ANAHEIM, Calif. — As the Mariners opened their final road trip of the season, well regular season, Friday night at Angel Stadium, it started a run of the last 20 games of the regular season — the next 10 on the road and the final 10 at home — in a span of 21 days.
Those 20 games come against five teams with losing records that combine for a .394 winning percentage coming into Friday.
It’s the easiest remaining schedule of any team in baseball. The Mariners have a 39-32 record at home and a 41-30 record on the road.
After having eight off-days since Aug. 1, the Mariners have just one off-day (Monday, Sept. 26) the rest of the way and a doubleheader on the second-to-last day of the season.
It’s not exactly ideal for keeping players healthy and rested as they try to finalize their expected postseason berth, which would be the team’s first since 2001.
Manager Scott Servais said the Mariners will adjust their position player and pitcher usage accordingly with the idea of keeping his roster healthy while trying to win games and secure that playoff spot.
While they won’t say it, the Mariners are going to push to not just grab a wild-card spot, but lock up the first wild-card spot which means hosting the three-game wild-card series at T-Mobile Park.
“We’ve got 20 big games ahead of us and we need to keep these guys healthy,” Servais said. “I’ve talked a lot about over the last week, 10 days, we had a ton of off-days on the last homestand which is very beneficial. We’re able to play the same lineup and use a lot of the same pitchers. We’re now in a stretch of 20 games in 21 days, so we need to use our entire roster. That’s how you get into the playoffs. You trust in all your guys. I’ve talk to a couple of our bench guys and some of the bullpen guys who haven’t pitched much recently, they are going to pitch. I think it’s really important. We need to keep everybody healthy as we get going here down the stretch.”
Young starting pitchers like Logan Gilbert and George Kirby continue to add to their career high for innings pitched in a season. Relievers Andres Munoz and Matt Brash also need to have their usage monitored in the final weeks.
“These guys are not going to be available every night,” Servais said. “I would love them to be but with where we are right now with 20 games left to play, we’ve got to lean on everybody.”
Digs and dents
The Mariners rolled out a very different lineup Friday with Jake Lamb in right field and Curt Casali behind the plate. It’s largely because of some nagging injuries for the Mariners regulars.
Mitch Haniger (lower back spasms) took early batting practice Friday afternoon and took fly balls and ran the bases during the Mariners’ normal pregame workout.
The expectation is that he’ll return to the starting lineup Saturday.
“Hopefully, we’ll maybe get him in there tomorrow,” Servais said pregame. “I’ll talk to him here to see if he’s available to pinch hit tonight.”
Cal Raleigh was out of the starting lineup with a sore left thumb. The Mariners starting catcher jammed it while diving headfirst into first base in Wednesday’s series finale vs. the Padres. Raleigh was trying to avoid a tag at first base on a wayward throw from his ground ball.
“He had a bunch of treatment yesterday and today,” Servais said. “We thought let’s not get crazy with it because the thumb is still sore.”
Dylan Moore (oblique strain) reported to Class AAA Tacoma in Las Vegas to start a rehab stint. He will likely play a handful of games and then rejoin the Mariners in Anaheim before the team goes to Oakland for a three-game series.
“He’ll play over there for a couple days and then come back here,” Servais said. “He’s been feeling great. You have to trust the player and how he’s responding to the treatment and the work he’s putting in. I’m hoping he’ll be back with us sooner rather than later.
On the farm
Although it hasn’t translated to success at the MLB level, Jarred Kelenic continues to crush Triple-A pitching for Tacoma. The slugging outfielder went 3 for 4 with a double, a pair of homers and three RBI on Thursday.
Kelenic has an eight-game hitting streak where he has 12 hits in 32 at-bats with four doubles, two homers, four RBI, four walks and three stolen bases.
After being sent back down in early August after a brief big-league stint, Kelenic has posted a .290/.374/.544 slash line in 30 games and 131 plate appearances. He has 33 hits, including 11 doubles and six homers with 23 RBI, 14 walks, 21 strikeouts and five stolen bases.
The Mariners promoted outfielder Cade Marlowe to Class AAA Tacoma earlier this week after a solid showing with Class AA Arkansas. Marlowe, 25, posted a .291/.380/.483 slash line with 19 doubles, four triples, 20 homers, 86 RBI, 36 stolen bases, 55 walks and 133 strikeouts in 120 games for the Travelers. A 20th round pick in the 2019 draft out of the University of West Georgia, Marlowe is the No. 21 prospect in the Mariners organization per Baseball America.