Those groundball outs helped Sheff keep his pitch count low, and he got in the seventh inning– longer than he d ever made it in a game in his professional profession– with simply around 70 pitches, en path to 87 on the night. Luis Torrens worked with Sheffield tonight, and continued to demonstrate some strong framing behind the plate.
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The Rangers gameplan was to leap on Sheffields fastball before letting him get to his Death Star slider, and Sheff adapted to that by blending his pitches more, specifically mixing in the changeup; he threw his fastball and changeup in almost equal percentage, tossing the slider simply a quarter of the time tonight. The result was a ton of weak contact and groundball after groundball. Sheff tape-recorded 8 of his outs by means of the groundball, and its just a real happiness to view this infield defense work.
Justus Sheffield likes pitching in T-Mobile park, as seen by his house ERA (2.70) vs. his roadway ERA (7.24 ). Tonight he was every bit Home Sheff, going a career-high seven innings with six strikeouts and 2 earned runs, one on a solo crowning achievement.
My papa was never ever one of those parents who let me win at video games. Anyway, the most painful feel of my childhood was when I believed I was about to take my father down at a video game of ability– not something like Clue, where youre racing to cross things off process-of-elimination design, or Monopoly, where a couple of bad rolls can hinder your whole game, but something that included technique or understanding or ability. I set my sights on things like Boggle, Scattergories; word-based things that would be in my wheelhouse.
What Im attempting to state, Rangers, is I feel your discomfort in flailing against a seemingly unassailable opponent.
I cant speak with what Torrens was performing in San Diego because I havent dug deep on him yet, however I understand the Mariners coach their catchers to work from the bottom of the zone approximately steal strikes without being obvious about it, carefully pushing the ball back into the zone. Its something Nola grew to be excellent at and something Torrens is also doing so far:
A good night for Justus Sheffield, and remarkable work from Luis Torrens who framed him up actually perfectly on a couple crucial pitches, like this rally-killing K: pic.twitter.com/ZMC2dgmu4U— Lookout Landing (@LookoutLanding) September 6, 2020
The Rangers challenged Torrens arm, swiping four bags amount to off him (one in a double steal), so thats something to keep an eye on. Its reassuring to see him work well with Sheffield, who continues to look more and more confident with every trip. One mistake pitch to Anderson Tejada cost him a shot at a win tonight, since the Mariners couldnt provide him any more assistance than just two meager runs.
Offensively, the Mariners did not have their finest night at the plate, and probably had they not been playing a group as offensively-challenged as Texas, could have found themselves outgunned. The Mariners were 5-for-12 with RISP tonight and left nine runners on base, consisting of leaving the bases loaded twice. Several times the Rangers presented the chance for the Mariners to blow the game open, and each time they politely decreased. Every starter had at least one hit, and Ty France, who I am already becoming really connected to, had two, and worked a walk. Ty France knows that hit tool/OBP-monsters are my love language, and I appreciate him making a collective bid for my heart early on. That walk France took, by the way, was with the bases filled, providing the Mariners their second run of the night in the third. Their very first came courtesy of Kyle Lewis, who struck this single at 108.6 miles per hour, the hardest-hit ball of the night:
My father was never one of those moms and dads who let me win at video games. Anyway, the most agonizing feel of my childhood was when I thought I was about to take my papa down at a video game of skill– not something like Clue, where youre racing to cross things off process-of-elimination style, or Monopoly, where a few bad rolls can derail your entire game, but something that included method or understanding or ability. I set my sights on things like Boggle, Scattergories; word-based things that would be in my wheelhouse. Several times the Rangers provided the chance for the Mariners to blow the game open, and each time they pleasantly declined. Marmolejos drove in Seager with a single, providing us an exceptional example of Seager Running Face, and then Evan White ripped an RBI single of his own, clocking in at 106 mph EV for the third-hardest-hit ball of the game.
Lewiss skillset might not be as fancy as fellow AL ROY contender Luis Robert, but I actually appreciate his capability to get the barrel to the ball and make great things occur, even if the ball does not constantly leave the yard.
In spite of messing with Texas here and there, the Mariners would not get on the board once again up until the 8th, when they beat up on Jonathan Hernandez– the gentleman with the thousand-yard stare from the top of the wrap-up– for another three runs. Hernandez hit Seager with a pitch, a little like when I used to deliberately angle the Boggle board so it would be harder for my dad to see, and then my brand-new friend Ty France singled. Marmolejos drove in Seager with a single, providing us an exceptional example of Seager Running Face, and then Evan White ripped an RBI single of his own, clocking in at 106 mph EV for the third-hardest-hit ball of the video game. Phillip “do not call me Phil” Ervin followed with a double down the left-field line, likewise referred to as the Mitch Haniger Memorial Alley, for his first hit as a Mariner and a 5-2 lead for the Mariners.
Maybe I feel bad about celebrating over the Mariners dominance over the Rangers. So frequently has it been the Mariners who are enjoying the sand on the timer run out, understanding what they have will not be enough.
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That implies its Yohan Ramirez conserve time, child. It wasnt all smooth cruising for Ramírez, who offered up a solo shot to Shin-Soo Choo (who solitarily attempted to raise the Rangers to victory tonight, with four hits including the home run), but bounced back to close things out and earn his second save– and a win for Joey Gerber, who had actually pitched a scoreless eighth. Gerb Nation rejoices.
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