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Sunday, April 21st, 2013

Brandon Maurer delivers a pitch against Texas. The 6 FT 5, 215 LBS Right Handed Pitcher had progressed mighty fast through the Seattle Minor League System – featuring a 21 – 18 Career Record with a 3.57 ERA and a WHIP of 1.237. Last year for Jackson General in the Southern Atlantic (Double A Ball), he was 9 – 2 in 24 Games Started, yielding an impressive 3.20 ERA. He definitely earned a spot in the Mariners Starting Rotation. The man from Newport Beach, CA was lit up in his first 2 Starts, putting up a collective 16.20 ERA in back to back Starts to Oakland and Houston. He has since settled down and may give club a quality back end of the Rotation Pitcher.

By Sam Evans (Baseball Writer):  Follow @RJA206

After an absolutely fantastic spring, Brandon Maurer earned a spot in the Mariners starting rotation. Expectations for Maurer weren’t out of control but he was still expected to be an average starting pitcher with a chance to be something more.

After two horrendous starts, the Mariners traded for Aaron Harang and Maurer seemed on the verge of a demotion. Nonetheless, Maurer has been able to command all of his pitches in his last two starts, which has led to outstanding results.

Maurer Power:

Maurer allowed 12 Earned Runs in his first two starts. In his next two starts ( both versus Division Rival Texas, he gave up just 5 Runs in 12.2 IP – including him recording his 1st win versus the Rangers on April.14/2013 at Safeco Field.

In Maurer’s first start, at Oakland, he lasted six Innings, but he gave up 6 Earned Runs and only Struckout 1. Next, against the light – hitting Astros, the rookie didn’t make it through the first Inning, allowing six Earned Runs. 

Maurer wasn’t having trouble throwing strikes, but with his limited arsenal, he needs to be able to command his pitches inside the zone. Overall, Maurer’s first two outings made him look like one of the worst starting pitchers in baseball. 

On the 14^th, facing the Rangers in Seattle, Maurer went 6 Innings, allowing only two Earned Runs and fanning 5 Batters. Maurer was able to command his slider and generate Strikeouts from it.

Also, he kept his fastball down in the zone. Saturday could have gone a lot worse for Maurer. Facing the Rangers in Texas, if he left anything up in the zone, the Rangers were going to hit it out.

Nonetheless, Brandon Maurer lasted 6.2 Innings, only allowing two hits, with being both solo Home Runs. It appears the Right Handed Pitcher has been able to make the adjustments necessary to keep himself in the Majors for a long time.

Brandon Maurer’s future is looking very bright. One of the most valuable skills for a young Starting Pitcher to have is the aptitude to make the proper corrections to their pitching quickly.

Maurer has proven that he can make those changes in a very short period of time. The Mariners are lucky to have a pitcher like this kid  emerge out of nowhere to become a valuable back of the rotation starter. 

Brandon Maurer was selected in the 23rd Round of the 2008 MLB Amateur Draft. He has 4 Game Starts so far this young campaign – carrying a 1 – 3 record with a 7.45 ERA. At just Age 22, he is part of a core stable of pitchers making their way up the Seattle organizational ranks that the club will bank on in the future to compete in the AL West against the likes of the Angels, Athletics and Angels.

***The views and opinions expressed in this report are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of mlbreports.com or their partners***

Today’s feature was prepared by our Baseball Writer Sam Evans.  We highly encourage you to leave your comments and feedback at the bottom of the page and share in the discussion with our readers.  You can also follow Sam on Twitter Follow @RJA206

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