The Mariners and Guardians will go for history Saturday in just their third game of the season.
The Mariners do not have a single yet. They are the first team ever to not have a single in their first two games of a season. There have only been nine instances in history where a team has gone two consecutive games without a single; no team has ever gone three.
It’s worth keeping this reminder up for the opening series. Lookout Landing will feature a daily trio(+) of stories about each game: (1) a game preview with starting lineups and all the info you need to know pregame, which will also serve as a comment thread to discuss the game as it unfolds, (2) a chart highlighting the turning points of the game published immediately postgame, and (3) a recap of how the game went down. We’ll do this for all 162 games this season, and we’d love to have you along for the ride, so if you haven’t yet signed up, please consider doing so! Instructions for doing so are at the bottom of the page.
I’ll also repeat the summary of the work we’ve put up over the past couple days in preparation for Opening Day:
Going for history will be a slightly different group from the first two nights. We get our first look at the Mariners’ “facing a lefty starter” lineup for 2026. Rob Refsnyder replaces Dom Canzone at designate hitter and hits leadoff. Victor Robles replaces Luke Raley in right field and hits seventh. Notably still in the lineup is lefty Cole Young at second base, suggesting he’s not automatically locked into a platoon with righty infielder Ryan Bliss; Young got the most reps against lefties in Spring Training of anyone on the team.
On the mound is Bryan Woo, making his first start of the season. The Seattle Times had an article Saturday morning on the team’s plan to keep Woo healthy all season — basically, setting him up to maximize rest between starts.
Attempting to deny the Mariners of history (or trying to lead them to it, I’m not sure) will be lefty Joey Cantillo. Here’s Jake Mailhot’s description from our Series Preview:
Joey Cantillo spent last year split between the bullpen and the rotation. Once he made the move to starting in July, things really took off for him; he posted a 2.96 ERA and a 3.21 FIP across 13 starts down the stretch. His calling card is a phenomenal changeup that produced a 49.4% whiff rate last year! His two breaking balls are okay too — his curveball is the better of the two but he was testing a new grip on his slider this spring to hopefully increase that pitch’s effectiveness. His command is his weakness, though his walk rate improved slightly after joining the rotation last year. With a role in the rotation secured to start this season, he’s well positioned to take a big step forward if he can get his errant command under control.
J.P. Crawford is back in Seattle as he rehabs his shoulder injury.
First pitch: 6:40 PDT
TV: Mariners TV, with Aaron Goldsmith, Ryan Rowland-Smith, and Angie Mentink
Radio: 710 ESPN, with Rick Rizzs and Gary Hill Jr.
