Mariners make bold move; Trade Pineda to Yankees for Montero

By Kshell

The Seattle Mariners finally made a move to help their weak offense and it was a big move indeed. No the Mariners didn't sign Prince Fielder instead Jack Zduriencik traded all-star pitcher Michael Pineda and the organizations #5 prospect pitcher Jose Campos to the New York Yankees for the #3 prospect in all of baseball catcher/DH Jesus Montero and their organizations #7 prospect pitcher Hector Noesi.  This was the type of risky move that several people including myself begged Zduriencik to pull off. Well Jack Z did just that trading an organizational strength(pitching) for a weakness(hitting). The Mariners traded away a 23 year old pitcher who has already made the all-star team for a guy with limited at bats in the major leagues plus gave up one of their top pitching prospects in return. Still this is the type of bold move that championship teams make and Jack Z has just shoved his chips into the center of the poker table for the first time in his career.

The Mariners acquired Jesus Montero and  Hector Noesi from the Yankees. What the Mariners have in Montero is a 22 year old catcher who will most likely be a DH. In 2010 he was regarded as the fourth best prospect in baseball and in 2011 he was rated as the third best. Montero this year in a September call up with the Yankees in 69 plate appearances hit .328/.408/.590 while hitting four home runs and driving in 12 runs as he also scored nine runs. In the minor leagues in 2,038 plate appearances Montero hit .308/.366/.501 with 76 home runs, 318 RBI's, and 262 runs scored. He also had 118 doubles. The guy can flat out mash the ball and brings a much needed power right handed bat to the Mariners. He isn't just a power hitter as you can see he is a good hitter who is compared to Miguel Caberra. The Mariners also acquired the 25 year old pitcher Hector Noesi who last year with the New York Yankees in 30 games including two starts went 2-2 with a 4.47 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 45 strikeouts in 56.1 innings. In his minor league career Noesi has appeared in 84 games with 64 starts went 25-15 with a 3.17 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 365 strikeouts in 377.2 innings. He will be competing for a spot in the Mariners rotation especially with the departure of Pineda.

The Mariners are taking a big chance by trading away 23 year old Michael Pineda and Jose Campos. The Mariners are trading away Pineda a pitcher who finished fifth in the rookie of the year voting and made the all-star team last year. He was also the 16th best prospect heading into the 2011 season. Last season Pineda in 28 starts went 9-10 with a 3.74 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 173 strikeouts in 171 innings pitched. In his minor league career Pineda in 86 games, 71 of which he started he went 31-14 with a 2.49 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 396 strikeouts in 404.1 innings. Prior to this season his career high for innings pitched in a season was 139.1 innings as he was injury prone. Still the Yankees acquired an ace of the future who is already a proven Major League all-star plus acquired another pitcher who most scouts are high on. is pitcher Jose Campos who is only 19 years old. Campos in 40 appearances, 30 of which he started has a 14-10 record with a 3.26 ERA, 1.17 WHP and 167 strikeouts in 171.1 innings pitched. The Mariners gave up a lot for Montero a player which they almost acquired two years ago.

Two years ago when the Mariners fell out hopelessly out of contention Zduriencik had a big trade chip in Cliff Lee. Instead of dealing Lee to the Yankees he chose to deal him to the Texas Rangers for Justin Smoak. So far the return on Smoak hasn't been what fans had hoped for. Smoak who in 2010 was 13th best prospect is now 25 years old. So far in Seattle in 611 plate appearances Smoak has hit .235/.316/.398 with only 20 home runs and 69 RBI's. Had the Mariners simply acquired Montero then they wouldn't have had to deal Pineda plus Campos now. Smoak to date has been a bust for the Mariners but if he can be that player he was in the Minor leagues where he hit .283/.401/.458 with 24 HR's and 93 RBI's in 773 plate appearances the Mariners would take that. The facts are Smoak hasn't even had 2,000 plate appearances in his professional career so the book is still out on him. Either way this trade today and Smoak's developement will be Jack Z's legacy in Seattle.

In conclusion, I love the fact that Jack Z is taking a risk here. This isn't your normal Jack Z trade where is trading a pile of garbage for a less than pile of garbage. This is a big time move that can make Zduriencik a legend in Seattle or a failure in Seattle. Prior to this trade Jack Z was like a game manager QB a guy who made no real mistakes but also made no significant big plays. This trade he is putting himself out there. Fans such as myself have been screaming all offseason to make a big move, to acquire a big bat. Now Zduriencik makes this move and a lot of those same fans are now bashing him as well as his usual supporters. The great thing about sports is nobody knows what any of these four players and Justin Smoak will turn out to be. Heading into the 2008 season the Texas Rangers who had taken last place basically every year since 2000 made a bold move. They traded their top pitching prospect and future all-star Edison Volquez for a guy who waas a former drug addict and had played just one season in the Major leagues.That player was Josh Hamilton and the Rangers have been to two straight World Series. Risks need to be made in sports sometimes. Without risk there is no reward. This trade could turn out to be legendary for the Mariners or this trade like many in the past will come back to haunt us. I'm just glad that Zduriencik finally had the balls to make a big time move like this. I'm also confident when the dust settles the Mariners not the Yankees will win this trade.

Dear Nintendo: Please sell the team to somebody who cares

By Kshell

As I'm sure most Seattle Mariners fans are aware by now this offseason has been a complete bust. We have watched our division rivals the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim sign C.J. Wilson and the best hitter of the past thirty plus years in Albert Pujols. Meanwhile the two-time defending American League champions Texas Rangers just signed Yu Darvish from Japan. While the Mariners despite losing 196 games the last two years are in no hurry to do anything. They offered Prince Fielder supposedly a five year 90 million dollar deal which is PR move. That is the type of offer that isn't serious about landing the power hitting first baseman. Mariners beat writer Geoff Baker has already revealed that the Mariners are having some financial troubles lately and our wishes could be coming true very soon. The Mariners ownership who also owns Nintendo could possibly be selling this franchise which is exactly what this franchise needs.

This organization has been ran by morons since day one. Chuck Armstrong leads that group of morons in fact he's been team president since 1993 and was part of the team in the 1980's as well. Howard Lincoln is also part of the ownership group as well. When this ownership group first bought the team there was great success in fact from 1993-2003 the Mariners record was 933-780(.544) which in those 11 years including four playoff trips and eight winning seasons. Considering prior to 1993 this franchise had seen just one winning season that was impressive. The fans started to turn on ownership around 2002 and 2003 when they refused to expand payroll to make significant deadline moves to improve this ballclub. Which meant future hall of fame manager Lou Piniella and hall of fame general manager Pat Gillick left the franchise in disgust. That is when the franchise started to fall apart and the heat on this current ownership group grew.

The Mariners turned to failed Angels General Manger Bill Bavasi to run this ball club from 2004-2008. During the Bavasi years the Mariners were horrible sporting a 359-451(.443) record which saw the Mariners finish in last place in four of those five seasons. Bavasi didn't value sabermetrics at all and ignored age. The Mariners ownership also stepped in by extending Kenji Johjima and Ichiro to a five year 90 million dollar deal. Ichiro has only led the Mariners in WAR during one winning season which was 2007. Translation Ichiro can't be your best player on a successful team. The Mariners fired Bavasi after 2008 hoping to find the next quality GM. Several people said at the time it won't matter who the Mariners hire as long as Armstrong and Lincoln are running the show.

The Mariners replaced Bavasi with Milwaukee Brewers old scout Jack Zduriencik. Zduriencik could do no wrong that first year taking over a club who had lost 101 games the Mariners won 85 games that first year. Since then the club has regressed under Jack Z's watch as the team is just 213-273(.438). The Mariners are actually worse off record wise than they were under Bavasi. Zduriencik is building the team the right way but he is also making plenty of mistakes at the major league level. He signed a 31 year old Chone Figgins to a four year 36 million dollar deal. He is constantly going for the cheap bargains and that is why the Mariners offense under Jack Z has been terrible every single season. Then he traded away Doug Fister despite the fact he is pretty cheap and under club control. Fans still believe in Jack Z but if he doesn't sign Fielder this offseason that will be the second straight offseason where Jack Z failed to improve a team who lost over 95 games.

In conclusion, you don't win titles with bargain deals. You win titles with position players whether you find them at a discount or overpaid for them. There is no salary cap in baseball and if these owners don't want to spend they should do the right thing and sell to a guy who will. Nintendo should be thanked first of all for saving baseball in Seattle back in 1993 and providing the Mariners their only taste of the postseason. I feel like they don't get enough credit for doing just that. The Mariners ownership has come now to finally let it go as they tried and failed to deliver a World Series title. First thing new ownership will do is clean house which means no more Armstrong, Lincoln and probably Zduriencik who has proven he is just a scout only not a general manager. So I'm begging you Nintendo please sell the team to a passionate billionaire in Seattle who wants to win a title as much as every fan does. The problem with building with prospects is you are constantly building while the Angels will have bad contracts they'll stay competitive every single season because they spend money. Hopefully the Mariners sell the team to a guy who has no problem dishing millions and millions of dollars to provide a winner in Seattle finally.

