Almost every doctor in America can talk about Willie Sutton, which is surprising since Sutton was neither a medical researcher nor a victim of any famous accident or disease. No, Willie Sutton was a bank robber who stole almost $2 million over 40 years and escaped from prison three times. And the doctor knows he’s giving a false quote. When he asked why he robbed banks, he allegedly replied, “Because that’s where the money is.” Although he later denied ever having said that, he wrote in his autobiography that he certainly did. Physicians have repurposed this into what they call Sutton’s Law, which tells them to “go where the money is” to guide their diagnosis. If you have a most likely diagnosis, you should probably run that test. Let’s start with the obvious.
I bring this up because that’s how the Mariners shut out the Astros tonight.
Whether you consider Framber Valdez an ace or not, he’s definitely close enough, dominating the Mariners throughout his career and limiting tonight’s team to a .283 wOBA. The way he does it is the same as he does with everyone else, he uses a combination of sinkers, changeups and curveballs to keep the ball on the ground. However, the Mariners achieved consistent traffic tonight by turning Framber’s strength into a weakness. The game plan implemented up and down the lineup was to anticipate those drop pitches and keep them going a little longer. If they can wait to get deep into the strike zone, they have a better chance of getting the ball up in the air and reaching the bases. Go where the money is.
The strategy worked, as he waited long enough for the big moment before swinging, allowing him nine hits in 5.1 innings. Almost every batter recorded one of these hits, seven of which were to the right of second base by right-handed batters. That’s where Flamber gets paid. They planned it and carried it out, which is unusual for this crime. It was particularly encouraging to see new players actively participating in the activities. Jorge Polanco showed great bat control with his sinker, and Mitch Garber’s double drove it into the right-center field wall. Luis Urias then hit a 420-foot ball to take the lead in the next inning.
One of just two hits to left was Framber’s last pitch of the night. Cal Lowry could be forgiven for ruining the story by pulling the ball for his seventh Beef Boy Bomb of the season, since it was already his third.He hit it from the right side of the bat, which is not usually his power side. He was the best player of the year.
On the other side of the ball, Logan Gilbert pitched beautifully, allowing just two hits in eight innings. We often talk about the evolution of Gilbert and the development of more complete weapons. This famously allowed him to go from being one of the most fastball pitchers to one of the least fastball pitchers. But he’s not really a kitchen sink kind of pitcher. His approach is usually to rely heavily on a particular secondary on a given day, weighing up opposing scouting reports and the feel of pitching that day. Today, that secondary was a slider, and he threw 34 pitches, inviting seven whiffs and five called strikes. Some of his other starts have been splitters or cutters, but he toned it down today, only throwing one or two pitches first through the order.
Gilbert’s heavy use of the slider mirrors how he beat the Astros last July. When Logan plays against Houston, that’s where the money is. If you have something available, use it. Let’s consider the obvious.
And by conserving other pitches, he was able to get deeper into the game. His third order disrupted the game even more, something that has been a problem for Gilbert in the past. For example, Gilbert, who faced Yordan Alvarez for the third time, struck out four pitches: a slider, splitter, cutter, and curveball.
This was the first time Gilbert had retired Alvarez, who hit a base hit with a bunt in the first inning. The absurdity of that hit almost became infamous, as Logan went until the seventh inning before allowing two hits. He got some relief when Jeremy Peña fired a laser to center field. I don’t know if Gilbert could have survived pitching one batter. bunt from jordan alvarez. Peña’s batted ball disappeared into a double play, and the seventh inning ended with Gilbert hitting Maddux with 80 pitches. However, a few long battles in the eighth inning opener spoiled that idea, and Scott Servais felt comfortable pulling him after eight strong innings.
Gilbert allowed an unusual four walks today, but the fact that he only allowed two hits is no coincidence. His average exit velocity tonight was just 133.2 mph, a shockingly low number for a player with a critical flaw: poor contact management.
And then there’s the scoreboard. With eight shutout innings, the rotation’s hot development reached historic territory. They have now started 21 consecutive games and have not allowed more than two earned runs. The last team to do that was the White Sox in 1917. The only team with a longer span was the 1915 Washington Senators, who scored 22 points. The Mariners starting pitcher has allowed 20 earned runs in those 21 starts. Please allow me to repeat my previous summary. But if it’s not worth it, sun hat award Logan doesn’t know what’s going on.
