Walk Off Home Run For Rangers

 Rangers 5 Mariners 4

Jonah Heim Texas Rangers catcher
hit two home runs on the day the
second in the 10th inning with a
runner on base for a walk off win.

The problem wasn't the Mariners 

pitching again like many times

before was the lack of runs. Kyle

Seager had a home run in the first

inning with a runner on base. The 

Rangers tied the game in the 5th

on Heim's first home run. It was

Heim's third home run of the series

as well. Amazing when he has only

seven on the season now. 

Shakes my head how many home runs the

Mariners give up over the season.

You would think the pitching coach

somehow could work getting it

corrected. Has been going on for

several years. Major league baseball

for the most part teams are hitting 

more home runs. Those who hit a

lot of home runs I understand but

giving up home runs to guys like

Heim's who don't have many on 

the season just isn't good.

Ty France hit a home run to tie

the score in the 9th inning to allow

the Mariners go extra innings. This

was only the second loss for the

Mariners in extra innings. The sad

part besides losing is the Astros and

A's did to so the Mariners could have

gained a game on them. 

Marco Gonzales starts afternoon game

against the Rangers on Sunday. Marco

has pitches well in his last two outings.

We hope the offense will score a bit

more frequently for the Mariners to

win the series then on to Tampa for

a three game series against the Rays.

Now a look at the final five players the

Kraken selected in the expansion draft.

#26 Mark Giordano the senior player

and defenseman on the Kraken was 

selected from the Calgary Flames

where he played for 15 seasons. Most

likely Mark will be a captain for the

Kraken in their first season. He spent

the last eight years as the Flames captain.

#27 Adam Larson another Swedish player

on the Kraken was selected from the 

Edmonton Oilers as a defenseman. Adam

spent the first half of his career with the

New Jersey Devils where he was the 4th

overall pick in the 2011 draft. His experience

again will help out the Kraken.

#28 Kurtis MacDermid another defenseman

was selected by the Kraken from the LA

Kings however they traded him to the Colorado

Avalanche on July 27 for a 4th round pick in

2023. With the amount of defenseman they

selected not a surprise someone had to be

traded.

#29 Alexander True center from the San Jose

Shark was selected by the Kraken. True was

signed by the Shark on July 18 2018. He is

another European player  coming from Denmark.

He has played most of his professional career

with the San Jose Barracuda the Sharks AHL.

True is only 24 years old so this might be able

to continue his career in the NHL. True is 

familiar with Seattle having played with the

Thunderbirds in the WHL. Welcome back home.

#30 the final player announced was Kole Lind

from the Vancouver Canucks. He was born in

Swift Current, Saskatchewan  Canada. Kole

played his junior hockey at Kelowna British

Columbia why the Canucks were familiar with

Kole. He is a forward only 22 years old. Kole

professional career has primarily played in the

AHL. Only 24 years old so has time to grow.

That is now the look at all the players the Kraken

took in the expansion draft. We will keep an eye

on anymore acquisitions, trades or any other news

before the season begins on October 12. We wish

the best to all the players in the Kraken organization.

Go Kraken! 

Mariners Start Road Trip With A Win

Mariners 9 Rangers 5

A good thing the Mariners won the opening
game to the series and road trip. I am sure
most of us expected so but actually getting
it done is the important thing. The Mariners
need to take two out three in Texas at least
before going to Tampa and New York.

Logan Gilbert got off to a good start on the

mound striking out the side in the first inning.

Gilbert did struggle in the fourth, fifth and

sixth inning. He gave a single run in both 

the fourth and fifth innings then two home

runs in the sixth. He was taken out in the

sixth with two outs. Still needs to be more

consistent with his slider and change up.

Sure he will continue to improve on both

the rest of the season.

The offense did get off to a good start scoring

four times in the second then three times more

in the third with a three-run home run by Jarred

Kelenic in the third inning. The did add on a 

run in the seventh and ninth innings which was

a good thing since the Rangers were not giving

up.

Everyone in the lineup had at least one hit

except JP Crawford and Dylan Moore. The 

good news though Crawford and Moore did

each drive in a run along with Moore scoring

a run too.

Abraham Toro continues to do well having 

three hits on the night including hitting a

double. Toro had three hits and scored two

runs. Looks like he is playing a good second

base as well. Moore was in left field as the

Mariners faced a lefty. Right now Moore and

Shed Long Jr are sharing left field until Jake

Fraley returns. In fact Long will have to start

hitting if he wants his name called in the lineup.

Nothing came out as far as trades go for the

Mariners on Friday the end of the trading 

deadline. Other teams going for the wild card

added players but at what cost by giving up

top prospects which the Mariners thankfully

didn't follow suit. Whether that cost a playoff

spot only time will tell however they are 

playing good ball right now.

Tyler Anderson the Mariners acquired from 

the Pittsburgh Pirates is scheduled to start

Saturday. With need in starting pitching 

a good thing to have Anderson around. Not

sure when Dunn or Sheffield will be back

but Anderson looks like an upgrade anyway.

