Mariners at Rays
Blake Snell dominated Seattle and was just as impressive as childhood idol Felix Hernandez in his last outing and looks to do both again on Saturday when the Tampa Bay Rays host the Mariners in the third contest of a four-game set. Snell struck out 12 and allowed two hits in six scoreless innings last weekend in Seattle before the bullpen blew the lead in a 2-1 setback.
Snell matched the American League record by striking out the first seven batters he faced and finished one shy of his career best for strikeouts. The Seattle native hasn't allowed an earned run in his last three outings spanning 19 2/3 innings and he will attempt to halt a Tampa Bay losing streak that reached eight with Friday's 4-3 loss to the Mariners, who have won seven of their past eight games and 16 of their last 20. Hernandez put together his best start of the season on Sunday and ended a three-start winless stretch by allowing one run and five hits over a season-best eight innings. The veteran right-hander has usually fared well against Tampa Bay with a 9-2 mark and 1.89 ERA in 17 career starts, including a perfect game on Aug. 15, 2012.
TV: 4:10 p.m. ET, ROOT Northwest (Seattle), FS Sun (Tampa Bay)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Mariners RH Felix Hernandez (6-4, 5.33 ERA) vs. Rays LH Blake Snell (7-3, 2.36)
Hernandez flashed his former All-Star form in Sunday's matchup against Snell and also matched his season best of seven strikeouts. The 32-year-old was touched up for five runs in three of his previous five turns and possessed a 7.16 ERA during the stretch. Hernandez has struggled against Carlos Gomez (6-for-20, two homers) while shutting down C.J. Cron (2-for-20 with one homer and nine strikeouts).
Snell is 3-0 over his last four starts and has a stellar 0.74 ERA during the stretch. For the seaosn, the 25-year-old is limiting opposing batters to a .180 average and has fanned 88 in 76 1/3 innings. Snell is 1-1 with an 0.55 ERA in three career starts against Seattle and neither hot-hitting Jean Segura (0-for-6) nor slugger Kyle Seager (0-for-4) have a hit against him.
WALK-OFFS
1. The Mariners are 5-0 against the Rays this season and have won 11 of the past 12 meetings.
2. Tampa Bay SS Adeiny Hechavarria (hamstring) could begin a minor-league rehab stint as soon as Monday.
3. Seattle placed RHPs Juan Nicasio (knee) and Dan Altavilla (elbow) on the 10-day disabled list and recalled RHP Mike Morin and 1B Daniel Vogelbach - who had an RBI single on Friday - from Triple-A Tacoma.