Author Archives: Matthew

by | November 2, 2010 · 8:38 pm

Your 2011 Mariners- Outfield

With the World Series over, free agency is right around the corner.  It’s coming even earlier than usual this year, so I’ll try to get through these overviews of the team before much happens.  Up next:

Outfield

On the Roster

Ichiro– Ichiro had a slightly down year for him in 2010, but he was still the best offensive player on the team.  He’s one of the only players on the roster worth coming to the park to see, and there’s no reason to think he won’t be just as good and probably better next year.  Sure, he’s paid a lot, but nothing’s changing that now, so sit back and enjoy him.

Franklin Gutierrez– After a fast start, Guti joined the rest of the team in having an extremely disappointing year.  2009 Franklin is a guy to build a team around; 2010 Franklin is a borderline starter.  Now probably isn’t the time to trade him, but I’d be open to the possibility if the team has confidence in Michael Saunders and thinks he can play center.  In reality, I think he’ll be starting again in center in 2011, barring some mega-deal where he’s one of several pieces going out.  He still has a lot of potential, and the defense didn’t really dip, but the jury’s now out on Gutierrez. Continue reading →

1 Comment

Filed under Mariners

Tagged as , , , , , , , , ,

by | November 2, 2010 · 11:30 am

Hot Links

Read a few things that caught my eye today. 

  • With Jake Locker out, take a look at the possible future with UW QB commit Joseph Gray.  Not a ton of info here, but his team is 8-0 and he’s put up some massive numbers this year.  He was lightly recruited until he committed, but word is that lots of teams were/are starting to take an interest.  Maybe the biggest knock on Gray is lack of size, as he stands only about 6′.
  • I’ve always felt bad for Kevin Riley, who has been a good QB sometimes, and a horrendous one occasionally.  His season and career are now over after an injury last week at OSU, and Ted Miller has a really nice little article.  Best of luck to Riley in the future.  I wish he could have gone out better, like getting beat by the Huskies!
  • If you’re a Mariner fan and don’t already, you should just read Lookout Landing every day.  If you don’t yet, start with this.  It’s kind of hopeful.  I wouldn’t have any problem with the Mariners getting rid of Lincoln and Armstrong, but I fully disagree with anyone who says the Mariners can’t win as long as they’re here.  They might make it harder, but what wins games is talent on the field, not ownership.  If you haven’t noticed, the Mariners need better players.  Speaking of which…
  • Prospect Insider has a post about potential shortstop solutions.  I looked at the shortstops on the Mariners roster recently and proclaimed the situation pretty bleak.  Jason Churchill doesn’t make many predictions, but he brings up a few names I hadn’t thought about.  Jose Reyes, anyone?  Not likely, but what is the offseason for if not a chance to dream?

-Matthew

2 Comments

Filed under Huskies Football, Mariners

Tagged as , , , , , ,

by | November 1, 2010 · 4:01 pm

Locker Out for Saturday’s Game

Official word is out that Jake Locker will miss Saturday’s game against the University of Oregon.  Apparently the rib injury that has been bothering had progressed from a strain to a hairline fracture before last weekend, and now is a full-on cracked rib after the Stanford game. 

I don’t want to second-guess the doctors or anything, but this could be a case of the coaches picking their battles.  There’s no reason to doubt the diagnosis, and even the initial injury would keep most of the population off the field, but I’m betting Jake would say there’s not much difference in his pain level between now and what it was before the Stanford game.  It’s not a stretch to say the coaches are admitting that Jake Locker wouldn’t have much effect this upcoming Saturday. 

That might sound like an indictment of the coaches, but I don’t mean it that way at all.  There are plenty of other reasons to be on them, but I don’t think this is one of them (and I might be the only one with this interpretation of Locker sitting anyway).  The truth is that UW has little real chance of beating Oregon this Saturday.  Crazy things happen, but I can’t imagine a worse matchup for this struggling Husky team.  UW’s bowl chances will come down to winning their last three games, and I’d rather have Locker healthy for them (hopefully) than have him sacrifice more ribs to Brandon Bair and a hyped up Duck defense.

Keith Price will make his first start in Locker’s place.  Price has looked decent, but he’s only played in mop-up duty, aside from the touchdown pass he threw to Chris Izbicki when Locker was out of the game for a play early in the year.  If nothing else, this should be some good experience for Price for next year.  I can’t think of a worse situation in which to make your first start than Autzen Stadium against a #1 ranked Ducks team.  I’d expect a whole lot of Chris Polk and Jesse Callier, but I never expected Price to Izbicki, so who knows.

One thing’s sure: if Price pulls off the miracle upset, well, I don’t even know how to put into words how amazing that would be.  I’m literally sitting here trying to come up with a way to describe it.  Thinking about it will probably be the best feeling associated with this game, so feel free to hold off reality as long as you can.

-Matthew

Leave a comment

Filed under Huskies Football

Tagged as ,

by | October 30, 2010 · 9:00 am

A Sign from the Football Gods?

Some might call it a typo.  Others might call it something more.

Today’s injury report from Ted Miller’s ESPN blog:

Washington
QB Jake Locker, thigh, ribs, probable
DT Cameron Elisara, neck, out
TE Chris Izbikci, foot, questionable
S Will Shamburger, concussion, questionable
LB Victory Aiyewa, knee, probable
DE Talia Crichton, knee, out
WR Devin Aguilar, hip, probable
RB Johri Fogerson, hip, out
OG Erik Kohler, illness, probable

Our starting strongside linebacker is calling his shot.  We believe, Mr. Aiyewa.