My thoughts on the possibility of signing Prince Fielder

By Kshell

The Seattle Mariners are rumored to be the favorites in the Prince Fielder sweepstakes. The signing of Fielder has brought a mixed reactions from our fan base. This is actually one move where I don't have a strong opinion on. I actually agree with both parties when it comes to Prince Fielder. I agree that the Mariners offense desperately needs a bat after the last four years of garbage offense. I also agree that putting a large portion of your money into one player is a recipe for disaster. In this following post I'll be posting from two sides of myself. The fan of me really wants the Mariners to sign Fielder as the Mariners haven't had a power hitter since Richie Sexson. The analytical side of me hates the signing as these signings tend to destroy franchises not named the New York Yankees or Boston Red Sox. One thing is for sure general manager Jack Zduriencik appears on the hot seat so he knows he must have a big move to vastly improve this club. The Mariners have lost 196 games the last two years and attendance has been dropping each season.

The fan side of me would love to have Prince Fielder. Fielder is a great team leader as he led the Milwaukee Brewers to their first division title since 1982 this past season. With the Brewers Fielder put up power numbers hitting 230 homeruns in six seasons(38.3 HR's per season) while driving in 656 runs(109.3 per season). Fielder during that stretch hit .282/.390/.540 which is incredible. Fielder is a three-time all-star and a two-time silver slugger award including all-star game MVP this past season. Fielder would bring instant offense to a club that has ranked in the bottom in all of baseball in runs scored in the Zduriencik era(2009-present). Fielder would give the Mariners fans some excitement for once as their was no power in that lineup last year. Fielder is a guy who can hit a home run every time he steps up to the plate. Now the table setters like Ichiro and Dustin Ackley will have increase value as Fielder will be able to knock them in . This will also have fans excited about the Mariners who are slowly falling behind the Seattle Sounders in this town.

The analytical side of me says this move is going to blow up in our face. Remember the Texas Rangers back in 2001? The team that finished last place but signed Alex Rodriguez to 10 years/250 million. The Rangers were hoping that Rodriguez would generate excitement to their team so they can then use that money to acquire other pieces. Instead the team Rodriguez left the Seattle Mariners won 116 games and the Rangers finished last place. In fact in three seasons with the Rangers they finished last place all three years. The Rangers recently filed for bankrupcy and are still currently paying Rodriguez despite him not playing there since 2003. The Rangers like other small market clubs in the past have realized is that the margain for error is zero. The Rangers have finally recovered from that disaster which damn near set their franchise back decades.

In conclusion, I'm all for signing Fielder if the Mariners are willing to pull a Philadelphia Phillies. Which means  the Mariners join the big boys and stop pocketing the money and increase payroll into the 120 million range if not 150 million range. If the Mariners want to be serious they must expand payroll as they have the third best T.V. deal in all of baseball. Unfortunetly I know the Mariners won't expand payroll so Felix Hernandez and Fielder will cost us 50 million which will be half of our payroll. The Mariners tried this before with Adrian Beltre and Richie Sexson which failed in their face. They also recently tied up a bunch of money to Ichiro and that has flopped finishing last place three of the four seasons. This move is a tough move because I want the Mariners to get better while Fielder will provide that. I also want a championship and I know with our ownership with Fielder on this roster the Mariners will never win a title. The fan side of me wants this signing but the logical side of me knows this signing will blow up in our face.

Mariners embark on the biggest off-season in franchise history

By Insider Steve


Is it me or does anyone else feel like the Mariners are on the verge of something exciting?

Alright, so maybe it's just me. So please allow me the time and try to convince the masses out there in Marinersville on what the Mariners are about to embark on. For three years now, Mariners GM Jack Zdureincik has had the dubious honor of fixing an organization so broken that most industry figure heads thought it would take at least five years before the Mariners would be even able to financially compete, let alone see results on the field. Only three years after taking over as GM, Jack Zduriencik is sitting on the cusp of the biggest off-season in Mariners history. I do know one thing is certain, win or lose, there will be some major fireworks going off over the Sodo this winter. In order to see those fireworks we need to discuss some truths about the Jack Zduriencik era.


Truth;

Jack Zduriencik just hasn't had the financial luxury up to this point in his tenure as Mariners GM to radically improve the ball club. It wasn't Zduriencik's fault that ownership slashed the payroll by 18 million dollars in his first season. In the three years Zduriencik has been in charge, he has had an average payroll of 94,890,230 million dollars. Compared to the 96,271,463 average per season in five seasons that former GM Bill Bavasi had. That's a difference of 1,381,233 million dollars extra that Bill Bavasi had at his disposal. In the 2006-2007 off-season, Bill Bavasi's payroll shot up from 87,959,833 to 106,460,833. A difference of 18,501,000. Which is precisely the figure Zduriencik stand to inherit this off-season. If you add that figure to this seasons payroll, this is what the team payroll would look like in 2012; 113,124,194. Which is still 4,542,291 million dollars shy of Bill Bavasi's all-time high payroll of 117,666,482 in 2008. The bottom line is payroll will be increasing. Ownership needs to realize they have a financially responsible GM in place, and that is okay to add more to the pot.


The Future;

The Mariners have put together a nucleus of young talent with tremendous staying power. On the offensive side, Dustin Ackley, Justin Smoak, Mike Carp, Kyle Seager, Trayvon Robinson, and Casper wells are hitting a combined .252/.319/.415/.735, 42 HR, 140 RBI, 348 Hits, 144 Runs, and all play positions that were/are in desperate need of improvement; 2B, 1B, DH, 3B, and OF. On the pitching side Felix Hernandez, Michael Pineda, Jason Vargas, Brandon League, and Tom Wilhelmsen have quietly form a solid base in which to build upon. Those five have combined to go 35-41, 3.53 ERA, 586 K's, 1.178 WHIP, and a K's/BB ratio of 3.01. Three of the five have been selected to the All-Star game, and Hernandez has already has a Cy Young on his resume. Those are just 11 of the active 25 man roster. Not even including the likes of Blake Beaven, Charlie Furbush, Shawn Kelley, Josh Lueke, Chance Ruffin, Dan Cortes, Taijuan Walker, James Paxton, Danny Hultzen, and Alex Liddi. Who could all very well make an impact in 2012.


What will the Mariners have coming available;

1. Milton Bradley = 12,000,000



2. Carlos Silva = 5,500,000



3. Yuniesky Betancourt = 1,000,000



4. Jack Wilson = 5,000,000



5. Josh Wilson = 179,000



6. Jack Cust = 2,000,000



7. Jamey Wright = 900,000



8. Adam Kennedy = 750,000



9. Luis Rodriguez = 600,000

• Total = 27,929,000
  

Isn't that a fantastic number to see? Even if you factor in arbitration, the number is still going to remain in the 18-20 million dollar range. That number allows flexibility in spades. Which is more then enough to add a power bat in the OF and at 3B, upgrade the catching position, and add a solid starter to the rotation mix.

Lets' forecast shall we. Let's say the Mariners make one trade and sign two free agents to open up the off-season. we will say the Mariners sign 3B Wilson Betemit (.268/.335/.445/.779, 62 HR, 242 RBI, 466 Hits, 221 Runs), who has never made over 4 million dollars in one season, to a 2-year 8 million dollar deal. Then let's say Zduriencik make a trade for Kansas City Royals LF Alex Gordon. Who still has two years of club control, but is still arbitration eligible. Because Gordon posted career highs in every statistical catagory, .303/.376/.502/.879, 23 HR, 87 RBI, both parties figure out a way to agree on a mutual figure of 5 million dollars for the 2012 season. The Mariners then sign a starter like a Paul Maholm, Jason Marguis, or a Javier Vazquez. Who would all come at a reduced price. Something to the tune of 1-year at 1.5 million. Just in those three deals the Mariners have used up only 10.5 million dollars. That would still leave Zduriencik nearly 8 million dollars left to improve the bullpen and the catching position.

I'm being 100% honest when I tell you guys that next years team will have the look and feel of a winning ball club. It's just a matter of putting your eggs into that basket. I know it's a hard thing to do when you have seen the team go from bad to worse in a span of less then two seasons. But it is going to get better. That you can bank on. It's just a matter waiting it out for another six months...

