Seattle Mariners weekly review: August 22nd-28th edition

By Kshell

The Seattle Mariners ended the week in disappointment after starting off so successful. The Mariners began the week taking three out of four against Eric Wedge's old team the Cleveland Indians in Cleveland. The offense had erupted that series but quickly went silent when the Mariners came home. The Mariners were swept by the Chicago White Sox scoring just five runs in three games. The Mariners for the week went 3-4 and two hitters who had been so red hot went ice cold this week. The Mariners are seeing youngsters Kyle Seager and Trayvon Robinson hit the ball pretty well. While Ichiro is making a late push to hit 200 hits this for the 11th consecutive season. The Mariners young pitching continues to get blown up while the pitching face of the franchise Felix Hernandez continues to pitch great down the stretch. The Mariners did go 3-4 so that means I'll talk about the good(Seager and Ichiro), the bad(young pitching) and the bad(more in depth on the young pitching).

The Good:

The week started off well for the Mariners as they beat playoff contender Cleveland Indians three out of four and had a lead in the ninth inning in their only loss. The Mariners have had some hot hitting from Ichiro who has an 11 game hitting streak and Kyle Seager who has a nine game hitting streak. The Mariners received some offense this week from the catchers position which hasn't been seen most of the year. The pitching duo of Felix Hernandez and Michael Pineda was nice to watch this week. Hernandez has been dominant in his last six starts while Pineda has had back to back quality starts. The bullpen was pretty good as four bullpen arms were on my good list which is pretty impressive. The outfield of the Mariners hit pretty well this week with Ichiro, Franklin Gutierrez and Trayvon Robinson.

Good Hitting:

Ichiro: 13-33(.394), HR, 3 RBI's, 5 runs, 3 SB's-11 game hitting streak
Kyle Seager: 13-24(.542), HR, 2 RBI's, 7 runs,6 dbls -9 game hitting streak
Trayvon Robinson: 7-22(.318), 4 RBI's, 2 runs
Franklin Gutierrez: 9-26(.346), 4 RBI's, 2 runs, SB
Josh Bard: 2-8(.250), HR, 3 RBI's, 3 runs
Miguel Olivo: 6-18(.333), HR, 3 RBI's, 3 runs - 5 game hitting streak, has hit safely eight of last nine games

Good Pitching:

Felix Hernandez: 1-0, 6 IP, 3.00 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 10 K's
Michael Pineda: 0-1,6 IP, 3.00 ERA, 0.67 WHIP, 8 K's
Blake Beavan: 6 IP, 4.50 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 4 K's
Jamey Wright: 4.1 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 6 K's
Tom Wilhelmsen: 3.2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 7 K's
Josh Lueke: 3.1 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, 5 K's
Jeff Gray: 3.2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.82 WHIP, K, Save

Felix Hernandez last six starts: 4-2, 42.1 IP, 2.98 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 47 K's, 9.99 K's per 9.
Felix Hernandez season stats: 12-11, 200.1 IP(7.1 innings a start), 3.37 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 195 K's, 8.76 K's per 9.

I feel sometimes that fans take Hernandez for granted. He's not putting up the same numbers he did when he won the Cy Young but he is still have a pretty solid year. He has pitched over 200 innings for the fourth straight year, will strike out 200+ hitters for the third straight season in his next start. It has been sad seeing the Mariners waste Hernandez as he is pitched way better than his 25-23 record the last two seasons. I hope Hernandez hasn't spoiled fans by his greatness but I get the feeling he has.

The Bad:

The Mariners in getting swept by the Chicago White Sox scored just five runs in that series sweep. The Mariners hitting went to sleep especially two hitters in particular. The Mariners when they aren't hitting rack up the strikeouts while not drawing any walks in the process which shows they are a free swinging team. The pitching particularly the starting pitching was pretty bad this time especially the left handed pitching which saw three left handers get rocked this week. The Mariners also saw all-star closer Brandon League get roughed up once again in Cleveland as he blew his second save in Cleveland this year giving up three runs without recording a single out. The Mariners had a chance to have a successful week as they snapped their five game losing streak but instead ended the week on a three game losing streak. With the division rivals Angels coming to town things could get ugly.

