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SYMMETRY

Let's see, what happens when you reduce the fractions on 27-and-18?  And what is 60% of 162?

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NEW DENIZENS

Wednesday and Friday, when Dr. D will be indisposed, SSI will probably be seeing new community members in the Shout Box during the game broadcasts.  If all y'all would welcome them to the best sports site on the internet, I'd be much obliged.  We're in kind of an evangelism phase from an admin point of view.  From our own members' point of view, new friends B kewl.

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GAMEFLOW

Cindy and I got tickets in the Club section.  Read:  luxury boxes for working stiffs like us.  At one point we looked up and the M's had out-hit the A's 7:3, which is kind of like being up 198 to 75 in yardage at halftime.  Unfortunately, they were only ahead by the odd run, 2-1, and the feel of the game was sour.  Like when a football team has dominated for 2-and-a-half quarters, but is only up by four points and you can just feel the loss brewing.

In the 6th inning, Karns tired kind of early again, and the A's put four runs up.  Fair and square.  I turned to Cindy and said, "You ready?"  She was surprised, but she knows I'm Dr. Detecto.  We left.  (j/k, LrKrBoi29.)

About an hour later, we were pulling into our driveway, just a biitttttt too late to watch the bottom of the ninth.  

Will let you know when I'm done taking grief.

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LUCKY WIN?

Pythag owed us one.  ... that's theoretically speaking it owed us one, and also in terms of earlier 2016 losses we didn't deserve.  A few of my favorites:

• Opening Day the Rangers get one (1) hit and beat us 3-2
• The Mariners lost their first 5 one-run games of the year, just as Scott Servais was trying to peddle his goods
• Friday the 13th, the M's blew the Angel game by allowing 2 runs in the 7th, 2 in the 8th, 2 in the 9th to lose by one run
• The next day, the M's got behind 6-2, scored five in the 8th to "win" it, and then bungled the game

Over the course of 162 games, there will be a certain number of mechanical victories.  You play better than the other guys, you deserve to win, and you do win.  (Notably, when you're in Cincinnati.)  But there will also be fifty games in there, even if you were a great team, that you didn't "force" a victory or have one forced on you.

Not givin' it back, Billy.

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KARNS' SIXTH

Resisting the compulsion to defend my favorite Mariner ... Karns has indeed established a bit of a trend as to sixth, seventh innings.  It's not a huge deal; after two months, the other SP's have 55, 56 innings and he has 51.  Projecting M's starters over 162 games:

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Karns has a few less innings than Jase, but is also the starter with the most strikeouts.  He is the wildest of the five.  Of course he's not going to last as long into games, and just as of course, it does not matter.  They got EIGHT relievers as against five starters.

All that said, Karns is laboring out there a bit.  For one thing, he's a bit of an overthinker, like Jamie Moyer; for another thing, in some games he can't get the hitters "in between" very well (swinging ahead of his curve ball especially).  The A's can be tough that way, fouling curves off that would be third strikes against somebody else.  Wouldn't worry about it.

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The least the Shout Box could do is randomly generate comic book characters to go with the guest names

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>> Tue 7:36pm: guestecfhebdf Karns with a nice change today. Bonus! <<

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Really good call by Mr. Mxyzptlk one inning into the game.  Karns went on to throw 10-of-10 changeups for strikes.  Nine of them were strikes not in play, a crazy percentage in modern baseball.  Whodat spotted Karns' changeup so early.

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MATT THORNTON, THE SEQUEL

>> Tue 8:29pm: SABR Matt Would like to see Karns gut it out for six and then Mike Monkey in the 7th, Benoit in the 8th, Cishek in the 9th. <<

Who needs Benoit and Cishek?  Except for that, way to tap your left arm Matty.  The Montgomery box score:  3.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K.  The fastball:  94.9 MPH average, with 96 achieved on four occasions.  The curveball:  78 MPH, which was -17 MPH off the fastball, nice arm action, and ... 11/15 steeerrrrrrikes.  The lad has definitely gone to two pitches, and here are his pitch values so far in the 2016 season:

• -2.49 to normal ERA per 100 pitches = FASTBALL
• -1.6 runs per 100 pitches = CURVE

His slider is -2.1 also and the change is -2.0.  He hardly ever uses them - once each per long outing -- but I don't remember glossing over any specific pitcher with huge numbers on each of four pitches.

Dr. D does not buy into Mike Montgomery as any kind of World Series MVP.  But this is what you should be able to do once a year:  lay your hand on the shoulder of a talented starting pitcher, point way down yonder at the bullpen, and tell him to throw every pitch for a strike.

Let's play 96,

Jeff