We could see Dunn and or Sheffield in the

bullpen when they return. Both likely will

do rehab assignments in Tacoma. 

The suspension of Hector Santiago the 

Mariners didn't have to make any changes

adding Diego Castillo to the bullpen.

Castillo got his first action Friday by

pitching the 9th inning. He got all three

Rangers he faced. Castillo throws slider

which he uses 70 percent of the time.

Now a look at the next group of five

Kraken in the expansion draft.

#21 Carson Soucy the Kraken acquired

from the Minnesota Wild as a defenseman.

Carson was drafted by the Wild in 2013.

He played four years at University of 

Minnesota-Duluth before signing with

the Wild. His first two years he played

for the Wild's AHL minor league team.

Carson made his first appearance in

Minnesota during the 2017-18 season.

He played the last two years for the Wild.

#22 Calle Jarnkrok a Swedish ring wing

selected from the Nashville Predator's. 

Played the last eight years for Nashville

after being selected in the draft in 2010.

A veteran presence in the lineup will be

good.

#23 Vince Dunn a defenseman from the

St. Louis Blues. Not very popular picking

him up from the Blues. The fans in St. Louis

still not happy about it. Drafted by the Blues

in the second round in 2015. Vince began

his professional career with Chicago Wolves

in the AHL the Blues affiliate. Played the

last four years for the Blues.

#24 Mason Appleton selected from the

Winnipeg Jets where he played forward.

Interesting Mason was born and raised in

Green Bay, Wisconsin. Green Bay is not

far from a town named Appleton. Mason

started his professional career with Manitoba

Moose in 2017 in AHL. This was after two 

years at Michigan State.  The last three years 

spent with Winnipeg. Welcome to Seattle.

#25 Haydn Fleury selected from the Anaheim

Ducks. Last name familiar his brother was 

selected from Montreal. Haydn was drafted

by Carolina Hurricanes in the first round in

2014. Haydn played three years with Carolina

while spending some time in the AHL. He

was traded to Anaheim during this last season.

next time we will cover the last players taken

in the expansion draft 26 thru 30. 

Castillo Now A Mariner Santiago Suspended Again

On Thursday the Mariners day off general 

manager Jerry Dipoto made another trade

getting reliever Diego Castillo from the

Tampa Bay Rays to take the spot of losing

Kendall Graveman. The Mariners sent the

Rays reliever JT Chargois and minor league
third baseman Austin Shenton the teams 

number 17 prospect. We will see if the 

Mariners are able to make any other trades

on Friday before the deadline. The Mariners 

will be able to make other trades in August
and September however the Mariners have 

to go through waivers first. Let's see what 

happens before the Mariner-Ranger game.

On Thursday Hector Santiago was suspended 

once again this time with the 80 game suspension 

for failing the mlb drug policy. So the Mariners 

won't have Santiago the rest of the season and 

the beginning of next season if they choose to 

have him again. Santiago apologized to the 

Mariners and fans where he took a drug last 

year when he didn't play for the season. After 

the last suspension for 10 days something doesn't 

sound right to me though  Santiago has accepted 

his punishment. 

The Mariners have not announced their starter 

for Friday night against the Texas Rangers of

yet. It should be Marco Gonzales spot in the

rotation with newly acquired Tyler Anderson

pitching on Saturday. We will see how that

ends up. Go M's.

Later today look at any deal Dipoto may make

before the deadline and the next group of 

Kraken players from the expansion to let us

know something about them.  

Kraken Sign Three Free Agents

We will look at the next group of players the
Seattle Kraken got in the expansion draft but
first the three players they have signed as free
agents beginning on Wednesday.

The first one was a surprise by many signing

Philipp Grubaer a goal tender who was born

in Germany and has played on the German

national team. He was drafted and played for

the Washington Capitals. Recently he played

for the Colorado Avalanche before becoming

a free agent. I am sure the other goal tenders

have on the roster were surprised. Wouldn't

surprise me if they trade one of them.

The other two free agent signs are both forwards.

Jaden Schwartz who has played with the St. Louis

Blues since 2011. He is a veteran and scorer the 

Kraken can use. He led the Blues in playoff scoring

in 2019 when they won the Stanley Cup. Alexander

Wennberg began his professional career in his

native Sweden. He was drafted by the Columbus 

Blue Jackets in the first round in 2013. Alexander

played six years for the Blue Jackets then signed

a one-year contract with Florida Panthers now he

is a Kraken.

now back to the those drafted in the expansion draft

#16 Vitek  Vanecek goal tender  played most of his

professional career in the American Hockey league.

Last year though he played for the Washington Capitals.

With the signing of Philipp Grubaer  the Kraken could

trade Vanecek back to the Capitals since they are in

need of a backup goalie. We will see won't we.

#17 Tyler Pitlick a center was drafted from the Arizona 

Coyotes however he was a member of the Kraken one

day as they traded him to the Calgary Flames. We wish

Tyler the best.

