Series Preview: Seattle Mariners

The Reds welcome the Seattle Mariners to town.  This isn't a team that I've gotten a chance to see very much, so I'm looking forward to watching the series.  From an organization standpoint, the Mariners' big news of the past year was the firing of Jack Z and the hiring of former Angels GM Jerry Dipoto.  Dipoto is known as a sabermetrically-oriented GM, and apparently clashed significantly with Angels manager Mike Scioscia, as well as owner Arte Moreno.  The Angels made a number of questionable moves during his tenure, but many of the biggest free agent signings that have proven problematic (e.g. Josh Hamilton) were apparently driven by Moreno, not by Dipoto.  

In his time with the Mariners, Dipoto has made a series of small moves to shore up a team that has long been on a seemingly stars-and-scrubs model under the former GM.  He has acquired Aoki, Lind, Iannetta, Martin, Wade Miley, Nathan Karns, Steve Cishek, Joaquin Benoit, Joel Peralta, and more.  So far, it's working; the Mariners sit atop the AL West, with excellent performances pretty much across major team categories, with the possible exception of their fielding.  They were projected to be a competant team, but seeing them atop the West is a bit of a surprise.  With the wins they have in the bank, however, FanGraphs gives the team a 60%+ chance of making the playoffs.

Unfortunately, due to time constraints (and fatigue!), I won't be able to offer much more commentary on this team tonight.  Nevertheless, here are stats for your edification:

Probable Starters

I'm pretty happy that we get to see King Felix, even if that's unlikely to go well for the Reds.  I really wish John Lamb's velo was up where it was last year.  

Mariners Hitting

Reds Hitting

Bullpens