signs of life

[TTown]

nice little road trip. took 3/4 from kansas city, and 2/3 in tampa. offense didn't do too much against the rays, but vargas and beavan were spectacular.

back to safeco now. 3 with the yanks, 4 with kansas city, 3 with toronto.

[Bulltalk]

There is a strange back-from-the-edge-of-the-cliff resiliency with this young team. I have to give them that. It's almost always on the road that they start getting back on their feet again. What a drag that they can't just hit the effing ball at home. I'm not talking hitting deep, just driving the ball. I thought being at home, comfortable, not traveling, used to your own park, a friendly crowd, etc... was supposed to mean something. Apparently not.

[Sweezo]

Speaking of signs of life...there definitely are some since the Ichiro trade/Smoak demotion. Jaso, Carp, Saunders, Wells, Montero...we have several hitters I don't mind watching bat right now. Ackley and Ryan are also showing a bit.

Are things finally starting to come together a little bit?

[TTown]

sure hope so. felix, vargas, and beavan have been dialed in lately, too. if only we could play the royals 162 times a year...

[TTown]

according to the fine people at root, that was our first 4-game sweep of kansas city... ever.

10-6 since the all star break, and we've climbed all the way back to 47-57. we aren't going to climb any standings given that 3 of the top 4 teams in the al all reside in the west, but it'd be nice to build a little momentum going into 2013 by making a spirited push for .500, or close to, in the final two months.

[Bulltalk]

M's the hottest team in the AL now winning 6 in a row, and 8 out of their last 10.

I'm hoping to see some real life in the bats of Montero, Ackley, Saunders, and Seager over the last few months. I'd especially like to see Montero begin to take flight as a real middle-of-the-lineup threat before the season ends.

Zunino has been tearing things up in Everett. It looks like he will be a solid AA player/catcher next season for us, possibly getting some time in the big leagues later next season if he does well there. I really like that pick. I still see Montero as a DH/1Bman in the future. I have very little faith in Smoak now, and if he doesn't soon get on track with the bat, the team might well start moving away from him next year.

It's a real question mark as to how the infield is eventually going to solidify for us. I have little idea who will playing any infield position by the start of the 2014 season as it stands now.

It's looking more like Hultzen will not be called up this season. I wonder if he'll make the team when the new season begins next year, or if he'll start out in AAA till, say, June when we can protect another year of his being under our control?

Peg is history, if you didn''t feel that way already. Ackley in the OF in the future? Seager at 3rd or 2nd base? Franklin at SS or 2nd base? Guti history? Saunders our CF?

Still so many questions rather than answers.

[TTown]

and we just swept toronto.

this team has gone from unwatchable pre-all star break to a downright treat pretty darn quick. it's not even going yard every other inning like the yanks or rangers, either; we're just picking up base hits with men in scoring position, something we just couldn't do for the longest time in april/may/june. one run here, one run there. they add up!

[Sweezo]

M's the hottest team in the AL now winning 6 in a row, and 8 out of their last 10.

They did it again tonight. Beavan's still struggling with home runs, but he's been missing more bats since he was last called up. Not a budding star by any means but he's been serviceable.

I'm hoping to see some real life in the bats of Montero, Ackley, Saunders, and Seager over the last few months. I'd especially like to see Montero begin to take flight as a real middle-of-the-lineup threat before the season ends.

Specifically, I'd like to see Montero do more against right handed pitching. He's been killing left-handers but hasn't had much success with the RHP.

The other three have shown some signs of being able to hit a little at home recently, which is huge since Saunders and Seager have been tearing things up on the road.

I'm excited to see what Thames can do. That HR tonight was no joke...he hit a breaking ball to center field. In Safeco.

Zunino has been tearing things up in Everett. It looks like he will be a solid AA player/catcher next season for us, possibly getting some time in the big leagues later next season if he does well there. I really like that pick. I still see Montero as a DH/1Bman in the future. I have very little faith in Smoak now, and if he doesn't soon get on track with the bat, the team might well start moving away from him next year.

You know that C/DH rotation thing we're doing with Jaso/Montero/Olivo. Boy, think how good that could look with Zunino replacing Olivo next year.

It's a real question mark as to how the infield is eventually going to solidify for us. I have little idea who will playing any infield position by the start of the 2014 season as it stands now.

It's looking more like Hultzen will not be called up this season. I wonder if he'll make the team when the new season begins next year, or if he'll start out in AAA till, say, June when we can protect another year of his being under our control?

Jack Z said as much on the radio. Sounds like he'll get a shot to win a job in the rotation next spring.

Speaking of the rotation...what is that thing going to look like? How quickly can the big 3 make the trip up? Do Millwood/Vargas stick around? Is Iwakuma's 13 K performance a sign that he's starting to get comfortable? Can Noesi figure out what the hell he is doing?

Think of how good things could look at this point next year w/ Felix/Paxton/Vargas/Hultzen/Walker. And a pen with Capps/Wilhelmson/Pryor/Furbush/Luetge/Kelley.

