Chicago @ Seattle preview
T-Mobile Park
Last Meeting ( Jun 22, 2010 ) Chi. Cubs 0, Seattle 2
A glance at the American League West standings tells one that the Seattle Mariners are not contenders for the division title.
But a glance at the past five games shows the Mariners have had the best pitching staff in the major leagues.
Seattle pitchers have posted three shutouts, including a 2-0 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday, in the past five games and allowed just two runs overall. The five-game winning streak is the team's longest since winning six in a row in April 2009.
With left-hander Cliff Lee on the mound, odds are the Mariners (29-41) are in excellent shape to extend the streak to six tonight and clinch their three-game series against the Chicago Cubs (31-39), who could be nine games under .500 for the first time since 2007.
Lee (5-3, 2.55 ERA) shut down the Cincinnati Reds in a 1-0 victory Friday, allowing six hits and striking out seven in a complete game.
No pitcher in major league history has enjoyed the strikeouts-to-walks ratio Lee has had through his first 10 starts of 2010. He has fanned 67 and walked just four batters in 77 2/3 innings.
His strikeouts-to-walks ratio of 16.75 is more than 10 better than runner-up Roy Halladay of Philadelphia at 6.13. How impressive is Lee’s ability not to walk batters? The all-time ratio record is 11.0 set by Bret Saberhagen. Lee has gone three consecutive games without walking a batter.
Lee could be in his final weeks with the Mariners, who have been unable to make up any ground on AL West leader Texas, which has won nine in a row. The Mariners are still 13 games behind the Rangers. Lee, who is eligible for free agency after the season, is perhaps the biggest name being bandied about in trade rumors.
None of that is new to Lee, who was traded last season by Cleveland to Philadelphia and then traded again by the Phillies to Seattle in December.
The Cubs got one of their best pitching outings of the season Tuesday night. Ryan Dempster threw Chicago’s first complete game but Franklin Gutierrez took his fastball over the wall in left-center field for a two-run homer.
It marked the 10th time this season that Dempster has received two runs or fewer in a start.
The Cubs, who have lost three of four, will start right-hander Randy Wells today. He allowed two runs on seven hits in seven innings and struck out seven Thursday against Oakland, settling for a no-decision.
Seattle right-hander Doug Fister, on the disabled list since June 1 with a fatigued shoulder, is scheduled to start Saturday in Milwaukee. Fister leads the AL in ERA at 2.45.
Cubs right-hander Carlos Silva, a former Mariner, will miss Thursday’s scheduled start because of a sore hamstring. Ted Lilly will take his spot.