Locked On Mariners - Daily Podcast On the Seattle Mariners - Mariners Sink Themselves Against Rangers

Episode Date: August 11, 2021

Join Locked On Mariners hosts Ty Dane Gonzalez and Colby Patnode as they discuss the Mariners' dreadful offensive performance in their 5-4 extra innings loss to the Rangers on Tuesday, the Double-A promotions of top right-handed pitching prospects George Kirby and Emerson Hancock and preview Wednesday's matchup between lefty Tyler Anderson and former top prospect Spencer Howard.Be sure to follow or subscribe to Locked On Mariners wherever you prefer your podcasts! For questions and other inquiries, email: [e-mail] the show on Twitter: @LO_Mariners | @danegnzlz | @CPat11For more of Ty and Colby, check out their Patreon: http://patreon.com/controlthezone/Spotify GreenroomThis episode is brought to you by Spotify Greenroom. Download the Spotify Greenroom app and find one of our Locked On rooms.Built BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKED15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.BetOnlineThere is only 1 place that has you covered and 1 place we trust. Betonline.ag! Sign up today for a free account at betonline.ag and use that promocode: LOCKEDON for your 50% welcome bonus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

You are Locked-on Mariners, your daily Seattle Mariners podcast, part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, your team every day. This episode of Locked-on Mariners is brought to you by Spotify Green Room. Download the Spotify Green Room app and find one of our locked-on rooms. It is August 11, 2021. My name is Tidea-N-Gonzalez, and this is the Locked-on Mariner's podcast, your home for Daily Seattle Mariner's News and Analysis. I am of course joined as always by my co-host Colby Patnode.

This is our third episode of Lockdown Mariners since we took over the show. So if this is your first time, tune in and end since then, hello and welcome. Colby and I have been podcasting about the Mariners together for the last, I don't know, three or four years. Has it been that long, Colby? It's been, yep, three or four years. Yeah. Man, that's been a long time.

Along with this show, we host another Mariners podcast called Control the Zone, which we post every Monday and Wednesday on Patreon. So if you want to hear us talk more about the Mariners today, we'll have a new episode out for you on patreon.com forward slash control the zone later tonight. But on today's episode of Lockdown Mariners, we will be getting into that brutal extra innings loss against the lowly rangers last night at Team Mobile Park. Then we'll get a bit more, you know, hashtag positive by discussing the AA promotions of top Mariners pitching prospects, Emerson Hancock and George Kirby.

And then we'll wrap things up with a preview of tonight's game. A must win for the Mariners with Tyler Anderson on the mound against former top prospect Spencer Howard of the Rangers. But first, be sure to subscribe or follow us wherever you prefer your podcast. We'd greatly appreciate it. Colby last night was aggravating to say the least. But putting that aside for a moment, if you're able to, how are you doing? Not well.

Yeah, yeah. I don't know if you saw the lockdown now that I did on Twitter. Or if you heard my voice in that, really, I was very low energy for a very good reason because that game was bad. It was bad. It was really bad. I just logged off of social.

media. Probably yeah, after the second hit, the second run, the ranger scored in the in the 10th. I was just,

I'm done and it's you know, at that point. It was predictable, right? Yeah, it was very predictable. The pathetic at-bats that you got from

J.P. Crawford and Mitch Hanager with the bases loaded and nobody out. I mean, I, not the first time that Mitch Hanigur had a pathetic can bat either in that game with runners in scoring position.

Yeah, the first two at-bats were great. And then they went straight downhill into Garbage Town. It was, it was, they were bad. And I mean, Mitch Hanigar and J.P. Crawford could have sat in the batters box and won that game for Seattle. And instead they decided to swing. That's not even the most aggravating part of the ninth inning. What is Scott Service doing asking Cal Raleigh, who hasn't had to punt in like 10 years to lay a bunt when the closers just walk two guys.

Why? What is the point of that? You have a struggling pitcher on the mound who's just walked back to back guys and your grand strategy is let's give the Rangers an out. Why wouldn't we do that? Of course we should give the Rangers an out. What? The whole thing was aggravated.

