Seattle Mariners vs. St. Louis Cardinals Pick & Prediction SEPTEMBER 8th 2024
Preview and Prediction
The St. Louis Cardinals have not been defeated in a series since August 16-18 and still have a glimmer of hope for a National League wild-card spot.
On Sunday afternoon, they will attempt to win another series as they finish a three-game set against the Seattle Mariners who are visiting.
The Mariners (72-71) won 6-1 on Friday, but the Cardinals (72-70) responded with a 2-0 victory on Saturday night.
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"Every day we are coming out here and fighting as a team, so it is enjoyable," said St. Louis catcher Pedro Pages after his two-run, eighth-inning homer secured Saturday's game.
"It is amazing - everyone in the dugout loved every moment of it," Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said of the homer, one of only two hits for the Cardinals.
St. Louis has won seven of their last ten games as they try to stay alive in the NL wild-card race. Currently, the Cardinals are six games behind the New York Mets for the third and final wild card spot. They would need to surpass not only the Mets, but also the Atlanta Braves and Chicago Cubs to secure a wild card berth.
The Cardinals will end the series against the Mariners with right-hander Miles Mikolas (8-10, 5.27 ERA), who only lasted four innings in his last start against the New York Yankees on Sunday. He gave up five runs (three earned) on seven hits, with five strikeouts and no walks in his team's 14-7 win.
Mikolas has allowed four or more runs in five of his last six starts. In his two career starts against the Mariners, he has a record of 1-0 with a 2.03 ERA.
Before Saturday, Seattle had won three consecutive games with a combined score of 28-8. Mariners shortstop J.P. Crawford praised new hitting coach Edgar Martinez during this successful stretch.
"He has been a huge help," Crawford told MLB.com on Friday. "He has been really good... the advice he gives is so simple, and it works better than anything else.
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"As a group, we have simplified a lot of things. Everyone is going into each at-bat relaxed and ready to do damage. We all have a plan, and in the last couple of games, the plan has been simple, and I think everyone has bought into it."
However, the Mariners took a step back on Saturday, going 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position and leaving 10 runners on base. In the process, they wasted a strong performance from Logan Gilbert, who pitched seven scoreless innings before giving up the home run to Pages.
The Mariners will turn to Luis Castillo (11-12, 3.60 ERA) for the final game of the series. In his last two starts, the veteran right-hander has given up four runs on 10 hits, including three home runs, in 12 2/3 innings.
Castillo is a familiar face to the Cardinals from his time with the Cincinnati Reds. In 19 career starts against St. Louis, he has a record of 6-8 with a 4.30 ERA.
The Cardinals received both good and bad news on the injury front on Saturday. Nolan Arenado returned to the lineup after leaving Friday night's game with left shoulder soreness. However, infielder/outfielder Brendan Donovan was not in the lineup and is listed as day-to-day.
"He has an infection in his foot that got worse overnight, and it is difficult for him to put any pressure on it right now," Marmol said on Saturday. "So he will have the day off today, and we will see how he recovers from it."
The Cardinals made a roster change during the series, recalling reliever Chris Roycroft from Triple-A Memphis and sending Kyle Leahy back to the club.
Leahy threw 39 pitches on Friday, allowing four runs (three earned) in 1 1/3 innings.
Seattle Mariners vs. St. Louis Cardinals Recap SEP 8TH 2024
Randy Arozarena and Jorge Polanco hit two-run home runs to power the visiting Seattle Mariners past the St. Louis Cardinals 10-4 Sunday.
Luke Raley and Mitch Garver drove in two runs apiece, and Raley, Arozarena, Julio Rodriguez and Justin Turner scored twice for the Mariners (73-71), who won for the fourth time in five games.
Seattle's victory came at a cost. Starting pitcher Luis Castillo exited the game with a left hamstring strain in the fourth inning.
Castillo allowed two runs on five hits while retiring nine batters before his departure. Reliever Trent Thornton (4-3) tagged in and pitched two scoreless innings to earn the victory.
Jose Fermin and Jordan Walker drove in two runs apiece for the Cardinals (72-71), who dropped two of three games to the Mariners to suffer their first series loss since Aug. 16-18 against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Mariners pounded Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas (8-11) for seven runs (six earned) on nine hits in two innings. Mikolas struck out three and walked none.
After getting shut out Saturday, Seattle rebounded to score five runs in the first inning.
Rodriguez led off the game with a double and scored on Cal Raleigh's single. After Arozarena hit a single, Raley delivered a two-run double.
Turner hit a single, and two outs and one passed ball later, Garver's two-run single made it 5-0.
The Mariners increased their lead to 7-0 in the second inning on a single by Rodriguez and Arozarena's 19th homer of the year.
The Cardinals got two runs back in the second inning. Nolan Arenado hit a leadoff single, Ivan Herrera hit a one-out double and Fermin drove them home with a two-out single.
But Seattle made it 9-2 in the fifth inning when Turner walked and Polanco hit his 14th home run.
St. Louis cut its deficit to 9-4 in the eighth inning when Matt Carpenter hit a double, Lars Nootbaar walked and Walker hit a two-run double.
Seattle added a run in the ninth inning on doubles by Raley and J.P. Crawford.