Mariners, Indians to go at it again in Emerald City

Baseball Betting Lines

09/04/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) -- The Seattle Mariners will attempt to build off an impressive pitching performance when the American League West cellar-dwellers take on the Cleveland Indians tonight in the continuation of a four-game series between last-place teams.

After dropping a 6-3 decision to the Tribe on Thursday, the Mariners bounced back with a hard-earned 1-0 victory last night as Luke French combined with a pair of relievers on a three-hit shutout.

French (4-4) carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning and finished out the frame having yielded only a single hit along with three walks and striking out four batters. Shelley Duncan foiled the lefty's no-hit bit with a one-out single in the bottom of the seventh.

"It was one of those nights where I was hitting my spots more often than not, to be able to slow them down with the changeup, mix in a few sliders here and there," said French. "Turned out pretty good."

Closer David Aarsdma did run into some trouble in the ninth, letting up a pair of one-out singles before getting Shin-Soo Choo to pop up. The hard-throwing reliever then allowed both runners to advance on a wild pitch, but fanned Duncan for the final out to notch his 27th save.

The game's only run came during the first inning, when Ichiro Suzuki led off with a single and later scored on a base hit off the bat of Franklin Gutierrez.

Indians starter Fausto Carmona (11-14) didn't give up much afterward, surrendering just two more hits and striking out six batters in an eight- inning complete game.

Seattle, which had lost three of four prior to last night's verdict, will hand the ball to David Pauley in hopes of receiving a second straight quality start. The former Red Sox farmhand came through in an August 13 matchup against the Indians, permitting just two runs and scattering seven hits over six innings to register his first career victory in the majors.

Pauley followed up that result with a road win at Baltimore five days later, but has lost back-to-back starts since to fall to 2-6 on the season. The right-hander was reached for four runs in 5 2/3 innings in an August 25 setback at Boston, then served up three homers and four runs overall in a six- inning stint against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim this past Monday.

The 27-year-old is still in search of his first win at Safeco Field, where he's gone 0-4 with a 3.34 ERA in seven appearances (five starts) this year.

Mitch Talbot gets the call for Cleveland tonight and will be trying to end a long and frustrating winless streak. The rookie hurler is 0-5 with a subpar 6.23 ERA in nine starts since his last triumph, a June 27 besting of Cincinnati.

Talbot was hit hard in Monday's assignment against the Chicago White Sox, which tagged him for five runs and 10 hits in a five-inning no-decision. The right-hander allowed six runs in six innings during his previous start, a home loss to Oakland on August 25.

The 26-year-old, who had won eight of his first 14 decisions to begin his debut campaign with the Indians, also struggled in an August 14 encounter with the Mariners at Progressive Field. In that game Talbot was hammered for six runs (four earned) on eight hits in just four innings as the losing pitcher in a 9-3 outcome.

Seattle has now prevailed three of five meetings between these teams this season, but the Indians had won six in a row from the Mariners at Safeco Field prior to last night's defeat.

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Pacific-10 Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Stanford

Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.

Should be in:

Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.

Southeastern Conference odds
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State

It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.

Work left to do:

Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney.

Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson.

Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable.

Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile.

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