Stock Up, Stock Down: Mariners, Padres, Giants, Phillies

It was a crazy week around MLB with some players putting together some impressive individual performances, while some teams improved or hurt their postseason chances. As we enter the last week of August, time is running out on the 2023 season.

As we begin the final week of August, here is the latest edition of Stock Up, Stock Down.

Stock Up: Trea Turner leads Phillies to win over Giants

What a difference a month makes. Just when you thought that the fans of the Philadelphia Phillies were ready to run shortstop Trea Turner out of town, they have embraced him and now, he’s playing his best baseball of the season.

On August 4, the Philadelphia fans gave him a standing ovation in a game against the Kansas City Royals, and since then, he’s hitting .353 with a crazy OPS of 1.007 and has 24 hits, six doubles, and 42 total bases. This week against the San Francisco Giants, he continued to play a big part in the Phillies turnaround.

He collected two hits in Monday’s 10-4 win, but Tuesday night, he delivered a two-run single in the bottom of the ninth when his line drive with the bases loaded hit Giants pitcher Camilo Doval deflected into shallow right field to plate Bryson Stott and Brandon Marsh.

It’s no coincidence that since Turner got hot, so have the Phillies. They have vaulted up the National League Wild Card standings and currently hold the first extra playoff spot. Like last season, they are getting hot at the right time of the season.

Stock Down: San Francisco Giants

Speaking of the Giants, they knew that their six-game road trip against the top two teams in the National League East was not going to be easy. Winning four of the six games, or maybe just splitting the trip would be considered a success. However, dropping four of six is less than ideal.

The biggest loss was the one Tuesday when they blew a ninth-inning lead to Turner and the Phillies. Teams ahead of you in the standings are the games you must win this season when they pop up on your schedule … and losing two of three to the Phillies is less than ideal.

San Francisco was able to win the final game of each series to avoid being swept. Against the Atlanta Braves, Joc Pederson drew a two-out bases-loaded walk in the of the ninth to break a 3-3 tie. Against the Phillies, they avoided disaster after allowing three runs in the bottom of the ninth to force extra innings and scored three in the top of the 10th for an 8-6 win. Newly-signed Paul DeJong delivered a clutch two-run single in the top of the 10th to break the game open. He finished the day with three hits and four RBI. Not bad to begin his tenure in the Bay Area.

If the Giants end up missing the playoffs, this trip, going 2-4, could be looked back at as a point in the season where they missed an opportunity.

Stock Up: Julio Rodriguez and the Seattle Mariners

There is no team hotter than the Seattle Mariners right now and there is no player hotter than their star outfielder Julio Rodriguez.

Forget about an American League Wild Card spot, the Mariners are closing in on the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros in the West while holding onto the third and final Wild Card spot over the Toronto Blue Jays. The Mariners had their eight-game winning streak snapped by the Chicago White Sox, but Rodriguez remains as hot as any player.

In his last seven games, he’s slashing .556/.590/.806 with 20 hits, two home runs, nine RBI, and six stolen bases. In a three-game sweep of the Astros, he had nine hits, scored four runs, and collected 13 total bases in 16 at-bats. Tensions were rising in the series and Rodriguez was a peacemaker to make sure nothing happened.

He got some time off against the White Sox, but he is playing a big part in the Mariners’ resurgence. After looking like the AL East was going to get three teams in the postseason, there is a good chance that the AL West does. The division race between the Rangers, Astros, and Mariners is going to be good theater in September.