#18 John Quenneville selected from Chicago Blackhawks

a forward. Originally drafted by the New Jersey Devils

in the first round in 2014. Has played most of his 

professional career in the American Hockey League.

#19 Joonas Donskoi selected from Colorado Avalanche. 

He played the last two years for the Avalanche  after

originally being with the San Jose Sharks for his first

four years.

#20 Jamie Oleksiak a Canadian player selected from the

Dallas Stars where he was a defenseman. He was a first

round selection by the Stars in 2011. Played six years for

the Stars well as their AHL team. He then played a couple

years for the Pittsburgh Penguins before returning to Dallas.

The last two and a half  years for the Stars.

Next time we will look at #21 thru 25 along with any other

acquisitions they may have picked up. 

Astros Take Series

 Astros 11 Mariners 4

Though the Mariners were able to come back
the opening game of the series the pitching
wasn't kind for the Mariners all series long.

Yusei Kikuchi had another off-day. I wonder

something wrong with him. I guess we will

find out soon or Yusei will recover. He pitched

five inning giving up four runs with three

earned. 

JT Chargois had an off day coming in for

Kikuchi. He gave up three runs in one-third

of the inning. JT has been pitching a lot 

recently so wonder time to give him a

break over the next few days. The Mariners

do have Thursday off so that will help.

The rest of the bullpen didn't do well either.

However neither Drew Steckenrider or

Paul Sewald who have become their top

two relievers didn't pitch. I expect Joe

Smith will be coming in the 7th or later

depending how much Steckenrider and

Sewald are pitching. They have Casey

Sadler back however he may only be

able to pitch every third day so right now.

Abraham Toro the infielder the Mariners

got in the Graveman trade for the second

game in a row he had a home run this

time with a runner on base. Kyle Seager

had a home run in the same inning as

well. Toro who primarily plays third

base played second base instead. Since

Dylan Moore has struggled hitting we

could see more of him at second. Toro

is a switch hitter wile Moore is a right

handed hitter. I could see the Mariners

using Moore in left field when facing

a left hander. Shed Long Jr though

struggling recently did have two hits

although he struck out when the 

Mariners had two runners on base.

JP Crawford looks like getting back

on track having two hits and Ty

France had two more hits still leading

the Mariners in hitting. France once

again was hit by a pitch. Fortunately

he was OK. 

The Mariners will have Thursday

off before playing the Rangers in

Texas over the weekend. If Jerry

Dipoto keeps his promise the 

Mariners may have more players

by then. We will see won't week.

The Seattle Kraken signed a couple

free agents so look at who they

are in our next post along with 

the next group of players from the

expansion draft last week.

Mariners Fall Short Along With A Busy Day

 Houston 8 Seattle 6

Tuesday's game started out a lot like
Monday's game with the Astros scoring
multiple runs in the first inning. It was
three runs instead of six, however, still
not what you wanted to see.

The Mariners did respond back with

Kyle Seager hitting a two-run homer

in the bottom of the first inning. The 

scored stayed 3-2 until the fourth 

inning when Chris Flexen gave up

four runs including a three-run homer.

Hector Santiago came in the fifth inning

right after getting off the suspension list.

Hector gave up a run in the fifth however

nothing in the sixth inning. Now the

score 8-2.

The Mariners were not finished Jarred

Kelenic drove in two runs with Ty France

and Cal Raleigh on the bases. It was one

of two hits Kelenic had for the day.

The Mariners got two more runs in the

9th inning when switch hitter Abraham

Toro who the Mariners had picked up

earlier in the day from no other then the

Astros hit his first home run as a Mariner

with Kelenic on base. Irony Toro was

pinch hitting for Dylan Moore who hit

the grand slam the night before.

Toro was traded to the Mariners along

with veteran reliever Joe Smith for

closer Kendall Graveman and Rafael

Montero who had been designated for

assignment a few days earlier. Positive

we won't see Montero in a Mariner 

uniform again or at least not this season.

Joe Smith hasn't had a good season either

like Montero so hopefully it will be a

new place for Smith to rebound. He was

able to get into the game as well going 

one inning without giving up a hit or run.

Now it looks like Paul Sewald will be the

Mariners primary closer though we could

see Drew Steckenrider closing when Paul

needs a day off or possibly Joe Smith as

well. Both Smith and Graveman will be

free agents at the end of the year so could

see Graveman back next season.

Mariner players and fans were not to happy

about the trade. Jerry Dipoto said the Mariners

will not be done more trades to happen. The

Mariners did make another trade later in the

night picking up starter Tyler Anderson from

the Pittsburgh Pirates. If the name is familiar

Anderson was traded to the Philadelphia  

Phillies earlier in the day but fell through 

when one of the players traded for failed his

physical. So now the Mariners can plug in

Anderson a lefty into the starting rotation.

