John E. Sokolowski- USA TODAY Sports
After losing a three-game series to the Houston Astros, manager Eric Wedge now has his Seattle Mariners playing very good baseball. The Mariners have won the last three series’ that they have played, winning seven out of 10 games against the Los Angeles Angels, Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays.
Seattle will take this recent success into PNC Park to play a quick two-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Manager Clint Hurdle has the Pirates playing very good baseball so far this season as his club has posted a 17-14 record and are currently in second place in the National League Central.
Aaron Harang will throw for the Mariners in the first game of the set. The veteran right-hander is fresh off of his first win with the team where he went six solid innings and only allowed two earned runs against a potent Baltimore lineup.
James McDonald has struggled in his first six starts of the 2013 season, posting a 5.76 ERA and a 2-2 record. The 28-year-old will look to reverse this trend against a Mariners lineup that has really been hitting over the last week.
Pittsburgh’s offense could do some damage against Harang, but they will likely struggle on Wednesday with Felix Hernandez on the hill.
Hernandez currently has the second-best ERA in the American League at 1.60 and has been lights-out in his last four starts. ”King Felix” has only allowed two earned runs and has logged 35 strikeouts in 30 innings pitched over that stretch.
A.J. Burnett will face a nearly impossible task trying to beat Hernandez when he is in a rhythm like the one he is in now. Burnett has been pretty good against the Mariners in his career, posting a 3-2 record with a 3.71 ERA in eight total starts.
The Mariners’ bats have been able to support their pitching over the last 10 games and if things turn out to be no different in these two games, the team will be able to win their fourth consecutive series.
