The Seattle Mariners season boils down to these next few weeks. The team with the longest playoff drought in baseball is looking to change their fortunes and sneak into the postseason.
It has been a season of ups and downs for the Mariners. They started off the year strong, to the excitement of Seattle fans, only to stumble halfway through. But, they have won 11 out if their last 14 games to pull themselves within two games of a wild card spot.
The rest of the fight will not be easy, though. They have 10 games left and pretty much all of them are must win. They still have to get by the Orioles, Astros, and either the Tigers or Blue Jays to earn a spot in the play in game. Of those teams they only play the Astros before season’s end, but it gives them a chance to make up serious ground.
The Orioles have lost four in a row opening up another small gap for the Mariners to sneak in. Assuming they could get past these two teams in the standings they would be half a game behind the next up, whether it’s the Tigers or the Blue Jays. For them to sustain this success finishing off the regular season their big bats are going to need to come through. They are fifth in the league in home runs, with a big portion of those coming from their scary middle of the order. Nelson Cruz is leading the way with 41 home runs, followed by 33 from Robinson Cano, and 29 from Kyle Seager.
At this juncture of the season more than just skill is needed to make your way into the playoffs. You must have luck on your side as well. Even if the Mariners win out they still may not make it in because the teams they are competing with could win out as well. They will need their big arms to come through as well. Ace Felix Hernandez has never been to the playoffs which most fans would agree has been a waste of a generational talent. They would love to help him reach what is sure to be one of his biggest goals at this point in his career.
It needs to be a team effort from here on out. They are relying on their skills and the higher powers of baseball to help them reach their goal. For now they are just taking it one game, and one win at a time.
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