The Mariners’ Future is Now

Posted on June 19, 2013 by kingdome

A quick pan over the Mariners’ depth chart shows Nick Franklin and Mike Zunino in the starting nine. This wouldn’t be too far-fetched if it were, say next year’s depth chart, but this is where the world is presently; the Mariners future is also their present.

The M’s probably would have liked to have had Dustin Ackley and Jesus Montero each put a respective stranglehold on second base and catcher so that the team could ease Franklin and Zunino into their roles for the next decade. Ackley hit .205 with five extra base hits in 45 games, while Montero struggled to fit in defensively and was a smidgen better batting than Ackley with a .208 clip. The two obviously didn’t execute said strangleholds, and here we are.

This might be a good thing for the Mariners, all of course pending the youngsters perform well.

Zunino is obviously the future at catcher. He’s proved that with his own body of work. Not to mention having Montero prove the fact for him with his defensive shortcomings. This lets him get a head-start on being the M’s everyday catcher while continuing his learning process. Everyone knew he was going to take over for Montero at some point between the start of this season and the end of next. This just accelerates the process and lets Montero transition to more of an everyday utility player, one who might catch a day or two a week and play the other games at first base or as the DH.

The Franklin transition seems to be working out for all parties involved. Mariners, Franklin and Ackley. Franklin is currently preforming well for Seattle with a .299 clip at the plate while providing plus defense. Ackley is ripping the cover off the ball at AAA Tacoma, a good sign after his iffy stint with Seattle to start the year, with a .383 batting average.

This could all work out well for Seattle. Zunino could establish himself as the catcher sooner than expected. Franklin could integrate himself into the core of the team, also sooner than expected. Ackley could come back firing from a hitting spree in Tacoma, and Montero could figure things out after he returns from injury.

Things are looking up for the Mariners.

Sweet NBA Dreams Are Made of This – 25 Thoughts on the Recent Decision By the NBA BOG

Posted on May 17, 2013 by kingdome

I’m going way back with this one. Call it the way-back machine, time machine, vault, whatever. Point is that I’m dropping a Eurhythmics reference. In the title-referenced song, these lyrics are used-

“Some of them want to use you…Some of them want to abuse you.”

The first part (“Some of them want to use you”) obviously refers to the “incumbent” overlord-like NBA Commissioner David Stern, showed all the grace of a saucy, filter-less seven-year-old at the podium; I’ll get to that later. True or not, you could conceivably put together the pieces supporting the fact that Seattle was used to keep the Kings in Sacramento. In his poorly prosed press conference, Stern talked a lot about “advantage to the incumbent.” Which, if that was the case all along, the Seattle group probably should have deserved a heads up that it was really Sacramento’s team to lose.

The second part (“Some of them want to abuse you”) refers again to Stern, who for some reason, seems not to like Seattle.

Now, on to my 25 thoughts on the matter:

