Tagged: Casper Wells

Mariners Mondays – Two Felix Shutouts

Felix_Instagram

Tonight on Mariners Mondays on ROOT SPORTS, Felix does what he does best – dominates unsuspecting hitters.

On June 28, the Red Sox were at Safeco Field, and for seven innings, Felix was evenly matched with Boston starter Franklin Morales. By the time Felix walked off the mound in after the top of the 9th, both teams had a handful of hits, but there was still no score.

Not wanting to spoil Felix’s gem, John Jaso and Casper Wells stepped up. Wells lined a double into the gap in left-center. Justin Smoak was walked, and Skipper Eric Wedge lifted Miguel Olivo for pinch-hitter John Jaso, who at the time was leading the team with game-winning RBIs. He didn’t waste any time, lignin a single to right, giving Wells just enough time to score on catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia to give the Mariners a 1-0 win.

By August 27, Felix was on a roll. In 14 starts, he was 9-0 with a 1.40 ERA, 100 strikeouts, 17 walks and a perfect game. Facing the Twins in Minnesota, he was once again in top form, and although Felix needed just a single Mariners run to earn the victory, this time, the heroics came in the 8th on an Eric Thames homerun.

With Felix’s 1-0 win over the Twins, he notched his 23rd career complete game and 9th shutout.

Relive these two (of many) Felix gems on ROOT SPORTS tonight at 7:30pm.

Catching Up with the Mariners Caravan

The Mariners Winter Caravan has been touring Eastern Washington this week, with Charlie Furbush, Casper Wells, Mike Blowers and Dave Valle signing autographs and making appearances at schools. Here are some images taken by Mariners Team Photographer Ben Van Houten.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

The Eastern Washington swing of the caravan concludes today in the Tri-Cities. Michael Saunders, Lucas Luetge and Rick Rizzs will conclude the caravan next week with stops in Mt. Vernon, Bellingham, Ferndale, Vancouver, B.C., Tacoma and Tukwila. The annual Mariners FanFest will be held January 26-27 at Safeco Field.

Mariners Add 7 Players to Roster

The Mariners added seven players to the active roster today, bringing the total number of players available for tonight’s game vs. the Red Sox to 34. Major League Baseball allows teams to expand their active roster to any player on the 40-man roster. Today’s additions included the following players:

  • DH/1B Mike Carp recalled from his rehabilitation assignment at AAA Tacoma and activated from 15-day DL
  • DH/1B Luis Jimenez selected from AAA Tacoma
  • RHP Shawn Kelley recalled from AAA Tacoma
  • INF Alex Liddi recalled from AAA Tacoma
  • RHP Hector Noesi recalled from AAA Tacoma
  • INF Carlos Triunfel recalled from AAA Tacoma
  • OF Casper Wells recalled from AAA Tacoma

To make room for Jimenez on the 40-man roster, outfielder Johermyn Chavez was designated for assignment.

Most know about Carp, Kelley, Liddi, Noesi and Wells, who have played for the Mariners already this season, but here is some information on two players who will be making their Major League debuts.

Jimenez (#39), 30, will be making his Major League debut with his first appearance. Named the Tacoma Rainiers Offensive Player of the Year, Jimenez hit .310 (146×471) with 32 doubles, 20 home runs and 81 RBI in 125 games. A PCL All-Star, he hit .364 (36×99) with 19 runs scored, 9 doubles, 1 triple, 7 home runs and 23 RBI over 28 games in August. During the month, he led the PCL in on-base percentage (.462) and OPS (1.148), while ranking 2nd in slugging (.687) and total bases (68), T2nd in extra-base hits (17), 5th in average (.364), T5th in RBI (23) and home runs (7) and T9th in hits (35). Jimenez reached base safely in 28 consecutive games, April 29-June 1, batting .382 (39×102) with 22 runs scored, 8 doubles, 5 home run and 24 RBI; was tied for the 10th-longest streak in the PCL this season.

