Two good signs, one bad from first-place Mariners’ winning road trip

The Seattle Mariners haven’t quite gotten their record back to .500, but that hasn’t stopped them from climbing to the top of the American League West standings.

Seattle Mariners take 1st place after another strong road start from Gilbert

After wrapping up a three-game sweep of the Athletics on Wednesday in perhaps their most complete series of the year, the M’s (28-29 record) leapfrogged their division rival to grab first place in the division for the first time this season. The win on Wednesday also secured a 4-2 road trip, marking the third straight time Seattle is returning home after winning a road trip.

Here are two good signs and one bad one from the Mariners’ latest stretch.

The good

• A 3-0 record against left-handed starters

Considering the struggles the club has had against left-handed pitching this year, winning all three of its games against lefty starters on the road trip was encouraging. For reference, the Mariners were 6-9 against left-handed starters before hitting the road for its two series.

The first of the three wins didn’t feature the M’s getting to a left-hander, as Mitch Garver’s two-run homer off Royals right-handed reliever Nick Mears stood as the game’s only runs last Friday. But the two wins over lefties in the series against the Athletics saw Seattle put up nine runs over 10 combined innings in back-to-back games against left-handers Gage Jump and Jeffrey Springs.

The two wins against the A’s featured some much-needed production from the right-handed side of the Mariners’ platoons. Victor Robles checked in with a three-hit game, including a double, in Tuesday night’s win, and Rob Refsnyder sparked the offense Wednesday with a three-run homer in the first inning. Refsnyder also had a hit and reached base two more times via hit by pitches on Monday. It was the first time since April 26-27 that Refsnyder had hits in consecutive appearances.

It shouldn’t be overlooked that the M’s had the luxury of facing the Athletics’ left-handers in the very hitter-friendly confines of Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento, Calif., but the offensive production on Tuesday and Wednesday was good to see regardless.

• Emerson looks ready so far

Top prospect Colt Emerson hasn’t disappointed following his much-anticipated promotion to the major leagues.

Emerson had the type of game most in his position could only dream of Sunday against the Royals, collecting four hits, including three doubles, to join Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez as the only Mariners with four-hit games at age 20 or younger. And he’s coming off another good performance on Wednesday against the Athletics where he went 2 for 4 at the plate with his first career triple and two RBIs.

In total, Emerson is slashing .258/.361/.516 with an .877 OPS, 152 wRC+ (100 is average) and five extra-base hits, including one homer, through his first 10 games in the majors. He’s also reached base safely in nine of the games.

The four-hit game does skew Emerson’s stats. He’s hitting just .148 in his remaining nine games. But the most important thing is he looks comfortable and hasn’t looked overmatched at the plate.

The bad

• Piggyback drama

As far as the results go, it’s hard to say the Mariners’ decision to piggyback Bryce Miller and Luis Castillo has been anything but effective to this point. Yes, there was the ninth-inning debacle against the White Sox the first time the team deployed the strategy (the M’s also scored only one run in that game). But overall, Miller and Castillo have combined for a 2.12 ERA with four runs allowed over 17 innings across two games.

That’s the good part, but it’s worth questioning if it outweighs the bad, as neither Castillo or Miller appeared to be happy about the way things shook out when they combined to allow two runs over nine innings in Monday’s win over the Athletics. Castillo could be seen having an animated conversation with manager Dan Wilson in the dugout as he learned he wouldn’t be going out for the fifth inning in what was his best start since his first of the season, and Miller stated after the game that the piggyback situation was uncomfortable for him.

The M’s are planning to use Miller and Castillo in a piggyback start at least one more time, with Miller getting the start and Castillo to follow on Sunday against the Arizona Diamondbacks, according to The Seattle Times’ Adam Jude.

It makes sense for the team to keep both stretched out as starters because of the unique position it puts the Mariners in by having six legitimate starting pitchers to choose from, which is a huge insurance policy if another arm in the rotation goes down with an injury. That’s something any team would like to have. But there’s a human side to it that’s hard to quantify the impact of. So even if Miller and Castillo say all the right things about the situation from here on out, it doesn’t seem like it will be sustainable for much longer.

More on the Seattle Mariners

• Passan on Seattle Mariners: ‘Everyone needs to be on board’ with piggyback
• Stacy: When it comes to Seattle Mariners’ piggyback tactic, feelings matter
• Why ‘redundant roster’ could push Seattle Mariners into a trade

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