Seattle @ Cleveland preview
Progressive Field
Last Meeting ( May 19, 2013 ) Seattle 0, Cleveland 6
The Cleveland Indians roughed up one half of the Seattle Mariners’ dynamic pitching duo in their last time out and will face the other half Monday in the surprising Hisashi Iwakuma as they eye a four-game home sweep. The Indians tagged Mariners' ace Felix Hernandez – who led the American League in ERA before Sunday’s 6-0 victory – for five earned runs to win for the 17th time in 21 games. Justin Masterson struck out 11 over seven innings while Michael Brantley had a career high-tying four RBIs.
Iwakuma, who trails only Boston’s Clay Buchholz for the AL lead in ERA, will try to get Seattle back on track after suffering its third straight setback – tying a season high. The 32-year-old Japanese right-hander is 2-0 in games after a Mariners’ loss and has helped the team to a 7-2 record in his starts, easily the best mark on the staff. Seattle is one of six AL teams (and nine overall) with a winning record against left-handed starters, which it will face Monday in Scott Kazmir.
TV: 12:05 p.m. ET, ROOT (Seattle), SportsTime Ohio (Cleveland)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Mariners RH Hisashi Iwakuma (5-1, 1.84 ERA) vs. Indians LH Scott Kazmir (2-2, 5.33)
Iwakuma has been dominant for most of the season, ranking first in the American League in WHIP (0.78) and third in batting average allowed (.183) among qualified leaders. He won his third straight outing Wednesday in New York, limiting the Yankees to two runs and eight hits over seven frames in a 12-2 victory. Iwakuma, who has held his opponents to three runs or fewer in all nine starts, hasn’t recorded a decision against Cleveland in two career appearances (one start).
Kazmir remarked after his last loss – Tuesday’s 6-2 setback at Philadelphia – that he mostly abandoned his slider after Kevin Frandsen homered off the pitch in the first inning. The left-hander yielded four runs (his most since his April 20 season debut) and six hits over five innings. He’ll return home Monday, where he is 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA against a Seattle team he has handled throughout his career. In nine all-time starts versus the Mariners, Kazmir is 3-3 with a 3.27 ERA, holding Seattle to a .205 average.
WALK-OFFS
1. Cleveland, tied with St. Louis for the major-league lead with seven shutouts, is a league-best 20-7 since April 20.
2. Iwakuma is the only regular Mariners’ starter receiving more than 3.62 runs of support per game (5.0).
3. The Indians’ starting pitchers have held opponents to three runs or fewer in 18 of their last 21 games, compiling a 13-4 record and 2.98 ERA over that span.
PREDICTION: Mariners 5, Indians 4