-Matthew

1 Comment

Filed under Huskies Football, Uncategorized

by | October 29, 2010 · 9:20 pm

A Sad Day

Pac-1o basketball fans received some difficult news today.  Max Zhang will not return to the University of California to continue his basketball career, opting instead to stay with the Chinese national team.  He was already going to miss this year to play with them, but now he will not return at all.

For those not in the know, Max is the Good Guys’ favorite 7′ 3″ Chinese center.  Few things brought more joy than Max in a pregame layup line or squatting in front of the scorer’s bench to check in, unable to bring his head below the scorer’s line of vision.  He could foul with abandon, and even dominated defensively for the occasional minute. 

Max was the kind of player you always like to see on the opponent’s sideline.  No real threat to have an impact on the game, he brought a level of goofiness that only a 7′ 3″ Chinese Golden Bear can.  And I mean that in the best way possible.  Sometimes I’d wonder about the interpersonal relationships of the Bears.  What did Jerome Randle think of Max?  Was he the goofy little brother?  Does he speak English?  What would the world look like if he ever became a star?

A few weeks ago, we saw a new side of Max when he took part in a fairly horrific brawl which led to the Chinese team being suspended from international play.  Maybe we should have known that we were coming to the end of Max’s era, but today’s news is still hard.  Max, tonight we bow to the west in your honor and think of what could have been.  If you ever decide to come back, how about transferring to Oregon State?  You and Joe Burton patrolling the paint might be one of the best things I can imagine.  Goodbye, Max Zhang.

-Matthew

5 Comments

Filed under Huskies Basketball

Tagged as

by | October 29, 2010 · 12:17 pm

Your 2011 Mariners- Catcher

I guess I’ll get this position over with so we can look at some slightly less depressing spots on the roster.

Catcher

On the Roster

Adam Moore- Not having paid much attention to the last couple of months of the season, I busted out Moore’s monthly splits.  I was under the vague impression that his bat was a little better after he returned to the Mariners.  I was wrong. He did show a little more power, with three homers from August on, but that’s the extent of anything promising.  His best stretch of the season was for about three games right before he got injured.  Lots of rookies struggle, especially if they’re catching, but it’s not looking good for Moore.  I’d be curious as to how his defense looked by the end of the year.  Any thoughts?

Rob Johnson- Just going to move on.

Contract is Up

Josh Bard- Technically, Bard is a free agent, but I’m sure the Mariners could resign him if they want to.  Bard was probably the best catcher on the roster, but that’s not saying a lot.  He’s a decent backup, which is all he should be.  Unfortunately, in 2010 he was frequently the best option to start that the Mariners had. Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under Mariners

Tagged as , , , ,

by | October 29, 2010 · 11:14 am

MLB Poll

2 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized

by | October 26, 2010 · 9:24 pm

A Very Quick UW Basketball Post

The UW basketball team started practice about a week ago, so I’ll throw this out there in case anyone wants to discuss the team.  They’re favorites to win the Pac-10, which looks to be nearly as weak as it was last year.  Some quick thoughts and things to watch.

  • The team is very deep overall, but not in the frontcourt.  Tyreese Breshers had to retire for medical reasons just before practice started, leaving MBA, Darnell Gant, and Aziz N’Diaye as the only bigs.  Given Romar’s style of play, they can work around this, but one more body would be very nice.  Freshman Desmond Simmons is about Darnell Gant’s size and does all the dirty work, but he’s more of a wing and is recovering from an injury.
  • Speaking of Aziz, he sounds like he could be a difference maker.  Quick history: an incoming sophomore from a junior college, he lost all of last season to surgery.  Good news: he’s 7′ 260 lb and ran the fastest mile on the team.  Most thought he’d get limited time this year while he recovered and developed, and that might still be the case, but Romar singled him out as playing well in a recent scrimmage.  If he adjusts quickly, he could have a huge role as a defensive stopper and rebounder.
  • Venoy Overton will miss most of the preseason with an injury.  Hopefully the extra practice time will give Abdul Gaddy a chance to get rolling out of the gate.  Gaddy playing up to his potential could make this team tough to beat.
  • I don’t have any inside access to the team or anything, but now that Isaiah Thomas is the top Dawg, I’m betting we don’t see the same chemistry issues that dogged the Huskies (no pun intended) the first half of last season.  Something never quite fit last year, and I still think it had to do with Quincy Pondexter’s personality not meshing with the rest of the team.  I could be crazy, and I’d sure like to have Quincy’s scoring back, but I’m betting this team finds its identity a lot quicker than last year’s did.
  • Off the court, UW got a huge recruiting commitment from Tony Wroten.  A big Seattle point guard, Wroten was talked of as the top recruit in the country at times.  Injuries and maturity issues have quieted those discussions the last couple of years, but he still has a world of potential.  In the past, he seemed like a lock to leave the state after high school, so the commitment is even sweeter.  I’ve seen some Gary Payton comparisons, which seem to fit from the little I know.  The Huskies currently have a good but somewhat under-the-radar class.  They’re in on two of the top big men on the West Coast, Angelo Chol and Norvel Pelle.  Getting either of them would be huge and make it a very complete class.  Signing day for the fall is coming up, and we’ll do a full breakdown as it gets closer.

More to come as the season gets closer.  If there’s anything you’d like to hear about, leave it in the comments and we’ll see what we can do!

-Matthew

3 Comments

Filed under Huskies Basketball

Tagged as , , , , , , , , ,