One of the top receivers in the nation officially committed to be a Dawg tonight! Welcome Kasen! Woof woof!
Andrew
Y2012M!
Last March, Matthew started a series called “Y2010M!” (standing for Your 2010 Mariners). It provided the reader with information on players from the 2010 Mariners. It seemed like a logical thing to do at the time. The Mariners were supposed to be good, and there was more optimism in Seattle than there had been in quite a while. This season didn’t work out though. Frankly, Y2010M’s suck. In fact, you probably don’t want to call them yours. I don’t want to call them mine. While next season will certainly be a little better, it can’t get much worse, it isn’t something that we should be extremely excited about. Playoff chances will be slim and the casual fan probably won’t enjoy watching as the young players progress next season. On the plus side, the Mariners could have about 3 legitimate candidates for Rookie of the Year. Because of that reason, I am led to 2012. The Mayan’s aren’t the only ones predicting big things that year. Unlike the Bavasi years, there is actually hope in the future now. Z has put good prospects in the system and the future looks much brighter than it did when he took over. Yes, I know the future doesn’t make the present any more bearable, but at least there’s some hope. So, lets take a way too early look at your 2012 Mariners.
Starting Rotation
The starting rotation is the place where we know the least about so I’ll start there. Obviously, you have Felix as your ace. I don’t need to say anything about him because he’s awesome and everyone should know it. Then, almost as certain, we have Mr. Pineda. Pineda is a top 3 prospect in the Mariners system and is a top 30 prospect in baseball. He is better than everyone in Seattle’s rotation right now, aside from Felix. No one’s a safe bet, but Pineda is about as close as they come. He is one of those rookie of the year candidates.
After Pineda, it gets a little blurry. There’s Vargas and Fister, who are very solid back of the rotation guys. I think Vargas stands a better chance to still be around in there just because he has better pitches. That’s not to say Fister isn’t capable. He could be a very good 5th starter. That leaves the 2nd, 3rd, and/or 4th spot in the rotation open (assuming Felix is the ace, Pineda is either the 2nd or 3rd starter, Vargas at 4th or 5th, and Fister maybe at the 5th spot). So, who will fill either one or two spots? I wouldn’t be surprised to see an innings eater (like a Kevin Millwood) added via free agency. But, there are several options in the system.
Ryan Rowland-Smith has been much better in Tacoma lately but I wouldn’t count on him. Same goes for Luke French. There’s Mauricio Robles, who has more upside than both of those guys but has a longer way to come. Robles was acquired in the Washburn trade and has the upside of a 3 starter. He’s a short little guy who throws pretty hard and is left-handed. He has high strikeout rates but also has high walk rates. If he can learn to control his stuff, I think he’ll be in the rotation at some point. If not, he may be moved to the bullpen. Nick Hill was once highly thought of but he’s struggled this year. There are also this years draftees but counting on the starters by 2012 isn’t a very good bet.
The 2012 rotation will depend on the emergence of Pineda and the ability to sign or trade for a veteran. If Pineda is as good as we think, the rotation could be quite good.
Who Are These Guys: Jesse Callier
“Who Are These Guys?” is a series the Good Guys are doing on the Husky football freshman class. We’ll be telling you a little more about the guys who we think will play this year in this series.
Jesse Callier is a little different from all the guys that I’ve featured in this series because he came in early for spring football (more on his spring in a second) and therefore has been in the program longer. Callier came to U-Dub by way of California where he led the state in rushing yards. He had 3,010 yards last year. That stat never ceases to amaze me. Another fun stat: Callier ran for 447 yards in one game. In high school he was very durable and got a ridiculous amount of carries over the season. He’s a shorter guy, 5-10, who has added about 15 pounds since spring ball to get up to 205. Obviously he won’t need to be as durable this year but it’s nice to know that he has that in him.
The Huskies are closer but still not back to their rich, powerful running tradition. They have had 2 players rush for over 1,000 yards in the last 3 seasons but it’s hardly been like the days of Napoleon Kaufman and Corey Dillon. More of this has to do with the offensive line than the running backs but it’s not like the running back has been a position of strength in the last decade. But, the times are changing. With the emergence of the underrated Chris Polk, a very capable backup in Johri Fogerson, exciting freshmen in Deontae Cooper and Callier, the running back position appears to have a strong present and a bright future.
When Chris Polk was out in the spring, the backups showed that they are quality depth. Fogerson looked solid but wasn’t talked about a ton because of the great showing by the freshman. Through 2 weeks the Cooper and Callier were neck and neck with each other. One day Coop would have the better day, then Callier would come right back. They were the highlight of the spring but then Callier got hurt and couldn’t participate in the last week of practice. He also missed the spring game so fans didn’t become so familiar with him.
Now, with Cooper out for the season Callier is thrown into the spotlight. In my opinion, Callier will take the backup position with Fogerson being ta 3rd down back. I don’t think the injury to Cooper hurts the Huskies a ton. Cooper will be a really good running back but I think Callier will be just fine in the backup spot. Cooper is a downhill running back, a lot like Polk, while Callier has more of that lightning type style. He makes guys miss and has the breakaway speed. I think he’ll add the lightning to Chris Polk’s thunder and who knows if we’d gotten to see that if Cooper was healthy.
