Open the scoreboard watching thread, 9/26/24

The Mariners beat the Astros 8-1 yesterday, but unfortunately they got no help from the teams facing off against the triumvirate of the Tigers, Royals and Twins. Since today is the last rest day of the season for Seattle, it's the perfect opportunity to spend the day watching the scoreboard, and here's the perfect place to do it!

Royals at Nationals, 10:05 a.m. PDT

To kick off the day, Michael Wacha takes on Patrick Corbin, who is finally nearing the end of the seven-year contract the Nationals gave him. Corbin hasn't worked out well for the Nats since 2019, but if there was ever a time for him to rediscover his old magic, now would be ideal. Wacha, on the other hand, has had strong performances over the last few starts, and with a solid 3.59 FIP this year, Washington needs to step it up to end his 30-inning scoreless streak. Go Nats.

Rays at Tigers, 10:10 a.m. PDT

Apparently there's nothing standing in the way of the Tigers, as their 15-6 record in September has earned them a wild-card spot heading into the final weekend of the regular season. Right-hander Reese Olson will start for Detroit, but don't count on him throwing more than a few innings; Since returning from injury, he has thrown just 2.1 and 3 innings in his two starts back. Maybe the Rays can jump on their bullpen? Left-hander Tyler Alexander — a former Tiger himself — will be on the rise for Tampa, and while he's had a rough year, he pitched 4.2 scoreless innings against the Blue Jays. A strong finish to the year would be great for both him and the Mariners' chances. Come on, rays.

Marlins at Twins, 4:40 p.m. PDT

After an early afternoon breather, the final battle of the day for those of us on the West Coast begins towards the end of the work day. Miami secured a 100-loss season yesterday, but will still try to play spoilsport by starting rookie Valente Bellozo. Bellozo has certainly had some luck in a dozen starts, with a 3.82 ERA that bested his 5.74 FIP by nearly two runs, but with only one more start left for him, let's hope he has a little more has left of this magic. The Twins will start fellow rookie David Festa, who has done so performed below average his FIP by almost an entire run. The right-hander has racked up plenty of strikeouts (28.6% K%) but has been banged around for most of September, although he did go five innings of one-run ball against the Red Sox. You may remember that the Mariners lost a series in Miami in mid-June – perhaps a harbinger of things to come. But what if the fish can continue to play spoiler? Maybe I'll forgive them after all. Go Marlins.