Seattle Mariners Manager Talks About Team Ace Logan Gilbert Finishing Season Out
SEATTLE — The Seattle Mariners will end the season with a game against the Oakland Athletics at 12:10 p.m on Sunday.
The Mariners have already secured a series win against the Athletics with a 2-0 win on Friday and an extra-inning, 7-6 win on Saturday.
But a series sweep to cap off the year would definitely leave a better taste in fans' mouths after Seattle missed out on the playoffs for the 22nd time in 23 years.
The Mariners will have a decent chance to pull off the sweep. They will play their usual lineup on Sunday after resting several players over the last two days of and their 2024 All-Star starter Logan Gilbert will be on the mound.
On the surface, it might seem like an ill-advised move to throw out Gilbert in a meaningless game. But Gilbert, ever the competitor, wanted to be on the bump for Sunday.
"There's been a lot guys in that clubhouse that want to finish strong," Seattle manager Dan Wilson said in a pregame interview Sunday. "Logan's certainly one of those that wants to finish up what's maybe one of the best seasons of his career. And it says a lot about what's in a lot of these guys. Today he's going to go out there and he's going to give us what he's got. He's done that all season long and it's been pretty good."
Wilson didn't indicate how long he would let Gilbert go on Sunday, but did say that the team would be "smart about it." The Mariners pulled Bryan Woo from Friday's start after just five innings 76 pitches.
Sunday will be the 33rd start of the year for Gilbert. On top of making the All-Star Game, Gilbert joined the 200-inning (203), 200-strikeout club (213) and boasted a 3.33 ERA. He's also holding opponents to just a .199 batting average this season.
Logan Gilbert, 98mph Paint. 🖌️🎨 pic.twitter.com/D7WBVaAosW
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) September 15, 2024
It's unfortunate for Seattle fans that they couldn't see Gilbert make an appearance in October, but they might still see one last pitching masterclass from the best rotation in baseball this season before all is said and done.
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