Game 106, Mariners at Orioles
DMZ · August 1, 2006 at 3:46 pm · Filed Under Game Threads
LHP Jamie Moyer v RHP Rodrigo Lopez. 4:05, FSN. Weather service reports it’s 97 degrees with 45% humidity right now. Ow. You can check out the Excessive Heat Warning.
Great day for a game, if they were here in Seattle.
Nothing really interesting in the M’s lineup.
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and only getting more humid tomorrow… sheesh.
Let’s hope Moyer can keep the ball in the park and doesn’t melt in the heat.
To .500 and beyond!
DRINK PLENTY OF FLUIDS. WEAR LOOSE FITTING LIGHT COLORED CLOTHING
AND A HAT.
check.
CHECK UP ON ELDERLY RELATIVES AND NEIGHBORS. THESE ARE THE PEOPLE
MOST AT RISK.
Grover?
PROVIDE OUTSIDE PETS AND LIVESTOCK WITH PLENTY OF FRESH WATER.
Somebody tell Jim Slaton.
PLAN ANY OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES FOR EARLY IN THE MORNING.
damn.
It’s supposed to hit 103 here in New York, with drenching humidity bringing the apparent temperature closer to 120. More blackouts likely. I can’t imagine enjoying playing — or watching — a game of baseball in this muck.
103 tomorrow, I mean. Just 90s today.
Isn’t that the same shirt Dave was wearing last night?
How do people choose to live on the east coast?
It’s a scorching 82 here in Southern California. They should move the game here and perhaps offer me free tickets for the fine suggestion.
7 – I would have to say poorly, though I can’t say much since I choose to live in the desert.
7 – Some people don’t choose to live out here. We are stuck. Thankfully I move back to the West Coast next year. I was at the game last night and it was miserable hot. It’s even hotter tonight. Yuck.
And I live in a hick-town, so it all evens out. But the humidity, my god, the humidity.
8 consecutive scoreless innings for Rodrigo Lopez against the Mariners
that pitch was a freaking foot outside
Many fine things about the east but summer weather is not usually among them. Meanwhile, this late in the season, in such inhuman conditions, does Moyer’s age/stamina become more of a factor? I gotta believe that the age thing, at least, will be in play after 4-5 innings today.
How bad the heat is: I saw a mirage of Ichiro making an error
DMZ-
Maybe he has extra? Or he got his drycleaning on a rush?
I don’t know which is more shocking, the fact that Ichiro committed an error, or that Fernando Tatis is still in baseball.
Man, Tatis looked really good for a season and a half.
As Gameday is claiming we’re still in warmups, I can only assume that this was a sample error Ichiro committed to show what it would look like if he did commit an error in the game.
I manage the east coast heat by spending my summers in Seattle and/or out of the country. Of course, I won’t be able to keep that up for long, but you have no idea how satisfying it is to read about the horrible heat back in NY while I sit here at 8600 ft in Bogotá, where it’s between 70 and 85 every day, never humid, with just a little bit of rain. It’s like July in Seattle, perfect.
My gameday is working
mariner defense is melting in the heat
Waxing nostalgic for the days when Jamie used to beat Baltimore every time.
You don’t need instant reply to call that play correctly. Jeez.
The Mariners are like playing defense in slow motion. First Ichiro, then Lopez, then Beltre.
It’s like watching a team play baseball underwater.
this is absolutely ridicolous… can the Mariners atleast act like there in a division race?
14 – You know, I can’t remember how the hell I survived summers while growing up in Philly, and right now, I’m sure Jamie Moyer’s wondering the same exact thing… well, assuming he can remember that far back.
The Orioles, on the other hand, are apparently accustomed to the Baltimore mugginess.
Well, according to the thread, its almost halfway under water.
Im actually ok with that inning!!!
If they were acting like they were in a division race, they wouldn’t let Jamie start outside Seattle.
Hopefully Jones doesn’t get lit up tonight for his 21st. He’ll be paying tomorrow in the heat.
Only a 13 pitch inning from Moyer, though. That’s pretty good.
