Good, Bad, and Ugly: Cal Raleigh Shines, Luis Castillo Falters as Mariners Split Two vs. Reds
It took longer than it should have, but the Seattle Mariners can finally say they’ve won a game away from the great city of Seattle, Washington and T-Mobile Park.
The Mariners were able to shake off an 8-4 loss to the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday with a 5-3 win over their NL Central foes on Wednesday, and now they’ll have a chance Thursday morning to get their first series win on the road.
Here’s a look at the good, bad, and ugly from the first two games series against Cincinnati:
Good: Ben Williamson
The Mariners could have lost the first two games by a score of infinity to negative infinity, and Williamson would still be at the top of this list. There are a lot of cool things in sports, but there’s not much cooler than getting a hit in your first at-bat with your family and friends watching.
You could be the most cynical person in the world, and that still should bring you joy. Williamson also had an RBI single in his second game, and has looked comfortable at the plate so far. No guarantees, but a good start to his career.
Bad: Gregory Santos Optioned to Tacoma
The Mariners acquired Santos in the winter of 2023 with the hopes that he’d be a high-leverage relief option. He missed almost all of the 2024 season, and after allowing two runs in Tuesday’s loss to push his ERA to 7.94, Seattle made the decision to send him to Tacoma.
It’d be one thing if Santos just had that ERA, but in the process of procuring it, he’s struck out exactly zero hitters and walked eight. In a word: Yikes. Will Klein was recalled from Tacoma to take Santos’ place, but obviously they’re not going to be using Klein in the same type of spots they were hoping to use Santos in.
Even with Matt Brash hopefully coming back sooner than later and Troy Taylor now on the roster - worth noting Taylor couldn’t get an out while giving up three runs Wednesday, which is pretty bad - the Mariners need to address the bullpen.
Good: Bryce Miller
Miller was outstanding Wednesday in the win over the Reds with five scoreless innings, eight strikeouts, and allowing just three hits. He’s now allowed just one run over his last 10 innings to lower his ERA from 5.73 to 3.43. He was also exceptionally efficient Wednesday, as even with the eight punchouts he needed just 78 pitches to get through the lineup, pitching with far better efficiency than he did in his first couple starts.
Bad: Bryce Miller?…
The bad news is, Miller only threw 78 pitches. There was talk earlier this week that Miller was having issue with recovery, and clearly the Mariners were concerned enough that they decided to pull him despite the fact that the 26-year old was pitching so well. The bullpen did a fine job outside of Taylor, but the Mariners need their starters to work deep into games; something that didn’t happen during these two contests in Ohio.
Bad: Luis Castillo
Castillo had a chance to pick up a win against his 29th team - the only team he hasn’t beaten is the Mariners - but it didn’t go well. For the most part, anyway. He gave up a pair of runs in the third and four more in the fifth to end the night with six runs allowed over 4 1/3 innings.
It’s worth noting that Castillo had pitched well in his previous three starts, but it’s just as important to note that those outings came in the friendly confines of T-Mobile Park. The veteran right-hander had issues on the road in 2024 with an ERA of 4.25, over a run higher than his 3.15 mark when pitching in Seattle. It’s hard to be too concerned considering how good he looked in those outings (eye test matters, folks), but it’d be nice to see him pitch well in his next road outing, which is scheduled for next week against the Red Sox.
Good: Cal Raleigh
Goodness gracious. You simply cannot say enough good things about the man we call Big Dumper. Raleigh homered from both sides of the plate Wednesday, and the last one was his 100th homer in the big leagues. If he can connect on 32 more in 2025 - a number that is certainly reasonable for him over 144 more games -- he’ll have more homers than any Seattle player over his first five seasons. Even if he doesn’t reach that mark, Raleigh’s production since joining the team cannot be overstated. It won’t shock me one bit if he wins an MVP someday. He’s that good with the glove, and of course, he’s no slouch with the bat.
Ugly: Cincinnati Chili
Many people on social media keep trying to tell me Cincinnati Chili is good. It’s not. It’s really not. You just like spaghetti or hot dogs or however you have it. It’s bad and you should feel bad for liking it.
Don’t eat the bad chili, Mariners fans.