Bad Hitting:

Mike Carp: 3-27(.111), HR, 2 RBI's, run, 14 K's, one walk
Brendan Ryan: 4-22(.182), 2 RBI's, 4 runs, 7 K's
Casper Wells: 1-19(.052), run, 9 K's, zero walks
Adam Kennedy: 2-12(.167), run, K, SB
Willy Mo Pena: 3-15(.200), HR, 4 RBI's, 2 runs, 3 K's

Bad Pitching:

Jason Vargas: 0-1, 12.2 IP, 6.39 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 4 K's
Charlie Furbush: 0-1, 5 IP, 7.20 ERA, 1.60 WHIP, 4 K's
Anthony Vasquez: 1-0, 5.1 IP, 8.44 ERA, 2.06 WHIP, 2 K's
Chance Ruffin: 1-0, 3.1 IP, 5.40 ERA, 1.80 WHIP, K
Brandon League: 0-1, Blown Save, 2 IP, 9.00 ERA, 2.00 WHIP, K, save

The hot hitting duo of Casper Wells and Mike Carp came crashing down this week. Those two have been overachieving as their K's to BB ratio reminds you of Carlos Peguero. For the season Carp is striking out 30.3% of the time while walking only 7.8% of the time. As for Wells he is striking out 42.4% of the time while walking only 5.4% of the time. So keep that in mind when looking at their small sample sizes.

The Ugly:

The Mariners once strong pitching staff has been pretty poor since trading away Doug Fister and Erik Bedard. The Mariners had to make some moves to acquire some offense which for the most part has improved greatly. Still, getting swept at home isn't good at all. The Mariners three left handed starters were roughed up this week. In particular two left handers have been getting rocked quite a bit lately in Charlie Furbush and Jason Vargas. For Vargas this is the third straight second half he has melted down and his pitches keep rising up in the strike zone for home runs. As for Furbush is reminding Mariners fans of another left hander Jack Zduriencik acquired from Detroit named Luke French. Furbush has had a bad habit of getting rocked around despite pitching in a friendly ballpark for left handed pitchers.

Ugly Pitching:

Charlie Furbush: 2-3, 25 IP, 6.48 ERA, 1.56 WHIP, 15 K's, .296 BAA.
Jason Vargas: 7-12, 169.1 IP, 4.52 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, 104 K's, .266 BAA.
Jason Vargas second half: 1-6, 48 IP, 7.13 ERA, 1.88 WHIP, 23 K's, .340 BAA

As you can see Furbush has been horrible for the Mariners since coming here. As for Vargas this is the third straight year where he has had a bad second half, second straight year where he was terrific in the first half but horrible second half. A good left hander should thrive in Safeco Field since right handers have trouble hitting the ball out of the ball park yet these two continue to get rocked. Vargas this year at Safeco is 5-9 having pitched 99.2 innings with a 5.24 ERA and 1.35 WHIP. Which doesn't make sense since he is a fly ball pitcher.

AL West Standings:

Texas Rangers: 76-59, First Place
L.A. Angels: 72-61, 3.0 GB
Oakland A's: 60-73, 15.0 GB
Seattle Mariners: 56-76, 18.5 GB

In conclusion, the Mariners are winding down an August that saw them go 10-14 so far. Eric Wedge needs to realize the season is over and just play the youngsters even if it cost the team wins in the present. He needs to limit the workload of Hernandez who is on pace to throw over 250 innings for the second straight season. Guys like Adam Kennedy and Jack Wilson should just be DFA'd as they serve zero purpose on this roster right now. The Mariners have one more week of people following them then football season will begin which means the focus on the Mariners will shift towards the Washington Huskies, Washington State Cougars and Seattle Seahawks. The Mariners are playing hard and that is why that White Sox sweep was so depressing as that was an ass kicking for three games. I felt the Mariners had regressed big time that weekend. The Mariners play their next 10 games against division opponents. Hopefully the Mariners can close out September better than they have in July and August.

