Daily News 19

Tag: 2026 MLB season

  • Mariners Lose 2-1 in Anaheim, Clinch Losing Record for 2026 Season

    Mariners Lose 2-1 in Anaheim, Clinch Losing Record for 2026 Season

    Mariners Clinch Losing Record with 2-1 Loss to Angels

    The Seattle Mariners officially secured a losing record for the 2026 season with a 2-1 defeat against the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim on Tuesday. The loss marks the team’s 82nd of the year, guaranteeing a sub-.500 finish for the first time since 2020.

    Gilbert Delivers Quality Start Despite Loss

    Starting pitcher Logan Gilbert turned in a strong performance, striking out seven batters and generating 18 swings and misses over six innings. He opened the game by freezing Zach Neto with a splitter that dropped the batter to his knees. Gilbert worked around early traffic to keep the Angels scoreless through four innings, but the Angels broke through on their third trip through the lineup.

    In the fifth inning, Wade Meckler singled and came around to score on a Vaughn Grissom double. An inning later, Josh Lowe capitalized on a splitter left over the plate, driving it over the fence for a two-run lead. Those two runs accounted for all the offense Gilbert allowed.

    Mariners Offense Stalls Again

    Seattle’s lineup managed just seven hits and zero walks. The lone run came courtesy of a Dom Canzone triple that Mike Trout misplayed in center field, followed by a Julio Rodríguez double into the gap. While not the worst offensive showing of the season, the production was insufficient against a division rival.

    Bullpen Holds, but Damage Done

    Relievers Seranthony Domínguez and Gabe Speier each tossed a scoreless inning for Seattle. On the Angels side, former Mariner Taylor Saucedo appeared in relief, providing a familiar face for Seattle fans.

    Series Loss Underscores Second-Half Collapse

    The Mariners dropped the three-game series to the Angels, a result that would have been unthinkable in the season’s final weeks during previous campaigns. Entering the week, Seattle ranked as the worst team in the majors by WAR since the All-Star break, trailing the 26th-place Angels by nearly four wins above replacement. Given that context, losing the series at Angel Stadium was hardly an upset.

    The upcoming road trip to Colorado shapes up as a near toss-up, though the Mariners’ recent form suggests they may enter as underdogs.

    September Schedule Exposes Deep Issues

    What looked like a favorable September slate in the preseason — a potential springboard to a second consecutive division title — has instead highlighted just how poorly the team has performed over the final months. Tuesday’s loss served as a formality, stamping a losing record on a disappointing 2026 campaign. All that remains is the season’s conclusion.

  • MLB Scouts Reveal What Really Happened to Cal Raleigh, Paul Skenes This Season

    MLB Scouts Reveal What Really Happened to Cal Raleigh, Paul Skenes This Season

    Two of baseball’s most notable disappointments in the 2026 season are Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh and Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes. After establishing themselves as elite stars last year, both players are searching for answers as the regular season winds down.

    Cal Raleigh’s Power Outage

    Raleigh, the 2025 American League MVP runner-up, posted 60 home runs, 125 RBI, and a .948 OPS last season. Through 112 games in 2026, his line has plummeted to .183/.296/.374 with a .670 OPS, 21 homers, and 59 RBI. One National League scout described the campaign as an extremely weird season for Raleigh.

    “Some of the batted ball data is down a notch, but the swing characteristics have remained the same from last year,” the scout said.

    Another NL scout offered a deeper diagnosis of Raleigh’s struggles.

    “There has always been a lot of swing-and-miss (with Raleigh),” the scout said. “Raleigh is also weaker (hitting) from the right side. Teams are just throwing lefties at him as much as possible. He also caught a lot last year and the only teams that played more games than him were the two World Series teams, so there was going to be regression there.”

    The numbers back up the left-handed pitching theory. Raleigh is hitting just .161/.265/.308 with a .573 OPS and seven home runs against lefties in 2026. His strikeout rate sits at 31.3 percent (bottom sixth percentile), per Baseball Savant, after fanning 188 times last season.

    An oblique injury complicated matters further. Raleigh missed over a month from May 14 to June 16 with a right oblique strain he initially tried to play through. The same scout believes the injury and increased defensive attention have compounded his issues.

    “(Raleigh) tried to play through an injury. The combination of the (oblique) injury and teams paying more attention to him,” the scout said. “Nobody around him is having a good year. Nobody is hitting around him. He’s always going to be closer to Kyle Schwarber numbers as opposed to Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman numbers.”

    Paul Skenes’ Velocity and Command Questions

    Skenes entered 2026 on the heels of back-to-back sub-2.00 ERA seasons. His first nine starts this year produced a 1.98 ERA, but the ensuing 20 starts since May 17 have ballooned his season ERA to 3.83.

    Scout No. 1, whose team has faced Skenes multiple times, reported concerning feedback from hitters.

    “We’ve faced Skenes numerous times and in his most recent start against us a little over a month ago, our hitters were saying that the stuff was flat,” the scout said of Skenes. “Obviously the four-seam velocity is down, which could be due to a variety of factors including fatigue. “

    The scout also cited mechanical adjustments visible on video.

    “Another mechanical thing that I’ve been hearing is due to the posture and weight distribution on the lift,” the scout said. “Weight is concentrated in the middle of his heel. He rocks back and then has a more pronounced torso crunch/dive as he goes into his stride. Seems to be counter-rotating more than in the past, which could be compensation for something. “

    “There appears to be other things just checking out some video with the arm path being longer and the timing being off (not doing the glove tap anymore).”

    Scout No. 2 offered a more optimistic perspective, suggesting the velocity dip may be intentional workload management.

    “Looking under the hood at his numbers, outside of the ERA, everything else is about consistent with where he has been at,” the scout said. “His velocity is down, but I think that’s by design. It’s not sustainable to start 30 games per year and average 99 mph on your fastball. “

    “I think he is throttling his velo. The Chris Sales, Justin Verlanders, Max Scherzers, have all learned to throttle their velo. Skenes wants to post 30 starts per year. The Pirates have pushed him pretty hard. He’s a big body, so I think he’s going for longevity and doesn’t want to blow out (his arm).”