Pregame: Mariners open series at Orioles trying to stop 3-game losing streak

BALTIMORE — No surprises with the Mariners’ lineup vs. right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez. Manager Scott Servais stays with his platoons with Adam Lind and Franklin Gutierrez.

It’s been raining in Baltimore since 6 a.m. this morning. The tarp is on the field. There is unlikely to be pregame batting practice.

Manager Scott Servais wasn’t certain what the timetable would be with varying reports on the forecast.

“I’ve heard different times of when it’s supposed to stop,” he said.  “I’ve heard 5:00 and then I heard 6:30. I don’t know. ”

It won’t change anything with his pitching plans.

“It looks like there is going to be a window so we are going to play at some point,” he said. “Knowing that, it really doesn’t change what we are going to do there. Everybody is talking about, ‘oh, start a reliever first.’ But we aren’t going to do anything like that.”

Here’s the forecast for Baltimore

The weather for the weekend is supposed to be worse.

“It’s supposed to be a little rough when we get to Cincinnati,” Servais said. “Which I don’t think I’ve ever been to Cincinnati when it is hasn’t rained. It’s typical.”

*** Tony Zych is not on the trip as he recovers from rotator cuff tendinitis. Zych started playing catch this past weekend, which is a big step in the recovery.

“He’s still throwing,” Servais said. “Everything is moving on a slower pace, but we want to make when he does come back that he doesn’t get shut down again. We want to make sure to build him back up.”

Batter vs. pitcher matchups 

Mariners’ numbers vs. Ubaldo Jimenez

Orioles’ numbers vs. Wade Miley

American League West Standings

Around the AL West 

*** The Angels won their fourth straight game behind the hitting of Albert Pujols and Mike Trout.  Los Angeles is on the verge of signing Tim Lincecum to a one-year deal. They needed starting pitching and Lincecum didn’t want to pitch out of the bullpen. Meanwhile Garrett Richards is going to put off Tommy John and have an injection in his elbow instead. 

*** Some more reaction from the punch heard around baseball. Odor also talked with the media in Oakland (video included). Also old friend Tom Wilhelmsen pitched his way back into Class AAA.

*** Sean Manaea cut his hair and pitched his way to a win over the Rangers. Roster moves for the A’s

*** Struggling OF Carlos Gomez was placed on the DL with a strained muscle in his ribcage. Third base prospect Collin Moran will join the club.

On this day in Mariners’ history 

• 1977 – Catcher Skip Jutze hit the first grand slam home run in Mariner history and the Mariners went on to beat the Baltimore Orioles, 10-2, at the Kingdome.
• 1985 – Mariner second baseman Jack Perconte ended the Major Leagues longest home run drought (by a non-pitcher) with his first career home run in 990 at-bats. But it wasn’t enough as six Baltimore first-inning runs powered the Birds to an 11-3 win at the Kingdome.
• 1990 – Brian Giles goes 3×4 with two home runs (including a grand slam) and 7 RBI and the Mariners scored nine in the 3rd on their way to a 14-0 lead and an eventual 14-6 win.
• 1992 – Seattle scores three runs on solo HRs, including two by Edgar Martinez. Martinez and Henry Cotto hit back-to-back, two-out home runs in the eighth inning off Jimmy Key and the Mariners beat Toronto in the SkyDome 3-2. Martinez had also homered in the sixth inning to start the Mariners scoring.
• 1993 – Mike Blowers becomes the 13th-player in Major League history to hit grand slam home runs in two consecutive games. He hit the first off Bobby Witt at Oakland May 16 and the second off Criag Lefferts May 17 at Texas.  Seattle finished with a club-record 23 hits and tied the team mark with 16 runs in a 16-9 win.
• 1996 – The Mariners tally 13 runs on 21 hits but lose 14-13 on Chris Hoile’s two-out grand slam HR on a 3-2 pitch in the bottom of the ninth inning at Baltimore.
• 1998 – Glenallen Hill has his ninth-career, two home run game in a 4-3 loss at Toronto.
• 1999 – Edgar Martinez goes 3×3 with 2 HR and team record 5 runs scored vs. Minnesota; Butch Huskey hits GSHR.
• 2000 – John Halama needs just 87 pitches and tosses his 2nd career complete game.  Just one runner reached 2nd base.  The 87 pitches is the lowest amount tossed of any complete game in 2000.
• 2000 -Pat Gillick announces that the club has signed free agent Rickey Henderson to a one-year deal with an option for the 2001 season.
• 2002 – Jeff Nelson, on the DL after having bone chips removed from his right elbow, puts the bone chips up for auction on Ebay.
• 2003 – Ichiro hits his first leadoff home run in 2003, his seventh career leadoff home run.
• 2003 – Bret Boone hits two home runs in Comerica. He has now homered in every open American League Park.
• 2010 – Cliff Lee pitches a complete game, only to get a loss.  He struck out 10, and was the first since Freddy Garcia in 1999 to pitch a complete game with at least 10 strikeouts and receive the loss.
• 2015 – James Paxton tossed a career-high 8.0 scoreless innings to lead the Mariners over Boston 5-0…Paxton extended his scoreless streak to 20.0 IP…Brad Miller hit his 5th home run of the season and 4th home run over his last 5 games.

Pitching probables

Game notes