Of course, Lopez only threw 8 pitches.
I wonder if Jones is ticked that his 21st will be at the Inner Harbor on a Tuesday night.
Listen Mariners, I only get to watch y’all ever so seldom on the TV due to me living in Virginia. And I understand that it’s hot out and maybe y’all aren’t used to it. But if you wouldn’t mind playing some snappy defense for the rest of the game, and maybe even a little offense, I would greatly appreciate it.
Oh, right, it’s his birthday! I hope he knows the rule about how you have to hit a home run on your birthday (unless you suck, like Carl Everett).
Can Betancourt maintain his high batting average? Is that a real skill? Will he have to draw a few walks at some point, or is he really a guy that can hit balls out of the strike zone?
Gameday is okay now. I must say, I do tend to cling to the familiar, but I really prefer the MLB Gameday (old-fashioned) interface to the bells-n-whistles-y ESPN Gamecast.
Do all those bells and whistles finally include pitch counts on ESPN Gamecast?
Rodrigo Freakin’ Lopez — unbelievable.
I think Ben Broussard and Brian Roberts might be brothers, or at least cousins, from their Gameday pictures.
When I said that Lopez only threw 8 pitches in the first inning, I didn’t mean that as a good thing, guys. More would be better.
Rodrigo Lopez = Blanton East.
You’d think Moyer would be hurt by a park like Camden Yards, but he’s got a 3.20 ERA there in the last three-and-a-half seasons.
Pfft. A week ago it was 108° with the humidity at 60+% in Portland.
a team in the AL West should of traded for Rodrigo Lopez so they could get a shutout everytime he takes the mounda
lopez has given up more hits than any starter in the AL…you sure can’t tell tonight.
Um, I think Adam Jones got “birthday cake” and “birthday K’d” confused there.
Mariners will need at least 1 baserunner to have a shot in this game.
Hey, we’re already two runs better off than last night
pitcher per at-bat for M’s hitters through 3 innings:
1-pitch ABs: 0
2-pitch ABs: 4
3-pitch ABs: 2
4-pitch ABs: 2
5-pitch ABs: 0
6-pitch ABs: 1
Even worse: hits = 0
I have a question, would you guys be happy with the season if we finished at .500 and finished 3rd? I remember the first few months of the season we thought that would be impossable but now there’s a chance we can get to the playoffs.
Did Dave mention the “sweaty hands” factor in his analysis of Meche?
Happy with the improvement, but disappointed because they didn’t make the playoffs. I think as a fan you should want your team to be there at the end, regardless of reasonable expectations.
Is it Nagotte that sweats so much on the mound he was getting muscle cramps a year or two ago? Imagine him pitching on this east coast road trip now!
wow, it feels good to see other teams run into outs like that.
What was he thinking going for second there? That was dumb.
i remember nageotte a couple years ago pitching in milwaukee and wow his hat was just dripping sweat at an incredible rate
Say what you want about Jones as a CF, but the kid has a hell of an arm!
Nice to see the M’s are in Full Fogg Mode today ….
I don’t think whether we reach the postseason should at all affect our evaluation of the team. Since we can’t control what happens in games in which we don’t play, we shouldn’t worry about it.
I had a big argument with some Jays fans before the season about this. They were claiming that it wouldn’t matter if they won 95 games if they still finished third. I think that’s insane.
Imagine Kaz Sasaki in this heat.
So, second time through the lineup…now is when we get to him right?
apparently the Mariners were never given the media notes detailing how poorly Lopez has pitched this season.
note from Corey Brock today: “Reserve catcher Rene Rivera turned 23 on Monday. Adam Jones will turn 21. In other news, Jamie Moyer is still 43.”
that ball was off the plate BEFORE lopez started his swing.
Lopez’s ERA was over 6.50 at the start of this game.
Hee Seop Choi and Jose Cruz Jr. both DFA’d today … any interest in Triple-A contracts, at least?
A hit, a hit!
Whew, a hit!
I’ll take that. Come on now, Raul.
