 RBIs. The Blue Jays have won 5 of the last 6 matchups against the Mariners at home.
Seattle has been going UNDER the total almost every night, as they are hitting only .221 from the plate while averaging just over three runs a game (3.19). It is the worst batting average since 1972, when the Rangers lost 100 games with a .217 average. The Mariners have been able to do much better than that Rangers team, due to pitching, but it’s never fun to break a 40 year streak of greatest futility.
Over their last 9 games, all losses, they have scored only 11 runs while hitting .179. They have only hit two homers in 14 games this month. Even Ichiro isn’t impressing, hitting .114 in his last 9 games and .262 on the season. This could be the first season ever in which the 5’11” Japanese outfielder does not hit over .300.
The 9 game losing streak the Mariners are riding is their worst since September of 2008 and it has caused them to fall 11.5 games behind the AL-leading Rangers. They had cut the lead to 2.5 gaems as of July 5th, but Mariners’ manager Eric Wedge acknowledges that it’s been “a tough stretch,” though he did admit it was “a tough pill to swallow” to see his club fade from contention so quickly and tragically.
Michael Piñeda gave up 7 runs and 6 hits in 5 innings in his last outing, a 9-3 loss to the Angels on the 5th of July. Piñeda is 8-6 on the year with a 3.03 ERA, but he hasn’t recorded a quality start since his June 23rd shutout against the Nationals. His WHIP is nearly 1-flat, and hitters are only batting .198 against him. He’s struck out over 3 times as many as he has walked and has only given up 10 home runs in 113 innings pitched.
The Blue Jays will send Brett Cecil to the mound. Cecil is 2-4 with a 5.66 ERA and he entered the all star break as a winner against the Indians, in which he gave up only 1 run in 6 innings. It was his first win since he spent 2 months in the minors. On May 19th, 2010, he held the Seattle Mariners to 2 runs in 6 1/3rds innings of a 3-2 Blue Jays’ win. Brett Cecil experienced good success last year, due to great run support. His 15-7 record was tempered by a 4.22 ERA, though that was his best ERA since his 2008 run at the Double-A affiliate.
Again, as advocated, another moneyline bet on the opposition and an ‘under’ has worked with the Mariners, as they have dropped their last 9 games and they have scored only 4 runs in their last 5 games, after a 26 inning scoreless stretch. So, once again, I strongly advocate a moneyline bet on the Blue Jays, parlayed with the ‘under.’
