After being swept at home by the Los Angeles Dodgers, the 81-68 Seattle Mariners will look to get back on track when they visit the 46-103 Oakland Athletics tonight to open a 3-game set. Seattle is in a heated battle with Texas and Toronto for the last two wild card spots and they need to take care of business against the worst team in baseball. Oakland native Bryan Woo is expected to be on the hill for the Mariners and he will be extra motivated tonight to be at his best for the many friends and family that will be in attendance. Woo is 3-4 with a 4.16 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP but has been throwing flames of late. In his last turn against the Angels, Woo allowed just 4 hits and 0 runs over 5-2/3 innings, and the Mariners went on to an 8-0 victory. In his last start against the Athletics on August 28th, he allowed just 3 hits and 0 runs over 6 innings of work, and Seattle went on to a 7-0 shutout win. The A’s are expected to send J.P. Spears to the bump. Spears is 5-11 with a 4.45 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. The Mariners have dominated the Athletics this year. Seattle is 9-1 over the last 10 meetings, outscoring Oakland 52-18 over that span.
TONIGHT’S PICK: SEATTLE MARINERS