Some thoughts on Free Agency

By IKorzie

Jack Zduriencik's goal is to build a team that can contend year after year with it's number one resource being internal talent, building from the farm. That does not mean this team will not spend money. How much? We do not know. That is dictated by ownership.

The biggest problem with this team now, is that $45 million of next year's budget is wrapped up in three players who in the simplest of terms do not hit home runs. Nearly one half of the budget is not going to score you runs. I can't argue with what Felix Hernandez will get paid and his value to the team. Chone Figgins obviously has been a bust and Ichiro will be in the final year of a contract he signed when he was still on the upswing, we can only pray he retires. What happens after that final year, if he doesn not retire? Does he bounce back and will he be here and at what cost? Will the team be able trade Figgins and recover any of his remaining dollars? We shall see, but for now this is a challenge to roster construction.

Of course it doesn't help that Figgins and Ichiro are in traditional power positions. Pointing out the question of whether or not Franklin Gutierrez can be counted on to bring any sort of offense in center... Lets look further into this.

First of all, RF is not going anywhere. Cross off that need. But yes, you want power there and if you don't get it you better get it somewhere else. Left Field and DH, have you found them? Keep free agents or trades out of this for a minute. Are you writing Mike Carp into your lineup next year? If so, he is at one of those positions. Is Casper Wells really a right-handed bat that can hit the ball out at Safeco Field? So far so good. Small sample size of course but definitely warrants a further look. Left Field, DH or fourth outfielder? He could be a fit. Greg Halman or Carlos Peguero, do you allow for the possibility that one of these guys can break through next year? Possible options. Trades or free agents are also possible options. At the very least it would appear that one of these positions can be filled adequately internally next season, however I would like to find at least one of these awnsers in free agency.

I don't see Figgins at third next year nor do I see Kyle Seager there. With Ichiro in right and Gutierrez in center you must get offense and some power numbers from that position and Figgins hasn't done it, and while I like Seager I don't see the power. I would hope that we would get a look at Alex Liddi in September but he most likely is not the answer yet. This appears to be a position they will have to fill from the outside. Catcher? Good luck. Everyone is looking for a catcher.

The good news is that whatever dollars they have to spend should be much more than last year and keep them out of blue light special territory (K-Mart). Can they or should they make a run at Prince Fielder? YES. What that contract could be after what we saw last year during the winter is very concerning, however. At this point, and I can change my mind, I would feel more comfortable signing more complimentary bats and trading for the impact bat, I usually just try and pull people's chains. Can the Mariners do this?

Sure they can. Will they? They will have to explore it. At some point Zduriencik is going to have to deal some of his pitching. Next year may seem too soon right now but if the right major league bat is out there it may have to be done. I am not talking Felix here but anyone else system-wide should be fair game.

We are so accustomed to thinking spend, spend, spend, free agent, free agent, free agent in Seattle because for years that has been the only option. They have another option now. An option that Zduriencik has already utilized despite the fact that his resources were limited when he first came on board. Those resources are growing.

Is it enough? Will there be a trade partner? What will the budget be? There are still a lot of questions but it appears that we will leave this season with more answers than we have had in recent history. They shouldn't have to look for starting pitching. They have their answer at second base. They very well could have LF/DH figured out but will have the flexibility should something else come their way. Shortstop is nailed down at least for one year and while he has had an up and down season, Justin Smoak is locked in at first, for now.

Yes, the pen will need work but Zduriencik has had a knack for finding bullpen arms and I believe he will get that sorted out without spending significant money. Gutierrez has been a huge question mark but has shown that there is something still there offensively in the last two weeks. Definitely an incomplete grade but still time to find out in a season that has been all about finding out.

This offseason will be exciting and interesting. At the end of the day, however mad we get at this team and management, we still are Mariner fans at heart. We were raised right to be diehards, and love the Mariners. So I will leave you with this full hearted, GO MARINERS!

Wasting away an incredible talent

By Kshell

The Seattle Mariners are blessed to have one of the greatest starting pitchers in the game today. Some say finding a true ace is the hardest thing to find in baseball yet the Mariners have one and someday could have two. The Mariners are also wasting away Felix Hernandez like they have Ichiro the past decade. Having an ace does you no good if you don't score any runs for him. Having an ace really does you no good if you never play in an meaningful game. Hernandez was called up in 2005 and has yet to throw a single meaningful inning in September. The closest thing Hernandez came to a pennant chase was in 2007 when he was only 21 years old. At that point Hernandez was a good pitcher who would show flashes of being an ace. Now Hernandez is an ace. It has been a shame seeing Hernandez suffer such tough defeats the last two seasons. In this following post I'll explain why juding Hernandez on his win-loss record simply isn't fair.

So far in Hernandez young career he is only 81-63(.562) with an 3.21 ERA and 1.22 WHIP. He has thrown 1,334 innings while striking out 1,216 batters(8.2 K's per 9). The last two years Hernandez has been screwed over by his teammates yet has never once called them out. Hernandez is only 23-22(.511) the last two years which to an average fan would suggest he is extremely overrated. In fact a seahawkshuddle moderator used to always rag on Hernandez in my Seattle Sportsblog group because of his record. What those simple fans don't realize is Hernandez can't control his offense. In the last two years Hernandez has made 59 starts and has thrown 429 innings(7 1/3 innings a start). In those starts he has posted a 2.70 ERA and 1.10 whip while striking out 406 batters(8.5 K's per 9). So as you can see Hernandez is pitching deep into games and pitching effectively in those contests. Just to show how much of a horse Hernandez has been in those 59 starts he has pitched six innings or more 55 starts(93.2%), has pitched seven innings or more in 43 starts(72.8%) and has pitched eight innings or more in 24 starts(40.6%). During that span Hernandez has suffered nine losses where he allowed two earned runs or less and has received 10 no decisions where he has allowed two earned runs or less. The Mariners are wasting away Hernandez and his W-L is the casualty. On the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees or any team that is actually good Hernandez would be racking up the wins. The media would be bragging about him like they do C.C.Sabathia or Justin Verlander for "knowing" how to win. Instead Hernandez continues to receive blame for such losses.

It's crazy how in sports you can be preceived a lot of things just based on the teams you happen to play for. Hernandez isn't a "winner" simply because his team can't score runs. Hernandez is this generations Nolan Ryan where his best years are being wasted away. Sports Illustrated a decade ago called Nolan Ryan the most overrated pitcher. People overrated Ryan because of his no-hitters and strikeouts. Then when you look you noticed Ryan never won a Cy Young, never started a World Series game, and had just a 324-292(.526) record. Now that people start to realize how overrated W-L record is you'll realize Ryan is underrated. Ryan posted a 3.19 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 9.5 K's per 9. Take his best three year stretch for the California Angels from 1972-1974 where he only went 62-48(.563) despite posting an ERA of 2.70 and a 1.21 WHIP. He averaged over 7 2/3 innings a start while striking out 1,079 batters(10.3 K's per 9) which is incredible. During that three year stretch he suffered 18 losses where he allowed two earned runs or less and had four no decisions where he allowed two earned runs or less. Ryan was a the defination of a horse as well. In 119 starts he went six plus innings 103 times(86.5%), seven plus innings 91 times(76.4%) and eight plus innings 84 times(70.5%). Despite such great numbers Ryan didn't pitch in the playoffs those three years. The Angels had wasted away his prime and his record suffered. Like Hernandez now people questioned whether he "knew" how to win or not.

What has hurt Hernandez is the fact that leadership at the top has failed to surround him with a good team. Both of his general managers have tried but they simply haven't done the job. First Bill Bavasi to take the pressure off Hernandez traded for ace Erik Bedard. What would have helped Hernandez out would have been hanging onto Adam Jones, Asdrubal Cabera, drafting Ryan Braun or Troy Tulowitski. Then drafting Tim Lincecum as well but Bavasi failed miserably at that. Bavasi was fired after failing so miserably in Seattle. Then Jack Zduriencik has came in and has seen Hernandez enter his prime starting in 2009. Zduriencik also traded for an ace in Cliff Lee to take the pressure off Hernandez. Zduriencik however, forgot to acquire Hernandez an offense. His only big free agent hitter he has signed in three years was Chone Figgins who has been horrible. Having Adrian Beltre, Mike Morse and this years Casey Kotchman would have helped Hernandez as well. I have a strange feeling like with Ryan and later Roy Halladay with the Toronto Blue Jays that these aces will eventually have to leave their teams to finally taste success. Hernandez is a free agent in 2014 and is due for a big paycheck but every athlete wants a chance to win. At some point Hernandez is going to be tired of constantly going seven or eight innings allowing two runs or less with no wins to show for it.

