Upcoming Series: Mariners vs. Orioles (July 16-18)

Well, we split with the Tigers 2-2.. Let's hope we can take advantage of the Baltimore team that's playing pretty poorly.

Upcoming Series:

Seems that the Orioles really have nothing to play for. They are 14 games out of the AL East lead, and definitely not a threat to catch Boston, or any team in front of them (and I can say that without hesitating). This team was expecting to be better than previous years, but it looks like they will finish under .500 again barring a second half surge. They are currently 9 games under .500.

Baltimore's last series was a success for the club, winning 3 of the 4 games against the Chicago White Sox. They come in winning 3 straight.

The Pitching:

The rotation, as a squad, has a 4.41 ERA, which isn't terrible. Baltimore, as a team, leads the AL in strikeouts thrown also. Their batting average against is also the best in the AL. The starters go fairly deep into games also; their bullpen doesn't pitch too many innings, and they have the 2nd least saves in the AL. Chris Ray has helped the team blow 13 saves though, which is 3 above major league average. They don't give up extra base hits, being WAY under league average in each of the doubles, triples and home runs allowed categories. The rotation, as a whole, can also expect just about 4 runs per game, which is below the league average of run support per game. However, they are a one man rotation.

Erik Bedard:

The man is 8-4 with a 3.22 ERA. He leads the AL in strike outs with 156 in only 128.2 innings pitched! The man can throw the ball, and we are set to face him Wedmesday. His most impressive stat is his 156 Ks to his 38 walks allowed! That is incredible! The MLB is hitting only .219 off of him, just above the Mendoza line, and that's dang impressive! His personal home runs allowed is elevated this year, but then again, the Mariners don't go deep all that often anyway. He is pitching very well on the road and during the day, a combination in which we will see Wednesday. He has been lights out in July also, combining to throw 27 Ks in 20.2 innings so far this month in his 2 starts. His last outing against the Mariners wasn't a very successful one, but he has shown great improvement in his pitching since then.

The Hitting:

They don't hit the ball all that hard. They are in the bottom half of the AL with a .269 batting average. They are 3rd from the bottom in runs scored also. They hover around the league average in doubles and triples, but are pretty well below league average in long balls (18 below). They don't really drive runs in either, being about 33 or so runs driven in below average. They don't strike out much, being in the bottom half of the league. However, they don't really draw a lot of walks either, being 20 below league average. They do steal bases though, 20 or so above league average, and are thrown out the league average 19 times. So they are aggressive and it pays off, being 20+ over. They also ground into quite a few double plays (league average is 76 and they are currently sitting at 84).

They have few offensive threats to worry about. Brian Roberts is their thief on the base paths, having 27 bags swiped while only being caught 5 times. They have one healthy power, producer threat in the line up, and that is Nick Markakis, and he really isn't all that dangerous.

Keys to the Series:

I've decided to let you guys explore this on your own. You see the matchups, the numbers, the stats. You tell me what you think we should do or what you would expect to see, and I'll post back to your comments.

GO MARINERS!