Now, I could be way off. Playing running back as a true freshman is not an easy task. Playing as a true freshman at any position is not an easy task. But having been here for the spring should help Callier and bringing a change of pace to the running game when he spells Polk should help too. Hopefully, he is one of the best backups in the Pac-10 so we don’t have to hear about all the Ducks’ backups all season. 12 more days until gameday!
Andrew
Filed under Huskies Football
Goodbye Lou
If you haven’t heard already, Lou Piniella retired from baseball today. He had planned on stepping down after the season but, because of his mom’s health problems, he retired after the Cubs game today. Being the youngest of the writers here, I’m probably the least qualified to write a post about him but it felt right to write something about it. Maybe another one of the guys will give you a memory or two sometime.
Why does it feel right to write about Lou? It’s not like it’s affecting any of my teams. Well, I think Piniella holds at least a little bit of a spot in most Mariner fans hearts. He was here for the best years our baseball team gave us. No, it wasn’t all because of him that the Mariners went to the playoffs four times in his tenure but he was certainly a large part of it.
Again, I don’t remember a ton about Lou. I was 13 when he left the Mariners and no one can be a very knowledgeable fan at that age. But, if I had to pick one thing that Lou taught me about baseball it would be that baseball is entertainment. It’s an easy concept but one that people simply forget until they see a team, like this years Mariners, that is boring beyond belief. What happens when a baseball game bores you on TV? Most people simply just turn it off. Baseball takes patience because it doesn’t yield as many “Did you see that?!” plays as football or basketball does. There’s a reason fans ‘oooh and awww’ over a pitcher throwing a fastball high and tight to a guy. Rarely does that pitch hit the guy, but it’s sometime the most breathtaking and startling moment in a baseball game. Now, I’m not saying that baseball bores me, it doesn’t, but it’s not exactly fast-paced.
There are a few ways to bring excitement to baseball games: Continue reading
Filed under Mariners
Who Are These Guys: Sean Parker
“Who Are These Guys?” is a series the Good Guys are doing on the Husky football freshman class. We’ll be telling you a little more about the guys who we think will play this year in this series.
Sean Parker was the surprise of the recruiting class. On signing day, Parker chose UW over USC on ESPN. The strong safety was the cherry on top of the recruiting class and may be the most decorated player in the class. Parker has been getting quite a few looks in practice and will certainly play in some capacity this season, although it may be mostly on special teams. Parker could play both safety positions but he’s starting out at strong safety. He’s listed at 5-10, 200 lbs. That is a little bit shorter than some safeties but his weight is right where it needs to be.
After years on ineptitude, the Huskies secondary finally looks to be a strength of the defense. There is a lot of depth at the corner position with Trufant, Richardson, Long, McDowell, and fellow true freshman Greg Ducre. The safety spots also have depth although it’s not completely clear if the talent is great at those positions. The strong safety position is held down by Nate Williams who could turn into an all Pac-10 caliber player. The free safety position was a revolving door last year but it appears to have come down to Will Shamburger and Nate Fellner. Justin Glenn and Greg Walker also add depth at both positions.
With all these guys returning you’d think it’d be hard for a true freshman to see the field but Parker currently sits as Nate Williams backup. Nate Williams is also taking quite a few days off in camp (because of past injuries and the coaches wanting him to stay fresh) so that gives Parker some valuable time with the first team defense. Parker is definitely being groomed to take over once Williams graduates next year.
But, where does that leave our young safety this year? We could see Parker on the field in 3rd down situations and on special teams. He’d been mentioned by Sark as a returner but I haven’t heard anything more on that in about a week. If Williams gets injured (pray that this doesn’t happen), we’ll obviously see Parker quite a bit.
If Sean was at a weaker position I think we could see him start right away but now we’ll see him get eased in. This is a good thing. I look forward to watching Parker roam around the secondary for the next four years. He is mentioned by the coaches in just about every practice report I read. He could be something special.
Andrew
Filed under Huskies Football
Who Are These Guys: Jake Locker
Sorry, you’re on your own on this one. I think he plays quarterback.
-Matthew
Filed under Huskies Football
Should Tui Play More?
After looking as lost as Paul Wulff does on the football field for much of the season, Matt Tuiasosopo has put in the best 2 day stretch the Mariners have seen from a single player all season. He has 7 RBI’s in the last 2 games and 3 extra base hits (one double and two home runs). He made a game-saving diving catch in left field yesterday (more on that later) and is the main reason the Mariners have their current 2 game winning streak. Of course, this leads to the question of him getting more playing time. The M’s blogosphere has seen a good discussion about this topic in the last couple days and I’m not going to pretend like I know more than them, because I don’t. Geoff Baker thinks he should see more playing time. Jeff Sullivan is more on the fence but doesn’t disagree that he should. I think both of them are on the right track.
