Mariners 3, Blue Jays 2

I guess I didn’t need to be so pessimistic of the M’s offense being able to tally three runs against Jesse Litsch and the Blue Jays.  Not only did they score that amount of runs, they also managed to come out on top at the end of the ballgame, relying on a Jose Vidro two-run home-run and a sacrifice squeeze by Miguel Cairo to beat the Jays by a 3-2 score.

Yes, the Mariners were able to scratch out a victory, even without King Felix taking the mound.  In fact, Jarrod Washburn kept the Blue Jays to one run over six innings, his second quality start in his last three outings.  Both quality starts, however, have resulted in no-decisions as it appears Jarrod can’t improve on his 2-7 record regardless of how well he pitches.  Little wonder, as the M’s average exactly four runs a game in support of Washburn and as the Mariners’ inability to win while scoring four runs or less (10-34 record so far this season) well-known, Jarrod has to pretty much toss a complete game shutout every start if he wants to have a chance to rack up any more victories this season.

Although the rare Mariners victory is always a good occasion to celebrate and feel giddy, the manner in which the M’s pulled out the win last night is a testament to just why this team has struggled as long and as bad as they have this season.  Seriously, when you’re relying on the bats of Vidro and Cairo to help win ballgames, that’s not a formula for consistent success.  It’s more of a matter of luck than anything else, and as the saying goes, even a blind squirrel finds a nut.  The Mariners’ consistently had Toronto starter Litsch on the ropes, as he allowed ten hits (all singles besides Vidro going yard) over six innings, with the Mariners having base runners in all but a couple innings.  In fact, the M’s led off the fourth, fifth, and sixth innings with singles, yet were unable to push the runner across.  The anemic offense was never able to deliver the knockout blow they kept threatening all game, forcing instead to rely on a sacrifice squeeze to pick up their third win in ten games.

It appears that all though the M’s swapped out hitting coach Jeff Pentland for Lee Elia yesterday, the more things change, the more things stay the same.

The Mariners shoot for their seventh two-game winning streak of the season in tonight’s game, pitting Carlos Silva, the albatross of the M’s pitching staff, against Dustin McGowan, an up-and-coming right hander for the Blue Jays who is comfortably settling in as the number two oarm of Toronto’s staff.   The M’s chances to string together a few wins look slim, considering Silva’s lousy numbers against Toronto (2-3 record, 6.25 ERA in 31.2 innings), which includes a 13-1 pounding last summer in which Toronto compiled an 11-run sixth inning against Silva and three Twins relievers.  Silva hasn’t tossed a quality start in four outings to the mound, and I doubt that streak will break this evening.

Dustin McGowan has been roughed up himself over his last couple starts, allowing nine runs- eight earned- in eleven innings.  Ever since tossing seven shut-out innings against the White Sox on May 5th, McGowan’s ERA has leaped from 2.95 to its current 4.26 mark.  McGowan has split two career decisions against the Mariners, with a 3.24 ERA and a 11:4 strikeout-to-walk ratio in  nearly 17 innings, including an eight inning, one-run performance in a 2-1 victory against the M’s last September.

Any time that Carlos Silva takes the mound, he has the reverse effect of a team’s topper.  Rather than stopping losing streaks, he nips winning streaks right in the bud.  The chances of the Mariners following up last night’s win is very slim, and I’m picking the Blue Jays to prevail by a 6-3 score.  I wouldn’t be surprised, however, if the M’s score just one run while the Blue Jays top that six run mark in the first inning.