9/9: Open Game Thread

While fall has crept up on us these last few weeks, today's sunshine is a nice reminder that baseball is still here. The Oakland A's are also still here, but y'all, this is a very bad bunch of baseball players. I tweeted this earlier, so apologies for the lack of creativity, but I am still gobsmacked by it: By fWAR, the Phillies are 29th in the MLB Position Player WAR with 7.3. The Royals are 21st, with 12.8. The Phillies are closer to the Royals than they are to the 30th place team, which is this Oakland team, whose position players have amassed just 1.6 fWAR AS A TEAM. (The Mariners are 13th, with 16.8) If you are in the Oakland/Bay Area and feel like catching some Friday Night Baseball™, let's just say it would be... Affordable.

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This weekend will see the Mariners three best pitchers face two rookies, including Daniel Mengden tonight. Mengden's numbers are rough, though his peripherals indicate that his 6.66 ERA is a bit inflated. His penchant for walks and fly balls should theoretically fit with what the Mariners do well, and if they can continue their offensive success against Texas, this could be a very satisfactory game. Hisashi Iwakuma is on the mound, as he dependably always is, which is perhaps the most outrageous true thing of 2016.

A Danny Valencia-less lineup is something the Mariners will not likely protest, as the A's best hitter will take a seat to younger players for this rebuilding A's squad. The M's playoff odds sit at 5% right now, and they are most likely done in that regard, because they have left the range in which projections and expectations will support them.

Let's do this, what the hell.

Game Time: 7:05 PM PT

TV: ROOTNW, MLB.tv

Radio: 710 AM ESPN Seattle, 910 AM Portland

Go M's.