David Stern showed very poor podium presence. Of all the things in the world that David Stern could have said to open his press conference, he went with, “This is going to be short for me. I have a game to get to in Oklahoma City.” REALLY??? I have many problems with this; one is that the OKC reference is exceedingly poor taste. I wasn’t kidding about a rude, mouth running seven-year-old having the same amount of grace at the podium. That dig was filled with so much bad taste it makes the six-week-old liver at the back of your fridge seem like it will actually taste good.
Stern needs to learn to be present. Taking aside the fact that he slammed Seattle with the opening dig, did he really need to say that? Even if it was a playoff game in Boston, Tanzania or a polar ice cap, you be present. You are in charge of the league. Acting like you’re half asleep and saying, “I don’t even know where I am” (paraphrasing). Pull it together. I would have said, “pull it together, buddy” just because it sounds better, but David Stern is clearly no buddy of mine.
If you have to rush off to a playoff game, why did you schedule the meeting for today in the first place? If you want to go see a playoff game, then don’t schedule the Board of Governors meeting during the playoffs. Simple as that.
The NBA made the wrong decision.
The NBA made the wrong decision.
The NBA made the wrong decision.
And… the NBA made the wrong decision. Is Sacramento a better market? Does dirt look appetizing to eat? All jokes and jabs aside, I do think that Sacramento is a good NBA town, just not as good as Seattle would have been/was/will be.
Seattle also has, and will have, a much better market if you strictly look at it from a standpoint of number of big-name companies with headquarters or large offices in each city. In one corner you have Seattle with powerhouses such as Microsoft, Amazon, Starbucks (should they chose to get back in bed with the league,) REI, Boeing, Alaska Airlines, Nordstrom, etc. In the other corner you have Sacramento with… wait, was that a tumble weed? (points somewhere off to far left.)
On the bright side of things, I just stopped writing momentarily to see the Memphis Grizzlies move on to the Western Conference Finals. If you live under a rock, that means the OKC Raiders lost and were eliminated from the playoffs. Ah, little victories.
Also, I would like to personally commend the eight NBA owners who made the right vote. Seattle appreciates it.
Here’s a joke, David Stern walks into a bar in Seattle… oh wait, that will never happen.
Another small positive from Wednesday, the Mariners dropped a twelve spot on the Yankees. At least we still have the M’s.
I also want to thank the Sacramento fans who weren’t complete ____________(your choice-y swear word in plural form here.) Sacramento wanted to keep their team; you can’t hold that against them. The bad apples that started ripping Seattle on everything from the Mariners to Macklemore showed the same poor taste as Stern.
In a less cynical statement, I hope the Kings do well in Sacramento. It would be horrible for everyone if the Kings went back to their ways of tanking in attendance. Worst case scenario, Sacramento struggles after a honeymoon period, but still keeps their team, and the NBA doesn’t admit its’ obvious mistake. But, like I said, I hope Sacramento justifies the NBA’s decision to stick with them.
Adam Silver may one day win the “Biggest Hero in Seattle Sports History” Award simply based on default. While it would be amazing to get an NBA team during the rest of Stern’s rather stern tenure, it probably isn’t going to happen. Stern himself has served for nearly 30 years, meaning, even if Silver lasts half that long, we will probably get a team during his tenure. Thus he wins the aforementioned “Biggest Hero in Seattle Sports History” Award. Seriously, he’d get more votes than the following: Felix Hernandez, Mike Holmgren, Shaun Alexander… Take back what I said, he would get second in the award voting, the winner would be Chris Hansen.
We in Seattle have now joined a very hallowed fraternity of sports cities. We’re the 31^st or 33^rd league city. The city without a team that makes you go, “well, they deserve a team more than at least a third of the league, if not more, why don’t they have a team already?” Yes, people actually say all that. Current members of the club include Los Angeles of no-NFL fame. Montreal of baseball fame, Quebec City in the NHL and well, us. Cleveland , formerly of no- NFL fame, used to live at the fraternity house, but it has since backed its bags and left.
Was this really smart for the NBA? The NBA is a money-driven league. Rather than being driven by people named David and Adam, the league is run by folks named Benjamin, Andrew and Abraham. The league is run by money. Which is why it is confusing to see the league go with an inferior offer, purely from a monetary stand point. Seattle is a fantastic market, and truth be told, probably has better NBA fans than half the league.
To continue the rant on the incumbent NBA commissioner, anyone else think it was wrong for him to wear a purple tie to the Warriors/Spurs playoff game the night before the vote? I know that he has to look impartial to the two teams. So that rules out the colors, black, white, silver, blue, yellow, orange (the Warriors former color). He probably shouldn’t have worn any Sonics/Kings colors like he did, so that rules out green, gold, yellow (again,) purple, etc. Red is still available! Wear that colored tie and at least try to look impartial. Yes, I just critiqued Stern’s tie choice… but when it clearly looks like he’s being partial in a situation when he is required to be impartial, someone has to call him on it.
Another joke, Clay Bennett walks into a bar in Seattle… also, never happening.
Also, if the NBA truly wants to come back to Seattle one day, during the press conference after the Sacramento decision was made, shouldn’t the league have treated Seattle with more respect? The league should have done everything to say, “We’re going with Sacramento on this one, but we very much would like to go back to Seattle.” What happens if you are so rude to Seattle that Seattle doesn’t want you back? What happens if team X falls into financial disarray and you need to move them? Who’s going to step up and be a good market? Anaheim? No, too close to LA, the Lakers and Clips would throw a hissy fit at the notion. Las Vegas? Probably not, the whole allure of Vegas mixed with a professional sports team seems like the wrong idea. Virginia Beach? Their efforts to get the NBA are in the infant stages at this point. How about Vancouver? They would be good, but they are still at square one in terms of everything. So what if no new buyer is found? Does the league do what it did with the Hornets? Does the league want to do that? What if no buyer was found and the team folded? It seems like the league has something against 31 teams, as if it’s a negative. If 31 teams is a negative, then 29 is apocalyptic-negative.
This topic has been broached by many a reporter, but shouldn’t the NBA have been willing to give Seattle more time to do anything to improve their bid, or even just give them more time to be fair? I thought it seemed unfair to give Sacramento countless number of breaks when they clearly weren’t ready, and then when Sacramento was ready, Seattle’s neck got slammed to the guillotine and that’s that. Seems a bit unfair. “Sacto” as some people affectionately call it, got too much leeway in terms of extending deadlines.
What happens to Gary Payton’s jersey? Or Shawn Kemp’s? Are these numbers retired in Seattle or are they mothballed? These numbers need to be retired properly in Seattle. Especially with Payton getting into the Hall of Fame this year.
“Some of them want to use you.” It did feel like Seattle got used. I talked about this earlier, if Sacramento was always getting the team, why play Seattle and not be completely honest about it?
I alluded to it earlier, but from the outside, it seems like Stern really doesn’t like Seattle. Maybe he didn’t like all the backlash after the Sonics left. Who knows, but this seems despicable.
I also want to point out one other thing. The city of Sacramento is very lucky to have Kevin Johnson as their mayor. I think had Sacramento had any other mayor who had zero ties to the NBA then we might have the Sonics back.