Triunfel (#8), 22, will be making his Major League debut in his first appearance. He becomes the second-youngest player on the team, the youngest position player (Erasmo Ramirez is two months younger). Triunfel is ranked by Baseball America as Seattle’s No. 25 prospect; listed as having the “Best Infield Arm” in the farm system. He finished 2nd on the Rainiers with 129 hits, 31 doubles, 62 RBI. Carlos set a career-high with 10 home runs (previous: 7, 2010 with West Tenn), 31 doubles (previous: 28, 2011 combined between Jackson and Tacoma) and 62 RBI (previous: 49, 2008 with High Desert). He was named the Rainiers Defensive Player of the Year.

Here is a look at the Mariners active Major League roster:

– JE

Video Rewind – Felix and the Walk-Off

Last night was one of those memorable night’s at the ballpark that fans will remember for a long time. Whether it was the dominating performance by Felix Hernandez, in which he tied his career-high with 13 strikeouts, or the great catches by Casper Wells and Michael Saunders in the outfield, and of course the walk-off single by John Jaso to deliver a 1-0 victory over Boston.

Here are some video highlight’s of last night’s 1-0 victory over the Red Sox:

Felix Strikes Out 13 Red Sox:

Jaso’s Walk-Off Pinch-Hit Single:

Felix Hernandez pumps his fists after striking out a career-high-tying 13 batters in a 1-0 shuout win over the Red Sox. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

Felix’s Career Double-Digits Strikeout Games:

Date Tm Opp Rslt App,Dec IP H R ER BB SO HR Pit Str GSc
2012-06-28 SEA BOS W 1-0 SHO9 ,W 9.0 5 0 0 1 13 0 128 84 89
2011-05-22 SEA SDP W 6-1 GS-8 ,W 8.0 6 1 1 0 13 0 114 75 79
2010-08-10 SEA OAK W 2-0 GS-8 ,W 8.0 5 0 0 1 13 0 110 75 84
2012-04-19 SEA CLE L 1-2 GS-8 8.0 5 0 0 1 12 0 126 75 83
2011-08-07 SEA LAA L 1-2 CG 8 ,L 8.0 4 2 2 0 12 1 98 70 78
2007-04-02 SEA OAK W 4-0 GS-8 ,W 8.0 3 0 0 2 12 0 111 77 86
2011-06-02 SEA TBR W 8-2 GS-7 ,W 7.0 5 1 1 2 11 0 97 64 72
2010-08-20 SEA NYY W 6-0 GS-8 ,W 8.0 4 0 0 3 11 0 117 74 82
2010-06-30 SEA NYY W 7-0 SHO9 ,W 9.0 2 0 0 3 11 0 115 76 91
2009-09-24 SEA TOR W 5-4 GS-8 ,W 8.0 7 4 3 2 11 1 108 77 63
2005-08-15 SEA KCR W 11-3 GS-8 ,W 8.0 3 1 1 1 11 0 99 67 82
2012-06-23 SEA SDP W 5-1 GS-7 ,W 7.0 6 1 1 1 10 0 94 64 70
2011-08-24 SEA CLE W 9-2 GS-6 ,W 6.0 7 2 2 2 10 0 106 72 58
2011-07-05 SEA OAK W 4-2 GS-8 8.0 4 1 1 0 10 1 122 81 80
2011-06-24 SEA FLA W 5-1 GS-8 ,W 8.0 2 1 1 2 10 0 115 76 82
2011-05-01 SEA BOS L 2-3 GS-7 7.0 6 2 2 1 10 0 111 72 66
2009-08-12 SEA CHW W 1-0 GS-7 7.0 6 0 0 4 10 0 105 67 71
2009-05-24 SEA SFG W 5-4 GS-8 ,W 8.0 7 4 1 1 10 1 112 83 67
2008-04-27 SEA OAK L 2-4 GS-7 ,L 7.0 6 4 4 4 10 0 115 75 55

Tweet of the Night:

– JE

Mariners Spring Training Update – Day 11

Day 11 / Wednesday, February 22, 2012 / 35 Days ‘til Opening Night in Tokyo (March 28 vs. Oakland) / 51 Days ‘til Opening Night in Seattle (April 13 vs. Oakland)

Weather:
Today’s workout started with temperatures hovering around 53° and climbed to near 70° as practice ended. The next few days are supposed to heat up, with high temperatures expected in the 80’s.

The Day:
The workout was almost a carbon-copy of Day 10. Today’s workout consisted of baserunning on Field 6 from 9:45-10:05. A couple of the players had to be cautious when rounding third base and when they approached home plate due to the field still being a little damp. The team fundamental today was working on pop-ups and infield/outfield communication on Field 3. A group of 16 pitchers threw live BP today on Fields 3, 4 & 5, including Kevin Millwood, Brandon League, Hector Noesi and Hisashi Iwakuma. Mike Carp again put on a hitting display in batting practice and live BP against RHP Scott Patterson.

Ichiro practices his timing as Kevin Millwood throws live BP.

Quotes of the Day:
“They kind of knocked heads there, but if you are going to have two guys knock heads, those are two pretty good ones” manager Eric Wedge when asked about the pop-up drill when Miguel Olivo and Justin Smoak collided near home plate.

“Cheater” from a group of pitchers to Charlie Furbush as he broke towards first base during PFP drills, but AAA pitching coach Dwight Bernard hit one right back to the mound.

“Polar Bear was trying to get me” from Brandon League as he was almost hit by a high pop fly from the pitching machine during pop-up communications drills.

“Heads up, heavy hitters coming through” from Brendan Ryan to manager Eric Wedge as he led his hitting group consisting of himself, Munenori Kawasaki, Chone Figgins and Dustin Ackley onto Field 3 for live BP.

Birthday Boy:
Outfielder Carlos Peguero celebrated his 25th birthday today.

Tweet of the Day:

Mark it Down:
The first of four Intrasquad games will be held Friday (Feb. 24) at 12:45 p.m. The game is scheduled to be 8 innings, with Jason Vargas and Danny Hultzen scheduled to be the starting pitchers. A “B” game has also been added to the Cactus League schedule for March 5 at Cincinnati. The “B” games do not count towards the Cactus League records and are designed to get players extra at-bats or additional pitchers innings. Here is an updated listing of recent schedule changes:

Intrasquad Games:
Feb. 24 – 12:45 pm
Feb. 26 – 12:45 pm
Feb. 28 – 12:45 pm
Feb. 29 – TBA
B Games:
March 5 at Cincinnati – 10 am
March 8 at Colorado – 10 am
Cactus League Game Addition:
March 16 vs. Milwaukee (at Tucson) – Split Squad – 1 pm

Lights, Camera, Action:
The Mariners Marketing crew began shooting the 2012 edition of their award-winning commercials this afternoon. Not going to play the spoiler role, but over the next three days the marketing crew, along with Copacino+Fujikado & Blue Goose Productions will shoot five commercials, featuring 14 players (Felix Hernandez, Ichiro, Brendan Ryan, Justin Smoak, Franklin Gutierrez, Miguel Olivo, Casper Wells, Dustin Ackley, Kyle Seager, Jason Vargas, Brandon League, Jesus Montero, Chone Figgins) and manager Eric Wedge. There may even be a Larry Bernandez sighting! Each year the marketing crew puts together some of the best (and funniest) commercials in all of baseball. The 2011 commercials won an award at the 2011 ProMaxBDA Sports Media Marketing Summit.

Dustin Ackley, Brendan Ryan and Chone Figgins talking hitting.

Camp Guests:
Don Carson, the President of Don & Charlie’s restaurant in Scottsdale, and a must-see destination during spring training visited camp this morning…Mariners team photographer Ben Van Houten also arrived in camp to shoot pictures for the commercials and for the publications you will see throughout the season…reporter Shannon Drayer of 710 ESPN Seattle arrived for her first day in camp and will be with the squad throughout the remainder of spring training and in Japan…you can follow her Mariners Blog and her twitter feed for some great information…representatives from Wilson Baseball Gloves had all their mitts lined up for players to look at and order for the upcoming season…the Topps Baseball Card Company also had a representative in the clubhouse talking about upcoming baseball cards…there was again an national media presence in camp with Jorge Arangure (ESPN.com), Bob Nightengale (USA Today) and Dave Sheinin (The Washington Post) covering the Mariners.

Additional Tidbits:
Shortstop Brendan Ryan threw on the side for about 5 minutes at 60 feet. Ryan has been sidelined by a sore elbow…Franklin Gutierrez and Trayvon Robinson were limited in practice with hamstring tightness…former Mariner closer David Aardsma, who is coming back from Tommy John surgery, signed as a free agent with the New York Yankees.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

– JE

Mariners Spring Training Update – Day 8

Day 8 / Sunday, February 19, 2012 / 37 Days ‘til Opening Night in Tokyo / 53 Days ‘til Opening Night in Seattle

Weather: It was 52-degrees and windy this morning but the temperatures rose to 64-degrees by the end of the workout. There were plenty of media members who were shaking after forgetting their jackets.

Quote of the Day:  “Where’s your camera?” Felix Hernandez said to ROOT SPORTS Jen Mueller. Mueller jokingly asked why he was doing a KING 5 interview (with Chris Egan) before doing the ROOT interview. After Jen pointed across the parking lot to the auxiliary clubhouse Felix exclaimed “TOO FAR!” as he continued to walk with Egan.

Tweet of the Day:

The Day: Day 8 was the first day of live batting practice. The first group of hitters, including Franklin Gutierrez, Ichiro, Mike Carp and Justin Smoak, had to face the ace of the staff Felix Hernandez.

Franklin Gutierrez

None of the four players made contact against any of Felix’s pitches…which was probably because nobody swung at any of the pitches. While players are not under instructions not to swing (on some fields), most hitters use the first day to track pitches as they are coming in and ease back in to live pitching.

Felix got a bit of a scare earlier in the day during infield drills as Miguel Olivo fired a throw down to second base and while he didn’t see it, the ball was traveling fast enough (and close enough) for him to hear it whiz by.

One player who did swing on the first day of live batting practice was Casper Wells. With Charlie Furbush on the mound, Wells hit a screamer back to the box that went beween Charlie’s legs. While no players were harmed on that line drive, Charlie’s heart most certainly skipped a beat.

Early in the workout over on Field 6, all of the position players worked on baserunning, the infielders took grounders and the outfielders worked on tracking line drives before spreading out to various fields.

Carlos Guillen takes throws at first base

On Field 3, the catchers (and infielders) worked on first-and-third defense before the position players grabbed bats.

On Field 3 (where Felix Hernandez was) and 5, hitters were allowed to swing at the pitches. On Field 4 there was also live batting practice, but the hitters were not allowed to swing because there were also baserunning drills going on. Position players also worked on bunting in the cages and in the bullpen while over on Field 6, the coaches threw BP for the players towards the end of the workout.

The marketing group of Michael Ferguson, Nick Pope and Olav Nossum showed up in the wee hours of the day once again to get green screen footage and through three full days have now completed their work with 29 of the 67 players in camp. Tomorrow, Shawn Kelley, Chone Figgins, Felix Hernandez, Franklin Gutierrez and Mike Carp (among others) are schedule for their close-ups.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

– FA

Super Bowl Sunday: Wells vs. Furbush

Today is Super Bowl Sunday, and most of you will be watching the New England Patriots take on the New York Giants at 3:30 PT/6:30 ET in Indianapolis.

There is always a lot of friendly debate about who will win the game, who will be the better quarterback (Manning or Brady) and perhaps even what the best commercial was.

For the Mariners edition of a Super Bowl rivalry, we caught up a huge New York Giants fan (Casper Wells) and a diehard New England Patriots fan (Charlie Furbush). This rivalry of football teams goes way behind just the Super Bowl, and Wells and Furbush came up together through the Detroit Tigers organization, and joined the Mariners in a trade on July 30, 2011. The duo even had a joint fantasy football team together in the Mariners Fantasy Football League, although Casper says they were terrible.

We asked each player 12 questions about today’s big game and how much trash they have been talking:

Casper Wells (currently in Scottsdale, Ariz.):

  1. How long have you been a Giants fan?
    I didn’t turn into a huge football fan until my freshman year of college. My roommate was from New Jersey and a huge Giants fan so my passion for the team started to slowly evolve. When I got drafted by the Detroit Tigers out of college in 2005 I could no longer be a Yankees fan thus I became die hard for the GMen.
  2. Who is your favorite football player of all-time?
    I had such a fun off-season in 2007 on the Giants run to becoming Super Bowl champions that I’m going to say Michael Strahan has to be my favorite player. I love his commentary as well on television.
  3. How many games did you go to this year (home or road), or were you a regular watcher on TV?
    I watch the Giants every Sunday. I don’t enjoy watching the games as much if the Giants aren’t playing, and basically because our joint fantasy football squad was terrible. I attended the Giants-Cowboys game at MetLife Stadium on New Year’s day this year and it was the best game I’ve ever been to in my life. And I really dislike the Cowboys.
  4. Growing up in Upstate NY, have the Giants always been your football team?
    Growing up I was always more partial to baseball and in particular the New York Yankees. But since I got involved with football a lot more, mainly through playing Madden, the Giants became my team. My father grew up a Buffalo Bills fan, but never got me to hop on board. He enjoys watching the Giants now because he says every time he turns on the game to watch the Bills, they blow the game. So he stopped watching.
  5. Did you play football at all growing up? If yes, what position?
    I decided I was going to try football after my freshman year of high school. I saw Varsity Blues and decided I wanted to play football. My dad played football at Colgate University and ended up breaking his ribs in his final game of the season, and he was planning on playing professionally in the CFL. So, subsequently, my father didn’t push a sport such as football on me for risk of injury and career. But, when I decided to play he was all for it. I played quarterback and cornerback. I only played JV for a year because I felt I was a little behind in learning the game and wanted to concentrate solely on baseball. I feel I made the right decision.
  6. If you were a football player instead of a baseball player, what position would you play?
    I think safety would be pretty sweet to come up and get some big hits on the defensive end, but I’m definitely a quarterback at heart. I could throw the ball pretty well and I like the responsibility of controlling the offense and having the game in your hands. Similar to how I loved pitching and having those same feelings growing up as a pitcher.
  7. What are your plans for Sunday watching the game?
    I’m heading out to a spot, with NO PATRIOT FANS, and getting a table with my own high def surround sound set up so I can post up and get into the game. Catered with some sushi, of course! I can’t “enjoy” the Super Bowl, and everything surrounding, it because my squad is playing and I wont miss a snap.
  8. Do you have a favorite Super Bowl food?
    I absolutely love me some good wings, and pizza. I mean, you can’t beat that with watching football. Now, will I be eating that come Sunday, definitely not, but still my favorite food for football hands down. You could mix in a couple light beers to complete the overall gameday package.
  9. Do you watch the commercials? Have a favorite Super Bowl commercial that you can remember?
    I loved the Dr. Pepper commercial with Meatloaf singing “I would do anything” and the girlfriend tried taking the guys Dr. Pepper and the next clip is the crescendo of music and the guy running down the street with his Dr. Pepper still intact. Classic!
  10. Your final score prediction?
    I’m going to say 27-20 GMEN. But I have a feeling it will be a higher score.
  11. Who will throw for more yards and TD passes, Eli Manning or Tom Brady?
    Eli – 3 TD 337 YDS    Brady – 2 TD 255 YDS
  12. And finally, have there been any fun text messages back and forth between you and Charlie about the game? Perhaps a friendly wager?
    Charlie and I have been texting back and forth and leaving each other obnoxious Voxer messages via the iPhone in preparation for the game. We have a little dinner bet going. Loser buys the winner dinner at Dominik’s Steak House in Scottsdale. So I basically arranged that bet to get a free meal out of Charlie because the Pats don’t stand a chance.

Mariners outfielder Casper Wells will be rooting for the Giants in today's Super Bowl. (Getty Images)

Charlie Furbush (currently in Portland, Maine):

  1. How long have you been a Patriots fan?
    I have been a fan since as long as I can remember..
  2. Who is your favorite football player of all-time?
    Tom Brady is my favorite player. He is a Champion.
  3. How many games did you go to this year (home or road), or were you a regular watcher on TV?
    I went to one game this season when they beat the Colts 31-24 on Dec. 4.
  4. Growing up in New England (Portland, Maine), have the Patriots always been your football team?
    Patriots for life!
  5. Did you play football at all growing up? If yes, what position?
    I never played football growing up, but always been a fan.
  6. If you were a football player instead of a baseball player, what position would you play?
    I would definitely be the field goal kicker/punter if I didn’t play baseball.
  7. What are your plans for Sunday watching the game?
    I plan on going out with a bunch of friends and watching the game in downtown Portland.
  8. Do you have a favorite Super Bowl food?
    Have to go with 7 Layer Dip.
  9. Do you watch the commercials? Have a favorite Super Bowl commercial that you can remember?
    The commercials are hilarious. I like the Bud Light, E*Trade, and Doritos commercials.
  10. Your final score prediction?
    34-27 Patroits!
  11. Who will throw for more yards and TD passes, Eli Manning or Tom Brady?
    Brady 3 TD’s (2 passing, 1 rushing) & 330 yards.
  12. And finally, have there been any fun text messages back and forth between you and Casper about the game? Perhaps a friendly wager?
    We sure have. We have this app on our phones called Voxer. Its a walkie-talkie for your phone, and we have been talking some trash to each other. It’s been a lot of fun.

Mariners left-handed pitcher Charlie Furbush is a huge New England Patriots fan. (Getty Images)

Thanks to Casper and Charlie for having a little fun on this Super Bowl Sunday. You can follow Casper with some likely in-game commentary via his Twitter site.

And don’t forget, Mariners Pitchers and Catchers report to Peoria, AZ to start spring training next Saturday, and hold the first practice one week from today!

– JE

Mariners FanFest Social Media Central

We’ve got a new way to experience FanFest this year — online.

Visit the Mariners FanFest Social Media Schedule online to view timings of live Facebook Chats and Twitter Takeovers that will originate from on top of the visitor’s dugout at Safeco Field this weekend. Fans at the ballpark can participate with their smartphones and tablets, and it’s a fun way for our fans across the Northwest to login from home and join the conversation.

Follow @Mariners on Twitter, and use hashtag #MarinersFF, like us on Facebook, and check the blog for updates on what’s happening behind the scenes. We’ll update frequently.

We’ll also be live streaming the Dugout Dialogue sessions from FanFest all day Saturday and Sunday on Mariners.com.

Saturday – Social Media Schedule:

Time Personnel Event
11:10 a.m. Mike Carp (@carpusmaximus20) Twitter Takeover
12:00 p.m. James Paxton (@James_Paxton) Facebook Chat
12:00 p.m. Taijuan Walker (@tai_walker) Twitter Takeover
1:00 p.m. Miguel Olivo Facebook Chat
1:45 p.m. Brandon League Twitter Takeover
2:30 p.m. Jack Zduriencik Facebook Chat

Sunday – Social Media Schedule

Time Personnel Event
11:30 a.m. Trayvon Robinson Facebook Chat
12:00 p.m. James Paxton (@James_Paxton) Twitter Takeover
12:30 p.m. Vinnie Catricala Facebook Chat
1:00 p.m. Brendan Ryan Twitter Takeover
1:30 p.m. Jesus Montero Facebook Chat
1:45 p.m. Jason Vargas Twitter Takeover
2:00 p.m. Danny Hultzen Facebook Chat
2:30 p.m. Casper Wells (@UpstateBaller) Twitter Takeover

– RH