That's not to count the number of 92 mile an hour fastballs right down the pipe. that Mariners hitters were just like, eh, no, not going to swing at that. That'd be too easy to hit. Let me try and get that cutter off the plate. That'll be the pitch I want to try and swing at. I just, the whole night was aggravating as heck. Gilbert was aggravating as well. He just, I mean, the final numbers were fine, but it was, it was not a particularly great outing from him.

Nope. It's just, and then, of course, it doesn't matter because everybody's going to heap the blame on the bullpen. and that's not the bullpen's fault. Could the bullpen have been better? Yeah, sure. Sure, but that loss isn't on the bullpen. That loss is 100% on the offense. Oh, they had, yeah, they had,

bases loaded. Jake Bowers walked, Jared Kelnick walked, Cal Raleigh singles, and then Jake Fraley, of course, in typical Jake Fraley fashion, walks in a run, the tying run, they have no one out. No one out.

The game is right there to be won. All you need is a fly ball. And not even that deep of a fly ball, because the runner on third was Kelnick, right? Yep. So you didn't even need that much out of your lead-off hitter and your number two hitter. Against Spencer,

Pat. It just, heck, yeah, that's what that whole game boils down to. And again, you had other opportunities to take the lead in this one, did not capitalize.

I mean, they, you know, we talked yesterday about how good they've been against Colby Allard, or rather how bad Colby Allard has been against them, however you want to look at it. And there are some horrible abats against Colby Aller. I mean,

Louis Terence was, those were putrid. His first two at bats were the, least competitive at bats I've ever seen in my life. He stared in those first two at bats. He stared at four pitches down the middle of the plate. And then he had the nerve to look at back at the umpire. Like, you called that a strike?

Of course he did. That's where you tell the batting practice pitcher to throw it. Come on. It was so bad. Those were the worst two at bats I've ever seen at the major league level. I would have been more understanding if he had just swung at three pitches over his head. then him just sitting there and staring at fastballs down the middle of the play and then pretending that the umpire was was not giving him a good zone get out of here louise

that's on you those were terrible i the whole night was just piling on top of each other and it was it was bad it was a pathetic effort at times it looked like they didn't care now they're professionals of course they care but at times it was I don't know It's like why are you not swinging at that pitch And then when you get into the night There was a lot of there was a lot of weird takes Abraham Toro had a really weird take for a called strike three

It was just like right down the pipe Yeah just a really weird Approach from from the Mariners setters last night It felt like the only thing they cared about Yeah it felt like the only thing they cared about Was making the Rangers throw more pitches Like, which isn't really what you want to do against. No.

The Rangers are bad. They're bad when they give you a cookie. Eat it. It's not that hard. I don't understand this, this game plan of, oh, well, we'll just get,

we're going to wait for our pitch. Fastballs down the middle at 92 miles an hour are not your pitch. What are we doing? That was an awful, awful, awful offensive game plan approach, whatever it was. Whatever it was, it stunk on ice. And it just, it all culminates in the ninth inning.

When you get literally, Mitch Hanager could have gone up there and sat down and he would have given you a better at bat than what you actually got from him. Same goes for J.P. Crawford. Yeah. The Rangers were literally going to hand you that win. And you were just like, nope, don't want it.

Yep. Rough night overall for the bats. And, you know, you mentioned it as well with Logan Gilbert. 72 fastballs of his 97 pitches and all. He threw 19. sliders and only and only six of them went for strikes or non-balls, basically.

13 of them were called for balls. And then you had four curveballs and two change-ups or maybe it was the other way around. Either way. Yeah, all those fastballs from Logan Gilbert is a problem. You know, we talked about it yesterday that he needs to develop

you know, a legit secondary slash tertiary option, which he does have. He just hasn't been able to execute it. at the major league level thus far, or at least he's really shied away from it. He's really shied away from the change up, and I know that it hasn't really been a great pitch for him thus far,

but he shows no confidence at all in that offering right now. No, it's not a good pitch. And Gilbert against good teams is going to get lit up if he goes out there with that game plan. Now, the fastball control and command were pretty good. He was throwing him for strikes. and at the end of the day, six innings, two runs against anybody is a solid outing. But you can't survive in Major League Baseball with a fastball, only a fastball, no matter how good it is.

