Mariners Win! Yay! A Meaningful Win for Our Fandom to Champion!

For the third straight day, we had Mariners baseball to feast our eyes ears upon!

This is fun for me because I like to watch listen to baseball and so do you, right? Why else would you be here? Right?

After yesterday’s three and a half hour death march of death, we were presented with a fun-ish (kind of) (maybe?) baseball game as a prize (the best kind of prize, the kind that you can’t watch or access easily. Yes and for the third time in these opening hundred words, I am looking right at you ROOT Sports).

Jarred Kelenic was getting the start against his hometown Brewers, Sheff was making his ST debut, other young future staples like Shed, KLew and JP were getting the start too with Kendall Graveman starting on the mound. After yesterday’s game, we deserved this. Heck, after the past seventeen years, we deserved this. This incredibly meaningful 2020 ST game against the Milwaukee Brewers, only found live on WTMJ Radio (yeah thats right, this is the official radio broadcast network of Sartori Cheese that we’re talking about) would obviously be the turning point of our famed and storied franchise.

The momentum shifted in the favor of the good guy M’s early with a single by known big body buff boy JP Crawford, until he was caught stealing by our former defensive savant of a catcher in Omar Narvaez. It happens to the best of us JP, you and your shiny new Nelson Cruz arms will get ‘em next time.

Famed new offseason acquisition Kendall Graveman pitched a clean first inning for the M’s, getting former Mariners Ben Gamel to ground out before walking Avisail Garcia and allowing other former M and aforementioned defensive master Omar Narvaez to ground into a double play.

In the top of the second, the trio of Vogey, White Claw and Kelenic went down three in a row, effectively ending Kelenic’s bid of going 1.000 this Spring and taking my hopes of any future success from our thirst trap king with it. In the bottom of the second Graveman gave up a leadoff hit to Jedd Gyorko before retiring the next three but not without some help from our future Gold Platinum Diamond Glove-winning SS JP Crawford.

Aside from a walk from Dylan Moore, an uneventful third offensively by the M’s led to Justus Sheffield’s 2020 ST debut. Justus put away the Brewers in order, striking out career minor leaguer Lucas Erceg in the process. Safe to say it was just prospect fatigue all along!

In the fourth after outs by JP and KLew, the first baseman duo of Vogey and Evan White rallied to each tally singles for the M’s. Kelenic struck out, stranding the two on the base paths, along with his hopes of ever contributing at the Major League level. Sorry Jarred, I don’t make the rules.

Future Ace Justus Sheffield returned to the mound in the fourth, retiring the side in order and striking out the final two batters he faced, including Omar Narvaez.

After pitching changes by both sides in the fifth, both sides went in order with Cody Anderson taking the mound for the M’s.

JP Crawford and Daniel Vogelbach attempted to put the first runs on the board in the sixth with a JP Crawford walk and Vogey single where JP tried to go from first to home on a single? (a single to left field, but still). This was JP’s second time getting thrown out on the bases in this game, although it may not have been entirely his fault (maybe an aggressive send? The fun of spring training visiting-radio-only broadcasts is the not knowing!).

Mark Mathias would hit a leadoff single off of pitching sub Joey Gerber before a double play turned in by former Mariner David Frietas and a groundout put the side away.

In the 7th, White Claw would open the inning with a leadoff double to center (he was replaced on the bases by Jose Siri, and because the Brewers broadcast > the Cubs broadcast, there was not a Siri joke in sight).

Now stepping up the plate, Kelenic followed up Evan White’s double with a single into right, allowing Jose Siri to trot home after a muffed grab by the right fielder and allowing Kelenic to grab his first RBI of the Spring another hit as Siri scored on an E9.

Folk legend and new Mariner fan favorite Brian O’Keefe would bring the young Kelenic home on a pop up single, now pushing Seattle to a 2-0 lead.

The Brew Crew would tack on a run in the bottom of the seventh after a walk and a double against sidearmer Wyatt Mills before a largely uneventful final two innings for both sides. Zac Grotz made his season debut, tossing a scoreless 1-2-3 inning with two strikeouts, and something called a Dietrich Enns closed out the game, earning the all-important Spring Training save.

Beyond just the first M’s win of this young Spring, many young guys turned in some pretty good games highlighted by Top Sheff’s no-hit three-K two innings, Evan White (2-3 at DH), JP (1-2 with a walk and a couple of nice plays defensively) and a 1-3 day from Kelenic with what should have been his first RBI of the Spring.

The dynasty has arrived, Kelenic 4 MVP, the other teams can just go home at this point.

Mariners win, young players played well, baseball is back.

Let me have this at least until something goes wrong tomorrow against the Reds.