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

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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 →

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by | October 29, 2010 · 11:14 am

MLB Poll

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by | October 28, 2010 · 10:55 am

Thank You Freddie Garcia!!!!!!

There is something very unique about being a Seattle sports fan. For me, the best way I can describe it, is that even in the rare moments of greatness, I’m always waiting for the other shoe to drop. It’s like finding a $20 bill on the sidewalk, and after picking it up, you’re just waiting to get jumped. I guess that’s just how it is when you’ve yet to see your team hoist a championship. I’m fairly certain my local teams have lowered my life expectancy. And so, I’d like to offer a glass 1/2 full thought, which I for one could use, especially following an evening of flipping between the painful World Series (Lee vs. Lincecum) and the torture chamber that was the NBA opener for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

So, ever wonder how the M’s landed Felix Hernandez? Well here’s the jist, thanks to the always reliable Wikipedia-

Felix Hernandez was first spotted by Luis Fuenmayor, a part-time Mariners scout who saw him pitching at age 14 in a tournament near Maracaibo, Venezuela. Fuenmayor recommended Hernández to fellow scouts Pedro Avila and Emilio Carrasquel, who were impressed with the youngster who could already throw 94 mph. The Mariners continued to follow Hernández for over a year, but baseball rules prohibit teams from signing players to contracts until after they have turned 16.

After graduating from high school, Hernández finally agreed to his first professional contract. Mariners director of international operations Bob Engle signed Hernández as a nondrafted free agent on July 4, 2002. Hernández received a large signing bonus of $710,000, although he said the Mariners were not the highest bidder. Other teams trying to sign him included the New York Yankees, the Atlanta Braves, and the Houston Astros, with the Braves reportedly offering the most money.

One reason Hernández chose the Mariners is because his idol, fellow Venezuela pitcher Freddy García, was pitching for the team at the time.

Much has been made of the Mariners drafting Brandon Morrow in 2006, rather than picking the hometown boy, Tim Lincecum. A lot of fans count to this instance as another example of the curse of Seattle sports. I agree that watching Lincecum pitch stings a little, but keep in mind, 9 teams passed on him that in the 2006 draft, Seattle of course was one of the teams. But how do the Orioles feel picking Bill Rowell just before Lincecum? Or how about the Rockies selecting Greg Reynolds in front of Evan Longoria!

Actually, I find the 2005 draft much more painful as a Mariners fan. Seattle took Jeff Clement with the 3rd pick overall, and the next 4 picks were Ryan Zimmerman, Ryan Braun, Ricky Romero, Troy Tulowitzki. Wow! But hey, that’s baseball. It’s easy to remember these instances, and forget how we came to have studs like King Felix and Ichiro. Without having Freddie Garcia on our roster, it is very possible that Felix would have taken higher money and landed in New York, Houston, or Atlanta. So maybe we do catch some breaks! And that, is my glass 1/2 full thought today.

-Dan

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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

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by | October 26, 2010 · 3:26 pm

UW-UA Post-game Thought

I never got to the Husky predictions on Saturday.  I hope you can trust me in saying that everyone picked Arizona except for Joe.  Sorry, Joe.

This game isn’t worth diving into.  The Huskies were manhandled on both sides of the ball.  There was no push by either line.  There was secondary to speak of.  And the offense was inconsistent, aside from Chris Polk and Jesse Callier.

But my “game thought” is something I will address.  That thought is, how can we, as sports fan tell when a game is over?  I bring this up because this Husky game was clearly over before the clocks hit 0:00 in the 4th quarter.  If you watch sports enough, you can earn this gift of knowing when a game is over.

Take the Mariners home opener this year, for example.  Oakland had scored 4 runs in the 6th inning to take a 4-0 lead.  There was tons of time left in the game but that game was over after they had scored.  This was before knowing that the Mariner offense was historically bad.  The environment was dead.  There was no excitement.  Everyone knew the game was over (except for kids under the age of 12 and adults who watch baseball once a year).

The moment you know the game is over can be devastating, it’s an “oh crap!” moment where you suddenly realize something bad has happened.  But, those moments can pass quickly.  Once you understand the game’s over, without it being completely over, you’re free to enjoy the little things in the game.  You can laugh at the unintelligent conversation going on next to you.  You can focus on certain players instead of the entire game.  If nothing less, it softens the blow of your favorite team losing suddenly.

The “Oh crap!” moment happened to me early in the Arizona game.  In fact, it was when the game was tied.  The Dawgs had taken an early lead but then Arizona drove down and scored immediately.  On that drive, it was easy to see our team was over-matched on this certain night.  The hope after that was the offense could keep up, but they were shut down the next drive and the game was basically over.  It was easy to tell it just wasn’t the Huskies night.  Sure, the Huskies would get within 3 of the Wildcats at 17-14 but there was never any chance of the defense stopping them.

From that point on the pain of the loss was diminished.  I didn’t really enjoy any of the little things but the loss was inevitable and I couldn’t stop it.  I could enjoy the rest of my Saturday night instead of being miserable after the game.  I could watch Braveheart and enjoy being with my family.

