A Grip on Sports: Even if one travels back in time to a long-ago era of pitching dominance, what the M’s starters are doing now stands out

A GRIP ON SPORTS • Whenever folks begin using the word historic in a baseball context, our wait-a-minute antenna begin to twitch. Are we talking five-minutes-ago historic, as is the case often? Or are we using the Wayback Machine for some real depth? When it comes to the recent stretch by the Mariners’ starting pitchers, it’s actually the latter.

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• We’re part of a generation who came of baseball age in when the game was actually dominated by pitching. The 1960s were offensive to the older generation in many ways – a weird echo of which is being heard on college campuses currently – but not at all offensive on the nation’s baseball diamonds. Hardly anyone could hit. No, really. It’s amazing the greatest home run and RBI producer of all time – non-steroid edition – played in the era. But even Hank Aaron had his troubles at times.

Heck, in 1968, Carl Yastrzemski won the American League batting title. He hit .301. He was also the only American League hitter who hit better than .290. It was a culmination of a decade dominated by pitching. The Dodgers, the Orioles, the Cardinals, the Twins, the Tigers. Just about everyone that won had a starting staff with depth – and an offense with holes.

Sound familiar?

That decade set us back, personally, years in appreciation of offense. And set the game back far enough, the powers-that-be decided to make startling changes. Lowering the mound. Introducing the designated hitter. Tightening the strike zone. All of which altered the future, leading in some ways to the three-outcome game we see today built around home runs, strikeouts and walks.

Maybe the pendulum has swung back a bit, though, thanks to recent rule changes. It could be instituting a pitch clock and making hitters have to prepare quicker is a good thing for pitching. Or it just could be the Mariners are finally reaping what Jerry Dipoto planted years ago: A bumper crop of young arms with bulldog mentalities.

As TV analyst Mike Blowers told KIRO’s Cameron Van Til this week, the M’s have done “a great job of identifying what these guys do as far as their pitches and what’s the best thing for them to do and how often to throw it. And then they go from there.”

It’s paying off. The five starters – only Luis Castillo did not come up through the M’s system – all throw hard. But they also spot the ball, with George Kirby and Logan Gilbert showing a Bob Gibson-like command of multiple pitches.

That’s led to a starting staff earned run average of under 1.60 in the past 18 games, leading to a 13-5 run that’s lifted Seattle into first-place in the American League West.

The starters, which includes Bryce Miller and injury fill-in Emerson Hancock, have us thinking back to the days of yore, when starters meant more than relievers and a team’s success revolved around that part of the staff.

What quickly came to mind was the Orioles’ staff in 1971. Basically, the gold standard for anyone who was walking around those days. Baltimore won four A.L. titles in a six-year stretch with Frank and Brooks Robinson hogging the headlines but the starters actually doing the heavy lifting. In ’71, the quartet – five decades ago that was the norm – all won 20 games. And all, except paint-the-edges left-hander Dave McNally, made at least 37 starts. They also served as their own de-facto bullpen, throwing a combined 70 complete games.

None of them, not lefty Mike Cuellar, not journeyman Pat Dobson, not even Hall of Famer Jim Palmer, threw with the consistent velocity of, say, Hancock, a modern-day equivalent of McNally, despite his 90-plus-mile-per-hour fastball. The wins were important then. They are not as much these days, what with the expectations of six strong innings, but the M’s staff and the Orioles’ one have something in common. Both don’t give up a lot of runs. Baltimore’s foursome combined for a 2.89 ERA. The Mariners? Over their exceptional stretch, only Hancock has an ERA of at least two runs a game. And none have yielded more than one combined hit and walk per inning during the period.

That’s not just good, it’s Golden Age of Pitching good. Heck, it’s good enough to make one dream about the postseason again. And in Seattle, that’s gold. And historic.

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WSU: As we mentioned yesterday, for every portal subtraction there seems to be additions, a point the Cougar football team made all too well yesterday. Jake Dickert’s squad added three transfers. Greg Woods introduces them this morning. … Elsewhere in the Pac-12 and the nation, Cam Ward seems to be in the perfect spot to become a school’s all-time great. Sure, that could have been the case in Pullman but won’t be as hard in Miami. … Washington picked up a needed edge rusher in the portal from, wait for it, Miami. … An Oregon redshirt safety decided to enter the portal. … The nearly complete changes to Colorado’s roster may have made the Buffs better last season but at what cost? … How the heck does Utah keep churning out NFL-ready defensive backs? … UCLA recently picked up two transfer-portal offensive linemen. Now a couple Bruins are leaving. … The standout Arizona corner that was in the portal and still practicing? Tacario Davis is staying in Tucson. … In basketball news, one big left Washington and one stayed. … Oregon State picked up a transfer center, one we watched practice early last year. For former Wake Forest big Matthew Marsh to be successful, he has to be better in one area that stood out: communication. We’ve never seen a quieter college big man. … Oregon added a guard. … Colorado has a transfer making a big jump. … Arizona made a couple transfers official on the same day it was revealed its point guard is testing the NBA waters. … UW’s women added an assistant coach. … The Buffs lost a guard to the portal.

Gonzaga: The one transfer GU has attracted thus far, Pepperdine’s Michael Ajayi, is also the only player testing the NBA draft process. Also, the deadline to enter the portal looms today, so there is a strong possibility the Zags will lose only two reserves (Colby Brooks and Pavle Stosic). Jim Meehan delves into all that today. … Former Gonzaga women’s player Payton Muma has found a home, transferring to Wyoming.

EWU and Idaho: Around the Big Sky, a Montana State guard will spend his final season playing in Washington D.C. with Howard University. … Idaho State added an assistant coach and another men’s player. … Cal Poly is in the market for a new starting quarterback. … Sacramento State has to answer some questions between now and the start of the season.

Preps: A series of knee injuries changed Addy MacArthur’s athletic trajectory. Now the University High junior works every day on the trajectory of weights instead of a soccer ball. And they may just carry her to college. Greg Lee has more in this story. … Dave Nichols also has a roundup of Tuesday’s action in baseball, softball and soccer. … The Seahawks are pushing the WIAA to sanction flag football for girls.

Indians: Dave was also at Avista for a day game Tuesday. After missing four games north of the border, Spokane returned home to host second-place Eugene in a day game that turned out to be colder than playing at night. The Emeralds moved back into first with a 3-1 victory. … Elsewhere in the NWL, Vancouver topped host Tri-City 10-4 and visiting Hillsboro handed Everett 6-3.

Seahawks: Could Jamal Adams be back? Possibly. Should he? You decide. And yes, that’s the same sentence we wrote yesterday. The Times’ story was in the S-R this morning. … After the draft, the Hawks have some depth-chart logjams. … Quarterback is not one of those spots.

Mariners: Castillo was lights out. Three runs that could have been many more if Julio Rodriguez was hitting. And some late-inning luck – mainly because Andres Munoz made it so with his 110-mph fastball. It all added up to a 3-2 win and the clinching of another series. … As we mentioned above, the starting pitchers are on an historic run. … The first full month of the season is over. Things have happened.

Sounders: Back in Philadelphia to continue a rain-suspended match, Raul Ruidiaz and Seattle held on for a 3-2 victory.

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• We don’t usually tout the NCAA men’s volleyball tournament, but today we will. Why? Because it’s one sport in which the mid-major schools shine. Three of the four semifinalists come from those ranks, including Grand Canyon, Long Beach State and, wait, we know this school, UC Irvine. The Anteaters face top-ranked UCLA (boooooo) Thursday. Just thought you might want to know there still is some parity in college athletics. Until later …