Mariners Game #87 Preview, 7/7/23: SEA at HOU

The Mariners got off to a solid start in the series last night, with a shutdown performance by George Kirby while the offense took advantage of spot starter Ronel Blanco. Tonight the offense will face a tougher test against breakout candidate Hunter Brown, although the Mariners will send their own challenge to the mound in the form of another All-Star, Luis Castillo.

Lineups:

Today’s news:

• This is more gossipy than actual news but did you see Astros outfielder Chas McCormick intentionally swiping at Ty France’s glove/arm on that amazing J.P. Crawford play in the ninth? Here’s a link to the video if you missed it. Per Ryan Divish, McCormick texted France postgame to apologize about the play, although our sweet golden retriever in human form apparently didn’t even realize what had happened. I’m not sure what that apology could have said— “hey bro, sorry I intentionally tried to interfere with you doing your job, opening you up to suffer (another) injury while fielding your position, my bad!”—but we’ll see if that has any carryover effect in tonight’s game.

Today’s game information:

Today’s game starts at 5:10 PT. Once again, Angie Mentink and Aaron Goldsmith will be on the call on ROOT Sports NW on the TV side, with Rick Rizzs and Gary Hill Jr. covering things on the radio side, as Dave Sims will be in Seattle for the first annual Ken Griffey Jr. HBCU Swingman classic. If you’re interested in attending, the event starts at 7 PM and tickets are just $10. There are also still tickets available for tomorrow’s Futures Game; you can get in the door as cheaply as $13 bucks currently on Gametime to see two Mariners prospects, Harry Ford and Jonatan Clase, in addition to several other bright young players in the game.

Today in Mariners history:

• 1994: Randy Johnson passes Mark Langston to becomes Mariners’ all-time leader in wins, with 75.
• 2000: Rickey Henderson moves into 2^nd place all-time with 2,020 walks, surpassing Ted Williams.
• 2011: Kyle Seager makes his MLB debut at Anaheim. He would go on to play the entirety of his career with the Seattle Mariners, becoming just the third player in franchise history to do so (Edgar Martínez, Felíx Hernández).
• 2017: Nelson Cruz hits his 300th career home run.