Peg is history, if you didn''t feel that way already.

He should be. I don't see how his skill set will ever translate into a MLB regular. But he'll make a ton of money in Japan one day.

Ackley in the OF in the future? Seager at 3rd or 2nd base? Franklin at SS or 2nd base? Guti history? Saunders our CF?

Ackley's fairly good at 2B in terms of defense. If he doesn't start hitting, I don't know who should sit in the OF to make room for him.

Seager looks good defensively at 3B, too.

Franklin? When he's ready he should get a shot. But Ryan's such a good player.

His offense was horrible early, but he hit .288/.325/.384 in July. His defense is just outstanding; that play tonight where Carp did the splits is the type of play I don't think anyone else in the league makes. He's a 2.0 WAR player on the year despite a .205 BA. I don't know that another player in the league can make that kind of claim. I often fall prey to finding myself frustrated by his offense, but his overall skill set is good enough that I think he has a place on this team for a couple years.

I don't know what to do with Guti. He looked very good when he was healthy, showing power that wast there last season, n't then he went right back to the DL. It's easy to fall into the trap of calling a player injury prone, but Jesus--he got drilled in the temple by an errant throw. There was nothing he could do to avoid it, and I am not shocked he's still struggling with headaches. He's still a very valuable player IMO, but the team will have to decide what, exactly, they want their OF to look like. A prime defensive OF is something a lot of clubs would like to have...I want him to have a shot in spring training to grab a starting gig as he's the best defensive OF in baseball with the potential to hit 20 HR with a decent average.

[BayAreaMadSkill]

I hate making detailed posts from my phone, so all I will say is that I havent been this excited about watching Mariners games in about a decade. No joke. I made ZERO plans tonight and made sure I was sitting on mh couch with a beer in hand by first pitch. I love it. Haven't had that feeling in a while.

[TTown]

Franklin? When he's ready he should get a shot. But Ryan's such a good player.

His offense was horrible early, but he hit .288/.325/.384 in July. His defense is just outstanding; that play tonight where Carp did the splits is the type of play I don't think anyone else in the league makes. He's a 2.0 WAR player on the year despite a .205 BA. I don't know that another player in the league can make that kind of claim. I often fall prey to finding myself frustrated by his offense, but his overall skill set is good enough that I think he has a place on this team for a couple years.

i'm going to be pretty pissed when ryan loses out on the golden glove to jeter this year. agreed on all counts.

[Bulltalk]

Felix beats the Yanks 1-0. Awesome 2 hit performance. He's now in the Cy Young hunt, though Jared Weaver will have to have some bad outings, and Felix will have to continue to be dominant through the rest of the season, get to 16 wins or so.

I know we could get a lot for Felix in a trade. But he's just becoming a Seattle sports icon by performance along the lines of Griffey, Gary Payton, Steve Largent, Lenny Wilkens, etc... It's funny, however, that he isn't a bigger star than he is in this town. I guess there are a few different reasons for this. But such reasons are unsatisfactory to me. This guy is about elite of a star as there is in the league. If Felix had been pitching for the Red Sox or the Yankees, for instance, he would surely be a much bigger national star than he is now.

We're so fortunate to have this guy in our sports community here in Seattle.

[Sweezo]

I think it's simply tougher for a starting pitcher to become 'the' star. As good as Felix is, ultimately he only makes an appearance every fifth game.

i'm going to be pretty pissed when ryan loses out on the golden glove to jeter this year. agreed on all counts.

Jeter's got a -14.1 UZR this season. Ryan's at 15.2, far and away the best of any player in the league regardless of the position. We've seen enough of the Jeter ranging slowly to his right in the hole and doing a jai alai style throw highlight, haven't we? Ryan makes highlight play after highlight play, each one unique in its own right,

I have to think the voter's will end the shame this year, but then again Jeter's UZR numbers are always bad. But this year they are particularly bad.

Jeter's a hell of a player...at the plate. And perhaps in the clubhouse. But defensively he's the worst player at his position at this point in his career. And I have faith that this will be the year the voters acknowledge that fact.

[TTown]

hit a bad stretch, then took 2/3 from anaheim. montero is on a roll.

[BayAreaMadSkill]

Eric Wedge showed why he is such a God awful manager in that second game against the Rays. Runner on 3rd with one out, and a righty in the game, and you leave in Olivo to hit? With Kasie on the bench? Wow. I was shocked.

[Bulltalk]

We did it! We're 30-30 at home now. I didn't think such a thing possible a month or two ago.

[Sweezo]

We did it! We're 30-30 at home now. I didn't think such a thing possible a month or two ago.

And they're almost at an even run differential. And they're creeping up on the Angels. And they're inching closer to .500.

This team is finally--FINALLY--fun to watch again. Saunders and Thames are just killing the ball right now. The starting pitching is on a role. The bullpen is nearly unhittable. They're putting an entertaining product on the field right now.