Then that happens…
#59 – I think I’m with your Jays friends on this one. For me, 2002 and 2003 Mariners baseball was brutal to watch simply because you knew they were so close and yet they would lose games they should have won. 2004 and 2005 were “easier” simply because after a few weeks, you knew the team was going to suck and thus you didn’t get your hopes crushed as the end of the season.
I think that’s what some fans hate the most. Investing so much time and energy into a team, hanging their hopes on tiny threads, and then feeling as if they “let you down” by finishing 3rd with 95 wins. If instead they had finished 3rd with 78 wins, you wouldn’t really be that surprised that they didn’t make the playoffs and thus it’s an easier blow to absorb.
Evan, I agree that as a fan I would be pleased with a .500 season given what pre-season expectations are. Playoffs also don’t affect my somewhat objection evaluation of the team would be. However, I do worry about what happens in the game because I am a fan.
39 pitches for Lopez in 4 IP. Way to make him work, guys.
Jim (65), I’d be intersted in Cruz. Is he still a viable CF’er?
So far this game’s been quite similar to yesterday’s. O’s strike early with run(s) in the first, and the M’s don’t get their first hit until the fourth. Hopefully the similarities continue through the last four innings (with the exception of a Mateo appearance, of course).
70.- But at least with a team like that you know that you’re good and that you have a real shot for next year compared to knowing your team is still ‘rebuilding’.
Wow, that was a lousy post. I guess trying to talk with the wife and posting at the same time is a bad idea.
If Clint Nageotte were pitching today, he would have to wear a swimsuit instead of his uniform. The M’s should have a version of the old White Sox uniforms with the shorts for days like today.
How do people choose to live on the east coast?
My excuse is that I was born there. I left after college.
77.- A uniform with shorts would be great. And sleeves could be optional also.
62 – Today’s also Shigetoshi Hasegawa’s 38th birthday…
we were in Jersey, Pensacola, Jersey & Alexandria when I was a kid. When I went back as an adult, I wondered how I survived early childhood.
i think picking up jose cruz would be a good idea… hes a solid 4th OF, maybe even a better option then Adam Jones
For a while, I was thinking that Jones would be much better off back in Tacoma, in which case Cruz could be handy. Now Adam has gotten his feet wet and done OK, I’m not quite as concerned about him.
take a pitch richie!
If we pick up Cruz, can we spin him off for Timlin and some other guy?
#79– A uniform with shorts would be great
obviously, you never saw them…
84.- I don’t think he knows anything except ’swing really, really hard’.
On a hot day, if you work the count, you can get the starter out of the game early. One might tire with a pitch count in the 90’s, and good hitters could wreak havoc on the not so stellar Oriole bullpen.
On the other hand, there’s cold water in the dugout, and standing up there taking swings, and running the bases……
86.- Yeah, maybe you’re right. And can you picture someone who wears their pants really tight in them? Ugh.
Moyer seems to be doing quite well, and we’re only behind by one, but boy, that one seems big.
A single run would really boost morale around here.
jones seems to have better discipline at the plate than most of the other M’s hitters.
i spoke too soon….sigh
Look at Hargrove. For once, he wishes he were as dead as we hyperbolically do.
Ichiro looks miserable.
I’m starting to be thankful I didn’t drive an hour into Baltimore for this one…
“Lopez singles to Lopez”… there are way too many Lopezes in this game.
good eye adrian.
“Lopez beats Lopez to the ball, but fails to tag Lopez”
Updated pitches/AB meter!
1-pitch ABs: 2
2-pitch ABs: 5
3-pitch ABs: 7
4-pitch ABs: 3
5-pitch ABs: 3
6-pitch ABs: 1
7+pitch ABs: 0
hits = 3; more than we had last time against Lopez!
Like I said before. Working the counts, getting base-runners, we’re sure to tire R Lopez by the 9th inning.
you know, just because they’ve provided Moyer with the worst run-support in the American League doesn’t mean they have to keep giving him no run-support … really, a streak is meant to be broken.
101.- Try telling that to Ryan Franklin…
Who has been DFA’d, and is complaining as he leaves.
man, that’s old news … much mocking has already occured
Yeah, the article about that was really funny.
Gameday shows the fly ball from Conine as partially over the wall. What happened there that allowed Tejada to reach second?
Although if Franklin were pitching against us today, it seems like he could pitch a complete game shut-out! 3 hits off only 66 pitches? Come on M’s!
Did Ichiro just rob Conine of a home run? Looks like it on GameDay.
No HR rob took place, it was just a warning track flyball with a relay throw to 2B that was a hair too late.
Man, the Orioles stink. If we could only hit Lopez.
GameDay shows it as over the wall, but still an out. THought I missed something exciting. Guess not! Come on M’s, hits, hits, HITS!
so, apparently they are unable to score runs for Moyer, to get Moyer one win to make him all-time wins leader for the Mariners, unable to get back to .500 and (since June) unable to win 4 in a row.
can anyone hypothesize as to why the Mariners absolutely cannot get it together against Rodrido Lopez?
Gotta to give to Moyer, he’s trying his damndest to pick up this win.
Or anyone with an ERA over 6?
#113: I’m guessing a heat index of 300
msb, I’m pretty sure Moyer became the Ms win leader a year ago.
#116– of course that wouldn’t explain his ‘1-1 with a 2.70 era’ record against the Ms this year…
Uh oh…looks like Moyer’s running out of steam.
Looks like yet another shutout…
#117– he did. wonder what I was thinking of that another win would give him?
“Jamie Moyer marked 10 years as Mariner on Sunday, and ranks first in club history with 319 starts, 145 wins and 2,069-2/3 innings. His 3.96 ERA and .259 average against are second all-time for the franchise. Moyer’s 145 wins for Seattle are first among active American League left-handers and fourth in the majors.”
Knock me over with a feather….another shutout? Good ole Mariners…Seriously are they allergic to scoring runs early in a ball game?
Great — bring in Mateo again. Apparently nobody told Grover that Sean Green has been on the active roster for the last 5 games or so. He could have given Green a soft landing in the 9th last night, but chose to go with Woods.
Mateo got the win yesterday. Shouldn’t we bring him in? Clearly he has a positive affect on our hitters
Back to back extra inning games and Putz is nowhere to be seen, yet we can somehow trot out Mateo every day.
Such a stupid manager.
Why? Why would anyone bring in Mateo here? With runners on second and third? I guess a fly ball out gets us out of the inning, but ugh.
I just get in from a softball game, and what do I see… the best thing ever… Mateo warming with 2 on 2 out in a 2-0 game. Sweet
Maybe if Hargrove keeps using Mateo so much his arm will fall off.
Oh. Dear. God.
Will it be just one or both inherited runners that score?
#127 – How’s your arm, still warm? I’d rather have you in there right now than Mateo.
yup. wouldn’t want that Moyer era to go down, or anything. Wonder just how many inherited runs Julio is up to?
Ah, fly ball – exactly how Grover wrote it up! I bet he’s patting himself on the back right now.
Wow. I guess even a blind squirrel finds an acorn on the dog’s day when in rome.
Wow, he got out of the inning?
Note also that Mora has been having a better season against righties, as has Tejada, but no, better use Mateo than just leave Sherrill in.
Haven’t we seen this so many times this year. Our offense is so difficult to figure out. Either we dominate or we get shut out, no in between. Absolutely frustrating. Yu-Bet and Jonesy will get us going in the 6th.
That’s a dandy little quote by USS Canada from yesterday, and I feel it applies quite well today, except for the 6th inning thing; Betancourt and Jones will have to get us going in the 8th today.
131. Haha I probably throw around where Jamie does, so its worth a shot.
Alright. Mateo, I commend you. Just this once.
Odds that Mateo pitches to Tejada in the 8th?
Aight, be a hero Johjima. I’m about to lose my internet access and I want to see some offense this game.
JOH!
(I think this is the sort of pointless post we’re supposed to avoid making.)
tonight, tonight, let it be Lowe(en) time
Dobby the bench elf appears out of nowhere!
