The Mariner Monitor

Rod Mar/THE SEATTLE TIMES

This week’s Sports Illustrated cover is about baseball’s bizarro world. On Tuesday night Safeco Field was its own bizzaro world.

An 8-0 Daisuke Matsuzaka was going up against a who-care-what-his-record-is-because-its-bad Miguel Bautista. Yet, when the dust settled it was the Mariners who came out on top, 4-3 over the Red Sox. In the ninth inning no less.

I’ll be honest, going into the game I would’ve been more confident allowing Jeff Dahmer to cut my hair than allowing Miguel Bautista to start for my brother’s Little League team, let alone Seattle.

But I give credit when credit is due and Bautista was nothing short of money against the Red Sox. He pitched seven innings and really made just one mistake, a three-run home run by Manny Rameriez in the sixth. And he might not have been in that situation if Yuniesky Betancourt doesn’t boot an easy one-out ground ball. Going up againt the David Ortiz-Ramirez duo with two outs and nobody on would’ve been less daunting. Regardless, Bautista didn’t let that home run sink him and he finished his final 1-2/3 innings without harm.

Jose Lopez is the hero with his game-winning hit in the ninth. And he came through for his team despite being down 1-2 in the count, a promising sign for a team that has been pressing at the plate all season. It probably won’t be the beggining of a 21-game win streak, but one has to take baby steps when it comes to turning a round a hopeless season.

The Mariners other three RBI were driven in by Raul Ibanez (2 RBI) and Jose Vidro.

I don’t think I can say much more. I’m still in shock that the team even won.