Seattle Mariners weekly review May 9th-15th edition

By Kshell

What a terrible week for the Seattle Mariners which saw the team lose all four games this week. To make things worst the Mariners had a lead going into the final at bat in three of those losses then were rained out in Cleveland. So the Mariners went 0-4 on this road trip and will have to make up two more games in Cleveland. The Mariners are currently on a six game losing streak which saw them lose four games in the final at bat. To say the Mariners are going through their roughest stretch of the season would be an understatement. What happened against the Baltimore Orioles was horrible as the Mariners lost two games in extra innings in which they had the lead. The Mariners still aren't hitting and the once reliable bullpen mainly Brandon League has given fans flashbacks of Bobby Ayala this past week. Like I've done in the past I'll break down the good(that was hard), the bad(way too many) and the ugly(where do I begin?).

The Good:

The good this week was again the starting pitching which saw them get three good performances of the three starts. The Mariners besides League had good pitching performances from their bullpen as well. Whenever a team goes 0-4 and isn't hitting I find myself grasping at straws to fill out the good. The hitting wasn't good as the usual suspects like Ichiro and Justin Smoak didn't kill the ball. Instead the Mariners really only had one hitter step up which was Jack Cust who appears to finally coming around.

Hitting Stars:

Jack Cust: 6-16(.375), run, 3 walks
Jack Wilson: 2-6(.333), run
Justin Smoak: 3-13(.231), HR, 3 RBI's, run, 4 walks

Pitching Stars:

Jason Vargas: 9 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.89 WHIP, 4 K's
Doug Fister: 8 IP, 2.25 ERA, 0.63 WHIP, 6 K's
Aaron Laffey: 3 IP, 0.00 ERA, 2.67 WHIP, 2 K's
David Pauley: 4 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 2 K's

The Bad:

Whenever you go 0-4 there is plenty of bad for the week. The Mariners parted ways with Milton Bradley and Ryan Langerhans but still got no production from left field. The Mariners Cy Young award winner Felix Hernandez was roughed up as well. The Mariners saw closer Brandon League have one of the worst weeks a reliever could possibly have as he blew three saves and went 0-3 this week. Dating back to Sunday League is 0-4 with a 30.00 ERA in his last four outings. The Mariners saw themselves get swept by the Baltimore Orioles then lose a heartbreaker to the Cleveland Indians in Eric Wedge's homecoming back to Cleveland. The Mariners will also have to make up some games but given the way they were playing that rain out could have been a good thing.

Hitting Bad:

Brendan Ryan: 2-12(.166), RBI, run, 2 K's
Miguel Olivo: 2-12(.166), 2 RBI's, run, 3 K's
Michael Saunders: 3-17(.176), HR, RBI, 3 runs, 5 K's
Carlos Peguero/Mike Wilson: 2-17(.117), HR, run, 2 RBI's, 5 K's

Pitching Bad:

Felix Hernandez: 0-1, 5 IP, 7.20 ERA, 2.00 WHIP, 4 K's
Brandon League: 0-3, 3 blown saves, 1.2 IP, 37.72 ERA, 5.40 WHIP, K

The Ugly:

The terrible defense and lack of hitting by the Mariners continues to be a major problem. The defense isn't making any outs unless the ball is hit right directly at them. While the hitting still isn't hitting at all on the year as the team features just one .300 hitter. The Mariners have just two regular everyday hitters who are hitting above .250 which simply won't cut it. In the American League you have to be able to hit the ball or you simply can't win scoring piss poor low totals. The closer problems of League are magnified because the team can't hit ever to blow anyone out.

Ugly Hitting:

Seattle Mariners team: .228/.302/.326 which is a terrible line for a player let alone an entire team. The Mariners currently rank 29th out of 30 teams in home runs, batting average, slugging percentage and on base+slugging percentage. The Mariners rank 28th in runs and hits while ranking 27th in runs batted in and on base percentage. So the Mariners rank in the bottom four in all of baseball in home runs, batting average, OBP, OPS, runs, hits and RBI's. That won't get the job done at all.

Michael Saunders: .171/.225/.270 with 32 K's in 111 AB's(3.5:1 ratio). Saunders makes me beg for the Jeremy Reed days in center that is how pathetic he has been. He was once a promising prospect but it appears he is destined to be quadruple A material for this franchise.

