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One of the most interesting and frustrating things about baseball is that success doesn't perfectly correlate with victory. Yesterday a haunted, shivering Joe Saunders allowed nearly half (13 out of 29) of his opponents to reach base, but only gave up four runs and kept the Mariners, nominally, in the ballgame. Meanwhile, a Mariners bullpen that has, on average, been fairly strong throughout the season, has been slapped with two losses on consecutive days. One comes away with the sense that it isn't fair, or that it is by definition fair, or that there is no such thing as fairness, based on one's philosophical predilections.
The lineups:
| 1. Michael Saunders | CF | 1. Michael Bourn | CF |
| 2. Dustin Ackley | 2B | 2. Jason Kipnis | 2B |
| 3. Kyle Seager | 3B | 3. Michael Brantley | LF |
| 4. Kendrys Morales | DH | 4. Nick Swisher | 1B |
| 5. Michael Morse | RF | 5. Jason Giambi | DH |
| 6. Raul Ibanez | LF | 6. Carlos Santana | C |
| 7. Justin Smoak | 1B | 7. Mark Reynolds | 3B |
| 8. Jesus Montero | C | 8. Mike Aviles | SS |
| 9. Brendan Ryan | SS | 9. Drew Stubbs | RF |
| FELIX | SP | Justin Masterson | SP |
The Hot Hand buys himself at least one more start, which is understandable, while the guy with easily the best OBP on the roster hits in front of Montero and Ryan, which is less so. The lineup is actually the same as yesterday, minus an Endy Chavez and plus a Condor.
On the Indians side, the graybeard Jason Giambi returns to the lineup. This could be the very last time you ever see Giambi play, as is true any time he starts, so if you're inclined toward nostalgia, drink that up.
It is in fact a Felix Day, for which we should all rejoice. The Mariners in turn face Justin Masterson, who is quite good at pitching, and seems to be even better at it now than he was before. This could very well be a 2-1 game, or a 7-4 game, or a 5-1, because they are all possible scores for baseball.