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Seattle Mariners: Why the Team Should Trade for Matt Kemp

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The Seattle Mariners reportedly had conversations with the Dodgers about incumbent outfielder Matt Kemp.

Kemp is reportedly not being moved, but the M’s should maintain interest in the two-time All-Star.

After the ambitious, low-buy acquisitions of Logan Morrison and Corey Hart, the team’s lineup will look something like this-

  1. CF Dustin Ackley
  2. 3B Kyle Seager
  3. 2B Robinson Cano
  4. DH Corey Hart (he only wears sunglasses when it’s sunny, just so we’re clear)
  5. 1B Logan Morrison
  6. LF Michael Saunders
  7. C Mike Zunino
  8. SS Brad Miller
  9. RF Abraham Almonte

That’s a pretty solid lineup. In terms of the division standings, that group would probably get you higher than the Astros, and should the pitching hold up, above the Angels. If Hart and Morrison can have bounce-back years, and (again) pitching forbid, the team has a good chance to surpass Texas.

Acquiring Kemp would vault them past Texas and the Angels. Something that seemed absurd four months ago. Oakland may be out of reach, but bringing in Matt Kemp would put the Mariners in a position to legitimately contend for a Wild Card berth.

The Dodgers’ outfielder would bring a perfect blend of, well, everything to the Mariners. Kemp’s defense would shine in still-spacious Safeco Field. Hitting him cleanup in the lineup listed above could be potentially lethal. Imagine this-

  1. RF Abraham Almonte
  2. 3B Kyle Seager
  3. 2B Robinson Cano
  4. CF Matt Kemp
  5. DH Corey Hart (he still only wears sunglasses when it’s sunny)
  6. 1B Logan Morrison
  7. LF Michael Saunders
  8. C Mike Zunino
  9. SS Brad Miller

Almonte is the “projected” leadoff hitter only based on the fact that he has the foot speed to create at the top of the order, and Ackley can’t play right field. A leadoff hitter would probably be the next item on the Mariners’ to-do list. Ackley could be traded in an effort to get one.

The Yankees, among others, have inquired about the former first-round pick.  Ideally, Seattle could flip Ackley and one of their lesser relievers for one of their incumbent outfielders, Brett Gardner. Here’s another lineup prediction with Gardner (bear with me on this)-

  1. LF Brett Gardner
  2. 3B Kyle Seager
  3. 2B Robinson Cano
  4. CF Matt Kemp
  5. DH Corey Hart
  6. 1B Logan Morrison
  7. RF Michael Saunders/Abraham Almonte
  8. C Mike Zunino
  9. SS Brad Miller

That lineup would contend with Oakland for the division. Not only could that lineup, coupled with the Mariners’ underrated pitching staff, contend with Oakland, but they could compete with the best of them. Outside of Detroit, St. Louis, Los Angeles and a regressing (for the moment) Boston, Seattle could have the most talented team.

This isn’t even mentioning former top-prospects Jesus Montero, Justin Smoak and Nick Franklin, all of whom could be shopped to add to the M’s bullpen or rotation.

Getting to this point won’t be easy. Seattle’s going to have to take on some money as well as give up a solid player or two to acquire Kemp. The other trades won’t be cakewalks, but should the Mariners do it, they could be looking at a playoff berth for the first time in a long, long time.

 

Robinson Cano to the Seattle Mariners: The Importance of the Signing

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Robinson Cano is a member of the Seattle Mariners. Let it all set in.

The Mariners are trying, folks.

People can talk all they want about Cano’s production. How fantastic it will be for the first couple years. How it will look bad at the back end. How many runs he will drive in next year.

Take Cano’s on-field production aside, this is what people need to consider with Cano. He’s a marquee signing.

Yes, I just stated the obvious, but I’ll compare it to the Knicks signing Amar’e Stoudemire a couple years ago. The Knicks stunk before they signed Stoudemire, but signing him to go along with all the pieces that they had made them an instant playoff team. I’m not saying the M’s will do this, but they still have a lot of holes to fill. Signing Cano signifies a shift made by the Mariners in the free agency market. It signals that star players are willing to go to Seattle.

No one has wanted to come to the Emerald City lately. Star players at least. Seattle whiffed on Josh Hamilton, lost out on Prince Fielder and was turned down by Justin Upton. Who could blame them? They were all in their primes at the time and wanted to go to winning teams to do just that, win. The M’s weren’t a winning team. Sure, give it three or four years and Seattle could become a contender, but at that time they weren’t ready.

Signing Cano helps the Mariners in two ways in terms of helping them attract other players. Not only does it signal that star players want to come to the Pacific Northwest, it also means that the M’s will improve. Even if Seattle doesn’t acquire anyone else of note (an unlikely situation), Cano immediately makes them better.

