Tag Archives: Ichiro

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.

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The Rebuilding Process, Year 3

A couple weeks ago I wrote about Years 1 and 2 of the rebuilding process the Mariners are in, orchestrated by Jack Zduriencik. With year 2 nearing completion, let’s look ahead to year 3 of rebuild mode.

Following this 2010 season, the Mariners will likely find themselves less ahead of schedule than what had been anticipated going into this season. The 85 wins in 2009 will be followed up with something like 65-70 wins. The Mariners do not have much money coming off the books, and their best player from 2009, Cliff Lee, is wearing a Texas uniform at the moment. In some ways, things may look bleak for the Mariners after this season. However, looking again at the big picture of rebuilding in 3-4 years, I think the positives still outweigh the negatives because of the strengthened farm system, the lack of bad contracts, and a strong nucleus that are all signed (Ichiro, Felix, Smoak, Guti).

Rewind with me again to November 2008. The Mariners were a mess, kind of like the Seahawks are today, and similar to Husky football after the Willingham era concluded. In each case, our team needed to blow things up and rebuild. This happens in sports, and typically, rebuilding takes 3-4 years. Of course the Yankees can do it in 1 year, and the Royals or Pirates need about 10 years, but for a Seattle team in a good market, 3-4 years is about the norm. This season it appeared the M’s might be able to take advantage of a weakened division and some savvy trades, and take the shortcut from rebuilder to contender in just 12 months. But 2010 has not panned out, and while it looks like the M’s are going to have to start over again once this year ends, the reality is the foundation for rebuilding was laid a year ago, and Seattle is finishing year 2 of a 3-4 year rebuilding process.

In his “Wait ‘Til Next Year” series, Matthew recently broke down each position, and forecasted the roster heading into next season. Certainly a common theme in these posts is the uncertainty at multiple positions, but despite the question marks, the M’s will continue building around a solid group that will surely include Felix, Ichiro, Ackley, Gutierrez, Figgins, Saunders, Smoak, Pineda, Vargas and Fister. Others from the current roster will be back next year, and some will not, and additions will need to be made, either via trade, free agency, or growth in the farm system. Given how difficult it is to predict trades, let’s look at the unrestricted free agent crop for 2011, and specifically, free agents that may be realistic targets for the Mariners, give their needs. Yes, Mariano Rivera, Andy Pettitte, and Derek Jeter may hit free agency, but again, this list only includes realistic targets, at positions the M’s may have an interest.
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Mariners Game Recap – 5/13 – Worst loss so far?

Well, well, well, how did I draw this game recap? I wanted it of course, Felix on the mound against the worst team in the league, this was an air-tight opportunity to see a great pitcher dominate and the Mariners win. Up until the bottom of the 8th, the M’s had it, and then it happened. League has been solid all year, but he blew up. Base hits, walks, home runs, it was a bloodbath. Then the M’s put two guys on in the 9th, Josh Wilson at 2nd base, Ichiro rips a base hit to left field, and Mike Brumley, as he is want to do, sends Wilson. Patterson makes a perfect throw, and Wilson is gunned down to end the game. I don’t blame Brumley for sending Wilson, do you really think Figgins is capable of getting a hit to drive him in? He looked terrible all day going 0-3 with 2 K’s. Here are some of observations:

  • Michael Saunders is coming into his own and establishing himself as a legit option in left field. Dan and I agree that Saunders should in left, Bradley at DH when he comes back. Saunders’ at bat in the 5th was a sight to behold fouling pitch after pitch off before hitting a single to right to score Ichiro.
  • Ichiro is “quietly” batting .348 with 10 stolen bases and a top 15 OBP. He is, yet again, having an all-star season. I wonder if people still want Figgins leading off?
  • Felix had a nice bounce back game dominating Baltimore. That was good to see. I feel Wak should have left him in there into the 8th, but hindsight is 20/20. This is Baltimore, you would expect our bullpen to shut down one of the worst teams in the league.

Overall this game was a heart-breaker. For my money the worst loss of the year. It’s too bad, a lot of good happened. Let’s hope The Fist stops the bleeding and yet again gives the Mariners hitters a chance to win.

-Joe

(Forgot the hero and goat: Hero – Michael Saunders. Goat – Brandon League.)

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A Tale of Two Miserable Weekends…and some ridiculous stats!