Miguel Olivo: .207/.250/.276 with 32 K's in 116 AB's with only two home runs. This is the Mariners clean up hitter.....ladies and gentlemen your 2011 Seattle Mariners.

American League West standings:

L.A. Angels: 22-19, first place
Texas Rangers: 21-19, 0.5 GB
Oakland A's: 20-20, 1.5 GB
Seattle Mariners: 16-23, 5.0 GB

The Mariners still can't hit so while it's fun to bitch and moan about Brandon League the real problem isn't going away. No matter who Wedge puts in the clean up hole odds are he will suck since Ichiro and Smoak are the only two hitters on this roster. This was a terribly ball club built by a third year general manager. Yes Jackie Z inherited a mess from Bill Bavasi but he isn't helping that mess. To date he sounds like Tyrone Willingham who made nothing but excuses about his mess he inherited while failing to mention he isn't doing shit about the mess. The Mariners hitting we all knew was going to be a disaster and Dustin Ackley better be called up soon because this is beyond pathetic. The Mariners better spend at least 40 million this offseason on hitting or the fans will continue to not show up.

The week that was Seattle Mariners edition: April 1st-10th

By Kshell

Unlike previous sports where I write a game recap on each game with baseball I'll just do a simple week that was post. For the Seattle Mariners they started the week off pretty good winning their first two games on the road at Oakland. Then after that it was all downhill for the team as they have lost seven games in a row. During that seven game losing streak the team has scored just 18 runs. This week has already brought the team some excitement with the debut of Michael Pineda, Ichiro breaking Edgar Martinez franchise hits record, Felix Hernandez receives his Cy Young after pitching a complete game on opening day. Then there was some lowlights like the seven game losing streak, Erik Bedard's era, the terrible defense and the Jack Wilson saga. I'll break all this down in the upcoming post.

The Good:

The good for the week was the 2-0 start where the Mariners had some terrific starting pitching. The Mariners starting pitchers went 15 2/3 innings allowing only three runs while striking out 11. The Mariners also scored 11 runs the first two games. Ichiro recorded four hits in the first two games to pass Edgar Martinez as the all-time hits king. Felix Hernandez pitched the first complete game win in Mariners history on opening day.

Hitting Leaders:

Jack Wilson: 6-18(.333), 3 SB, 2 runs, RBI
Adam Kennedy: 5-16(.313), 2 Doubles, 2 runs
Ichiro: 9-36(.250), 2 runs, 4 RBI's, 3 SB

Pitching Leaders:

Felix Hernandez: 1-1, 16 IP, 2.25 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 11 K's
Doug Fister: 0-2, 11.2 IP, 2.31 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, 5 K's
Jamey Wright: 4.1 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.46 WHIP, 4 K's
Brandon League: 2.2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.38 WHIP, 2 K's, one save

The Bad:

There has been plenty of bad for the Mariners this season. The Mariners are currently on a seven game losing streak. The Mariners as a team are hitting .215 with just four home runs through nine games. The Mariners have scored just 18 runs during this seven game losing streak which is an average of 2.5 runs per game.

Hitting Slump:

Chone Figgins: 5-37(.135), HR, 3 RBI's, 2 runs, SB, 6 K's
Brendan Ryan: 3-21(.143), 2 RBI's, 4 runs
Jack Cust: 6-32(.188), 3 RBI's, 3 runs, 11 K's
Ryan Langerhans: 3-18(.167), 2 HR's, 3 RBI's, 2 runs, 8 K's

Pitching Slump:

Erik Bedard: 0-2, 9 IP, 9.00 ERA, 1.89 WHIP, 9 K's
Tom Wilhelmsen: 2.2 IP, 13.50 ERA, 2.63 WHIP, 4 K's
Josh Lueke: 2.2 IP, 13.50 ERA, 2.25 WHIP, 4 K's
Chris Ray: 1-0, 1 BS, 3.1 IP, 8.10 ERA, 1.8 WHIP, ZERO K's

The Ugly:

This team appears to be falling apart inside the clubhouse as well. First with Jack Wilson who made two costly errors on a game against the Texas Rangers. Wilson then asked out of the game because he felt he was hurting the team. After the team Wilson said Eric Wedge pulled him from the game which Wedge didn't take kindly. In fact Wilson didn't play at all in the three game sweep to the Cleveland Indians. Then during Saturday's game Milton Bradley apparently was being heckled by his own home crowd. It got to the point where he was batting with earplugs in his ears. The Mariners like I said are currently riding a seven game losing streak.

