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I/O:  Nelson Cruz hits a routine fly ball, classically into his power alley, to start this season's 3-run festivities.  Segura and Cano trot in ahead of him.

CRUNCH:  Reminds me of the Big Red Machine, where the first inning was scripted like a Bill Walsh first half.  Sniff.  I think I'm going to cry.

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I/O:  Matty wants to know what he wins, after his 24-karat solid gold guarantee Mitch Haniger comes through in right field.

CRUNCH:  The undiscovered country:  Best Bet Gloatage.  There is simply nothing like rehashing and rehashing a 145-lb. UW pitcher for fifteen years after he last did anything in the majors.  If you get over the top enough with it Matt, you can even post art-deco stylings of Olympian deities after your hero's latest rampage.  It's a rush.

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I/O:  Edwin Diaz working on a change.

CRUNCH:  Let's hope not. 

First of all, a hitter can only start the bat once per swing.  Second of all, 50 strikeouts in 25 innings.  Third of all, Diaz was a starter and already has a change.  The whole thing is feebleminded.  Fortunately it's probably just noise.

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I/O:  Tyler O'Neill struck out in his first two at-bats.

CRUNCH:  There goes the Griffey Scenario.  Oh, grow up, Dr. D.

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I/O:  Guillermo Heredia is +6 good things on Ben Gamel (two doubles, a stolen base and a single, compared to two whiffs) and also is the correct platoon partner for Jarrod Dyson.

CRUNCH:  Also they're making noises about Heredia developing as a hitter, making progress, that swing plane thingy again.  I like Carson Cistulli - here is a late-summer 2016 commentary from him on Heredia as "one of baseball's most compelling fringe players":

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Heredia has been among the last players “cut,” as it were, from multiple past editions of this weekly column. Signed at the end of February to a $500,000 bonus after defecting from Cuba the previous year, Heredia has been excellent both at Double-A and, over the last month, with Triple-A Tacoma. Praised by the Mariners front office for his speed and defense, he’s also exhibited considerable promise offensively, distinguishing himself as one of merely 13 qualified batters both (a) at High-A or above and (b) younger than 30 to record more walks than strikeouts. The combination of a league-average bat (a level at which his Steamer projection suggests he’s capable of producing) and center-field defense already suggests the presence of a slightly above-average overall profile.

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Hadn't actually noticed that Heredia has a 48:47 EYE, and a .395 OBP, in the minors.  That happens with international stars, but still.

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I/O:  Chris Heston and Nick Hagadone pitch on the radio Sunday.

CRUNCH:  Rock on,

jemanji