I didn’t think things could get more painful than watching the Mariners give up 3 late game homeruns on route to being swept last weekend in Chicago. All 3 games were 1 run losses, and I remember thinking the M’s should have legitimately taken 2 of 3 in that series. Despite the frustration, those losses were a product of a few hiccups, albeit in consecutive games, by our usually solid bullpen. There wasn’t too much analysis required, and while it sucked to have them happen in a row, that’s baseball. We moved on.

This past weekend, however, had many more layers of dreadfulness. To condense this mess, I’ve bulleted 5 events that were pretty unbelievable (not in a good way), and another 5 RIDICULOUS facts that may require reading with a puke bucket by your side…

  1. Sweeney’s double play: When a walk, sac fly, base hit, or really anything past the infield would have won the game, Mike swung at the 1st pitch from Darren O’Day, a slider low and away, and ended the bases loaded threat in the bottom of the 10th on Friday. Although I must say, none of this surprised me.
  2. Byrnes whiffed bunt: This oddity captured the short Eric Byrnes era well. With the bases juiced just one inning after Sweeney failed in the same situation, Wak called on Byrnes to just make contact on a bunt attempt. I liked the call because asking Byrnes to not strike out or pop it up to an infielder is a tall task. Still, he failed…and then struck out for good measure.
  3. Bradley’s blown pop up: Many say Milton just gave up on this play, while some argue the sun got in his eyes. Regardless, this ball needed to be caught, because it allowed 2 runs to score with 2 outs after Felix had fought back from bases loaded and none out.
  4. Aardsma’s blown save: For the 2nd consecutive game following 8 dazzling innings by “Can’t buy a break Fister,” Aardsma surrendered a lead-off walk, then after a stolen base and a base hit, the game was tied, the save was blown, and Fister was given another no decision. I’m scared every time Aardsma enters the game and starts firing fastballs. This past week reminded me why I have this fear, despite his league leading 8 saves.
  5. 2 passed balls in 1 inning by Rob Johnson: Perhaps the previous events are explainable, but this one is not. Andrew touched on “Hips” and his lack of catching in his recap from yesterday’s game, so I won’t ramble. This tweet from Dave Cameron pretty well sums it up-

    “Rob Johnson had as many passed balls in 1 inning yesterday as every non-Mariner AL team has all season.”

What is especially disappointing about all this is that if ANY one of these scenarios hadn’t happened, the M’s would likely have won the game. But it all happened, and as the wheels came off, it was like watching a bad horror film that started off decent, turned frustratingly unrealistic, and ended up humorous. The snowball of unfortunate events that overcame this team could not be stopped, and this team was coming up with new ways to blow games.

And now, grab your bucket… Continue reading

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Mariners Game Recap – 4/30/2010 -Cliff Lee debut

Cliff Lee was masterful

Elation and frustration. Those words describe watching the Mariners play over the course of 12 quick innings. For the first 7 innings, it was elation watching Cliff Lee do exactly what we all hoped he would be. Pinpoint control. A very quick pace on the mound. Working seamlessly with young Adam Moore behind the plate. Baffling Texas batters one after another. The bottom of those innings? I cannot tell you how hard it is to watch professional hitters literally stand and watch as a pitcher throws strikes. The Mariners simply stood and watched as Colby Lewis threw a gem of a game. It was a shame that neither Lee or Lewis got any decision, because they were the stars of the show. Hitters? Not so much. Mangers? Even worse…

Let’s start with the hero of the game, Cliff Lee. It was a joy to watch him pitch. Stats don’t do justice to his night, even though they were outstanding: 7 Innings, 3 hits, 8 K’s, 0 BB’s, 116 pitches, 73 for strikes. He continually pounded the strike zone, kept the Rangers hitters off balance, worked quick (I LOVE that…), interacted positively with Moore behind the plate, and was yucking it up on the bench between innings with the likes of Ryan Rowland-Smith and Felix Hernandez. He seemed to fit right in with the team and seemed to really ENJOY pitching, he seemed to really, truly be happy pitching. I love seeing that from pro athletes. You can tell Cliff Lee is a professional’s professional. Even though the 7 innings Lee pitched went by like a flash, it was a pure baseball joy to watch him pitch. As advertised is an understatement. Well done Cliff, well done!

