Mariners at Padres
San Diego Padres rookie shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. is a student of the Bible but it seems that his opponents are doing most of the praying these days. Tatis, the son of 11-year MLB veteran Fernando Tatis, hopes to keep honing his five-tool skills while extending his hitting streak to 11 games when San Diego continues its eight-game homestand Tuesday against the Seattle Mariners.
“I’ve never seen a player that young with the talent he has," teammate Manny Machado told reporters about the 20-year-old Dominican native, who has six home runs, 13 RBIs, seven walks, four stolen bases and an OPS of .954. “Nobody. He’s got the power. The speed. The glove. The arm. The baseball smarts. I really haven’t seen a talent like that by such a young guy. He has that little pep to his step that he knows he’s good, and deserves to be up here. ..." Seattle doesn't have any young phenoms on its roster but is collectively crushing the ball, leading the majors in home runs (56) and runs scored (160) by a wide margin with Mitch Haniger (seven homers, American League-high 25 runs scored) and Domingo Santana (AL-best 26 RBIs) leading the way. Both clubs have struggled since beginning quickly as the Mariners are 3-7 in their last 10 games since starting the season 13-2 while the Padres (12-11) are 1-6 in their last seven. Seattle's Erik Swanson takes the ball Tuesday and hopes to build off his excellent first MLB start while opposing fellow rookie Nick Margevicius, who boasts an 0.90 WHIP after four turns despite getting crushed in his last.
TV: 10:10 p.m. ET, ROOT Northwest (Seattle), FS San Diego
PITCHING MATCHUP: Mariners RH Erik Swanson (0-1, 3.38 ERA) vs. Padres LH Nick Margevicius (1-2, 3.60)
Swanson, who was acquired from the New York Yankees in the James Paxton trade, allowed a solo home run to Jake Bauers among two hits with five strikeouts in six innings of a 1-0 loss to Cleveland on Wednesday. The 25-year-old Ohio native, who was an eighth-round pick by Texas in 2014, could remain in the rotation as long as Wade LeBlanc recovers from an oblique injury. Swanson permitted two runs over two innings of relief in his major league debut April 11 in Seattle's 7-6 victory at Kansas City.
Margevicius yielded five runs and seven hits while striking out seven in four innings of an 8-2 loss to Colorado on Tuesday after allowing one run in each of his first three starts of the season. The 22-year-old Cleveland native has 19 strikeouts in 20 innings with an excellent changeup and fastball that reaches only the low 90s. Margevicius, a seventh-round draft pick in 2017 by San Diego, pitched in Class A last season except for one appearance in a Double-A playoff game.
WALK-OFFS
1. Seattle set an MLB record for most home runs in the first 25 games of a season, breaking the old standard of 55 by St. Louis in 2000.
2. Padres RHP Kirby Yates has a National League-most 10 saves in 10 tries and has struck out 19 in 12 innings this season.
3. The Mariners have tied their club record for best road start to a season by going 11-2.