Anderson is a six-year player age 31 so has

been around. The  Mariners sent the Pirates

two minor leaguers as they are in the process

in rebuilding too. According to Dipoto the

Mariners could see some more trades so we

see something today maybe!

The  Mariners announced to Catie Griggs

President of Business. She recently was 

Chief Business Officer of the Atlanta Flames

in the Major League Soccer. Welcome 

aboard Catie.

Now look at players 11 through 15 in the 

Kraken expansion draft

#11 Nathan Bastian a defenseman from the

New Jersey Devils. He was drafted by the

Devils in the second round in 2016. Nathan

played three years for Binghamton Devils

there affiliate in the AHL. This last season

though he played for New Jersey. Nathan

is only 23 years old so could have a long

career with the Kraken if he is sticks around.

#12 Jordan Eberle right wing acquired in

the expansion draft from New York Islanders.

He was drafted by the Edmonton Oilers in 

the first round in 2008. He played seven years

in Edmonton before going to the Islanders.

In New York Jordan played four years. Be

good to have a veteran presence on the team.

#13 Colin Blackwell another veteran at the

age of 28 selected from the New York Rangers.

Blackwell is a forward. He played four years

at Harvard University though injuries cost him

valuable time his two last seasons in college.

He wasn't drafted however signed and played

in the AHL for four years. He then played

for Nashville before going to New York Rangers

last year.

#14 Carson Twarynski acquired from the 

Philadelphia Flyers where he was drafted in

the third round of 2016 draft. Carson is only

23 years old and plays forward. He only played

22 games for the Flyers over two seasons. 

Carson primarily played in AHL though spent

time last year playing in Europe.

#15 Brandon Tanev selected from the Pittsburgh

Penguins. Brandon is a veteran left wing. He

played his college hockey at Providence then

signed with the Winnipeg Jets in 2015. He played

three full seasons for the Jets before going to

Pittsburgh where he spent the last two years.

Next time we will look at #16 through 20

Kraken Make Another Trade and More

We knew last week the Seattle Kraken would
likely trade some of the players they selected
in the expansion draft last Wednesday.

They selected 30 players in the draft while

only having a 23-man roster. Also, they may

sign a few free agents beginning on Wednesday

July 28. Most of the players they drafted in

expansion draft were defenseman. They have

a weakness who is going to score most of their

goals which is where free agency comes in.

We will see the free agents who may decide

to come to Seattle.

On Tuesday the Kraken traded Kurtis MacDermid

to the Colorado Avalanche for a 4th round draft

choice in 2023. It is odd to trade a player for two

years out but that is what they did. The Kraken

will save $875,000 off the salary cap. So this 

will allow the Kraken to go for further on free

agency.

We now look at six more players they drafted 

last week in the expansion draft. We will look

at six thru 10 where they were announced out 

of 28 players still with the hockey club right now.9

#6 Joey Daccord is a goaltender the Kraken 

selected from Ottawa Senators who drafted

him in the 7th round in 2015. That year he played

in the United States Hockey League where top 

juniors play to improve their game. The following

three years for Arizona State. Joey was the first

player from ASU to sign a professional contract.

Joey played mostly minor league hockey only

appearing in 9 games for the Senators. He certainly

wants to see more action this coming season in

the NHL.

#7 Yanni Gourde a forward played for the Stanley

Cup champions Tampa Lighting who won it two

years straight. He is one rare players who wasn't

drafted in the NHL draft. His father is from Quebec

while mother is Swiss and he was born in USA. 

Yanni played almost four full seasons for the Lighting.

In November of 2018 he signed a six year contract

for $31 million. You have to figure he is living his

dream. We hope for success in Seattle for Yanni.

#8 Jarred McCann forward was selected by the Kraken

from the Toronto Maple Leafs. Unusual circumstance

he was traded to Toronto from Pittsburgh Penguins 

for days before the draft. Jarred was drafted by the

Vancouver Canucks in 2014 where he played for one

season before being traded to the Florida Panthers.

He was in Florida for two and a half years before 

going to Pittsburgh. Welcome to Seattle.

#9 Morgan Geekie  center was drafted by the Carolina

Hurricanes in the third round in 2017. Prior to being

drafted by the Hurricanes he played in the WHL

with the Tri-City Americans so he is familiar with

the northwest. Morgan played two years in the AHL

before playing for the Hurricanes beginning in 2019-20

though most of his action took place last season. Morgan

hopes to stick in NHL in Seattle.

#10  Gavin Bayreuther a defenseman is another pick

of the Kraken who was not drafted in the NHL draft.

He signed a free agent contract with the Dallas Stars

on March 15 2017. Gavin has spent most of his 

professional career in the AHL. He made his NHL

debut with the Stars in November 2018. Gavin played

19 games for the Stars that season. He went back to

playing in the AHL. Last year he signed a free agent

contract one year contract with Columbia Blue Jackets.

Gavin still played most of the season again in NHL

though did get into nine games for the Blue Jackets.