He's got some stuff to figure out. That was coming off of an extra day's rest. So, yeah, honestly, I'm a little concerned about Logan Gilbert, not in the long term, just for the rest of this season. He's got to figure something out. He needs a secondary pitch. And at times we've seen him have a really good slider or a really good change-up. and against, you know,

team like the Yankees, he had both. But since that Yankees start, he hasn't had either. It's just been basketball. And it's, it's been, you know, frustrating to watch because it's just, it's not even close with the other pitches right now.

Yeah. So coming up, we'll be talking about the double A promotions of George Kirby and Emerson Hancock, but once again, this episode is brought to you by Green Room. Green Room is the first social audio platform made for sports fans.

The app is free to do. download and once you're in, you can talk with bands, athletes and insiders in real time about your favorite team or sport. Green Room is the perfect place to start or join conversations about Major League Baseball. You can even find locked on hosts across the NBA, MLB, and NHL. And soon, you'll even be able to talk to Colby and I about the Mariners once a week. So go download the free Green Room app now currently available on all iOS devices. Be sure to create a profile, link your Twitter and join the MLB group for the latest league updates. I know you will find a ton of incredible rooms around your favorite teams and

leagues. And we can't wait to join you all on the app. So we'll be sure to let you know once the locked on Mariners room is live. Download the green room app today. Green room, changing the way we talk sports. This is locked on Mariners tomorrow. We're going to talk about whether or not the Mariners should pick up Kyle Seeger's club option this off season. So be sure to join us then. But now let's talk about the double A promotions of top Mariners pitching prospects George Kirby and

Emerson Hancock. Both of these guys, top prospects in the Mariners system, they have spent most of the season down at High A. Everett. Both of them had shoulder fatigue and were off for a little bit here in the mid

season. Hancock at Everett, 31 innings pitch, 871 Ks per 9, 3771. walks per 9, 232 ERA, 387, FIP. Kirby at high A. A. A. A. A. 41 and two-thirds innings pitch, 11.23Ks per 9, 1.73 walks per 9. He actually walks someone, breaking news, 238 ERA and a 240 FIP. Kirby was promoted earlier on in the week. Hancock got called up the next day.

What do you think about this, despite their shoulder issues that they've had? earlier this year and what, you know, their additions to the Arkansas pitching staff means for that team. Yeah, Arkansas probably has the best rotation in all of minor league baseball right now. Yeah. You look at Kirby, you look at Hancock, you look at Williamson, you look at Brash. I'm sure I'm forgetting somebody. But those are-suits in there. Yeah, I mean, those are four of the top 10-ish prospects in the Mariners system.

And arguably the four best starting pitching prospects in the mariner system, depending on who you ask. And they're all on that Arkansas team. So obviously for that Arkansas team, if you're a fan, you're going to have a lot of fun watching that team. Julio Rodriguez is down there as well. So, you know, the migration south from Everett to Arkansas has been a real thing. In terms of what it means for Hancock and Kirby, well, it means they're both healthy. relatively healthy.

And, you know, we had heard that Jerry and Andy McKay and these guys, they, it wasn't like Hancock and Kirby that were like severely hurt, right? This is a team being ultra conservative with two guys who didn't really get to pitch last year. And it's just about, hey, let's, anything that's a little bit off, we're not going to take a chance on. And besides that, these guys are probably on innings cap anyways. So, you know, let's not ask them to go out there and burn five or six of their precious innings this year when they're not feeling 100%. So it's good news that they're both healthy.

