U.S.S. Mariner

RHP Kirk Saarloos vs. LHP Jamie Moyer, 7:05pm, FSN & KOMO.
Well, it’s almost over. Tonight begins the final series of the year, as the M’s and A’s play out the string with three meaningless games. Why watch? Other than King Felix going on Sunday, Ichiro! needs just two more hits to reach 200 for the [...]

This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends…
–T.S. Eliot, 1925
Vital Signs
Wins: 68. Losses: 91. Games out of first place: 24.
The Angels clinch the division title for the second consecutive year, and the AL West repeats its same finish as 2004. And yes, that’s the [...]

I’ve seen three Yankee hats so far in Australia. As you can imagine, that’s amazingly cool to not constantly be needled by the brand of a hated rival franchise. The three:
1. Brisbane, guy carrying a pizza away from “NY Slice” pizza restaurant, suspected delivery man.
2. Port Douglas, German tourist.
3. Uluru (Ayer’s Rock), Spanish tourist.
The Yankee [...]

Good news folks, it’s Ryan Franklin’s last ever appearance as a Seattle Mariner.
Adios, cowboy.

I’ve got a guest post today at Rich Lederer and Bryan Smith’s fine Baseball Analysts site. It’s about why I love baseball, and why I keep doing this.
It kind of follows in the footsteps of Dave’s post from a few weeks back where he took a trip down nostalgia lane and wrote: “‘Why do [...]

Joel Pineiro vs Chris Young.
1. Ichiro, RF
2. Betancourt, SS
3. Ibanez, DH
4. Sexson, 1B
5. Beltre, 3B
6. Dobbs, LF - yuck
7. Lopez, 2B
8. Choo, CF
9. Rivera, C
Half the line-up was in Tacoma in July.

Passed on with minimal comment: Miguel Cabrera is the latest example of a tumultuous Marlins clubhouse.
Those of you around for the game thread last night may recall that Dave considers Cabrera one of three players he would trade King Felix for. Knowing how Dave feels about Felix, that says a lot. No reasonable person would [...]

RHP Kameron Loe vs. RHP Felix Hernandez, 7:05pm, FSN & KOMO.
Wherein, King Felix enacts his revenge upon the hated Rangers of Texas for their refusal to kneel before his throne ten days ago. Justice will be swift, but painful.
Loe, who stands a healthy 6-8, made his major league debut one year ago yesterday. Ah, good, [...]

All three local dailies check in with a story about the M’s convening meetings, starting today, to plan their offseason. The difference in quality between those stories is astonishing.
Bob Finnigan launches the Times six-part season retrospective with a piece on the outfield. Because we’re trying to be nice to Finnigan, I’ll [...]

Investigative reporting isn’t dead, not even on this Mariner off-day. You suspect the worst of the Yankees, and we’re here to verify those suspicions.
Forget steroids, Bud, and eat your heart out, White Sox: the scandal of the year is neither Texas’ sign-stealing system nor Rafael Palmeiro’s favorite breakfast food. It’s the Yankees, with the help [...]