In conclusion, you can add Felix Hernandez to the list of Seattle greats who saw their talent wasted because the team didn't fit their needs. You saw guys like Ichiro, Cortez Kennedy, Jake Locker, Sonny Sixkiller, Reggie Williams, Ray Allen and Spencer Haywood all play on terrible to mediocre teams in Seattle. These guys were often given the blame for the losses when in reality their teams failed them. I'm afraid once Ichiro retires the Ichiro lynch mob will go after Hernandez calling him overrated. The Mariners are wasting away an incredible talent. The Mariners have been a franchise for 35 seasons and have had just two aces. Having a top tier pitcher like Hernandez is very rare. Which is why this is so sad to witness such greatness go to waste. Hopefully the Mariners can surround Hernandez with some talent fast. So from now on when you see Hernandez record instead of ragging on him stop and look at his other numbers. Hernandez is still a terrific pitcher who rests the bullpen everytime he goes out. It's about time the Mariners help Hernandez out and start scoring some runs. Tonight against the Red Sox would be a good start to help Hernandez get a much needed win. Hopefully the Mariners aren't wasting away an incredible talent although I'm afraid they are.

Fictional roundtable dicussion with Seattle sports head coaches and executives

By: Kshell

I decided to be a little creative with this blog post where I'm going to conduct a fictional roundtable discussion which includes Seattle Seahawks head coach and President Pete Carroll, Washington Huskies head football coach Steve Sarkisian, Washington Huskies head basketball coach Lorenzo Romar, Seattle Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik and manager Eric Wedge, plus special guests Mariners president Chuck Armstrong along with Huskies Athletic Director Scott Woodward. Now this is 100% fictional but we'll have a roundtable discussion with all the Seattle major sports players in this area. Now I've never done this before but this is something that you see Bill Simmons pull off to perfection every single time. Now this is all parody so hopefully nobody will get too upset with some of the responses.

SSB: I'm so honored to have all the major coaches here. We'll also have some executives as well. So any opening statements?

Steve Sarkisian: Go Dawgs! I gurantee we'll be competing for a Pac-12 title eventually. Our players are pumped for this season!

Pete Carroll: Do you purposely copy me on everything?!!

Steve Sarkisian: Hell yes make lots of noise so if you fail the doogs(fans who act like coug fans accept losing) will still love you!

Jack Zduriencik: I personally like setting expectations so low that if I don't literally piss my own pants I'll receive praise. Hell I'm a career loser but people still trust me! LOL

Lorenzo Romar: I personally like to bring up how my previous coach from a decade ago was awful. The doogs love that one.

Steve Sarkisian: That's a good one! Can I still blame Neuheisel?

Scott Woodward: Oh yea you inherited a program from a guy who inherited a program from a guy who inherited a program from a guy that was dirty. Hell I like to build in excuses before an ass kicking. Take the Oregon game I was complaining about their academics before the game so the doogs will shift their focus on that instead of us getting killed as usual.

Pete Carroll: What the hell is this academics you speak of? I don't think my players ever went to class. I'm a winner and then when I was caught cheating my "punishment" was seven million per year from the Seahawks.

Steve Sarkisian: Why do you think I want to be like you Pete? Even if your caught as a cheat you still found a way to come out clean.

Lorenzo Romar: I don't believe in being a dirty program. I won't allow it I may lose out on Terrence Jones but I will keep my dignity.

Jack Zduriencik: That's funny Lorenzo didn't you have a rapist on your team last year?

Chuck Armstrong: Actually Jack you traded for a damn rapist too! I don't care if we lose 100 games I won't tolerate players who have sketchy backgrounds!

SSB: Okay I see this topic is getting out of hand. Okay Eric Wedge how is your first year going in Seattle?

Eric Wedge: Well I fooled the fans by growing an awesome mustache that took attention away from this shitty team that I have. When I fill out the lineup card I seriously think if I should kill myself. I mean my options for cleanup are Justin Smoak, Miguel Olivo, Adam Kennedy?!! Thanks a lot Jack!

Jack Zduriencik: We have good young talent. That's what I have to keep repeating hopefully the fans actually believe it.

Steve Sarkisian: Why do you think I never redshirt players? So I can point to the true freshman every year and say my team is young.

Lorenzo Romar: I'm the opposite I like to play my crappy experienced guys over my talented freshman. I know C.J. Wilcox and Terrence Ross will play in the NBA but why play them when my season is on the line? I have to trust my seniors Venoy Overton and Justin Holiday.

Eric Wedge: I would actually murder someone for talent seriously! My team is garbage. People get on me about our hitting but our hitters suck! I've seen triple A teams with more talent.

Jack Zduriencik: We are rebuilding Eric you have to stay the course even though I'll probably fire you if my ass is on the line.

Chuck Armstrong: Jack hate to break it to you but I'll fire you first. I like to pretend I care so I fire people every now and then but in reality I don't give a shit. I'm the Elgin Baylor of baseball and I'm proud of it!

Scott Woodward: At least you guys had qualifications for your job. I sure as hell didn't! So I think I win that title for sure!

SSB: Okay this dicussion is going pretty well. I have to ask Pete Carroll how does it feel to be the only one doing things right yet fans hate you?

Pete Carroll: Yes I love how fans get pissed when I got rid of a quarterback who threw 44 INT's to just 34 TD's the last three years. I'm like damn this town really does love losers! Then I released Tatupu and fans like Big Lo are freaking out. It's kind of a joke how much hate I get yet people forgive Jack Z so much.

Jack Zduriencik: That is because I keep trading for prospects so all my supporters can point to my farm system as progress. I know Frankling Gutierrez sucks and a good chance Justin Smoak will too. That doesn't matter though by the time the fans realize they suck I'll have some new up and coming "prospect".

Chuck Armstrong: You messed up Pete! I would have given Matt a five year deal. I mean I gave Ichiro a franchise guy at 33 years old a five year 90 million dollar deal. We've sold so many bobbleheads because of him!

Pete Carroll: Bobbleheads?!! WTF?!! Does anyone in this damn town want a winner?

Chuck Armstrong: Your new I'll let you in on a secret no they don't. They want bobbleheads instead!

Lorenzo Romar: Just tease them with NCAA tournaments and they'll be fine. I can coach here for 40 more seasons and never advance past the sweet 16. KJR and the doogs have made it so I'll be here forever even if I underachieve.

Eric Wedge: Wow I have it lucky I managed in Cleveland for seven seasons with just two winning seasons. Now I'm in another losing city I'm all of a sudden liking it here.

Steve Sarkisian: It's true I'm just 12-13 yet I can kill someone in down town Seattle and be elected mayor. This city doesn't care about winning at all.

Jack Zduriencik: I've built a historically awful offense the past three seasons and people still have signs how they trust me! This town loves losers.

Pete Carroll: That does make sense I mean we did only go 7-9 last year yet people talk us up like a 12-4 team around here. It's good to know there is zero expectations around here.

Chuck Armstrong: That's the spirit! Finally you new guys are learning. It's not about winning or losing instead it's about fooling the fan base. I'm the worst president in major league history yet I keep my job. Everyone hates me and do you think I give a shit? Hell no! I'll never get fired. My boss loves me because I make him tons of money every year.

SSB: So nobody cares about winning? I'm starting to be upset that our fan base doesn't hold you guys accountable.

Jack Zduriencik: We are rebuilding with young talent.

Steve Sarkisian: I inherited 0-12 and went 7-6 with a QB that went in the top 10 of the NFL draft. What more do you want?

Lorenzo Romar: Hello? Three straight NCAA tournament appearances ring a bell? I know we choked in the tournament but the doogs are still busy celebrating my Pac-10 tournament titles.

Pete Carroll: Hell I seem to be the only guy taking heat. That fat guy wearing the Babineaux jersey isn't happy with me. I guess I should have kept Matt and simply sucked.

Chuck Armstrong: Pete has finally arrived! That's what I did with Ichiro. Fans loved me at the time when I resigned him although we suck now. Still had I let him walk we could be winners now but would Shannon Drayer like me? I don't think so.

Eric Wedge: I love how I have 27 million dollars in two leadoff hitters who both suck ass.

Jack Zduriencik: We are a young team that is rebuilding. We have a ton of young talent.

SSB: Well thanks guys this has been fun. Hopefully you guys can build a winner but I'm having my doubts now.

Well guys there you have it. There was my fictional roundtable with all the Seattle Sports head coaches and executives. Now this was just me having fun don't take everything in here seriously. I just decided to have some fun with this. I'm sure some people will be upset but I used this as a way to vent how Seattle as a city celebrates being average. I would like just for once for the fans to wait til a coach or executive proves himself before electing him into the hall of fame. I think the fans are so starving for a winner they get too attached to the guys running the show. So I hope you enjoyed my fictional roundtable discussion.