Throughout the course of the season, Tui has suffered some criticism from the Mariner faithful. Some of that was just criticism. Any unbiased Mariner follower will tell you that Matt is pretty bad in the field. It was a joke when he spent the early part of the season as the Mariners’ backup shortstop. Shortstop is a tough position to play and he should never have been put in that situation because of his lack of range. That’s not the only spot where he’s a bad fielder though, it’s everywhere else. He shouldn’t be allowed to play 2nd base either. That leaves the corner outfield spots, 3rd base and 1st base (he is the emergency catcher and is definitely not a center fielder).
His top position may be the corner outfield. He has an athletic family but his foot speed is not up to par which limits him in the outfield. Still, if Manny can play left field Tui can too. Unfortunately for him, the Mariners are pretty set at those spots. Ichiro is our right fielder, no questions asked. The M’s have Michael Saunders in left field and I think everyone would say he is a better option than Tui. Saunders needs this last month and a half in left to see if he can play there next year. Most scouts would agree that Saunders has a much higher upside than Tui does. His defense is far superior and his bat is even, if not better, than Tui. Saunders should be in the lineup at least 5 times a week for the remainder of the season (assuming he’s healthy).
So what about 3rd base? Well, Jose Lopez is there. Of course, Jose Lopez isn’t that great. There is one big reason why Lopez should be playing over Tui, his trade value. Lopey’s trade value is as low as it can get right now, but what if he hits a little hot streak? Maybe Jack Z could get something back for him in the off-season if he puts up a good last month. I’m as sick of watching Loafie as the next guy but it’s easy to understand why he’s playing. Also, he may be better than Matt (we don’t really know). I’d rather see Tui play over Lopez than Saunders but I don’t think that will be done or necessarily should be done. A spot start there for Tui is a good idea, I think.
That leaves 1st base. Which also leads to the question, “Why is Casey Kotchman still here?” I thought they’d cut him about a month ago but they haven’t. I don’t hate Kotchman and I understand that he’s filling in until Justin Smoak comes back up but I get tired of watching this guy try to hit. And he’s so dang slow. This is the spot where I think Tui should see the majority of his time if he plays. Kotch can’t hit lefties; Tui is right handed. Hey, that seems like a match! I’d be just fine with these two splitting time at first.
In the future, I agree with Sullivan in that Tui looks like he should be a 4th outfielder type. He hasn’t got a chance to prove himself and that’s what the rest of the season should be. Also, we have to keep in mind that it was just two games and it was against Baltimore. Sullivan pointed out that quality of opponent is often overlooked and undervalued in baseball (Jeff knows what he’s talking about).
Hopefully, we see a little more Tui in the next month. It’s amazing what a little confidence can do for a baseball player. Don’t forget that he’s only 24 too. And what’s the worst that could happen with the M’s playing him? They could lose a couple more games? We’re used to that already.
Andrew
Filed under Mariners
Who Are These Guys: Sione Potoa’e
“Who Are These Guys?” is a series the Good Guys are doing on the Husky football freshman class. We’ll be telling you a little more about the guys who we think will play this year in this series.
Sione Potoa’e was one of the biggest names in last years recruiting class. He was also one of the biggest bodies. Usually rated as the second best prospect in Washington (Jake Heaps was first), Potoa’e is big, explosive defensive tackle. This big guy was rated as a four-star by both recruiting services.
If you’ve followed the Huskies over the last couple years, you probably know about the defensive line’s problems. Opponents ran over our team at will most of the time and there wasn’t much of a pass rush to speak of. We did have Teo-Neshiem, but one guy can’t save an entire unit. Willingham didn’t recruit lineman very well. I would argue he didn’t recruit anything very well but that’s for another time. Sione is one of the guys who we hope can turn around the defensive line.
Potoa’e (6-2, 285) does have a few bodies in front of him on the depth chart. Alameda Ta’amu is the best player at this position and has a firm hold on the job. According to Sark, he looks like a new man is apparently playing like one. I sure hope so. Cameron Elisara will most likely be the starter at the other spot. He’s played quite a bit the last two years and should be pretty strong at the other tackle position. Semisi Tokolahi is also in front of Potoa’e. Tokolahi is a true sophomore who played sparingly last year. He lost a ton of weight and has been playing pretty well in camp so far. He’s played some with the first unit.
So where does that leave Sione? At the moment it leaves him on the second unit and the 4th overall tackle (two tackles are on the field at once generally), obviously. But, he could move up pretty quickly. He had one of the best first weeks of camp for any freshman, getting great reports from Sark a couple of times. Why should we be excited about him? Sark said he has the most explosive hands of any defensive lineman he’s seen here. He’s already up to size and doesn’t look much like a freshman right now.
Should he red-shirt? Maybe, but I think he could help this team right away and therefore should not red-shirt. Defensive tackle is a good place to have depth and he adds that to this team. Those big guys get tired, you know?
That’s all for now. Here’s today’s scrimmage report from Condotta. I wish I could have been there but I suppose surfing at the beach is a nice consolation prize.
Andrew
Filed under Huskies Football
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