Despite his leaving Seattle Mariners today disapointment will be on Scott Daniel Servais…..
FILED UNDER: GAME RECAPS: SEATTLE MARINERS
The Mariners, blessed with wonderful fortune, defeat the Diamondbacks 6-1.
The Mariners won the first game of the series thanks to improved plate appearances and a little bit of luck.
It’s difficult to find many truly offensive things about the Arizona Diamondbacks. They battle the financial might and historical legacies of the California teams in the NL West, but they lack the forlorn nature of the Rockies, which evokes more contempt than sympathy. They are simple to cheer for because when they win, it feels like they are victorious against titans. They have a squad that is generally made up of good and likeable players, such as hometown hero Corbin Carroll and a few former Mariners. As a result, cheering for the opposition always seems a little off, especially in a game like this one—a brief but, let’s face it, brutally umpired contest when it seemed like all the luck dragons were flying in the Mariners’ direction.
When facing Zac Gallen, the Mariners had a well-defined plan: Act aggressively right away.
Try to keep him away from his secondary stuff on the fastball. This was evident as soon as Josh Rojas leaped on the first pitch he saw from Gallen, who was attempting to sneak a strike against his old teammate. Rojas crushed the fastball that was placed in the middle of the plate, marking his sixth leadoff home run of the season.
After the game Although Rojas stated he believes the difference only exists in that first at-bat, when pitchers are more heater-heavy, he said he adjusted his mindset as a leadoff hitter knowing there was a “99% chance” he’d get a fastball first pitch. Other than that, he’s just trying to do what he does as a nine-hole hitter, keep the line moving. However, he acknowledged that as a former teammate who had discussed tactics with Gallen, he might have some inside knowledge.
Being on the opposing side and considering, “Okay, I’ve picked his brain, let’s see what he’s going to try to do to me,” was a rather interesting experience for me.
But that line of reasoning might also be
a trap because, in his second at-bat, Rojas assumed Gallen would try to get him to chase curveballs, but instead, Gallen “blew some fastballs by me.”
“Yeah, but it’s a fun aspect of the game.”
Mitch Garver added a solo home run to the celebration in the second inning as he again successfully hit a fastball over the plate and kept it in play past the left field foul pole.
Because of the Mariners’ aggressive strategy, there was a lot of contact that was either long, loud, or both. Some of it may not have been hits. However, that harsh contact may have been a sign of trouble for Gallen, who was forced to leave the game with a trainer in the middle of an at-bat against Julio after walking Josh Rojas in the leadoff position (it was later revealed he had exited due to stiffness in his right hamstring). Correct?After Gallen was replaced by Scott McGough, Julio welcomed him with a single cannon ball through the 3-4 hole. He then walked to Cal Raleigh to load the bases with no outs.
Next, Mitch Haniger let them go:
