The Mariners welcome the Red Sox to town tonight, following yesterday’s miserable series loss to Oakland.

Current record: 40-35

Last game: vs. Blue Jays. The Sox clinched the series with a 10-4 blowout by Adrian Gonzalez, Mike Aviles, and Cody Ross, polishing off their fifth consecutive series win.

They are currently riding a two-game winning streak, having surrendered the first match-up in a 9-6 loss, after Felix Doubront handed over 11 hits and 7 runs in just 6 IP.

At the conclusion of this last series, Boston slipped into a third-place tie with Tampa Bay.

Last series against Seattle: May 14 – 15, 2012. The Mariners are 0-for-2 against the Red Sox this season, swept in a brief two-game interlude last month. They eked out just 12 hits and 1 run during the series, falling short against Jon Lester’s 6K complete game and Josh Beckett’s 9K shutout.

Pitching matchups: Thursday — Felix Hernandez vs. LHP Franklin Morales. With just two starts under his belt, Morales comes into this series armed with a 2.98 SIERA, 2.80 FIP, and 4.11 K/BB. He last made an appearance on Saturday against Atlanta, fanning 8 of 25 batters, walking one, and allowing 7 hits and 2 earned runs.

Friday — Hector Noesi vs. RHP Aaron Cook. Cook’s numbers are equally as unreliable after just two major league games this season. He last pitched against the Braves for a quick 5 inning start, giving up 6 hits and 2 earned runs in 21 batters. It was a considerable improvement over his Red Sox debut, which aired on May 5 for a disastrous 2.2 innings, during which he surrendered 8 hits, 7 runs, and a walk to 16 Orioles. He has yet to log a strikeout in 2012.

Saturday — Erasmo Ramirez vs. RHP Josh Beckett. As mentioned above, Beckett pitched his way through 27 batters for a 4H, 9K shutout of Seattle in May, aided by relievers Rich Hill and Alfredo Aceves. He sports a SIERA of 4.01 in 12 starts, with a 3.29 K/BB and 3.78 FIP.

Sunday — Jason Vargas vs. LHP Felix Doubront. Felix has kept respectable numbers over his 15 appearances, earning a 3.61 SIERA and 4.13 FIP for a current WAR of 1.3. Despite a K/BB of 3.00, Doubront recorded just 2 strikeouts in his last start, after an 11-hit, 7-run beatdown from the Blue Jays on Monday. That outing featured the most hits given up by Doubrount this season, as well as the fewest strikeouts since May 7.

Expected results: The Mariners may be wedged in last place right now, but their behavior against top-seeded teams and struggling franchises never fails to puzzle me. I don’t know whether to predict another combined no-hitter or expect them to roll over again, as they did this week against the Athletics. Felix on the mound is always a sure thing; however, the anemic offense we’ve seen in this homestand is equally as predictable.

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Final score: Red Sox 5, Mariners 0

Congratulations, Josh Beckett. You’ve now earned the right to take one of your 18 days of freedom and play golf.

As for you, Mariners, golf days will be few and far between. For once, I’m not upset with your RISP numbers: 0-for-3 is nothing to cry over. However, striking out 10 times (9 against Beckett), reaching base 6 times, and failing to score altogether made this a very painful game to watch.

Even with a lineup free of Chone Figgins, Miguel Olivo, and Brendan Ryan, the offense lacked a spark. Ichiro’s two singles and two stolen bases were wasted on Kyle Seager, who closed the door on RISP in the 4th and 6th with a groundout and first-pitch flyout.

Blake Beavan lasted 4.0 innings this afternoon, retiring 7 batters before allowing a solo home run to David Ortiz in the 3rd. In the 4th, he served an RBI double and groundout to Mike Aviles and Ryan Sweeney, forming the base for Boston’s insurmountable lead. This was his second shortest start of the season, and his shortest appearance since a 3-inning no-decision against the Tigers last Monday.

Tomorrow, Seattle faces Cleveland in another 2-game series before taking on Colorado for the weekend. I won’t waste time outlining solutions to winning the rest of this road trip—you know what you have to do, Mariners. Just win.

Next game: @ Indians | May 16 | 4:05pm

In an attempt to fit as many teams into a 10-game road trip as possible, the Mariners will be stopping briefly in Boston for a 2-game series, flying to Cleveland for another 2-game series, and stopping over in Colorado for their final three games.

Here are your series pitching matchups. Today, Jason Vargas takes on LHP Jon Lester. Tomorrow, Blake Beavan (or Beavin, as the Red Sox’ game notes would have you believe) faces RHP Josh Beckett.

Current record: 15-19

Last game: vs. Indians. The Red Sox lengthened their winning streak with yesterday’s 12-1 win, effectively pummeling Cleveland and taking 3 of the 4-game series. RHP Daniel Bard pitched 6.0 innings, allowing 6 hits, 1 earned run, 4 walks and striking out 2 of 26 batters. He was backed by the flawless bullpen relief of Rich Hill, Matt Albers, and Scott Atchison, as well as a generous handful of run support from Will Middlebrooks, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, and Daniel Nava.

Including last week’s win against the Royals, the Sox are 8-4 in the month of May.

Last series against Seattle: August 12 – 14, 2011. The Mariners took two of three games, picking up wins with Charlie Furbush and Felix Hernandez against Tim Wakefield and Josh Beckett. Ichiro hammered a first-pitch leadoff home run, Casper Wells went yard twice, and Brandon League picked up his 28th and 29th saves of the season.

Over the past five years, the Mariners hold a 14-20 record against the Sox; 8-11 at home and 6-9 on the road. The last time they made an appearance at Fenway, the M’s were swept for losses #13 – 15 of the infamous 17-game losing streak.

Toughest player: David Ortiz. Over 33 games and 144 PA, Ortiz has batted .349/.410/.620, crushed 7 home runs, and maintained a wOBA of .430. In other words, he’s a beast, and in an already loaded lineup, I’m starting to feel a little scared of this team.

Weakest link: Darnell McDonald. To be honest, this is the first I’ve heard of McDonald. He holds a .179/.277/.357 slash line over 26 games and 65 PA, and has not reached base in his last four starts.

Expected results: Usually, this is the easiest part of a preview. The good teams lay claim to the bulk of the series, leaving a leftover game for Seattle, if they want it. The bad teams are a toss-up, depending on the current state of the Mariners.

This time around, the Red Sox are hugging the bottom of the AL East standings, while the Orioles are on a 22-win rampage. I can’t make heads or tails of that division, and I’m not going to try to sort through it now. May the Mariners be lucky in Boston, and the Red Sox hold off on their campaign to claim a division title just a short while longer.

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