We'll see how they handle double A. It is a step up in competition for both of them. The numbers in Everett were fine. But both have, you know, legitimate things to work on. And both are still a little bit of ways from the big league. So this isn't going to be like a precursor to them coming up in. September or anything like that. And I don't believe this is a precursor to them having a real shot to make the

Big League club out of spring training next year because they both have legitimate things that they need to work on. And, you know, double A is just going to challenge them a little bit more and make those weaknesses, we'll call them for now, a little more obvious or a little more, you know, harder to cover up with just the raw stuff you can get away with at the high A level. So it's a good thing for both of them. It's a good thing for Arkansas. And hey, it's fun for Mariners fans to start looking at that double A rotation.

And because, you know, double A, you're literally one step from the big leagues. So it's, it's worth getting excited about. Yeah, yeah. You know, Kirby or for Kirby, it's really about what's beyond that fastball. Because the fastball is one of the best pitches in the entire system. it's about, you know, what can he develop behind that. Hancock, it's more just about getting work, right? He didn't pitch last year after getting drafted.

This year, he's only thrown 31 innings. So slowly getting him there and ramping up competition for him. Should be exciting to see how these, how both of these guys do against higher competition. You know, you talked about it a little bit there. The timeline for them, and I'm sure those of you listening are wondering what, that timeline is. So Colby, what do you think this does for their timeline, if anything? And when do you think we'll see Emerson Hancock or George

Kirby or both at the major league level? I think the earliest you could possibly see either of them at the big league level is probably you know, 10, 11 months from now. So they're going to go through spring training. They're going to get big league invites. They're probably both going to head back to double

I would imagine. But we'll see. We'll see how this thing goes. We'll see how quickly they progress. But, you know, this is a team that you hope is going out this offseason to add veterans starting pitching to really raise the floor. And from everything we've been told, that's their number one priority. They want that top rotation starter. Maybe not an ace, but they want that number two at least.

And if that's the case, you can't really rely on. on Kirby or Ancock to be that right away. It's not fair to them. Can't ever rely on Logan Gilbert to be that right now. No, I mean, right now Gilbert's a four who's trying to figure things out, you know, like most of the rotation is. So, yeah, I feel like both of these guys probably a year. And then I think, though, that the first time they're actually going to have a shot to

stick, assuming they're both in the organization, they're pretty attractive as trade pieces. So keep that in mind. But assume they both say, the organization. I don't think they actually come to the big leagues and stay until 2023. And part of that is due to the whole year of development they lost due to the pandemic. So yeah, you know, it's it's I think you see them sometime next year in the summer. And then I think you probably see them have a legitimate shot to stick in a in a Mariners rotation, uh, sometime in

2020, probably May or June of 2023. Now baseball America has put Kirby ahead of Hancock in their rankings. I believe Kirby's in their, what, top 10, top 15, overall major league prospect rankings. Yep. Where, who would you prefer to have over the two looking at both? I have Hancock rated slightly higher than Kirby in my ranks. They're back to back. And I get it. For Kirby, it's about the breaking balls.

They're both very inconsistent. They both flash as above average offerings. And obviously he has the, you know, the plus control and the, above average command. But, you know, he needs more than the fastball. And the off speed stuff is still a work in progress. I think it'll get there. So I'm not worried about it.

But it is something that he needs to work on. And for Hancock, the change-ups probably the best off-speed pitch between the two. He also throws plenty of strikes, not quite the command, but the fastball velo comes a little bit easier. Hancock's just a little bit ahead of Kirby to me. Now, again, they're very close. You can go either way. but I actually, I think Hancock still carries a little bit more upside,

and I think he's a little bit further along with his secondary pitches. So that's why I would have Hancock ahead of Kirby. But, you know, if baseball America sees it the other way, I mean, they're not wrong. I'll say that. For sure. So coming up, we're going to be talking about tonight's matchup between Tyler Anderson and Spencer Howard, a couple of deadline acquisitions for each team. The first, you know what gets my energy up after a disappointing loss,

Colby. What's that, Ty? Some belt bar, of course. And I might not just have one. I might have two. And by two, I mean, I'll probably have three because guess what? They're healthy and tasty. I can devour my favorite flavor, the salted caramel, but then I might