Ugly Hitting:

Seattle Mariners team: 64-298(.215), .285 OB, .597 OPS, 4 HR's, 27 RBI's, 69 K's. 29 runs scored(3.2 runs per game).

Standings:

Texas Rangers: 8-1 1st place
LA Angels: 5-4, 3.0 GB
Oakland A's: 4-5, 4.0 GB
Seattle Mariners: 2-7, 6 GB

As you see despite only play nine games the Mariners already find themselves six games back in the division. The Mariners after taking two of three from the Oakland A's got swept by the Texas Rangers then the Cleveland Indians. The Mariners despite the season just starting already feel hopelessly out of the season. Just a matter of time before Jack Wilson is released. I predict by June you'll see Jack Cust and Milton Bradley shown the door. The Mariners I'm sure are desperately trying to trade Figgins if anyone wants him. For now just sit back and enjoy Felix Hernandez and Michael Pineda. The bright spots on this team very few and certainly far between. The Mariners completed the first week of the season going 2-7 and still can't score any runs. This looks like a team headed towards their third 100+ loss season in four years. Hopefully this team can give the fans something.

Indians crush Mariners 12-3 in home opener!

By Kshell

The Cleveland Indians(5-2) ruin their former manager Eric Wedge's home debut with his new ball club the Seattle Mariners by destroying them early. The Indians put the Mariners away with a 10 run fourth inning to defeat them 12-3. On a day where the Mariners honored legendary announcer Dave Niehaus who passed away this offseason the team put up a performance that Niehaus was used to from the 1980's. The Mariners will never be able to replace the voice of Niehaus but must find a way to snap this five game losing streak. The Mariners still aren't hitting which is putting too much pressure on the starting pitcher. When the starting pitcher has an off night the game is essentially over since the team has scored just 24 runs in seven games and just 13 in the last five games.

Before the game had begun the Mariners honored Dave Niehaus when rapper Macklemore rapped a tribute song for Niehaus. Then there was a plaque for Niehaus above the announcers booth forever that read "Niehaus 1977-2010". The Mariners also presented gold gloves to Franklin Gutierrez and Ichiro. Ichiro was presented with an award from Edgar Martinez for breaking Martinez Mariners hit record. The Mariners then presented Felix Hernandez his Cy Young award. Then the game began and it was all down hill. The second batter of the game and former Mariners product Asdrubal Cabrera took Jason Vargas deep to left field for a home run to give the Indians a 1-0 lead. In the bottom half of the inning Ichiro led the inning off with a hit but was quickly cancelled out when Chone Figgins lined into a double play. Vargas would put up zero's the next two innings but then the fourth inning happened.

In the fourth inning the game quickly got away from Jason Vargas. The inning began with a simple single by Shin-Soo Choo and moved to third on a Carlos Santana base hit. The Indians then scored on a Travis Hafner single to shallow center field scoring Choo and moving Santana to second base to give the Indians a 2-0 lead. Orlando Cabrera then got a base hit scoring Santana giving the Indians a 3-0 lead. Austin Kearns then finally got an extra base hit ripping a double scoring Hafner and giving the Indians a 4-0 lead. Then the Mariners got their first out of the inning when Matt LaPorta hit a sac fly scoring Cabrera giving the Indians a 5-0 lead. Former Mariner Jack Hannahan recorded a base hit scoring Kearns giving the Indians a 6-0 lead and ending Jason Vargas night after just 3 1/3 innings pitched. Wedge brought in Tom Wilhelmsen who turned a blowout into a disaster. After allowing another base hit Wilhelmsen struck out Asdrubal Cabrera for the second out. Santana then got an RBI base hit scoring two guys to give the Indians an 8-0 lead. To cap the inning Hafner hit a three run home run to give the Indians an 11-0 lead and scoring 10 runs in the inning. Most of the Seattle crowd had left at that point in the game.