Ok, on to the co-goats of the night: Mariners hitters and Don Wakamatsu. “Co-goats” you say? Yup. This game had so many goats at the plate and in the dugout it was hard to choose, so I am doing a Good Guys first: a “basically the entire rest of the team goat award”. Harsh? Maybe.

The Mariners as a team left 18 men on base. In the early innings, there were few base runners as the Mariners decided to go with the “stand at the plate and watch” approach. It got so bad I decided to go prepare dinner when the Mariners were at bat, then come back at watch Lee mow down some hitters. I understand Colby Lewis has solid stuff, it was clearly his best start of the year. He was mixing pitches well, throwing strikes, and spotting his breaking balls. Kudos to him. But the Mariners put up no fight whatsoever. On a night where just a few runs wins the game, I was surprised at the lack of urgency at the plate. Hey, guys, you have to score at least one run to win!!

In the later innings, and I mean late, like extra innings, Lewis finally left the game, replaced by Darren Oliver. Oliver was shaky and the Mariners were able to get to him. Griffey led off with a cue-shot grounder to shortstop that was an infield hit because they had the shift one him. Byrnes pinch ran, and Bradley then proceeded to rip a double to left. 2nd and 3rd, no outs. All they need is a fly ball. Kotchman then has one of the worst at bats of the year, completely fooled by Oliver (it was like Kotchman had never seen him before, odd…), constantly hesitant at the plate, finally check swinging and popping out to short. It was painful. Just swing away Casey!!! Swing hard buddy!! Adam Moore was then intentionally walked to get to Jack Wilson. This actually was great because Jack is a hacker, a fly ball artist who would swing for the fences and we’ll get the sac-fly and go home. But wait, Wakamatsu had other ideas. He decided to bring Mike Sweeney, ice cold, off the bench to pinch hit. I didn’t like the move at the time, and I hate it now. Texas brought in submariner O’Day, and Sweeney proceeded to swing at the first pitch for a double play. Fail. Not only on Sweeney, but on Wak. Why pinch hit Wilson? Could he have done any worse?? Wilson may have beat out the DP ball, or better, whacked a fly ball somewhere. Additionally, not having Wilson in the field will cost the Mariners later… I hate the move: goat for Wak, goat for Sweeney.

An inning later, Franky Francisco relieved O’Day. Good news for the M’s! Francisco has struggled all year. Ichiro leads off with a single to left, Figgins then bunts his way on. Ok, here we go I thought, two men on, no outs, heart of the order coming up with speedy Ichiro on 2nd. Smart baseball wins this game. Uh oh! Gutierrez comes to the plate and makes Franky look like Mariano Rivera. Horrid at bat by Guti, strikes out. Lopez was then walked to bring up Byrnes. Here is where it gets weird. As I was watching the at bat, my brother pointed out that third base coach Mike Brumley kept running through the signs for Byrnes, and kept chatting with Ichiro at 3rd. I scoffed and hoped they all just shut up and let Byrnes hit the ball hard somewhere. The Rangers were at DP depth which was great, Byrnes has awesome speed. A ground ball might win the game, a fly ball certainly does. This is easy I say! DOH! Wakamatsu calls of a squeeze play!!! But Byrnes forgets to try and bunt the ball! He just stands there, watches the ball go by, and Ichiro gets tagged out at the plate. Byrnes then proceeds to look horrid, AGAIN, at the plate, striking out. To say this was a cluster of failure is an understatement. I love Don Wakamatsu, but this was a classic case of over management. Just let the guys swing. Yeah, maybe things go sideways anyway, but at some point you have to trust these guys to make a play and win. The situation set itself up nicely for the Mariners, and they out smarted themselves right out of the inning.

Remember Jack Wilson getting pinch hit a couple innings before? Well the top of the 12th came with Matt Tuiasasopo at SS. I love Tui, but he is no Jack Wilson with the glove. To lead off Andrus had an infield single. Then Michael Young chopped a ball over the mound that Tui should have simply ate. Instead he tried to make a play and ended up throwing the ball into the dugout. I am convinced either Wilson makes the play, or eats the ball. If Wilson is in there, the M’s get out of the inning because Texas didn’t even get the ball out of the infield on League, yet they scored 2 runs, largely because of the error on Tui. I am not ripping Tui too bad here, Wak should not have pinch hit Wilson beforehand.