MT @stevekylernba: Sources said Seattle group was compelling and more owners were probably in favor of Seattle vote, but Stern swayed vote.

— Chris Daniels (@ChrisDaniels5) May 16, 2013

Previewing the Near Future of the Mariners/Astros Rivalry

Posted on April 11, 2013 by kingdome

In a rivalry, both teams need to win for it to be considered a rivalry. The Astros won on Tuesday night… Check that box. So it’s a rivalry, now I’m able to write about it.

The Mariners are a good team who should be a dark-horse contender for a wildcard spot. The Astros are a bad team who should be a contender for the number-one overall pick.

The Astros are a transitional team, littered with former top prospects who have yet to make the jump to being established big leaguers but still show potential. Plus there are some veterans on short-term deals looking to reestablish their major league careers.

The Astros stink. There are no two ways around it.

Seattle is much too good for Houston. The Mariners aren’t going to become world-beaters; they aren’t going to be one of the Yankees teams of old. They’re going to be the Mariners. One of the upsides to that is that they will play the newest member of the AL, the aforementioned Houston Astros.

The Astros are really bad…(Wait didn’t I just write this? That’s how bad Houston is folks; they cause brief short-term memory loss. Take that to the bank!)

The Mariners are much more talented than Houston (Doing it again, sorry. Slaps forehead. I guess Houston is that horrible?)

What I’m really trying to say is that if Houston and Seattle play 20 times, it wouldn’t shock anyone, even Emerald City haters (yes, apparently some people hate the lovely city of Seattle, oh the horror) to see the M’s win 15-17 times out of 20 against the ‘Stros.

The term “rivalry” is being brought into play not just for the sake of making this piece hold water, but also because it will be a rivalry.

Houston is where Seattle was as recently as a few years ago. (Fun fact, both teams have Erik Bedard! Look out, if the Angels flame out and have a fire sale in the next three years, Erik Bedard will be there.) The Astros have their one solid piece to build around (Jose Altuve), and they’re trying to figure it all out. The Astros will definitely be better over the long term. They may serve to bolster the win column for Seattle nowadays, but in a few years with some shrewd moves, Houston will be back to relevancy.