The Mariners at one point trailed in this game 12-0 but would score three meaningless runs throughout the game. Ichiro drove in two of the runs to pad his stats. Overall this was a disasterous game for the Mariners as they have now lost five games in a row. Despite being 2-5 this was the first poorly pitched game by the Mariners. The Mariners just can't get any consistent offense going. They have scored just 13 runs the last five games(2.6 per game) which is putting too much pressure on the pitching staff. The Mariners look no better than the team who lost 101 games last season. The team will have to start scoring some runs or fans will lose interest by May.

All in all, this is going to be a long rebuilding season for the Mariners. The Mariners roster right now most likely will be totally different than in June. The team lacks hitting and unfortunately other than Dustin Ackley there is no hope on the horizon for this team. The Mariners have to stay patient with Eric Wedge unlike previous managers. This team simply isn't good and wasn't good last year. The Mariners when they make the youth movement at least will be sort of exciting. Until then you have to just grit your teeth and ride through the pain. The Mariners on a day they honored Dave Niehaus put up a pathetic performance. This wasn't the proper way to say thanks to our hall of fame announcer.

Observations:

- Jason Vargas struggled pretty bad after such a great start against Oakland. Vargas wasn't hit hard just gave up base hit after base hit. Vargas finished the game pitching 3 1/3 innings allowing nine hits, seven earned runs and just one strikeout. Vargas on most teams would be your fourth or fifth starter. In reality he is the Mariners fourth best starter. Most games Vargas won't be the problem and is proof that signing guys like Jarrod Washburn to big money is stupid. You can always find effective fourth and fifth starters at Safeco Field.

- The hitting was led by Ichiro who went 2-5 with two RBI's. The team is struggling is an understatement. The Mariners had four guys in the lineup yesterday hitting .200 or worst. Figgins(.100), Brendan Ryan(.167), Ryan Langerhans(.154) and Jack Cust(.200). The Mariners only .300 hitter is Adam Kennedy who is hitting exactly .300 on 3-10 for the season. The hitting has just been horrible this season with only two home runs so far this year. The team is going to struggle scoring runs all season long and will challenge last year's team for worst offense in franchise history.

- Wedge is in for a long season. I like what he is doing so far with the Jack Wilson situation. For those who don't know Jack Wilson after committing two errors in Wednesday's loss to the Texas Rangers asked out of the ball game. Wedge called the move unthinkable and is benching Wilson in response. Good chance Wilson may have played his last game for the Mariners.

I also like how Wedge isn't afraid to call out his team. His quote speaks volumes to the entire team "I don't care if you make 18 million or $450,000 you have a job to do. That job is to always play hard no matter. Some guys think because they are making a lot of money they can get away with that well they are in for a rude awakening". I love that Wedge isn't afraid of this team and is standing up for himself. Wedge might not be the guy but at least he is showing some fire and ruffling the feathers on this team.

Overall, this was a disappointing way to open the 2011 season in Safeco Field. This was supposed to be a great day as we saw a sell out crowd, honored Dave Niehaus, gave Felix Hernandez a Cy Young award. Instead the team laid an egg and reminded fans we have a long ways to go. This team is going to struggle for a while. The Mariners sadly will have more games like this until things change. I just don't see where the changes will be made as long as Howard Lincoln and Chuck Armstrong are here this team will continue to fail. Just remember fans we have a great ball park, some great pitchers but don't think for a second this is a good product. This opening day was a cold hard reality check to the fans that this team still stinks.

Mariners hire Eric Wedge

By Kshell

The Seattle Mariners are hoping that Eric Wedge who had previously managed the Indians can lead the Seattle Mariners back to the playoffs. Wedge will be the seventh manager since Lou Piniella left after the 2002 season. Despite the picture you may see up there the Mariners didn't hire a sex offender instead they hired a man who had the Cleveland Indians one win away from going to the World Series.