Mariners trade Bedard in three team deal to Red Sox

By Kshell

The Seattle Mariners officially ended the Erik Bedard era in Seattle by trading him to the Boston Red Sox in a three team deal that brought back two outfield prospects. The Mariners have traded away two starting pitchers and a bullpen arm the last two days for three outfielders, a third baseman and a bullpen/starting pitcher. The Mariners under Jack Zduriencik are once again rebuilding trying to get younger. The Mariners offense this season has been horrible so the Mariners are hoping some of these prospects can pan out. With the Mariners traded Bedard this ends a frustrating three and a half year marriage that started off with so much promise. For those who remember previous GM Bill Bavasi traded away Adam Jones, George Sherrill and Chris Tillman for Bedard. Bedard was brought in to be the ace of the staff as the hope was he'd anchor the rotation in the playoffs. Instead the Mariners got only 46 starts from Bedard. Bedard in his years with the Mariners never pitched a single inning in August or September. In fact he hasn't pitched in September since 2006 and has never pitched in a playoff race.

What the Red Sox are acquiring is a pretty good starting pitcher when he is healthy. In his career with the Mariners Bedard made 46 starts with a 15-14 record throwing 255.1 innings with a 3.31 ERA. He posted a 1.22 WHIP with 249 strikeouts to 101 walks. This season Bedard who hadn't pitched in 2010 started the year off rough and has pitched great since then. He recently was on the DL and came back to make his final start for the Mariners lasting just 1.1 innings allowing five earned runs. For the season Bedard went 4-7 in 16 starts with a 3.45 ERA in 91.1 innings pitched. He posted 1.17 WHIP with 87 strikeouts to 30 walks. Bedard when he is on can be an ace as he showed in May posting a 1.39 ERA in 32.1 innings pitched. He had a 0.95 WHIP with 32 strikeouts to 9 walks. In June he posted a 2.25 ERA in 32 innings pitched. He had a 0.84 WHIP with 33 strikeouts to 6 walks. The Red Sox are acquiring a pretty good pitcher when healthy. The Red Sox also gained 2008 first round draft pick reliever Josh Fields from the Mariners. Fields this year in the minors in 29 games has pitched 39 innings posting a 3.92 ERA. He has a 1.53 WHIP with 39 strikeouts to 32 walks with three saves. In his brief career he has appeared in 81 games pitching 101 innings posting an ERA of 4.54. He has a WHIP of 1.51 with 103 strikeouts to 72 walks. The Red Sox didn't make this deal because of Fields it was for the chance to land a potential key playoff starter in Bedard.

The Mariners acquired Trayvon Robinson from the Dodgers organization and Chih-Hsien Chiang of the Red Sox. Both are in the minor leagues and both guys are putting up good seasons. First I'll start with the 23 year old Robinson who is in triple A. For his career he is hitting .283/.358/.436 in 2,441 career AB's. He has hit 64 home runs(HR every 38.1 AB's) with 697 strikeouts(28.5%) to 267 walks(10.9%) which isn't great. He also has 149 stolen bases in his career. For this season he is breaking out hitting .293/.375/.563 in 368 AB's. He has hit 26 home runs(HR every 14.1 AB's) with 122 strikeouts(33.1%) while walking 45 times(12.2%) with 8 stolen bases. Robinson like Casper Wells will be competing for a spot on next years roster. If Robinson doesn't crack the roster he'll provide depth for Tacoma.

The other player the Mariners got was Chih-Hsien Chiang who is also an outfielder. Chiang is a 23 year old in double A who has a career line of .284/.333/.460 in 1,887 career minor league at bats. He has hit 51 home runs(HR every 37 AB's) with 326 strikeouts(17.2%) to 126 walks(6.6%).This year in double A Portland(Maine) Chiang is hitting .338/.399/.647 in 317 AB's. He has hit 18 home runs(HR every 17.6 AB's) with 61 strikeouts(19.2%) to 25 walks(7.8%). When you look at Chiang's numbers you see improvement in his career and a guy who is a slugger. His strikeouts are about right while I'd like to see his walks increase. Chiang hopefully in a year or two can make the Mariners roster. For now he'll add organizational depth in the outfield as the Mariners are hurting in the outfield position. Zduriencik is hoping that one of these three outfielders he acquired in the past 48 hours can someday produce for the Mariners.

In conclusion, the Mariners we all knew were going to be sellers this trade deadline. The Mariners were pretty thin at the outfield position which is why Zduriencik traded for three outfielders hoping to help that weakness. The Mariners traded from a position of strength to help out a position of weakness. I know fans are tired of prospects as am I because rebuilding simply sucks. The Mariners are hoping with these deals they can have some major league depth down the road. While the Red Sox are preparing for the playoffs with a pitcher who proved this season he can be an ace. With Bedard he is such a wild card because he can give you a great outing or he can break down once again. The Mariners made some moves for more prospects so now as fans we have no choice but to wait and see. From all the reports I've read Zduriencik did well once again. Nobody has questioned Zduriencik eye for young talent. Now if Zduriencik can just apply that same strength to free agency we have ourselves a great general manager.

My interview on "steady as she goes" with Jeff Mariners

By Kshell

This past Wednesday I had an interview on seamheads with Jeff Engels. For those who don't know Engels is also known as Jeffs Mariners on facebook. The actually interview you listen to right here at the 91 minute mark. That is when Jeff and myself discussed the Seattle Mariners for a half hour. It was pretty fun discussing the Mariners on a national podcast. The format of the podcast is it is two hours long which a half hour is dedicated to the Seattle Mariners which Jeffs Mariners has been doing all by himself this season. Well the Mariners lost 17 games in a row and with Jeff having a cold I came on to help out. I'll be more appearances on his podcast which is every Wednesday at 7 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. throughout the season. In this particular podcast we discussed the state of the franchise which meant some talk about Jack Zduriencik and the job he is doing. We also discussed at lengths about how the Mariners keep "rebuilding" with young guys who to date haven't panned out. I brought up Justin Smoak who Jeff isn't a fan of as he's been struggling. I'm usually quick to write off a player but I'll wait on Smoak although his June and July leave me concerned. We also had some positive news to discuss in this podcast as well.

The positive of course was that day the Mariners ended their franchise record 17 game losing streak with a 9-2 win over the New York Yankees. The Mariners led by Felix Hernandez going seven innings while allowing just one run and Ichiro having four hits helped lead the Mariners to the win. We talked about Ichiro's slump this season and how Jeff(along with Bryan White) would be upset if they resign Ichiro after 2012. We talked about how Dustin Ackley is already the Mariners best hitter despite being a rookie. How Ackley is the only hitter in the lineup who gives you a quality at bat every time up. We also discussed Mike Carp how this appears to be his last chance and he's making the most of it in his second stint of 2011. I ended the podcast saying something crazy talking about a potential winning streak the next time I come on. There was plenty of good baseball talk though for that half hour segment.

In conclusion, I love doing radio interviews as they are very fun. I used to be afraid to listen to my voice but now I enjoy it. If someone asked me to talk about Science on the radio I would have to decline but to talk sports I'll accept every single time. I always laugh when these sports talk radio hosts complain about their work load. They get to discuss sports how hard can it be? I'm thankful for the opportunity Jeff Mariners gave me to co-host the show with him. I'll never turn down a sports radio interview as they are fun. I don't even need to plug my blog either I can talk for hours at a time. I recap my interview but I left plenty out so go listen for yourself. I come on at the 91 minute mark and it was pretty fun. Hopefully next time I come on the Mariners have a winning streak like I said to end the last podcast.

Mariners trade Fister and Pauley to Tigers for four prospects

By Kshell

The Seattle Mariners with their recent losing streak were going to be sellers at this trade deadline. What surprised Mariners fans is that they traded two guys who aren't expensive at all in starting pitcher Doug Fister and reliever David Pauley. The Mariners under general manager Jack Zduriencik are hoping that these four prospects from the Detroit Tigers can turn into something special down the line. The Mariners acquired outfielder Casper Wells, pitcher Charlie Furbush, 20 year old third base prospect Francisco Martinez and a player to be named later who is thought to be one of the Tigers top draft picks from the 2010 draft. The Mariners are hoping that Martinez can develope into the third baseman of the future while Wells gives them a much needed upgrade in left field. This won't be a popular trade as Fister despite his record had the lowest ERA on the team and was the Mariners most consistent starting pitcher. The Tigers have acquired two good arms from the Mariners in hoping they can do more for them than Jarrod Washburn did two years ago.

