Mariners vs. Astros: 3 takeaways from first home series of 2022

2) Flexen continues to struggle:

Expectations were not particularly high for Chris Flexen, when the Mariners signed him to a two-year deal prior to the 2021 season. However, he went on to become arguably the best pitcher in the rotation.

Flexen led all starting pitchers in games started, quality starts, wins, innings pitched and ERA. Among all AL pitchers, he also recorded the most starts of seven innings pitched with one earned run or fewer allowed, which must have been a particular badge of honor.

As a result, the 27-year-old entered this season anticipated to be one of Seattle’s more reliable starters. Unfortunately for player and ball club alike, his first start in Minnesota was a disappointment, as he allowed five hits, three earned runs and a trio of walks in just 4.1 innings, and was tagged with the loss in a 4-0 defeat.

Of course everyone can have a bad day at the office, but a potent Astros lineup is not exactly what you would request to face in your next start. In this respect, Flexen struggled again on Saturday night, with some eerily similar stats to his first start of the season.

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The Newark, California native again allowed five hits and three earned runs, once more resulting in him taking the loss in a 4-0 defeat. He did last six innings this time, but his 72 pitches included just 47 strikes, which were the second-lowest of his tenure with the Mariners.

Flexen would only allow the one walk on Saturday night in terms of looking for positives. However, what was most noticeably — and concerning overall — was that his velocity was significantly lower than usual on all of his pitches.

If you really wanted to sum up how little went right on the night for the former New York Met, consider the home run by Martin Maldonado in the top of the fifth. He had been hitless in his first 15 at-bats to begin the 2022 season, but his two-run blast gave the Astros an insurmountable 3-0 lead.

As always though, baseball is the consummate team game. In this respect, the Mariners have yet to score this season while Flexen is on the mound.

Afterwards, Flexen did not try to make excuses for his performance. Speaking to the media, he said:

“I had zero curveball today; fastball didn’t have much life, command was okay. I made some pitches at times, but I found a lot of barrels today … at the end of the day, it’s about getting the job done and making pitches. I fell short of that today.”

NEXT: A SOMEWHAT SURREAL OUTING