The Seattle Mariners took a hit in the wild card standings and their pursuit of a spot in the postseason. The bats went cold on Sunday (Aug. 20), with the offense getting shut down by starting pitcher Blake Snell of the Tampa Bay Rays. The 3-0 win for the Rays got the team out of last place in the American League East, but hurt the Mariners in the AL West.
The good news is that Yovani Gallardo made it to the seventh inning for the Mariners and the team ended up winning the three-game series against the Rays. This is a good way to start off the tough road trip, but the Mariners are going to really need to put together a great finish to the month of August to make sure that they don’t fall out of the Wild Card race.
Where do Mariners sit in updated Wild Card race?
At 63-62 on the season, the Seattle Mariners are one game behind the Minnesota Twins (62-59) and Los Angeles Angels (63-60) in the updated Wild Card standings. They are also four-and-a-half games behind the New York Yankees for that first Wild Card spot. All the other teams competing for those playoff spots have later games, meaning things could shift a bit before Sunday comes to an end.
The additional bad news for the Mariners is that the Kansas City Royals (61-61) and Texas Rangers (61-61) have a shot to catch them in the Wild Card standings. The Royals are playing against the Cleveland Indians on Sunday, while the Rangers are hosting the Chicago White Sox.
Victories by the Royals and Rangers would certainly tighten the race even further.
What’s up next on the schedule for the Mariners?
The Seattle Mariners continues this road trip with three games against the Atlanta Braves, beginning on Monday night (Aug. 21). The team will then travel to play the New York Yankees and Baltimore Orioles before finally heading home in the first week of September.
It’s a road trip that could make or break the season for the Mariners and the team has to put together some good games to maintain their position in the Wild Card standings.
The Mariners finished a home series win against the Orioles before starting on this road trip, showing that that upcoming series in Baltimore is very winnable.
It was a good way to bounce back after getting swept at Safeco Field by the Los Angeles Angels. Had that series gone differently, the updated Wild Card standings might look a little different. Now the Seattle Mariners will have to work to make up that lost ground and try to catch the Angels and Minnesota Twins next week.