We hope the Mariners will have won second straight

against the Astros. We will look at numbers 11 thru

15 in the next post. It will make us at the half way

mark of the 30 players the Kraken selected though

we know two have been traded at this point.

Can You Believe It Mariner Fans

 Mariners 11 Astros 8

It is so important for a team to win the
opening game of a series. The Mariners
did win it in a fashion you don't see very
often.

Darren McCaughan made his major 

league first start on Monday night.

This was after not giving up a hit

in five innings in his first game he

appeared in. McCaughan didn't have

it in the first inning giving up six 

runs. The Mariners allowed him to

go four innings. He gave up another

run in the fourth inning. Houston 7

Seattle 0

The bottom of the fourth the Mariners 

decided to make their move. Cal Raleigh

hit a double clearing the bases with them

loaded scoring three runs. The Astros

scored another run in the 5th off of 

reliever Keynan Middleton who has

struggled for sometime. In the bottom

of the fifth Kyle Seager hit a three-run

homer making it Houston 8 Seattle 6

The Mariners scored another run in the

sixth inning now down by one. The

Mariners bullpen kept the Astros at bay.

In the bottom of the 8th inning the

Mariners decide to win the game right

there. Dylan Moore as we know hasn't

had a good season hitting wise for the

most part though he has had his moments.

Well he had one this night as he was

pinch hitting for Jake Bauers. The Mariners

had the bases loaded; well Moore never 

had a grand slam in his career before.

Not anymore hitting a ball in the upper deck

of left field.  Seattle 11 Houston 8

Brooks Raley left-hander pitcher who gave

up Moore's grand slam ended up hitting

JP Crawford who followed Moore. It was

the third inside pitch to Crawford. After a

discussion between the umpires Raley was

tossed from the game. Crawford though

ended up being caught off of first base.

It ended the 8th inning. Paul Sewald came

in the 9th and took care of the Astros.

What a game now the Mariners are 55-46.

If the Mariner's stay at the same winning

percentage the rest of the way they will 

win 88 games. They have to go 33-28

in their remaining 61. Can they do it?

Chris Flexen will  start Tuesday Night's 

game. He will be going for his tenth win

of the season. Let's go Chris!

Mariners Huskies Cougars and Seahawks

Seattle Mariner's taking three out of four from Oakland now take on the Houston Astros. Be nice to take two out of three. Let's begin by winning Monday night.

The trading deadline is Saturday. Nice if they can pick up an infielder who can hit. Also a starting pitcher be nice however a hitter be real nice.

Trading camp begins this week for the three football team. Seahawks the only one with a sure quarterback. The Huskies a favorite with Oregon to win Pac-12 North division. The  cougars ???

Let you know sports news comes out

Mariners Take Three From A's and More

 Mariners 4 A's 3

What can you say about the Mariners in
this series against the Oakland A's.

The Seattle Mariners do a fantastic job

in one run games. The A's not so much.

Mariners now they keep it close they 

have a good shot in winning.

Oakland got off early then Gonzales 

and Tom Murphy realized the game

plan wasn't working so they went to

a new plan. This is what they both 

said in the post game.  Scott Servais

hopes the offense can get a spark 

going. We hope so against Houston

in the series coming up. Won't be

easy with the Astros pitching. 

Marco Gonzales was able to go 5 and

2/3 innings despite getting off to a

rough start. JT  Chargois came in to 

finish off the sixth inning. Chargois

has pitched a lot lately so didn't 

pitch after the sixth. Casey just 

coming back game up a home run

in second outing in a row, however

the Mariner stopped the A's in their

tracks after that.

Darren McCaughan rookie right hander

who came in relief in the last bullpen

day throw no hits in five inning will

start Monday's game. See what he can

do against the Astros. Chris Flexen and

Yusei Kikuchi will finish off the series.

The Mariners will have Thursday off 

flying to Texas to take on the Rangers

next weekend. The Rangers having a

tough season going through a rebuild

as well. The Mariners will start out 

August against Tampa Bay for three

and four against the Yankees in New 

York. We will see if the Mariners will

have any additional firepower to begin

August with.

Now a look at the six draft picks the

Kraken picked up on Saturday. A little

bit more about those guys.

2nd rounder Ryker Evans is a defenseman

who recently played in the Western Hockey

League with Regina Pats. Avid Seattle 

Hockey fans I am sure are familiar with

the WHL since the Seattle Thunderbirds

play in the league.  The Kraken will play

two games on the ice at the home of the

Thunderbirds in Kent since their home 

field won't be ready until they take on 

the Vancouver Canucks on October 23. 

Evans is 19 years old from Calgary and

was the second scorer as far as defensemen

goes last season. We see whether Evans

makes the ball club or go plays in the 

minor leagues to begin with.

3rd rounder Ryan Winterton center will

turn 18 in September. Didn't have a season

this last year. He played for Hamilton 

Bulldogs in the Ontario Hockey League

which is a junior hockey league. This was

his first year of eligibility. I am sure he 

is a few years away before we see him

in Seattle.