Moore & Lee: Student and Teacher

I have already gone overboard on this recap. Felix is on the mound today, so let’s hope for better things from the plate and get Felix a win. Overall the game was massive highs, and massive lows. The hitting was pathetic, managing not much better, and Cliff Lee was amazing. The call-out of Kotchman at first base was brutal, as was Ron Washington blowing up for no reason and getting tossed. Makes me wonder if he had dinner reservations to get to? It was bizarre.

Goats: Mariners hitters and Don Wakamatsu (see above)

Hero: Cliff Lee (see above)

-Joe

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Game Recap — 4/17/2010

It wasn’t as glamorous as Friday’s 11-3 win, but in many ways last night’s 4-2 win was equally impressive. After all, the M’s were facing Verlander, and our starter, RRS, was facing a tough task against an all right-handed hitting Tigers line-up. Seemed like a recipe for a loss. But Hyphen was up to the task, and except for a hanging curveball to Ordonez and a double to Rayburn in the 7th, that was all the damage.

As for the offense, well they banged 7 hits off Verlander. Seattle made him work especially hard in the 1st and I thought we might work him out of the game early, but Verlander hit his stride and got throught 7 strong innings. Guti went 2-4 again, with 2 RBI. Ichiro came up a homer away from the cycle, and if he was given a decent pitch to hit in his last AB, we might be celebrating his cycle today. We’ll settle for 3-3 and a walk I suppose.

Onto some notes and our hero/goat…

  • Bad call made by the 3rd base umpire in the 1st inning. It appeared Figgins had flyed out in foul territory to Carlos Guillen, which would have been enough to sacrifice Ichiro in, but instead, the ump said Guillen dropped it. On second glance, it was clear that Carlos made the catch, then dropped it on the transfer. Figgins struck out and that play would have been magnified if not for Guti coming up with an RBI base hit the next at bat.
  • Andrew pointed this out, and it is very true. The Tigers left field platoon of Johnny Damon and Carlos Guillen might be the worst defensive platoon ever.
  • The play of the game was the double play that ended the top of the 8th. After walking Inge on a full count slider, (which should have been called strike 3 I might add) runners were on 1st and 2nd, with 1 out. The next batter hit a slow chopper to Lopez who charged, made a nice play to relay to 2nd, and Figgins made the throw falling down to 1st. Kotchman scooped it for the second out, and the threat was over. It was a terrific play and probably the turning point in the game.
  • Hypen was sporting a new 2 seam change-up, which cuts at the end rather than drop like his typical 4 seam change-up. Keep an eye on this going forward, because it could be a nice addition to RRS’ arsenal.
  • Lee Tinsley positioned Bradley very close to foul territory in the 9th inning, when Ramon Santiago was up. Tinsley must have known what he was doing, because Santiago ripped a line drive down the left field line, and 99% of the time that ball is a double. But Bradley caught it with ease thanks to Tinsley’s positioning and advanced scouting.
  • Aardsma looked great tonight. I don’t understand why his fastball, which tops out at 95, is so tough to hit, especially when the batter knows it’s coming. But he places it very well, and it must have some movement that makes it difficult. Still, he worries me, though by now I should probably have more faith in him.
      Hero: Ichiro. It would be easy to give it to Guti for another solid night, but Ichiro flirted with the cycle and that is pretty special. RRS had a good outing as well, despite the no decision.

      Goat: Ken Griffey Jr. I love you Jr, but 0-4 with 2 K’s won’t cut it. Griffey only saw 14 pitches in those AB’s also.

    Today we go for the sweep! Snell is on the mound and if he wants to stay in this rotation, he had better pitch well, unlike his last start.

    -Dan

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    Game Recap – 4/8/2010

    I will make this as short as possible, because frankly I am not sure how many folks actually watched the game (day game), and it was brutal to listen to and follow.

    Doug Fister started the game and only went 4 innings, 96 pitches. That tells the story right there. 56 strikes, 40 balls, not many swings-and-misses. Oakland was able to put the ball in play and force the issue offensively. Now, Oakland has no power, it was a lot of singles and doubles, and running the bases (sounds like what the M’s would like to do…). Davis, Barton and Ellis did all the damage for Oakland…

    The Mariners on the other hand struggled yet again offensively. Brett Anderson took a shutout into the 7th inning. (An aside: If you look at Fister’s and Anderson’s lines for the game, they are also identical, yet Anderson was much more effective. That speaks volumes to how bad the Mariners hitting is right now…) Tuiasosopo played well at 1B, had 2 hits and an RBI. That’s a GREAT day for a Mariner right now. Good for him, I like his bat in the M’s lineup. Hopefully Wak can fit him in more. Gutierrez and Sweeney had the other RBIs. I like what Guti is doing at the plate. Overall though the offense sucks right now at generating runs. Trying to tag Figgins up at 1B to 2B on a fly ball to right really shows the hand Wak is playing, and what he is saying to the team: I know we will struggle to score so Ichiro and Figgins must steal and tag up all the time or we’ll never score. That’s a tough spot to be in. Other teams know this and are very aware of the steals and tag-ups.