The Indians back in 2005 appeared to be that team ready to make a big jump and be like the Indians of the 90's where they dominate the central but that never quite happened. When Wedge took over the Indians he took over a situation similar to this Mariners situation. The team he inherited was no good but featured plenty of young talented guys. The Indians were in a transition from the 90's teams who won the AL Central from 1995-99 then again in 2001. Wedge inherited a team with some young talented guys like Cliff Lee, C.C. Sabathia, Grady Sizemore, Jhonny Peralta and Jake Westbrook. The Indians appeared to rise up again and so they hired the 35 year old Wedge back in 2003.

In Wedge first year on the job the team struggled. The Indians finished with a lousy 68-94(.420%) record but Wedge was in charge of the five year plan and the Indians were going to stay patient with Wedge. In 2004 Wedge saw a huge improvement guiding the Indians to an 80-82 record(.494%)which saw 27 year old DH Travis Hafner emerge as a slugger for the club. Then in 2005 the Indians surprised everyone going 93-69(.574%) and almost beat out the eventual World Series champions the Chicago White Sox. In fact the Indians had a chance to make the playoffs but got swept by the White Sox second stringers. It was a disappointing end to an otherwise great season by the Indians. The Indians saw such youngsters emerge as Victor Martinez, Grady Sizemore, Travis Hafner and pitching from Cliff Lee who went 18-5 with a 3.79 era, as well as Jake Westbrook and C.C. Sabathia who each won over 15 games. They also had the veteran presence of Kevin Millwood who had a 2.86 era on the year.

The Indians were ahead of their five year plan schedule. Wedge had turn them into winners in just his third year. Wedge also finished second in the American League Manager of the year award behind White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen. Wedge was defiantly at that point in his career a hot name who almost every team in baseball at the team would have love to have as their own manager. Then in 2006 the Indians took a step backwards perhaps over achieving in 2005 falling 78-84(.481%). The Indians by falling backwards though pulled off two great trades with the Seattle Mariners trading Eduardo Perez for young shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera and then later trading Ben Broussard for Shin-Soo Choo. The Indians would emerge yet again in 2007 under Wedge.

In 2007 there was no more five year plan as the five years was now time for Wedge. He led the Indians that year to their first playoff appearance in six years with a 96-66(.593%) record. The Indians had the second best record in the American League that year. They also had great seasons from their young nucleus Sizemore, Martinez, Hafner and pitching Sabathia at just 26 years old won the 2007 Cy Young award. Another youngster emerged as well in Fausto Carmona who was just 23 years old but went 19-8 with a 3.06 era. The only thing that went wrong for the Indians was their other youngster who wasn't so young anymore Cliff Lee who at 28 years old was 5-8 with a 6.29 era and was sent to the minors. He was also left off the postseason roster. If Wedge in 2007 had the 2008 version of Cliff Lee and beyond we would be thinking about him totally different.

The Indians upset the New York Yankees in the first round. In fact Eric Wedge is the last manager to ever win a playoff game at old Yankees Stadium. When the Indians won that also ended the Joe Torre era in New York. The Indians then had a 3-1 lead over the heavily favorite Boston Redsox. With his ace going at home in game five Wedge was pretty confident trailing 2-1 going into the seventh inning the Indians bullpen imploded and lost 7-1. Then in game six with youngster Carmona on the hill the Indians got crushed early losing 12-2. In game seven the Indians were trailing 3-2 heading into the seventh and again the bullpen imploded and the Indians season was over as they lost 11-2. That was a tough playoff defeat to swallow for Wedge. After the season Wedge was named the American League manager of the year in 2007. At just the age of 39 Wedge was runner up two years earlier and now was the manager of the year.

