Mariners Game #132 Preview: 8/26/24, TBR at SEA

The Mariners try to build on their first series win in two weeks as Tampa Bay comes to town

When the Mariners last saw the Rays in late June, it was as part of a dismal road trip where they lost all three series, a near mirror-image of their latest fateful road trip that wound up costing Scott Servais and Jarrett deHart their jobs. The Mariners were still almost ten games over .500 at that time, while the Rays were fighting to stay just above .500. Fast forward two months and each team is hovering around .500 ball; the Rays, even at .500, are buried towards the bottom of the powerful AL East, having sold big at the trade deadline, including sending Randy Arozarena to the Mariners for two well-regarded prospects. Meanwhile, the Mariners, far from picking up steam at the trade deadline, have fallen back, ceding the lead—and likely the only playoff slot—in a weak AL West to the Astros. It’s grim times for both teams as the Mariners begin yet another mid-off after escaping the Giants with a series win this past weekend.

Lineups:

Luke Raley returns from his stomach bug and slots back in at the top of the lineup. Haniger takes a seat in favor of lefty Dominic Canzone.

The Rays have declined to publish a lineup graphic, probably because they wanted to avoid the traditional series-opening roast of their graphics department. Cowards. Here’s how they line up:

Dylan Carlson (S) LF
Brandon Lowe (L) 1B
Junior Caminero (R) DH
Christopher Morel (R) 2B
Josh Lowe (L) RF
Jonny DeLuca (R) CF
José Caballero (R) 3B
Ben Rortvedt (L) C
Taylor Walls (S) SS
Ryan Pepiot P

Rays starter Ryan Pepiot (PEP-ee-oh), the headline return in the Tyler Glasnow trade, made his first career start against Seattle in June and allowed just one run on one hit while striking out eight. However, he hasn’t gone into the seventh inning yet this season, and he has a propensity to walk hitters at times: he’s issued three or more walks in seven of his nineteen outings this season. The Mariners made San Francisco’s starters really work over the weekend series, taking 21 combined walks in the three games, so hopefully they’ll bring that same mindset to bear here in the series opener.

News:

• Erasmo Ramírez, the Tampa Bay Ray?

• Victor Robles is out of the lineup tonight as he continues to heal his index finger contusion, but is expected to return to the lineup tomorrow and would be available off the bench as a pinch-hitter.
• With an off day for the minor leagues, J.P. Crawford participated in a sim game today at T-Mobile Park. He could join one of the affiliates as they’re out on their road trips (El Paso for Tacoma and Vancouver BC for Everett) to continue his rehab assignment, but it sounds more like he might stick around the park and play in some more sim games before they make a decision.
• No encouraging updates from GM Justin Hollander on injured relievers Gregory Santos and Yimi García. García is expected to begin a throwing program in Arizona and the hope is he could maybe rejoin the team in September, but it will depend on how he feels as he ramps back up to throwing. There is no timeline for either reliever.

Game information:

Game time: 6:40 PT

TV: ROOT Sports NW, with Aaron Goldsmith and Mike Blowers

The game will also be simulcast on FS1 with Kenny Albert and Mark Sweeney

Radio: 710 Seattle Sports, with Rick Rizzs and Dave Sims

Today in Mariners history:

• 1991: Tino Martinez hits his first MLB home run, a 395-foot blast that ended up in the third deck of the Kingdome.
• 1993: Ken Griffey Jr. has back-to-back games where he hits two home runs.
• 2004: Ichiro Suzuki becomes the only player to collect at least 200 hits in each of his first four seasons in the big leagues. The milestone hit is a ninth-inning home run.
• 2022: Julio Rodríguez signs a long-term extension with the Mariners.