The former Yankee isn’t the LeBron James of baseball. People aren’t going to hit free agency and say, “I want to go play with Robbie Cano. Agent, get me on the next flight to Seattle!” But at least they’re going to listen when Jack Zduriencik comes calling.

Adding another big name player via trade or free agency could do wonders for the M’s. Not only will it add to the misconception that big players don’t want to go to Seattle, but it will also take the M’s to another level in terms of competing. I don’t necessarily mean the World Series. Seattle is a number of pieces away from that, the playoffs, or at the very least a wild-card game isn’t out of the question. Oakland will be better next year, but outside of that, each division team has its warts. Anaheim continues to look like a terrific team on paper, but looks average when you see the actual statistics. Texas was already hurting from losing the power bats of Josh Hamilton and Michael Young, but now with the losses of Nelson Cruz, David Murphy and Ian Kinsler, the Rangers will suffer even more.

Seattle has a legitimate shot to make the playoffs if it can get some more reinforces for their new poster child Robinson Cano. If the team can pick up David Price and/or Matt Kemp to add to a nucleus of Cano, Felix Hernandez, Hisashi Iwakuma, Kyle Seager and Danny Farquhar, then the future is looking bright in Seattle.

Just like signing Amar’e opened the door for the Knicks to get Carmelo Anthony and eventually Tyson Chandler, Cano will open the door to other exciting options for the Mariners.

Where Are They Now? Seattle Mariners Edition: Doug Fister

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The good people over at Homers Apparel made a t-shirt making light of the fact that the Mariners traded Doug Fister, basically for a decent relief pitcher.

Fister left the Mariners, along with reliever David Pauley, in a trade to the Detroit Tigers. The return on the two, but mainly Fister, was outfielder Casper Wells, reliever Charlie Furbush, third baseman Francisco Martinez and a player to be named later. That player eventually turned into ex-first-round draft pick Chance Ruffin.

With Fister on the move again, this time to Washington, I thought, as a Tiger fan, it was appropriate to fill Mariners’ fans in on what happened to Fister on the mound since he left the Emerald City.

Before the trade, Fister went 3-12 with a 3.33 ERA in 21 Seattle starts. At that trade deadline he was flipped for said package of players. The now ex-Tiger posted fantastic numbers down the stretch, going 8-1 with a sparkling 1.79 ERA over the course of 70 innings. He struck out 57 batters and walked a paltry five. FIVE.

The California native followed that up with a solid second season in Detroit when he went 10-10 with a 3.45 ERA. His strikeout-to-walk numbers weren’t nearly as gaudy with 137 punch-outs to 37 base-on-balls. He continued to solidify himself as a dependable frontline starter with a 14-9 record and 3.67 ERA this past year over 32 starts.

Fister was good in the regular season, but he was fantastic in the post-season. With the exception of a six-run anomaly during Game One of the 2011 ALDS against the Yankees where he was forced to come out of the bullpen, the 6 foot 8 righty was dominant. After said anomaly, he won the clinching Game Five in New York while holding the Yankees to one run over five innings. For the rest of his Tigers’ career he procured quality starts in each of his postseason starts. 2011 ALCS start versus Texas? Quality start. 2012 ALDS versus Oakland? Quality start. 2012 ALCS versus the Yankees? Quality start. I think you get my point. Fister’s career postseason ERA sits at 2.98.

He continually keeps his team in the game, something that is more valuable than ever in the playoffs. Fister has thrown a quality start in every single postseason start in his career. Having a reliable, non-dazzling pitcher may not seem like the most exciting quality, but knowing you have that reliability in October goes a long ways.

Fister, as mentioned, is off to Washington. The deal saw the Tigers acquire utility infielder Steve Lombardozzi, young reliever Ian Krol and starting pitching prospect Robbie Ray.

Most people will call the trade a bad one for the Tigers, but that’s a discussion for another time. The point is that Fister is off to Washington, solidifying himself as one of the better ex-Mariners around Major League Baseball.

All stats courtesy of http://www.baseball-reference.com/ unless otherwise noted.

Picking the Field: NCAA Tournament Predictions – And Yes, I Have Gonzaga Winning it All

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Last year I wrote a terribly long essay on my NCAA “Picks to Clicks.” (In hindsight, that title is grammatically screwed up. Alas what a year of writing can do for you’re grammer skills.)

This year I won’t bore you with the reasons why Notre Dame will beat Iowa State (Notre Dame wins the game by the way) or why Louisville will beat Western Kentucky (see Sheen, Charlie: Um… Duhhh.) But I will share most of my latter tournament predictions and such. Which will all end with Gonzaga cutting down the nets in Atlanta.

These are my non-chalk picks in the first round, or the round after 60 teams get a “bye”- Continue reading →