Unfortunately for Wedge that wasn't the start of a run for the Indians instead that was his peak. The 2008 season started off bad for the Indians as staff ace C.C. Sabathia was set to be a free agent at the end of the year. The Indians traded Sabathia in June to the Milwaukee Brewers after just 18 starts where he was 6-8 with a 3.83 era. The team took a big step backwards with Victor Martinez only playing in just 73 games and hitting just two home runs. Travis Hafner who had given the team plenty of power was just awful that season. Hafner in just 57 games hit .197 and hit just five home runs. The only positive for the Indians that year was Cliff Lee who was 22-3 with a 2.54 era. Not bad for a guy who was just in the minor leagues the year before. Had the Indians had that Cliff Lee the year before good chance they are the World Champions instead of the Boston Red Sox. The Indians finished the season 81-81(.500%). Things would only get worse for Wedge the following year.

In 2009 the Cleveland Indians were a mess. The Indians were just 65-97(.401%) only two years from being one game away from the World Series. The fire sale of quality players continued as in the off season the Indians in a three team trade traded away Franklin Guiterez to the Seattle Mariners. The Indians for the second straight year traded away the reigning American League Cy Young award winner Cliff Lee to the Philadelphia Phillies. The Indians also traded Victor Martinez to the Red Sox. Grady Sizemore would have a terrible season hitting just .248 on the year. As what usually happens when the team falls apart and the team loses a bunch of game the manager in this case Eric Wedge was fired. After seven seasons with the Indians Wedge was 561-573(.495%) he produced just two winning seasons.

Now the Mariners are hoping Wedge can do with them what he did in Cleveland minus the last year debacle. Before the 2009 season Wedge was a hot candidate and had the Mariners somehow hired him after the 2007 season this would be a huge hiring. As is I waited a week to write something and it was a boring pick. The only exciting thing about this hire is he is reunited with Milton Bradley who in 2004 wore a shirt that said "F*** Eric Wedge". Now both guys will say all the right things and pretend that's not a big deal but it is. Just like last year with Griffey and Wakamatsu athletes never blame themselves. When Bradley isn't in the lineup every day instead of thinking he isn't playing because he is terrible he will think Wedge is holding a grudge against him. Mariners management has never cut their losses on a player before but it would be crazy(funny word given I'm talking about Bradley I know) to have Bradley on the team when spring training rolls around. Why let Bradley even have a shot at infected the team clubhouse like Griffey did last year with Wakamatsu.

Personally I didn't like the hire at first. In sports I want my favorite team to get a guy who is on the rise not a guy who was just fired. I was excited when the Seahawks got Holmgren but not with Jim Mora for an example. I was excited when the Huskies hired Sarkisian who is on the rise but upset when the hired Willingham who was just fired. Lately the Mariners haven't done anything to get the fan base excited. Since Piniealla has left the Mariners have hired bench coach with no managerial experience(Melvin), a manager who had previous success but was ultimately fired from two different jobs and bombed at his last(Hargrove), a career bench coach who was never considered for a managers job ever(McLaren) then a bench coach with no managerial experience(Wakamatsu). You start to see the pattern now the Mariners are going back to manager who had previous success but was ultimately fired.

I understand the Wedge hire he was in a similar spot with Cleveland. He does have an all-star every year in Ichiro(He would be regardless of that stupid every team rule), he has a young staff ace in Felix Hernandez like he did with Sabathia. He also has several youngsters like Justin Smoak, Adam Moore, Michael Saunders,Franklin Guiterez and eventually Dustin Ackley. The problem for Wedge is the Mariners don't seem to have a plan at all. The Mariners wouldn't have allowed him to even see the 2007 season because they would have overreacted at the dissapointment of the 2006 season and fired him. I do think Wedge is a quality manager like most managers when he has players. Its not a coincidence he fell flat on his face in 2009 when the team traded away two Cy Young award winners, an all-star catcher, possible gold glove outfielder and his two all-stars(Sizemore and Hafner) became a shell of who they used to be.

All in all, this is a wait and see hire. Wedge isn't the type of hire that will make fans rush to buy tickets like the Seahawks did with Pete Carroll. Wedge isn't the type of guy who will call out management when they are being boneheads like Bobby Valentine would. Wedge is the type of guy who has proven if you give him time players will develope under his watch and he is capable of taking a team far into the playoffs. The Mariners hired their man now its time to stop hiding behind their managers and getting the manager some players. It won't matter who the manager is until Chuck Armstrong is no longer associated with the Mariners.