Don’t get me wrong.  I’m mad that the Huskies are so inconsistent.  I’m mad that they didn’t play anywhere close to their potential on Saturday.  And I’m mad that a bowl game is looking tougher and tougher to get to.  But, my heart and soul didn’t have to be wrapped around the game once I knew it was over and for that I’m thankful.

Andrew

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by | October 26, 2010 · 11:57 am

Your 2011 Mariners- Shortstop

Shortstop is currently in the worst shape of any position on the Mariners roster, outside of maybe catcher.  There’s a bright star in the minors, but the next couple of seasons are going to require some creativity if Jack Zduriencik wants to improve the position.

Shortstop

On the Roster

Jack Wilson– Wilson brother #1 will receive $5 mil. in the last year of his contract.  I don’t even know what else to write.  I can’t see any way they could trade him at all, much less get any salary relief or anything good in return.  He can’t stay healthy, and if he is on the field, he can’t hit.  He’s still a slick fielder, if not quite at his previous level.  The Mariners hope has to be that he’ll revisit the retirement thoughts he had briefly this season, but that’s pretty doubtful as well.  Despite all that, I’d say the odds are 50-50 that he’s the opening day shortstop.

Josh Wilson- This is so depressing.  Wilson #2 is pretty much like #1, giving away some defense for durability.  I guess I might prefer Josh to Jack, but does it really matter?  At least he’s cheap.

In the Minors

Nick Franklin– Finally, some hope.  Franklin, a 19-year-old 2009 first rounder, put together a huge season at Low-A Clinton this year to jump into the discussion of the top shortstop prospects in the minors.  Viewed as a switch-hitting baseball rat with a good bat but little power, Franklin proved all that true expect the power.  He started hot and ended with 23 homers and a .485 slugging percentage.  His defense doesn’t sound elite, but it shouldn’t be an issue to stay at the position.  He ended the year at Double-A to help out in the playoffs, and it wouldn’t be surprising if he stayed there in 2011, skipping High-A altogether.  There’s been talk that he’ll be in Seattle at some point next season, but that’s pretty premature.  Not impossible, but I’m not planning on anything before 2012, and even that might be too soon.  He’s entering just his second full season in the pros and has issues to work on with his swing from the right side, but his future is extremely bright.

Carlos Triunfel– Carlos, the perpetual prospect.  I’m not going to rehash his whole story, so here’s the short version: been around forever because he started playing at 17. Looked like a mega-star in the making. Injuries and a lack of production have taken the tarnish off.  Has great contact ability, but can’t take a walk and the power hasn’t come around.  Not likely to stay at shortstop long term.  Still time, as he’s only 20 and lost a whole year to a badly broken leg, but he needs to show big improvement this year or the system’s going to pass him by.

Analysis

Not too be too dramatic, but the situation’s pretty dire.  Ideally, the team would find an average stop-gap they could sign for a decent price who would fill in until Franklin is ready.  Basically, what they tried to do with Jack Wilson.  I thought Hiroyuki Nakajima, a Japanese star, might be that guy, but reports differ on how good he is, if he can play short in America, and whether he’ll even be posted for major league teams.  Otherwise there aren’t a ton of options.  This position needs a massive upgrade, but I just don’t know if it’ll happen.  I wouldn’t be surprised if they go with the Wilsons again for next year until Jack’s contract expires, but I’m sure they’ll look everywhere possible for an upgrade first.  Jack Z., our prayers and hopes are with you.

-Matthew

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by | October 25, 2010 · 3:12 pm

Player A vs. Player B

Player A:
158/265—59.6% completion; 2,033 yards; 14 TD/9 INT; 134.7 QB rating

Player B:
131/232—56.5% completion; 1,614 yards; 14 TD/4 INT; 131.4 QB rating

Surprisingly, player A, the one who has more pass yards, a better rating, and higher completion %, is Jeff Tuel of the 1-7 fightin’, scrappin’, WSU Cougars. Player B is, you guessed it…Jake Locker.

Of course, one stat line does not tell the whole story, and Locker has 200 more rushing yards than Tuel, but it is worth noting that Tuel, who is only a sophomore, is quietly putting up a nice season. Meanwhile, Locker and the Huskies are in the midst of a somewhat disappointing season, at least thus far. At 3-4, a bowl game is still within reach, but it is slipping away. Given the hype for the Huskies and specifically Locker heading into this season, his 5th at Montlake, one might have thought Jake would post some huge numbers. Locker has decent stats, he has taken care of the ball well, and in a couple games he has carried the team. The defense, not Jake Locker, deserves most of the blame this season, however, against Nebraska, Arizona State, and Arizona, he was not even the best quarterback on the field. Injuries aside, his inconsistency is a head scratcher, although that’s been the theme of this team.

It’s just been a weird year for the Huskies, with losses to BYU and Arizona State, but wins against USC and Oregon State. I posted a few weeks ago that Jake Locker’s massive potential will not be reached while at the UW, and unlike a guy like Kellen Moore, his best days are probably yet to come. But for a senior quarterback with an NFL future, a great coach and playcaller, a solid group of receivers, and a running game to compliment, you’d think his numbers could at least out duel Jeff Tuel.

-Dan

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