The Seattle Mariners just handed away the AL West, going 2-5 against the woebegone Athletics in their last 10 games, including two soul-crushing walk-off two-run homers. That’s rough, right? We’re only two weeks out from the end of the regular season, and those losses are hitting like a gut punch. Instead of being just three games behind the Astros in the division, we’re now five games back. Ouch.
You Can’t Assume Wins, Even Against The Worst
Let’s be real, you cannot just pencil in wins against bad teams, and the M’s were a painful reminder of that reality. Twice this past weekend, we watched ’em give up a walk-off two-run home run while leading by a single run. Remember that 7-8 loss to the A’s? That was a punch to the gut. If they’d just closed out those games and gone 4-3 against Oakland, the division race would look totally different right now. Those games were sitting there, waiting to be taken, and we just let them slip through our fingers. The A’s are out of postseason contention, just running out the clock on their season, and we let them steal critical wins. Frustrating barely covers it.
The Schedule Gets “Favorable,” But It All Comes Down To Houston
Here’s the silver lining, if you can call it that: 10 of the Mariners’ final 12 games are against the two worst teams in baseball, the Angels and the Rockies. Both of those teams are already eliminated from postseason contention, just like the A’s. Our schedule ahead looks like this: we’re at the Angels from Sept 14-16, then at the Rockies from Sept 18-20. Then, crucially, we host the Astros for a two-game series from Sept 22-23 before finishing up against the Angels again from Sept 24-27. On paper, that’s a soft landing after those brutal A’s games. The AL West is honestly one of the least impressive divisions, so there’s still a glimmer of hope.
The big question, the make-or-break moment, is that two-game series against the Astros. The M’s have to sweep those two games at home. Period. Take care of business against the Angels and Rockies, and sweep Houston, and we might just have a chance at clawing back into this thing. It’s a tall order, especially after the last week, but our boys need to show up and prove they’re still in this fight. It’s now or never.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by CBS Sports.
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