4th round: Ville Ottavainen on defense played

the same year in OHL as did Winterton; this

last year he played in his native Finland

junior or pro level teams. He too will be

a few years away:

5th round: Jacob Melanson is another 18 year

old player the Kraken picked in a row. He 

recently play  in the Quebec Major Hockey

League. Again he will be a few years away.

He is a right winger. 

6th round: Semyon Vyazovoy is to 18 years

old. Semyon is out of Russia and plays 

goalie. He was considered one of ten goalies

to watch out for in this draft.

7th round: Justin Janicke  a left wing and you

can guess he is 18 years old. In fact only second

rounder Ryker Evans is older then 18. Janicke

play in the United States Hockey League the

highest level of junior hockey in the USA.

The Krakens number one pick Matthew Beniers

out of University of Michigan is 18 years old as

well.

What the Kraken took in both drafts primarily

was on the defense side of the ball. Free agency

is expected to begin on Wednesday most experts

expect the Kraken to sign offensive players for

the most part. They have to have players who

can score goals as well. How many 0-0 games

do you want to go with. Wednesday we will

see what happens. Go Kraken!

Another Wild Pitch Thanks A's.

 Mariners 5 A's 4

Thank you A's for another wild pitch
in the 9th inning so they didn't have
to win in extra innings.

Logan Gilbert was going easy the

first two innings however gave up

three runs to the A's before Servais

decided to take him out. He had

thrown too many pitches that inning.

The bullpen did a good job except

Steckenrider gave up a home run

to tie the game in the seventh inning.

Paul Sewald and Kendall Graveman

were able to hold the A's at bay.

The offense for the most part was

Mitch Haniger hitting two home 

runs, a double, scoring three times

and driving in three runs. So far

in July Haniger has seven home 

runs with 15 rbi's batting .309.

For the season now at 25 home 

runs and 62 rbi's. Who says 

"comeback player of the year".

Mariners please sign him to an

extension.

Jarred Kelenic was able to draw

a walk in the 9th inning to lead

to the wild pitch. 

Let's see the Mariners win Sunday

as Marco Gonzales starts. Take 

three out of four instead of settling

for a split in the series especially

with Houston coming up next.

Prospect #28 Jake Scheiner another

third baseman in the top 30 class.

Jake was drafted by the Phillies in

the fourth round in 2017. He was

traded to the Mariners in 2019 for

Jay Bruce. At double-A Arkansas

he is batting only .241 however 

showing power with 11 home runs

and his on base percentage is .332.

Jake could move up to triple-A

next season. We could see him be

part of a trade with the deadline

line approaching.

#29 Cade Marlowe left-handed

hitting outfielder; was drafted by

the Mariners in the 20th round in

2019 draft. Cade must have shown

some impressions to be in the top

30 prospects. He did bat .301 his

first season of professional ball.

Cade started the season at low-A 

ball where he was hitting .301

before being promoted to high

A Everett. Currently struggling

at the plate however we hope to

see him raise up the rest of the

season. Most likely see him at

double-A ball if he can rise to

the occasion in 2022.

#30 Taylor Dollard right-handed

pitcher taken in the 5th round of

last year's draft. Currently pitching

at high level A. Has a 7-2 record

starting 11 games with an era of

4.52. He is striking out more than

a run per inning while walking only

15 on the season. Taylor has work

to do but looks like on the right 

track.

Coming up in future posts we will

look at who else is doing well in 

the minors who are not in the top

30 prospects.

The Seattle Kraken drafted six 

players on Saturday. 

Round 2 Ryker Evans defenseman

Round 3 Ryan Winterton center

Round 4 Ville Ottavainen  defenseman

Round 5 Jacob Melanson right wing

Round 6 Semyon Vyazovoy goal tender 

Round 7 Justin Janicke left wing

tell you more about them  in the next post 

Mariners Even Series Plus the Kraken NHL draft pick

 Mariners 4 A's 3

Yusei Kikuchi got back to his form
after his last two outings for the most
part. He gave up a run in three straight
innings from the third through the fifth.
The third and fourth innings he gave
up a home run which he commonly does.
Kikuchi ended up going six innings. He
walked only one and struck out ten which
is a good sign. The bullpen shut out the
A's over three innings giving up only one
hit.

The Mariners three runs scored first in 

the third inning when Cal Raleigh hit 

his first career home run in the majors 

with Ty France on base. Ty was the only

hitter with two hits. He now leads the

Mariners in hitting with an average of

.276. JP Crawford is in a little hitting

slump so he is second behind France

and just ahead of Haniger who is having

a very good July. Luis Torrens hit a 

home run right after Raleigh. 

I don't to be critical of the manager 

choices, however, Shed Long is not

hitting well since his two home runs

earlier in July winning back to back 

games. Long is batting .080 in his last

seven games and batting in total .180.

I look forward to the return of Jake

Fraley. Though Long has a good arm

he is a fielder average at best  in the

outfield. 