What the Mariners gave up to the Tigers were two solid cheap arms in Fister and Pauley. On the year Fister in 21 starts is only 3-12 but has thrown 146 innings(7 innings a start) while having a 3.33 ERA. Fister hasn't received any run support this year. He has thrown three complete games and has a WHIP of 1.17 with 89 strikeouts to 32 walks. Fister for the year has a 2.8 WAR which is pretty good. He is also under club control for several seasons. The other guy the Tigers are acquiring is setup man David Pauley who was flirting with an all-star season for most of the year. Pauley on the year has pitched in 39 games posting a 5-4 record while pitching 54.1 innings with a 2.15 ERA. Pauley also has a 0.99 WHIP with 34 strikeouts to 16 walks. He also has a 1.7 WAR which is extremely high for a reliever considering all-star closer Brandon League has just 0.4 on the season. The Tigers are acquiring two solid pitchers for four youngsters.

The Mariners aren't stupid they are selling high on both players while they can. The Mariners signed Pauley to a minor league deal and before this year he was a nobody. As for Fister he is a back of the rotation starter and it hurts to lose him the Mariners did receive four players in return. Let's start off with outfield Casper Wells who is 26 years old. Wells this season for the Detroit Tigers is hitting .257/.323/.451 in 113 AB's on the year. He has 4 HR's with 12 RBI's and 16 runs scored on the season. Wells has 29 strikeouts to 9 walks though which is a concern. He is a good defensive outfielder and can provide a nice platoon in left field and fill in for Franklin Gutierrez if he continues to slump. In his minor league career Wells hit .252/.342/.494 in 1,715 AB's with 81 HR's(HR every 21.2 AB's). He struck out 487 times(28.3%) to 181 walks(10.5) which isn't that great. Wells is worth 1.0 WAR so far on the year which is a major improvement over what the Mariners have received in left field.

The other prospects the Mariners received were Charlie Furbush and Francisco Martinez not to mention a high draft pick of the Tigers from the 2010 draft. First with the 25 year old Furbush he is a 6'5" left handed pitcher who is in the bullpen but has started in the minors. This year for the Tigers in 17 games including two starts Furbush is 1-3 with 32.1 inning pitched while posting a 3.62 ERA. He also has a 1.54 WHIP with 26 strikeouts to 14 walks this year for the Tigers. In the minor leagues Furbush has pitched in 73 games including 69 starts where he is 25-20 having thrown 386 innings with an ERA of 3.71. He has a career WHIP of 1.18 WHIP with 406 strikeouts to 32 walks. Furbush will be the lefty out of the pen for the Mariners this year and compete for a starting rotation spot next year or this year if Erik Bedard is dealt. The main prospect is Martinez who is only 20 years old and in double A. Martinez career minor league line is .277/.329/.361 in 1,108 career at bats. He has just 13 home runs(HR ever 85.2 AB's) with 220 strikeouts(19.8%) to 80 walks(7.2%) which is horrible. This year though he is hitting .282/.319/.405 in 348 AB's with 7 HR's(HR ever 49.7 AB's). He has struck out 80 times(22.9%) to just 19 walks(5.4%) which is Carlos Peguero like. I'm not liking what the Mariners got for what they gave up.

In conclusion, I think the Mariners are taking a major risk on this trade. It will all depend who that player to be named later turns out to be because these three players don't excite me. You have two mid 20's guys who have average minor league stats who are in the major leagues. The big prospect is Martinez who has a K's to BB's ratio as piss poor as Peguero. I hope Zduriencik didn't make this trade out of desperation to keep his job by showing he's trying to improve the offense. Finding innings eater on the cheap like Fister is and is going to be is hard to find. Take Jason Vargas for an example he'll be making over 5 million dollars next year while Fister wouldn't even make a million. The Tigers have to be smiling as they improved their starting rotation and bullpen without giving up their key prospects. The Mariners are banking on Martinez developing into a solid third baseman down the line. As it looks right now today it appears the Mariners got burnt badly in this trade. I guess we'll wait and see down the line but right now today the Mariners fans can't be happy with this deal.

Seattle Mariners weekly review: July 14th-24th edition

By Kshell

The Seattle Mariners are currently going through their worst stretch in franchise history. The Mariners went into the all-star break on a five game losing streak which appeared to eliminate them from the race. Now the Mariners in the second half have lost all 10 games to the Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox. The Mariners have lost a franchise record 15 straight games which is shocking considering as of July 6th this team was just 2.5 games back of first place. Now the Mariners trail the Oakland A's as they sit in last place in their division. The losing streak started off with the Mariners not hitting which has been a problem all year long and has been a problem in the entire Jack Zduriencik regime. What has surprised most fans is that this week especially on the road trip to Toronto and Boston the Mariners offense woke up while the pitching staff has been lit up. For the first time all year I'll have several pitchers make the "bad" list. Like I do whenever the team has a losing week I'll be going over the good(not much), the bad(over half the roster) and the ugly(the mastermind behind this team).

The Good:

When a team is going through a 15 game losing streak I'm sure you are thinking good?!1 Well a few hitters have stepped up this past week and so have some pitchers. This week saw the return of Mike Carp from Tacoma and now that he is getting regular at bats he took advantage this week. If Carp can show life that would be nice since the offense is still broken. The Mariners also saw short stop Brendan Ryan hit his first home run of the season and then he followed that up with a grand slam. This week also saw rookie pitcher Blake Beavan who was acquired in the Cliff Lee deal pitch pretty well in his two starts despite picking up the loss. Beavan this year has pitched a quality start in all four of his starts which is a good way to start your career. The Mariners finally had some hitting this road trip but the pitching has been terrible. The Mariners offense this road trip has averaged 4.8 runs per game which is pretty good for this offense.

Good Hitting:

Dustin Ackley: 12-42(.286), HR, 6 RBI's, run
Brendan Ryan: 14-40(.350), 2 HR's, 6 RBI's, 7 runs, 2 SB's
Mike Carp: 8-22(.363), 2 HR's, 4 RBI's, 3 runs

Good Pitching:

Blake Beavan: 0-2, 13.1 IP, 4.05 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 7 K's
Jeff Gray: 6.1 IP, 1.42 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 5 K's, Blown Save
David Pauley: 0-1, 5.1 IP, 3.38 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 4 K's
Chris Ray: 3.1 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.60 WHIP, 3 K's
Brandon League: 2.0 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 2 K's

The team hasn't performed very well as you can see by the limited work that closer Brandon League has received. It was nice seeing the youngsters like Dustin Ackley, Mike Carp and Blake Beavan perform well during this losing streak that was the lone bright spot.

The Bad:

The Mariners have set a franchise record with their 15th straight loss when they were swept by the Boston Red Sox sunday losing 12-8. The Mariners go on the road to the New York Yankees then return home to face the Tampa Bay Rays so this losing streak could very well stretch to 20 games. The Mariners pitching in particular their bullpen overachieved in the first half and law of averages have caught up to them. The Mariners still have several hitters who are slumping as the offense scored just two runs in their four game sweep at home to the Texas Rangers to begin the second half. Watching this losing streak I think we all feel crazy that just two weeks ago there was actual playoff talk surrounding this team. Now the Mariners are headed towards another top five pick in the major league baseball draft. First year manager Eric Wedge you can tell is fed up with this team as he blasted his veterans in a loss against the Toronto Blue Jays. He even shaved his famous mustache in an attempt to avoid the losing streak. The team is hitting slightly better now but that was all negated due to the pitching being so terrible.

Bad Hitting:

Justin Smoak: 6-34(.176), run, 7 K's
Adam Kennedy: 6-32(.187), HR, RBI, 3 runs, 6 K's
Miguel Olivo: 8-36(.222), 2 HR's, 6 RBI's, 3 runs, 2 SB's, 10 K's
Carlos Peguero: 0-2(.000), 2 K's
Franklin Gutierrez: 7-32(.218), 3 RBI's, 4 runs, 4 SB's, 7 K's
Chone Figgins: 2-13(.153), 2 runs, SB, 5 K's
Greg Halman: 2-19(.105), HR, 3 RBI's, run, 8 K's

Bad Pitching:

Felix Hernandez: 0-2, 14 IP, 6.43 ERA, 1.79 WHIP, 8 K's
Jason Vargas: 0-2, 9 IP, 10.00 ERA, 2.67 WHIP, 3 K's
Michael Pineda: 0-1, 10.2 IP, 10.13 ERA, 1.69 WHIP, 10 K's
Doug Fister: 0-1, 13.2 IP, 5.27 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 5 K's
Aaron Laffey: 5.1 IP, 10.13 ERA, 2.25 WHIP, 3 K's, hold
Jamey Wright: 0-1, 4.2 IP, 11.57 ERA, 2.36 WHIP, 3 K's

The numbers don't lie right there. The starting pitching which has carried this team all season long has fallen apart in the second half. The Mariners saw two key bullpen guys just fall apart which isn't helping things at all. The hitting has been terrible since 2008 which makes you question how things are being run upstairs. The main player that is a red flag is Justin Smoak who has been slumping pretty bad ever since his hot April. He was a key acquisition in the Cliff Lee trade and if he doesn't pan out that will set the franchise back some years.