(Another fun fact I forgot to mention, Ronny Cedeno was/is on the really-bad-now-good-later Mariners of a few years yonder and the current Astros. He might be on the ashes of an Angels’ team after that fire sale with Bedard.)

I guess the most comparable situation here in recent memory is that of the Blue Jays of the late 2000’s and the Orioles of that time period. One team is a good team stuck in a tough division, and the other team, while stuck in the same tough division, is horrendous.

Seattle will win most of its games with Houston, but give it some patience (a few years) and the Astros will be providing you with bang for your buck at the old Safeco Field.

The Jason Bay/Casper Wells Post-Conundrum Analysis

Posted on April 3, 2013 by kingdome

The Mariners made no secret of their desire to beef up their middle-of-the-order in the off-season. They turned John Jaso into Mike Morse. That transaction, however early it might be, is paying off. They signed Raul Ibanez to hit for power and make sure Morse wasn’t the only new-old Mariner. They also signed Jason Bay.

The Mariners’ outfield was clogged to begin with. Michael Saunders, Franklin Gutierrez, Trayvon Robinson, Eric Thames, Carlos Peguero and Wells were all fighting for a third of the outfield pie. You add the new power bats and some people are going to have to go.

Robinson was dealt to Baltimore and Thames and Peguero are playing in Tacoma, Guti and Grand Torrido (that’s Saunders, you can see my explanation here) are starting for the Mariners.

The final outfield spot, in the end, came down to Bay or Wells.

Bay, six years Wells’ senior who is on an expiring contract and hit .165 in nearly half of a season in New York.

Or Wells, the prototypical fourth outfielder who is controlled by the team longer, is younger and cheaper than Bay.

Wells might be one of the more cynically undervalued players in the league. He played well enough to get more ABs in Seattle, however, due to the crowded outfield (see above,) wasn’t able to get them. Wells is never going to be a mega superstar, but given a decent number of at bats, he could be a very solid contributor offensively and defensively.

Wells, again given decent playing time, is a plus defender who could hit around 20 homers in a full season.

But instead the team went with Bay, who if he plays well, is likely to garner a new contract next year from someone else.

That’s no slant on Bay, but in a situation like this when the spot up for grabs is third string corner outfield/DH position, then you should probably go with the younger, cheaper, longer controlled, better defensive player.

Oh, the travesties of baseball.

HELLO!!! It’s Really Early, Maybe Too Early, but the Mike Morse Trade is Already Paying Dividends

Posted on April 3, 2013 by kingdome

If you watched yesterday’s Mariner game, then you probably saw Mike Morse go bananas. One of Seattle’s newest, oldest Mariners (Raul Ibanez is the other,) ripped Oakland’s pitchers to shreds with a 2/4 performance that include two long balls and a total of four runs batted in.

This is significant not just because Morse outscored the A’s by his lonesome, nor because he nearly out hit them. But because of how good of a sign this is for the Mariners’ offense.

This was a big game from a Mariner hitter, something that was few-and-far-between for hitters on last year’s team, especially middle-of-the-order types. The key here is that Morse turned in the first multi-homerun and/or four RBI (at the least) game of the season for Seattle. Something that took the M’s a little under a month and some late inning heroics from Michael Saunders to produce last season.

It’s a small milestone, but a positive one for the Mariners as they move to 2-0.

Assessing the Mariners’ Chances in the AL West

Posted on March 28, 2013 by kingdome

Last year the M’s were left in the cold.

The A’s, Rangers and Angels all got to fight over the AL West crown, and while the Mariners had that opportunity, they didn’t exactly take it. This year will be different.

The first difference is that the Astros are part of the division. Houston isn’t going to be a doormat for the rest of the division, but they probably won’t factor in to the playoff race with the exception of playing spoiler for a week in the fall.

Which leaves the old guard as the likely contenders. I’m talking A’s, Rangers, Halos and M’s.

M’s. That’s right, Seattle is going to contend this year. Continue reading →

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