Why is he pinch hitting him here?
Damn…
Are you serious, it seems like every game since that play Reed Johnson made we’ve been getting robbed every game.
Wooohoo, now we get to the bullpen…
Do u think Lopez pitched great? or we just hit like crap today???
#147– it’s the mighty offense & scarifying pitching of the Mariners. It makes opponent defenses play their all-time best, just trying to stay with the Ms.
Wow, being distracted mid post made that last one come out like its from the Department of Redundancy Department.
We know the drill, by now, for how this works. There’s a formula. Jones will not see 8th inning at bats probably for the rest of the season. Dobbs vs. righties, Bloomquist vs. lefties. Right? Unless Rivera started, in which case, who Dobbs or Bloomquist pinch hits for is more up in the air. Now if Snelling could really play CF and stay healthy, and he was the bat against either, I’d be happy with that. How much worse of a CFer would he be than Bloomquist? About the same?
Byrak has an era of 17something. Based on past history that should keep the bats silent.
Good god what a disaster.
It is just unbelievable how subaverage pitchers continue to dominate this lineup!
We got to face Bedard tomorrow. HTF can we keep getting shut down by Rodrigo Lopez. The guy is like Pedro Martinez against the M’s, and crap against everybody else.
How does this happen as much as it does? And why is Mateo in as often as he is?
This now their league leading 12th shutout, right? (Baring a miracle of course.) That’s about 1/10th of their games… no wonder it feels like they never score any runs.
Now that Hargrove doesn’t have Everett to play everyday, he seems to be using Mateo to piss us off. I can’t believe he left him in.
Our scouting for Blanton and Lopez must be stellar based on how well we “adjusted” to them…sigh.
We actually did slightly worse against him today than last time…if that’s possible.
Anyone know if Oakland adjusted their rotation to insure Blanton would pitch against us too?
Oh, I almost forgot. Who was the last starter that we really hit hard?
Once more, though, Mateo did get it done. Credit where it’s due and all that shit. This is still enormously depressing.
Plus, why is Dobbs in center field instead of Bloomquist?
Good thing is we didn’t have to burn Lowe or Putz today. Those 2 should be good for 3 innings tomorrow if King Felix can hold them down. We get a day off on Thursday and Soriano should be ready by Friday. We would have Lowe, Soriano, Putz and Sherril all rested for the weekend showdown against Oakland.
You are joking about cf…gulp…right?
Now that Hargrove doesn’t have Everett to play everyday, he seems to be using Mateo to piss us off. I can’t believe he left him in.
Most likely, not to mention it’s his way of sticking it to the FO. His kid is in Inland Empire and only hitting like .209…
Thought I’d work the conspiracy angle. lol
163. Bloomquist was in CF
Every single time I start thinking they are going to start playing solid baseball they get shut out.
And all it takes is a minor league type talent. ANYONE with a 85 mph fastball who can throw it down the middle can shut the Mariners out on the right day.
This umpire also helped, he probably leads the league in shutouts himself.
Chris Ray gave up a GS last time he got a SV opportunity against the White Sox. Hopefully, we get the bad Chris Ray today.
I dont think we did!!!!!!
12 shutouts, seven of them when Moyer has pitched. That is 7 2-0 losses, 2 1-0 losses, and 1 each with a 5-0, 4-0, and 3-0 score.
If a team without enough power and NO ability to work the count or EVER walk has an off day, it sorta makes it tough to score.
These no power/no patience games are soooo frustrating.
Did we even get one man to third base?
Great. The same thing happens to all three of our batters, strike, strike, pop up.
Argh. Texas is also winning, and I think it’s safe to say that either the A’s or the Angels will win tonight. Fuckin fuck fuck.
165, 167 Gameday showed Dobbs. Glad to know it wasn’t true.
new theory– Hargrove is trying to overwork Mateo to get him out of the bullpen?
Or maybe Mateo is blackmailing the whole front office
A final pitches/AB meter!