The Ugly:

The Mariners right now are looking like a flawed roster that is heading for another disasterous season. The Mariners are on pace to lose 93 games this season which would be their third season in the last four years of losing over 90 games. The Mariners are going for history this season as the worst American League offense in the DH era which is a record you don't want. The Mariners despite a decent sized payroll have put out a minor league batting lineup the past two seasons. Now I've already debated with Insider Steve on whether or not Jack Zduriencik should be retained. I'm not going to open that up instead I'll post some ugly stats.

Jack Zduriencik era

- Has a 189-236(.444%) record in Seattle. That is an average of 71-91 record.
- Has an offense that is scoring 3.28 runs per game in 2011 which ranks last in baseball, scored 3.16 runs per game in 2010 that ranked last in baseball and 3.9 runs per game in 2009 that ranked 28th in baseball.
- In his years his offenses have averaged 3.49 runs per game.
- His teams have hit only 325 HR's in 425 games so they aren't producing the power.
- In 2011 the Mariners are hitting .226/.290/.334 which ranks last place, last place and 29th. In 2010 the Mariners hitting was .236/.298/.339 which ranks last place in all three categories. In 2009 the Mariners hitting was .258/.314/.402 which ranked 21st, 29th and 23rd. The offense has regressed each season under Zduriencik.

Now the pitching has been pretty good but Jason Vargas and recently Blake Beavan only starting pitchers that Zdurienik has his hand on. While the crappy hitting only Ichiro this year and last year Jose Lopez plus our crappy catchers were the only non Zduriencik hitters. The hitting has been historically awful and this losing streak might have sealed Zdurienik's fate. I think firing Zduriencik doesn't solve the Mariners problems but hard to imagine a GM keeping his job with such ugly numbers.

AL West Standings:

Texas Rangers: 58-44, first place
L.A. Angels: 55-47, 3.0 GB
Oakland A's: 44-57, 13.5 GB
Seattle Mariners: 43-58, 14.5 GB

The Seattle Mariners as a franchise has been in a decade long drought. The Mariners feel like that snail who takes one slow step forward then falls back quickly two steps. The Mariners since 2003 have had five full-time managers and seven managers overall. The Mariners have had three different GM's in that time and it appears we'll have our fourth next spring. The new "savior" that the fans will drool over every move he makes. This feels like a process that never ends. The names come and go while the same crappy results continue on. This franchise despite having an ace pitcher in his prime and a first ballot hall of fame hitter will lose over 90 games for the third time in four seasons. They will have lost over 90 games five times since 2004. This year we all figured it was going to be a rebuilding year and possibly the team overachieving in the first half may have cost Zduriencik. The fans had accepted 90 plus losses heading into the season but expectations changed during the season. One thing that hasn't changed is the historically awful offense that Zduriencik has assembled. For as much crap as people give Wedge for his lineups you can only do so much with seven turds. The Mariners offense is just one giant turd at the end of the day and this losing streak just magnifies it.

If the team doesn't mix, you must fix.

By. Insider Steve





It's official; the 2011 Seattle Mariners have fallen off the face of the earth.





As painful as that was to admit, it is the ugly truth. In all of my years watching baseball, I have never witnessed such an epic mid-season tail spin as the one the mariners currently find themselves in. As Ron Fairley would aptly put it; this one's for the ages. How does a team go from 2.5 games behind in the standings on July 5th to 11.5 games in a span of 13 days? It's a great question because most teams do not usually play themselves into that situation unless they are a bad team. It would have to take a total team effort to pull off a meltdown like this, and for the first time this season, the offense isn't the one to blame for the nose dive. For the first time all season the pitching has been equally as bad. The worst part for the Mariners is that it doesn't look like it will get any better anytime soon. If you happened to glance at the upcoming schedule, you will notice that it does not offer any breaks. Two more games in Toronto before moving onto Boston for three, and then finishing up with three in the Bronx against the Yankees. It is more than possible that before the Mariners finish this road trip their losing streak could reach 15 to 20 games, but before i completely scare you off, we should discuss what it's going to take to turn this thing around.





In Jack Zduriencik's defense, his model for building a team to fit the parameters of Safeco Field looked good on paper. If you gather a bunch of high on-base guys with a couple of speedy table setters, it could negate the effects of not having a traditional power guy(s) in the middle of your lineup. If you do your job correctly and assemble the right players, your lineup conceivably would hit right in the middle of the MLB average for OPS numbers. Somewhere between .700 and .728. Zduriencik'd plan hasn't exactly worked out the way he would've liked. During his tenure, his offenses have posted OPS numbers of .716, 637, and 614. That is a -102 points drop off. It goes well beyond just overall team OPS. One look at the positional OPS numbers and you will see a roster that not only hasn't hit up to league average, but is a roster in dire need of improvement. This isn't just idle talk. This a problem that if not fixed immediately, it could snowball and negatively effect the next five seasons.





Positional breakdown by OPS from 2009 through 2011:

• C - 2009: .658, 2011: .628: -30


• 1B - 2009: .867, 2011: .730: -137


• 2B - 2009: .766, 2011: .792: +26


• 3B - 2009: .683, 2011: .478: -205


• SS - 2009: .621, 2011: .636: +15


• LF - 2009: .669, 2011: .606: -63


• CF - 2009: ..764, 2011: .450: -314


• RF - 2009: .851, 2011: .617: -234


• DH - 2009: .735. 2011: .670: -65

The majority that have watched the Mariners up close this season would say that the holes are at the LF, 3B, and DH positions. So if the holes are that glaring why not start there? It came as kind of a surprise to me, but the LF and DH positions have not been as bad offensively this season as the CF and RF positions, so this is where I would start looking for an upgrade. Do I think that Franklin Gutierrez needs to be DFA'd? No, but if a better option presents itself in center field, and that option does provide a consistent power source without giving up too much on defense, then the Mariners would be much better suited sliding Gutierrez over to left field for the 2012 season while Ichiro plays out the final year on his current deal. Speaking quickly on Ichiro, Let's hope that 2011 was indeed just a blip on his career radar. The Mariners can ill afford to have the same type of season bleed over into the 2012 season. Anything short of Ichiro retiring back to Japan in the off season, #51 will be back in the lead off spot in 2012.

Players the Mariners to consider in CF:

• Matt Kemp -CF - .289/.344/.487/.831, 113 HR, 403 RBI


• Jacoby Ellsbury -CF - .296/.350/.424/.774, 33 HR, 182 RBI

The best move the Mariners could make for themselves at this seasons July 31st non-waiver trading deadline is to rid the lineup/bench of Chone Figgins. Let's face it, Figgins has not worked out the way he was supposed to. If Jack Zduriencik can persuade a team to take on the final two years of Figgins' deal, then the Mariners will be deadline winners in my opinion. Again, with Ichiro around for one more season, the Mariners must address the third base position with a consistent power source in the lineup. The Mariners cannot continue signing the Jeff Cirillos, Scott Speizios, and Chone Figgins' of the world(.538 OPS, 21 HR, 168 RBI combined in 6 seasons as Mariners) and expect the fans to accept this as a form of improvement.

Players the Mariners to look at, at 3B:

• Wilson Betemit -3B-.268/.335/.443/.778, 58 HR, 224 RBI


• Mark Reynolds -3B-.240/.335/.484/.819, 142 HR, 397 RBI

The only thing that is certain in regards to the Mariners is the need for a legit big bat/power threat hitting in the middle of their order. Make no mistake, most teams that have built their lineups with "on-base" guys, have a power bat hitting in the middle. In most cases, all those teams are hitting inside the league average in OPS. It should be no secret to many that the Mariners will have the money this off season to make a big splash in free agency. You have no choice but to hit a home run in this scenario (no pun intended) and pay for Prince Fielder's services. There will be the negative backlash that comes with territory of signing a guy like Prince, but in this case you have to ignore the backlash and pay attention to what is important; (Prince's career numbers).281/.388/.538/.926, 214 HR, 609 RBI. Take one second for yourself to imagine what Prince Fielder would look like in the Mariners lineup.(I'm waiting) Now look at the lineup with the roster moves I have outlined.

