Two of the hottest teams in the majors collide beginning this Friday as the Seattle Mariners take on the Boston Red Sox for a three-game duel at Fenway Park. Read on for a brief overview of each of the games in the series.
Starters: Wade LeBlanc (3-0, 2.63 ERA) vs. Steven Wright (2-1, 1.23 ERA)
Pitching:
Since getting re-inserted into the rotation, LeBlanc has pitched lights out, going 3-0 with a 2.06 ERA over his last four starts. He humbled the Red Sox on June 16 when he allowed zero runs on two hits and struck out nine in 7.2 innings of a 1-0 win at home. Wright was the opposing pitcher in that game, though, he also hurled a fantastic performance, surrendering only an earned run on five hits in seven innings while fanning four hitters. He is 2-0 with a 1.89 ERA in five appearances at home this year.
Hitting:
J.D. Martinez is 2-for-6 vs. LeBlanc
Nelson Cruz is 2-for-6 vs. Wright.
Writer’s Prediction:
Boston wins, 5-3.
Game 2 Saturday, June 23, 7:15PM ET
Starters: Mike Leake (7-4, 4.47 ERA) vs. Eduardo Rodriguez (9-1, 3.59 ERA)
Pitching:
Leake has been hot of late. In his past eight starts, the veteran have accumulated a 4-1 record to go with a 3.17 ERA. That one setback, however, came against Boston on Sunday when he yielded five runs on eight hits in six frames of a 9-3 home loss. Rodriguez, on the other hand, got the win in that game, as he allowed just a pair of earned runs in six hits with nine strikeouts. He is 5-1 with a 3.61 ERA at home this year.
Hitting:
Xander Bogaerts is 5-for-2 with a homer vs. Leake.
Ben Gamel is 3-for-7 with a double and a triple vs. Rodriguez.
Writer’s Prediction:
Seattle wins, 5-3.
Game 3 Sunday, June 24, 1:05PM ET
Starters: Marco Gonzales (7-4, 3.80 ERA) vs. Chris Sale (6-4, 2.74 ERA)
Pitching:
Gonzales was shelled in his last outing, getting tagged with six earned runs on eight hits, including three home runs, in 6.1 innings of a 7-1 road loss to the Yankees on Jun. 19. Prior to that, however, he only allowed a total of six earned runs in his previous six starts across 38.1 innings. Gonzales will be in for a duel with a strikeout machine in Sale, who factored into a no-decision after fanning 11 hitters and allowing only two earned runs on three hits over 7.0 innings of a 6-2 loss, thanks to the Red Sox’s bullpen’s whack job. Sale is 2-2 with a 3.06 ERA in six starts at Fenway Park this season.
Hitting:
Nelson Cruz is 8-for-26 with two blasts vs. Sale.
Writer’s Prediction:
Boston wins, 4-2.
Writer’s Overall Series Prediction
Boston takes two in this three game early summer series against Seattle.