The Mariners scored their final run

in the seventh inning to win the game

when Dylan Moore had the day off

pinched hit for Jake Bauers get a hit

stole second moved to third and came

home on a wild pitch. Not the way

I go for it but you got get what you can.

Before the game the Mariners activated

reliever Casey Sadler. At the same time

they designated Rafael Montero for 

assignment. I am sure a lot of fans thought

about time.  Montero has good stuff but

had a lot of hard times on the mound. He

seems to be a good guy so sad it didn't 

work out.

Prospect #25 Tyler Keenan the Mariners

drafted last year in the fourth round out of

Mississippi. He is listed as a third baseman

however we could see him at first base

and dh if he makes it to Seattle. He was

on the injured for about three weeks in 

late May and into June. Currently hitting

.210  with 4 home runs and 26 rbi's in 28

games. Also has a high on base percentage

of .344. Though his average is low he 

is making good of his opportunities. See

where he goes from here.

#26 Taylor Brash right handed pitcher the 

Mariners acquired in the Taylor Williams

trade last year. Brash was picked in the

fourth round by the Padres in 2019. Brash

in his first full year of pitching professionally

is at double-A Arkansas. He has gotten off

to a good start this season starting 11 of 12

games he has pitched in. Brash era is a solid

2.58 pitching in 52 and one-thirds innings.

He has struck out 77 batters and walked 28

which is high for the number of innings

pitches. Not sure whether he will be a 

starter in Seattle or not but certainly is

getting off on a good start.

#27 Joe Rizzo a high draft pick out of

high school back in 2016. He has taken

his time to get this far. The Mariners have

drafted third baseman the last three years

so we see what plans for Rizzo is still. 

His best season was 2019 when he hit

.295 showing some power with 10 home 

runs. This year at double-A he is only 

hitting .214 though has 8 home runs

through half the season. His on base 

percentage is almost a hundred points

higher than his average. Not sure he

will be a Mariner but could be part

of a trade that includes prospects.

next time we will go with the final

three spots in the top 30 prospects

The Seattle Kraken selected as the 

overall number two pick Matthew

Beniers center out of University of

Michigan who made history having

three of the top four draft picks.

Having only one season at Michigan

he has to decide whether to go back 

or go be with the Kraken. Beniers is

excited to be a member of the Kraken

and being their first pick ever in the

NHL draft. Stay tuned to see more 

on Beniers to see if he is on the roster

this coming season or go back to 

Michigan. 

The whole signing of players that go

back to school is a bit confusing by 

what I see. If Beniers does decide

to go back to Michigan I believe he

would be the Kraken's choice until

next years draft. So he would have

to sign a contract before that draft

but not real clear on it either. Being

a high draft pick like Beniers the

Kraken could still have him longer

then that. We will see I guess when

he makes his decision though loves

to be a Kraken.

The second thru the seventh round

will take place on Saturday so we

will see who else they draft. Stay

tuned. 

Mariners Offense and More Cause Thursday's Defeat

 A's 4 Mariners 1

The Mariners lack of offense and the
pitching of A's starter Sean Manaea
in part cost the Mariners Thursday's
night win. Manaea walked three
Mariners while striking out 13. It was
Manaea's career high in strikeouts.

This was Manaea's second win against
the Mariners this season. He is a good
pitcher, however, does real well against
the Mariners. The Mariners lack of
offense he isn't the only one.

The score may indicate the A's had the

game well in-hand with Manaea on 

the mound, however, it isn't all true.

Chris Flexen was pitching well to

until he gave up a run in the fifth

and another in the sixth. Flexen went

five and one-thirds innings. You could 

tell he was starting to tire out.

JT Chargois came in for Flexen as

he often does as the first pitcher out

of the bullpen. Drew Steckenrider 

pitched the seventh. Neither pitched

surrendered a run.

This is where things got confusing to

me. Tom Murphy hit a home run to

make the score 2-1.  In the 8th inning

Rafael Montero came in and surrendered

two run. I don't understand when your

team is playing a division rival just ahead

of you for a playoff spot you bring in a

pitcher who has been struggling for most

of the season in a situation like this. 

This is this first game of the series where

you should put in your top relievers to

make every effort to win. The Mariners

may have still lost but they certainly 

made it easier for the A's. Now the 

Mariners will have to make sure they

have Kikuchi back on the top of his

game to even the series Friday night.

Also, the offense have to come alive 

as well.

The Mariners had only four hits on 

the night including Murphy's home

run. Ty France, Kyle Seager and

Luis Torrens had the other three hits.

The Mariners have signed all their 

draft picks this year except the 11th

rounder and the 20th rounder. They

signed two undrafted players as well.

They have until August 1 to sign the

other draft picks. 