1-pitch ABs: 3
2-pitch ABs: 6
3-pitch ABs: 14
4-pitch ABs: 4
5-pitch ABs: 3
6-pitch ABs: 1
7+pitch ABs: 0
total O’s pitches = 94
We just love those 3-pitch at-bats!
We may as well start Mateo instead of Moyer, since the offense doesn’t usually bother to pull their heads out of their backsides when he pitches anyway.
I feel bad for Moyer. Most of the time when he pitches, especially against a nobody, our hitters get passed around like an informant in prison.
Lets be fair, the umpire wanted to get out of there. He was calling anything a strike. Lopez was also pounding the strike zone, it appeared the Mariners were trying to be patient but when you’re constantly in 0-2 counts it’s tough.
maybe Jamie would take a lower salary next season if they promised him run support….
And that’s another theory that I forgot about. When Moyer’s pitching he’s always on the edges of the plate, and so the umpire starts calling that pitch. Unfortunately they call it for the other team as well and with our offense they basically can’t score.
I would think that is BS, but all of these shutouts are strange.
Lopez having given up more hits & more runs than any one in the league … except Seattle.
Sure the ump can be a big factor, but I’m willing to guess that every OTHER team could muster ONE RUN against the likes of Lopez, even when he gets the corners too often.
I agree, but for whatever reason this team has a much better chance of scoring 5 runs against Halladay then scoring 1 against Blanton or Lopez. If I was playing against the Mariners I would promote every minor league pitcher that has command of an 85 mph fastball.
185
You’re right on the money. Its bizarre…but sadly, the truth
1. April 7th: Joe Blanton
2. April 8th: Barry Zito
3. April 22nd: Nate Robertson
4. May 7th: C.C. Sabathia
5. May 10th: Scott Kazmir
6. May 25th: Rodrigo Lopez
7. May 29th: John Rheinecker
8. June 14th: Joe Blanton
9. June 30th: Josh Fogg
10. July 5th: Bartolo Colon
11. July 28th: Jeremy Sowers
12. August 1st: Rodrigo Lopez
Some quality pitchers mixed in with some awful ones.
So are the Mariners just a bunch of pansies?
How can you be a near .500 ball club but lead the league in shut-outs?
It seems that if the Mariners haven’t scored by the sixth (first game in this series the exception) they won’t score at all.
Maybe the Mariners lack heart and can only play good baseball when they are in danger of completely falling out of the AL West race.
I think leading the league in shut-outs and only putting together winning streaks once they are in last place is a tell-tale sign that the players don’t believe in each other.
Hargrove should be fired. I blame him.
Seriously, what kind of psychological sense does this make? A team with no heart that gets behind in a race doesn’t start winning then, they lose more. They give up. Whatever else you can say about the Mariners, they haven’t given up. They don’t lack heart, they lack consistency. They lack a fair amount of discipline and patience. But mostly, they lack overwhelming talent (or experience). They are a .500-type team playing .500-type ball. The Mariners are going to frustrate us sometimes because they’re good enough to hang around this race but they’re not that good, and they’re going to have a lot of bad days. I really don’t think that says a hell of a lot about their character. If it does, well, it says something that they beat good pitchers and that they refuse to fold out of the race. If you criticise them on character grounds for their failures, surely you should give them credit on character grounds for their successes.
I’m saying it’s easy to win when there isn’t as much on the line. The Mariners have enough talent to win, but not enough heart to win when it starts to really matter.
This is of course season to date…hopefully they’ll get some cojones for the stretch run.
189, maybe they haven’t given up on the season, but they give up on games?
It could have something to do with seeing Mateo coming into a game…
If we hit Blanton and Lopez just as well as the rest of the league, we’d probably be in first place. Gives me a headache just thinking about that.
John Rheinecker, he of the Dirty Dozen shutout pitchers, has just been optioned to AAA.
Last in the league in walks. That says it all.
“Dirty Dozen” LOL
That is (unfortunately) a very good title! Yeah, funny how everyone else hits Rheinecker too
Great, as soon as I finally get a chance to use my dad’s MLB TV, they do what they’ve been doing for 3 years: suck horribly against mediocre pitching.
