8/4/20: Open Game Thread

We’re in the magical time of the year where the most exciting players in the high minor leagues, previously hidden from fans writ large in the minors/alternate sites thanks to ill-designed rules that reward teams forfor desigingrostersning rosters around service time instead of peak competitiveness magical improvements in defense/command/grit over the past 10-20 days! That means tonight, at last, the Mariners will be the first club to face Angels 21 year old wunderkind OF Jo Adell. The Angels will play Adell every day, now that the club has been buried in a 3-7 start. Shohei Ohtani will sit, after suffering a forearm injury that will end his season as a pitcher, though shouldn’t keep him from DHing, per manager Joe Maddon. The result is a still formidable lineup for Anaheim that the Mariners will send rookie RHP Justin Dunn against.

magical improvements in defense/plate discipline/control. So it is for 21 year old outfield wunderkind Jo Adell, who will start his first MLB game after watching his Angels sink into a 3-7 hole in what is at least 16.7% of the 2020 season. Even with the massive new playoffs, Anaheim is on the outside looking in, but the next terror of the AL West has arrived at last.

On his opposite will be rookie RHP Justin Dunn, looking to build on his last outing in Anaheim where he had easily his best professional showing, in a start blemished only by a dinger to Shohei Ohtani, which Kate wrote about today in particular. We’ll have to wait for the rematch as Ohtani sits, resting his injured forearm which will keep him from pitching the rest of 2020. While he may return to DHing as soon as this series, he’s out tonight.

The M’s have a likely debut of their own in the bullpen, with RHP Joey Gerber called up this afternoon in a series of moves covered here. Last week’s piggyback partner for Dunn was LHP Nick Margevicius, who will likely fill the spot start Saturday in place of Kendall Graveman. Graveman is hopefully only in line to miss a single start. The M’s also get to face the return of new dad Mike Trout, a fearsome thought they’ll counter with a lineup that is at least 5/9ths second baseman.

GAME TIME: 7:10 PM PST

TV: ROOT/ESPN

Radio: 710 AM

Online: MLB.TV