Mariners Making a Late Charge for AL Wild Card
By Peter Dewey
The Seattle Mariners are defying all odds and making a push for a wild card spot in the American League in the final month of the season.
Seattle, who sports a negative run differential (-52), has won four consecutive games to move into a tie with the Oakland Athletics at four games out of the second wild card spot behind the Boston Red Sox.
The Mariners have defied all expectations this season, and while they have a tough schedule down the stretch, they have a chance to pass the A’s, who play the Toronto Blue Jays (five games out) on Sunday. Seattle will face the lowly Arizona Diamondbacks with Chris Flexen (11-5, 3.52 ERA) against rookie Tyler Gilbert (1-2, 2.93 ERA).
FiveThirtyEight gives the Mariners just a 10 percent chance of making the postseason and a two percent chance to win the AL West. Seattle is +1700 to win the division at WynnBET Sportsbook.
This may be a case of too little too late for a young and rebuilding Mariners team, but the fact that they’re even in this position is a huge win. If Seattle passes Oakland on Sunday, it will benefit from the fact that two teams in the race, the Blue Jays and New York Yankees, begin a four-game set against each other on Monday.
Seattle is a -130 favorite against the Diamondbacks, and it is +125 on the -1.5 run line. The Mariners have only scored 572 runs this season (4.21 per game), which is just 23rd in all of baseball.
Still, bettors looking for more value may want to take Seattle on the run line after its 8-5 win on Saturday. Flexen has been solid for the Mariners this season, and the team is 17-8 in his 25 starts.
I’ll take Seattle on the moneyline to pick up a fifth-straight win and gain even more ground in the wild card hunt.
Can Seattle stay hot against the Diamondbacks? Get in the action on the WynnBET app.