Mariners’ Playoff Push Starts With Kade Anderson in Must-Win Athletics Series

The Mariners have spent five months burning through their margins. It’s pretty much gone at this point. They’re now gearing up for a four-game home series against the Athletics that will determine whether Seattle’s playoff talk still sounds credible afterwards.

The Mariners enter the series at 66-74, sitting five games behind Houston in the AL West and 4 1/2 games out of the final AL Wild Card spot. With 22 games remaining, those deficits are manageable only if the Mariners start winning at a pace they haven’t sustained all season.

Seattle must go 16-6 just to finish 82-80. Taking three of four from the Athletics would leave the Mariners at 69-75, requiring a 13-5 finish. A sweep would move them to 70-74 and lower that demand to 12-6. Split the series, and Seattle would need to close 14-4.

Taking at minimum three out of four here is a must.

Baseball’s Easiest Remaining Schedule Gives Mariners One Final Opening

The schedule has done them an enormous favor after they endured MLB’s toughest slate in August. Seventeen of the final 22 games come against the Athletics, Angels and Rockies, the only three teams currently playing below .400. Seven of those games are against the Athletics over the next 11 days. They couldn’t have handpicked a cleaner route back into the race. It’s really up to them to take it.

The Athletics’ 54-86 record makes them an inviting opponent, but their offense has scored 611 runs, 56 more than Seattle. They have also hit .279 over their last 10 games, while the Mariners have hit .221. That should eliminate any idea that four automatic victories are waiting for them when they touch down in Seattle. Also factor in that they played at 4:10pm in Boston before flying across the country to start this series the following night.

Kade Anderson will get the first crack at them in his third major-league start. The rookie left Toronto with a 3-2 lead during his last outing, and now he has an opportunity to set the tone for Seattle’s most important series of the season. Opposing starter Jack Perkins enters with a 6.42 ERA.

Cal Raleigh has certainly done his share recently. He is 11-for-35 with six home runs over his last 10 games. Seattle still went 4-6 during that stretch, which tells us exactly how far one hot bat can carry an entire lineup.

The encouraging part is that Randy Arozarena, a guy who has been producing all year, isn’t alone right now. He opened the Boston series with four hits and four RBIs, homered in each of the first two games and added an RBI single in the finale. He also threw a runner out at home and made a diving catch Wednesday. Add in Lázaro Montes, who needed one night to make the lineup feel more dangerous.

Houston, Cleveland and the other teams packed into this messy AL race will determine exactly how much ground Seattle can gain. Three wins would keep the Mariners breathing. Four could make the standings genuinely interesting. A split would leave them mathematically alive and practically begging for a miracle.

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