How can you be a near .500 ball club but lead the league in shut-outs?
Because shut outs only count as one loss.
I saw Rodrigo Lopez vs. Moyer in the paper yesterday morning and I got excited at a 11-4 Mariners victory. Not so.
If we can’t hit Lopez, imagine what the white hot Erik Bedard does to us.
12:05 game, perfect for work listening.
If you remember Dave’s comment on Mateo’s changed release point to improve the slider in one of the last game threads, over at Lookout Landing (see sidebar) their Jeff provides some interesting analysis on this, with screen shots etc.
“Nothing really interesting in the M’s lineup.”
You can say that again…
Yes, I understood what you were saying, and it doesn’t make any more sense when you repeat it. When a team starts falling out of the race but hasn’t fallen out of it, there’s more on the line. When you’re in last five games back and the season is starting to slip away, those games are must-wins. That the Mariners keep clawing their way back in the race despite their deficiencies and their manager is evidence that they do have heart. You expect them to sustain runs like a .600 team? They just aren’t. That’s not heart, that’s talent.
I don’t know these guys. You don’t know these guys. We don’t have the faintest idea what kind of “heart” or “character” or “chemistry” is operating on this team. We talk about stuff like that because it’s a natural human tendency to make story out of every sequence of events. When we try to crawl into their minds, we’re just guessing. It seems to me a lot more useful to say, This is a flawed team with a badly flawed manager that is playing better than we thought they would, playing their way into the fringe of a pennant race in August, but that shouldn’t surprise anyone if they are simply not quite good enough to get the job done, no matter how much they want it, no matter how gritty they are, no matter how much heart they have.
#201 – to tack onto your comments, how many times do we hear “Player X (say, Ichiro) can do Y (say, hit a homerun) whenever he wants to”?
In reality, that’s total BS, because if he could, then he should. But he doesn’t because he can’t.
I believe there is such a thing as chemistry – enjoying being around your teammates, having fun at work, whatever. But it tends to lag performance. It occurs naturally in a positive environment and disappears when things turn bad.
This team appears to have positive chemistry as a .500 team because even .500 is over-achieving, hence a positive, for this year at least.
Chemistry isn’t something you can buy. It’s created. The problem is that the coorelation between chemistry and winning isn’t as strong as people think it is. Some really bad teams have great chemistry; some really good teams have had terrible chemistry.
This is a .500 team that’s underachieved and has been poorly managed. But is it a flawed team? Honestly, every team in this league is flawed (e.g. the Yankees’ terrible starting pitching, the A’s schizo offense, the Royals’ upper management). You can’t just look at the M’s and say, “They’re flawed,” because that’s like saying that trees are plants. DUH.
The thing is, if the M’s are still within 5 of first in September 1, they can still win the pennant by winning every September series and sweeping the A’s and Angels once each. That’s a .600 clip, thereinabout. Can this team play .600 ball? Possibly. I think the chances are there. You just need three strong starts out of Moyer/Felix/(Washburn|Meche|Pineiro) and the hitters to hit. But to get there they need to play .500 ball first.
It’s not impossible that the M’s will win the division. It’s unlikely, but the chances of it happening are exponentially greater than they were on August 2, 2004 or August 2, 2005.
“The manager of the home team shall be the sole judge as to whether a game shall be started because of unsuitable weather conditions or the unfit condition of the playing field, except for the second game of a doubleheader.”
Wouldn’t, say, a 115 degree heat index warrent moving a game scheduled for the peak of the heat to perhaps earlier in the day?
If you mean they’ve underachieved their record vs their run differential, sure, a little. But if you mean compared to preseason expectations, I’d say they’ve overachieved: who, apart from Dave, thought it was likely that the Mariners would have a positive run differential at all?
Come on. It’s pretty obvious that they Mariners are more flawed than the Yankees. As you say, DUH.
All I’m saying is that it’s a bit silly to talk about “heart” outside the context of the M’s level of ability. Maybe the Yankees, say, have more heart, but they definitely have more talent, and that’s making more of a difference, I think.