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to sign up today and receive your 50% welcome bonus on your first deposit with promo code locked on. Bet online, your online sports book experts. This is locked on Mariners tonight. The Mariners are going to try to bounce back against the Rangers in the second game of this three game set. Spencer Howard on the mound for the Rangers tonight, right-handed.

former top prospect out of Philadelphia who came over in the Kyle Gibson deal at the trade deadline. Tyler Anderson squaring off against him for the Mariners. And his two starts with the Mariners, he's gone 10 and a third inning's pitch, five earn runs allowed. 11 hits, seven strikeouts, two walks. Colby, what are you hoping to see from this Mariners team tonight? A hit. Hit the freaking baseball into the field of play. Stop staring at 92-mile-an-hour cookies down the middle of the plate.

Did I mention hit? Hit the ball. I don't care if you lose. Do not lose three to two. Hit the ball against a struggling young pitcher. I don't care what his stuff is like. I don't care. Hit the ball.

It's not that difficult. And if it is, you shouldn't be in the big leagues. When Jake Bowers is having the best at bats after the seventh inning, you have an issue. Hit. Jesus. Hit the ball. Advance it forward, please.

That's all I'm asking. Oh, and it'd be nice if Anderson could go five or six again and, you know, keep them in the game and play good defense and all that stuff. But hit. Get hits. Yes. Just swing the bat. Get it off your shoulders.

Please. I would rather you swing at every single pitch tonight. no matter how close it is to the plate than what you did last night. Last night was an abomination and an embarrassment to the game of baseball. Hit. Jesus. It's not rocket science. Hit the baseball.

Swing at it. You can't hit the baseball when you watch it get thrown by you at mediocre velocity. Hit it. Thank you for coming to my TED talk. Yeah. I second that notion, though. you have to absolutely hit in this game. There is no excuse.

I mean, you mentioned that Spencer Howard has pretty good stuff, obviously, former top prospect, but he hasn't really figured it out yet at the major league level. So jump all over him. You need to. This is a must win.

I said it at the top of the show. I fully believe this is a must win for the Mariners. We talked about it on Monday show that I believe this team needed to sweep. And obviously that's not possible now. But you cannot lose the series. So the Texas Rangers heading into the biggest series of the year against the Blue Jays, who by the way lost last night and you could have picked up ground on. It's really, really frustrating.

You know, I don't think that the playoff chances are necessarily dead, especially now that the Red Sox are in the second wild card spot. And they're awful right now. But you still got a leapfrog, the Jays. you still got a leapfrog the Yankees and you're going to have to leapfrog the Red Sox who are still Game 7 match. It's over. By the way,

Spencer, yeah, it's done. Spencer Howard, 68% fastballs. He likes to throw it in the middle of the play and up in the zone. The change up is pretty good. But he also throws it up in the zone.

The cutter is thrown up in the zone. The curveball is thrown up in the zone. the zone. Go up there, attack the fastball. It's going to be down the middle of the plate. There's a chance I throw something out of a window tonight if I see more of what I saw last night. Well, if it's your computer, then I presume you will not be joining me for tomorrow's

episode. That would be a big time fact, yes. Well, that's going to do it for today's show. If you don't see Colby tomorrow, I guess you. you know what happened, but appreciate you tuning in. Hope to see you tomorrow as we go over what is hopefully a better offensive performance than whatever that was last night from the Mariners. But if you want to keep the Seattle sports talk going, check out Locked on Seahawks.

As Corbyn Smith, Nick Lee and Rob Rang get you set for the team's first preseason game against the Raiders this Saturday for Colby Pat node. I'm Tideon Gonzalez and this has been locked on Mariners. be sure to give us a follow on Twitter at L-O-U-U-U-N-S-Rerner. You can follow me at Dane Gonzalez, that's D-A-N-E, G-N-Z-L-Z, and Colby at CPAT-11. Have yourself a beautiful baseball day, and we'll see you tomorrow. Betting on Major League Baseball doesn't have to be a guessing game.

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