[Bulltalk]

Another win, and Felix takes the mound tomorrow. We could be only 4 games back of .500 by this time tomorrow night. I was a little disappointed in Seager's and Saunders' slide this summer from the higher numbers they put up earlier on. Saunders has certainly come around of late. That's good. I hope guys like Ackley and Seager can really end the season strong. That Montero does goes without saying. We need this guy to become a middle-of-the-order stud.

[Bulltalk]

Felix rules the roost again. 1 earned run allowed in 7.2 innings pitched lowering his ERA to 2.54 and bringing his won/loss record to 12-5. He's right there in the Cy Young hunt.

M's now 32-30 at home, and 60-64 for the season with this now seven game winning streak. Nice to see Montero step up and blast that 3 run homer in the 7th.

I think the M's have something significant to play for as a team besides the playoffs, a winning record for the year. I would have bet no effing way in hell a few months ago. If they finish with a winning record, they are only going to finish out of the new 5 team playoff format by small handful of victories over defeats. That would be psychologically significant for this young team. They would really see the playoffs as a distinct possibility on the near term horizon, rather than some hazy mirage in a more distant future.

It might also get this ownership to do something about bringing in another bat this winter. I'd be open to moving a few prospects, perhaps another player on the present roster for such a hitter. I'd be open to, say, trading a Paxton and a Franklin and a Smoak, or anyone not named Hultzen, Walker, or Zunino from below for a real and consistent middle of the lineup hitter, an outfielder perhaps. I don't know. You've got to give up something to get something. I'm not sure if there's much out there in the way of FAcy for us, but I'll have to take a closer look.

But such considerations are for another day. Digging what's going on now. Excited about Hultzen, Walker, Zunino especially down on the farm.

[TTown]

yep. as young as we are, not starting out these kid's careers without another 61-101 suckfest would be nice. it'd be nice to show 'em (and the fans) that we may not go on wild free agent spending sprees like the angels, but we can certainly finish ahead of them in the standings.

[Sweezo]

I went to the game tonight...and it was awesome! The place was packed, loud, and yellow. I've never seen an environment like that at SafeCo before and I hope this is a sign of things to come.

Boy, things just feel different right now, don't they? With Ichiro gone I feel like Felix has become the leader in the clubhouse. It feels like it's his team now.

Role players are taking on bigger roles and there's a new hero every night. Trayvon Robinson's offense aspires to be a work in progress, but he's making a Gold Glove caliber play in left field every night with seemingly no regard for his own personal safety.

Then you've got Jaso and Thames trading smiles and shaving cream pies for the camera after walking the team off. And Montero not only showing he can hit LHP and RHP, but that he can do so with power. That home run he hit tonight? I can certainly recall a couple home runs that have been hit at SafeCo that everyone knew was gone as soon as the ball hit the bat, but never from a Mariner player. Hearing that sounds and seeing the sheer velocity of that ball, and then looking at the LF just turn around and put his head down...what a feeling. So often we see a pop fly lifted to the OF and watch it slowly die as it hits the warning track, but not tonight.

It might also get this ownership to do something about bringing in another bat this winter. I'd be open to moving a few prospects, perhaps another player on the present roster for such a hitter. I'd be open to, say, trading a Paxton and a Franklin and a Smoak, or anyone not named Hultzen, Walker, or Zunino from below for a real and consistent middle of the lineup hitter, an outfielder perhaps. I don't know. You've got to give up something to get something. I'm not sure if there's much out there in the way of FAcy for us, but I'll have to take a closer look.

The free agency/trade question has me absolutely flummoxed at the moment. I thought spending a bunch of money to fill holes in the outfield would be a good idea, but what do we have on our hands right now? Despite the ups and downs I like what I have seen out of Saunders this season. I like what Guti brings when he's healthy and would like to see him finish the season strong now that his headaches are under control. And Thames? Small sample size alert, but his power plays well in SafeCo. And I love his attitude...he's a fun guy to watch.

First base seems like the glaring hole, and yet I don't know that there's much there in free agency. Hafner/Huff/Laroche/C. Lee/Loney/Wigginton? How underwhelming. Would we look at throwing a bunch of money at Hamilton and moving Thames to 1B? Could we live with Napoli's low batting average since he has power and still gets on base a ton? Would Boston perhaps entertain trading Adrian Gonzalez for two of the best pitching prospects in baseball?

IBut such considerations are for another day. Digging what's going on now. Excited about Hultzen, Walker, Zunino especially down on the farm.

Here's some things I would like to see happen heading into next season:

[1] Give Walker/Paxton/Hultzen a legitimate chance to win a roster spot.

[2] Re-sign Iwakuma. I believe he's proven his worth since earning a rotation spot, and a rotation spearheaded with Felix/Vargas/Iwakuma with the youngsters competing for the 4/5 spots in the rotation could be dynamite.

[3] Keep the bullpen together.

[4] Give Zunino a shot in spring training as well. It would be unprecedented for a catcher to advance through the ranks roughly 2 years before thought he would be ready, but it does not sound like he's being challenged since being promoted to AA. Maybe you give him the role Olivo has this year and let him ease his way into being a regular given how demanding catching can be.