A few odds and ends as we wait for things to get really busy in a few hours as the Mariners face the Blue Jays, along with the approaching 9 p.m. deadline for teams to sign their draft picks.
Everything is ultra quiet on the Mariners’ signing front, although there are indications there will be signings to announce although we may not know until right at the 9 o’clock deadline.
This story out of Chevy Chase, Md., says Hultzen is closing on a $12 million deal with the Mariners, but that he’s also asking to attend school at Virginia this fall to complete his degree instead of going immediately to Arizona to begin his work as a pro.
Other notes before tonight’s game:
• Injured shortstop Brendan Ryan was hoping to field ground balls today, but that doesn’t mean he’s close to coming off the disabled list from his sprained left shoulder. Ryan was hurt when he jammed his elbow into the turf avoiding a collision in the outfield. He’s eligible to come off the DL Friday at Tampa Bay but, at this point, his range of motion is limited and he struggles to reach if he needs to back-hand a ball.
• Adam Kennedy remains out of the lineup because of a bruised heel. “We’ve got to do the smart thing by him,” manager Eric Wedge said. “He’s been a trooper all year for us, and we’ve got to take care of him a little bit.”
• Blue Jays pitcher – and former Mariner – Brandon Morrow is 8-7 with a 4.55 ERA in 21 starts, but says he feels healthy and is otherwise happy with his season.
“Some of those numbers don’t look so hot, but if you look at the nerd stats I’m having a pretty good year,” Morrow said. “Those are the ones I like.”
Morrow, who’ll start Wednesday against the Mariners, has 142 strikeouts and only 48 walks in 126 2/3 innings, opponents are hitting .233 off him, he has a 1.263 WHIP average (walks and hits per inning) and a .304 BAbip (average on balls in play).
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