The 15-19 Boston Red Sox are coming off their first series win at home since their first home series of the year as they welcome the 16-20 Seattle Mariners to Fenway Park. The Red Sox and Mariners will play a short two-game series on May 14 and 15 before Boston heads out on an eight-game road trip.

Boston's lineup is enjoying a boost from its AAA reinforcements. Will Middlebrooks and Daniel Nava combined for ten hits and eight RBI in Boston's 3-1 series against the Cleveland Indians. Also swinging a red hot bat, Dustin Pedroia rides a 14-game hitting streak into the series. The Mariners are dependent on strong pitching for success. They have the second lowest team on-base percentage in the majors and they score only 3.75 runs per game, but they boast a 3.87 team ERA. Second year third baseman Kyle Seager enters the series as Seattle's hottest hitter with a .325 average and 25 total bases in 11 May games. He is hitting .295 with a .804 OPS on the season.

Pitching matchups:

Jon Lester (4.29 ERA, 28/18 K/BB) vs Jason Vargas (2.79 ERA, 38/13 K/BB)

The Red Sox are still waiting for Jon Lester to find his form. His last start against the Kansas City Royals was plagued by adventures in outfield defense, but he didn't exactly compensate well. Slow starts are not uncommon for Lester who has a lifetime 3.99 ERA in April and May compared to a 3.57 mark overall. Vargas, the lone lefty in the Mariners' rotation, has enjoyed an excellent start to the season. Through 51.2 innings, he has the lowest ERA and walk rate of his career. He has allowed two or fewer runs in six of his eight starts.

Josh Beckett (5.97 ERA, 26/11 K/BB) vs Blake Beavan (4.32 ERA, 14/4 K/BB)

Beckett's return to the rotation against the Cleveland Indians was a complete disaster as both his command and velocity were nonexistent. Overall, both his four and two-seam fastballs are clocking in 1.5 mph lower than they did in 2011. His strikeout rate of 6.8 per nine innings is lower than that of any previous year in his career. 21 starts into his MLB career, Beavan has established himself as a strike-thrower. He has only 19 walks in 130.1 innings of work, but he gives up a ton of flyballs and struggles to miss bats. He has a groundball-to-flyball ratio of just 0.52 with a 3.78 strikeout rate.

Sources:

Boston Red Sox, Seattle Mariners, Yahoo! Sports

Baseball-Reference.com

Read the rest here:

Red Sox Look to Build Momentum Against Mariners: Fan Preview