1. RF - Ichiro


2. 2B - Ackley


3. 1B - Fielder


4. DH - Smoak


5. CF - Kemp


6. 3B - Betemit


7. C - Olivo


8. LF - Gutierrez


9. SS - Ryan

That lineup might not be enough to win you a World Series title, but it will get you into the playoffs, and with our pitching depth, who knows what could happen from that point. Major roster moves have to be made and it has to involve players that will pay huge dividends. Prince will be considered major because of the financial aspects of any deal he will eventually sign and bcause of the lumber he brings to the lineup (duh). Matt Kemp will be a major trade because no one is expecting the Dodgers to part ways with their All-Star who is a vital piece of their future.

Short story long, if anything the last season and a half has shown us is that without power the Mariners will not be able to compete inside their own division. It has to improve dramatically because with every year that passes, Oakland, L.A. Angels, and Texas all improve all little more offensively and widden the gap even further. It's time for the Mariners to finally address their power issues and reinsert themselves back into the ranks of the American League. If they continue to act like a small market team, they will quickly find themselves as this centuries St. Louis Browns. If anyone remembers their baseball history, and that is not a good thing. Okay 2012 Seattle Mariners. Your now officially on the clock.

In Jack Z we trust? I'm not so sure about that

By Kshell

The Seattle Mariners have hit rock bottom in the Jack Zduriencik era recently having lost nine straight games all to division opponents. The Mariners have scored just two runs total in their last 44 innings in year three of the Zduriencik regime. The Mariners are coming off a disasterous season last year which saw them lose over 100 games for the second time in a three year span. The Mariners as of July 5th were just 2.5 games out of first place. Now the Mariners on July 17th find themselves 11.5 games out of first place and in distant third place. Whenever a professional sports team starts losing the blame game is tossed around. For the first time in Zduriencik's regime there appears to be doubt on whether or not he is the guy. One thing that can't be ignored is that he hasn't done a very good job the last two season. You already saw Insider Steve make his case on why we should still trust Jack Z. In this following piece I'm not saying the Mariners should fire Zduriencik but I will point out his flaws.

Before I break down Zduriencik's short comings I'll bring up the terrible mess he appeared to have inherited. By the time Bill Bavasi was fired in the middle of the 2008 season the Mariners were on their way to losing 101 games and finishing last place in the division for the fourth time in five seasons. Bavasi was the mastermind of the first ever team to lose 100+ games with a 100+ million dollar payroll. Ownership was pretty pissed off that they were spending so much money on a crappy product have decided to decrease payroll by 25% in the Zduriencik years. The team had no major league ready up and coming players in the system and some pretty bad contracts as well. Zduriencik inherited a mess from Bavasi but how much of a mess is sometimes lost. The Mariners were bad but the the part of the team that is carrying them right now is the starting pitching staff. Felix Hernandez, Doug Fister, Erik Bedard and Michael Pineda were all in the system before Zduriencik took over the team. With the Mariners being so terrible they also had the #2 pick overall in the draft which allowed them to select Dustin Ackley. So while Bavasi did a terrible job he didn't leave Zduriencik as big of a mess as his apologist want to paint.

The Mariners offense is pathetic and Zduriencik has let three hitters who would produce on this team go under his watch. The first one is Mike Morse who he traded in 2009 to the Washington Nationals for Ryan Langerhans who is currently rotting away in Triple A Tacoma. Morse for the season is hitting .300/.348/.523 on the season with 15 home runs and 49 RBI's which would be nice right about now. Instead of having Morse get the DH AB's against left handers Zduriencik decided to go with the veteran Mike Sweeney. The Mariners also let go of Adrian Beltre after the 2009 season and Beltre now plays for division rival Texas Rangers. Beltre on the season is hitting .268/.309/.488 with 19 home runs and 72 RBI's with gold glove defense. The Mariners decided to go with Chone Figgins instead at third base for four years and 36 million dollars. Figgins on the year is hitting .183/.230/.243 with one home run and 14 RBI's with just nine stolen bases and six caught stealings. Not to mention his defense has been very average and he currently has the worst WAR(wins above replacement level) amongst all starters. Another guy Zduriencik let go was Raul Ibanez who is hitting .249/.293/.426 with 13 home runs and 48 RBI's on this year. Imagine this offense with Ibanez at DH instead of Cust against right handers and playing some left field(we had Peguero who also sucks on defense), with Morse playing DH against left handers and playing some outfield as well and Beltre at third base? This offense goes from Triple A to average offense.

The Mariners this season are hitting as a team .221/.286/.325 which ranks last place in the majors in all three categories. The Mariners have also scored the fewest runs in the major leagues this season. Last year the Mariners hit .236/.298/.339 which also ranked last place in all three major categories. The Mariners ranked dead last in runs scored and home runs last season. The Mariners who had a winning season in 2009 ranked 28th out of 30 teams in runs scored. Zduriencik tried to build a team based on run prevention but failed to realize you do need some offense. Zduriencik has yet to find a DH and now third base not to mention left field appear to be huge black holes. With the recent play of Franklin Gutierrez who is hitting .190/.224/.233 with just one home run in 163 at bats makes you wonder if he is the answer in centerfield. The strength of the team is the pitching which Zduriencik inherited from the Bavasi years while the major weakness is the hitting which Zduriencik has a hand on eight of the nine players who play every day. Zduriencik's eye for talent has to be questioned given that he has built the worst offense of the last three years.

For those who trust Zduriencik's eye for talent I ask how can you do that when his manager that he personally hand picked was fired after just a season and a half? Zduriencik showed he is a coward by blaming Don Wakamatsu for a roster that he built. Unfortunately for Zduriencik he can't blame the manager this time around. Bill Bavasi did the same thing he fired Bob Melvin but he did admit if he is forced to fire Mike Hargrove that will result in him losing his job as well. Zduriencik has already showed that his eye for talent is flawed given that the manager he hand picked was canned less than two years on the job. Then Zduriencik also looked foolish last year claiming he had no clue about Josh Lueke's background which a quick five second google search would have discovered that. You also have to wonder how great of an eye for talent Zduriencik really has when his old team the Milwaukee Brewers have made the playoffs just once in the past 29 seasons. I know the Brew Crew appears to have some talented pieces but in professional sports you are measured by wins and losses. Another thing that worries me is the people who hired Zduriencik.

Everyone is on to Howard Lincoln and Chuck Armstrong by now. We are fully aware these two are morons and shouldn't be running a baseball team. Does it concern anyone that these two hand picked Zduriencik? They whiffed on Bavasi and appear to whiff on every manager since Piniella was traded away. Nobody trusts those two to make any decisions correctly so why trust them now? I'm not willing to give Dumb(Lincoln) and Dumber(Armstrong) the benefit of the doubt that they aced this hire. Zduriencik for all the complaining about cheap ownership currently is working with a 94 million dollar salary cap. Of course there is some dead money in there that isn't contributing which has nothing to do with Zduriencik which accounts for 13 million. I'm sorry you should be able to put together a major league offense for 81 million. Nobody forced Zduriencik to wrongfully pay Chone Figgins nine million a year or to trade Carlos Silva for Milton Bradley. It wasn't a bad contract for bad contract swap as Silva made 12 million compared to Bradley's 13.3 not to mention the Mariners are paying 5.5 million of Silva's contract. Nobody forced Zduriencik to trade for Jack Wilson then give him a contract extention worth five million this season. That is 19.5 million that Zduriencik lit on fire and burned it down. The team is spending enough money to put together a major league offense which Zduriencik has yet to do in any of his three seasons with the Mariners. Just remember dumb(Lincoln) and dumber(Armstrong) are the ones that nobody should trust yet they hand picked this guy.

All in all, think what you want about Zduriencik but please don't "trust" him. The Mariners don't deserve our trust one bit. The Mariners are that girl friend who is constantly cheating on us would you would "trust" her to have a weekend to herself in Las Vegas? Hell no! Just like you shouldn't trust this Mariners team. The Mariners product is an embarassment to any fan who has spent money on this team the last decade. Nobody should be given a free pass on this team yet so many fans seem very quick to defend Zduriencik just like Huskies fans defended Tyrone Willingham or how current Cougars fans defend Paul Wulff. This is sports not T-Ball you are measured by wins and losses and to date Zduriencik while in Seattle is 189-230(.451) which isn't horrible but not good. This is a make or break offseason for Zduriencik as it should be. If he can't get at least 85 wins by next season he should be shown the door and if the team wins 85 games while having the worst offense he should still be shown the door! A good general manager by now would be having his major league team show some progress by now which the only bright spot he had nothing to do with. So remember fans not saying to fire Zduriencik but stop this "trust" business. Why should this franchise deserve our trust after cheating on us for 36 seasons? Just remember the people you don't trust also hired Zduriencik.