    Hero: Matt Tuiasosopo. He had two hits, an RBi and played 1B well. Sounds like a good day. (Jesus Colome is a close second, 3 very solid innings out of the pen…)

    Goat: Doug Fister. Gotta go more than 4 innings. We all know the bullpen will be (is?) over-worked, so Fister only going 4 really sucks.

    There is nothing else to observe from this stinker. (I really want to be optimistic, but this game set me back a bit…)

    –Joe

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    Y2010M! Chone Figgins

    (Y2010M! stands for Your 2010 Mariners! and is a series of posts aiming to touch on every player possibly important to the Mariners’ season.)

    For the better part of a decade, the Angels have dominated the AL West.  They’ve endured major personnel changes, a stream of seemingly terrible contracts, and the confusion of changing the location in their name without changing the location of the team.  They owe this dominance to a lot of great players obtained by both those terrible contracts and a steadily excellent farm system, but equally important is the identity they’ve formed as a franchise.  The common description for the Angels is “annoying”.  They do whatever is necessary to win, which means they win a lot of games they seem to have no business winning.  They usually have a couple of stars and few weak points in the line up, good to excellent pitching, and an undeterrable focus on the small things: base-running, defense, manufacturing runs.  Led by one of the best managers in baseball in Mike Scioscia, they play baseball “the right way”, which means that no matter what adversity a new season brought, they still managed to come out on top.

    No player came to exemplify Angel baseball more than Chone Figgins.  He was always on base, ran like crazy, played everywhere on the diamond; he was in the middle of every rally and big play.  Vlad Guerrero was the big bat Mariner fans feared, Figgins was the one he was hitting in.

    This year, Figgins is a Mariner.

    It’s easy to proclaim Seattle signing Figgins to a four year contract as a changing of the guard in the AL West.  Seattle is building a team along the Angels blueprint, and LA looks weaker than at any point since they started their run of dominance.  With any luck, the Mariners will win the division and the Angels will finally succumb to injuries and age.  We’ll see.  Until the Angels don’t win, they deserve the benefit of the doubt.  It’s possible Figgins loses a step and a tick of bat speed and plays in only 100 games like 2007 and 2008 and the Angels plug the hole and keep winning.

    But putting aside the metaphorical symbolism, Figgins is a huge add for the Mariners.  My uncle, a more casual Mariner fan, asked me about him this weekend, and I told him he might be the biggest offensive addition for any team in the league this year.  The reason: Figgins is always on base.  He led the league in walks (101) and was among the leaders in on-base percentage (.395), which is typically space reserved for guys with a little more power.  The biggest key to scoring more runs?  Having people on base.  Once on the bases, he runs like crazy, with 42 stolen bases last year.  2009 was a definite career year, so a downturn should be expected, but I wouldn’t expect it to be significant.  He’ll bat second behind Ichiro, a decision that has drawn attention and some criticism this spring.  Many argue that the team would score more runs with Chone drawing a walk to get on first and then Ichiro advancing him with a hit, rather than Ichiro hitting his way on and Chone then walking.  The current configuration likely will cost a few runs from instances where Figgins would be on second and an Ichiro single would drive him in, but as Dave Cameron pointed out, Figgins being on first during one of Ichiro’s infield hits would cost Ichiro the hit a lot of time, because it would be easier to get the fielder’s choice on Figgins.  We’ll just say it’s a wash and leave Ichiro to what he does best.

    Hopefully the two of them will run wild whatever order they’re in, and the guys behind them will drive them in with some regularity.  Whether that happens or not, a guy who is constantly on base will be a nice change from the free swinging, low on-base guys the Mariners have had in recent year.  It’s worked for the Angels, so maybe it will work for the Mariners.

    Happy Opening Day!

    -Matthew

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