Now to look at the Mariners top prospects

#22 thru #24

#22 Kaden Polcovich listed at shortstop

though has played  at other infield positions

was drafted last year by the Mariners in

the third round. Kaden is 22 years old and

is a switch hitter. He currently is playing

at high A  Everett. Kaden is hitting .267

with a very good on base percentage of

.405. He has shown some power as well

with 8 home runs and has driving in 43

runs. Also, showing speed on the base

paths with 14 stolen bases. Kaden should

play in double-A ball next year.

#23 Tim Elliott right handed pitcher the

Mariners selected in the 4th round in 2019.

He spent the summer of 2019 in Everett

shorten season rookie ball. This year he

is again in Everett however high class A

ball. Early on in the season Tim pitched

mostly in relief, however, has started three

times out of his four starts in July.  His era

is high at 5.44 so have to see whether he

can improve the rest of the season in Everett.

#24 Logan Rinehart is another right handed

pitcher the Mariners selected in the 2019

draft in the 16th round. Logan is currently

pitching in low level A Modesto. Logan

currently is being used in relief pitching

in 18 games so far. He has an era of 3.38 

and has two saves. For the most part Logan

has pitched multiple innings going 34 and

two-thirds. He has struck out 26 batters. 

Next time we will look at #25 thru #27

Kraken Make First Trade

Thursday was the opening for teams in the NHL

to make trades. The Kraken made their first trade 

as a franchise one day after the expansion draft.

 They traded center Tyler Pitlick a center to the 

Calgary Flames. The Kraken had selected Tyler 

from the Arizona Coyotes. The Kraken will pick

up a fourth rounder next year. The Kraken will

save 1.75 million dollars against the salary cap.

The Kraken were not going to keep all 30 players 

since they have 23 spots on the roster. The Kraken

may make a few additional trades; however, they

are looking to add more players in free agency to 

improve the team.

I have heard from hockey experts the Kraken picked 

for the most part for defense in the expansion draft. 

Now they are looking to get players who can score 

goals too. 

Most likely the Kraken won't be in the Stanley Cup

their first season but they do want a winning product

coming out from the beginning.

Free agency will begin on July 28. I am sure they 

are looking at several players to convince them to 

come to Seattle. We hope they will be able to bring 

several this way. Won't be a lot of players, however 

somewhere around five certainly help.  Go Kraken!

Our Team The Seattle Kraken

Just like the Seattle Mariners and the
Seahawks the Kraken are the northwest
team just not only Seattle. As I showed
the list of players in previous post now
they have the first group to begin with
for the future.

The Kraken picked 30 players in all.

Each roster will have 23 players when

the season starts so this means at least

seven of these players won't be on the

opening night roster beginning on 

October 12 when they play on the

road in Las Vegas.

Friday evening the NHL draft will take

place with seven rounds. The Kraken

have the second overall pick in the 

first round. Most likely that player will

be on the opening roster while the others

will be sent to minor leagues. 

The Kraken in the meantime before 

October 12 can trade any of these players

along with signing free agents so more 

work will be done.

Though there were players listed in an 

order the whole group were picked at

the same time so the list I showed was

what ESPN said going from division to

division in alphabetic order. The last

division mentioned was the one the

Kraken will be playing in and the last 

player announced was from Vancouver

Canucks who will be the Krakens biggest

rivalry being the closest distance from#

one another. I am sure Kraken fans who

will have trouble getting tickets to see

their team at home will travel to Vancouver

to see them play. 

Next tell you a little bit more about the first

five players  listed from Wednesday evening. 

#1 Jerry Lauzon defensemen selected from 

Boston Bruins was drafted by them in the

second round in 2015. Played three years 

for Providence Bruins in the American 

Hockey League and three seasons with 

Boston. He is known for his physical 

presence along with finishing plays. 

Jerry was born in Quebec Canada.

#2 Will Borgen another defense player 

from the Buffalo Sabers. His professional

career has primarily been with the Rochester  

American in the AHL. Will is from Moorhead

Minnesota. Played at St. Cloud State. Will

was a 4th round pick by Buffalo in 2015.

The Sabers are going to miss having him.

#3 Dennis Cholowski third defenseman taken

in a row.  The Kraken picked Dennis from

the Detroit Red Wings. He is from the northwest

region being born in Langley, British Columbia.

A first-round pick by Detroit  Dennis is still

waiting to meet his potential as a hockey player

hopefully be done in Seattle. Dennis played the

last three seasons with Detroit well as their 

team Grand Rapids in the AHL.

#4 Kris Drieger goaltender from the Florida

Panthers. Kris was drafted by the Ottawa 

Senators in 2012 in the third round. He played

three years with the Senators before going to

Florida where he played the last three seasons.

Kris was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba 

#5 Cale Fleury defenseman from the Montreal

Canadians. The Kraken also selected his brother

Haydn from the Anaheim Mighty Ducks. They

are both from Calgary Alberta so they will be

playing their home team within the division.

Cale was a third round pick in the 2017 draft

by the Canadians. Cale played this last season

in the AHL. He did play in 41 games for the

Canadians in the 2019-20 season.

Next time we will look at #6 thru #10 Go Kraken