Game 149, Mariners at Athletics
Batista v Haren! 7:05!
Ichiro/Beltre/Ibanez/Guillen/Broussard/Vidro/Johjima/Lopez/Betancourt.
Interestingly, in the “would you swap ‘em” game, the beat-up A’s only really have one guy I’d take (Barton) without a second thought over the M’s version, and then you’re into Ellis v Lopez, Johnson v Vidro (yeah, I guess I take Johnson…)
Hey, while you’re waiting, did you miss today’s other posts, like “Horacio Ramirez, a historical perspective” which shows how Ramirez and the team’s inability to see his lack of value put him in select company that still makes him look bad? Or what about “Horacio Ramirez, a retrospective” featuring a cute and yet depressing graph of his suckiness?
I know, I’m feeling lonely because they only got a couple comments each.
Comments
103 Responses to “Game 149, Mariners at Athletics”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
USSM uses and recommends
Derek – One of my biggest pet peeves of the participants of this blog is that it seems like one post gets abandoned by the next, immediately upon the new posts arrival.
It didn’t help that most people were in bed when your last post was put up, and they awoke to Dave’s monster post. Three very good posts in the last 24 hours, though.
Hey, DMZ, I just saw that Best American Sports Writing 2007 will be available on October 10th. And I’m sure the regulars will remember that your essay on Bugs Bunny, baseball player, is included in this years edition.
Right but you’ve wrote a book and it’s ranked #77,447 in Books on Amazon….
I’d take Mark Ellis over Jose Lopez in a heartbeat. Ellis is another member of Dave’s Criminally Underrated club, a truly great defensive player who can also hit a bit. He’s a 3-4 win player and comparable in value to guys like Johjima and Betancourt.
Sorry, what was there to say? He sucks? I read it, laughed and then cried knowing that Bavasi will make another trade this winter similar to that for the same reasons. Didn’t have anything to add.
awwww. we still love you, Derek.
say, had that Full Sail Session beer yet? somehow I’d missed it before….
Yo, DMZ, I read both those threads but you made such a good case that I didn’t feel like I had anything to add. I think you’re a victim of your own good arguments.
Ramirez fatigue. I think we’re sick of him. We were sick of him when the trade went down but now it’s full-blown bubonic plague.
Yes, I saw and read both posts, along with the Geoff Baker one, and agreed with all of it, but it was just too depressing for me to want to comment. Sorry. Here’s some love.
Whaaaaaaaaat? Ellis is 30, fragile, and I’m shocked you’re that down on Lopez.
Also: yeah, 77k? What’s up with that? Get buying, folks!
I commented before, but who can pass up another opportunity to say buh-bye to a Mariner mistake?
And I bought the book and wrote an Amazon review. Shows how much clout I have.
It was 5k at one point, if I remember correctly. I think you’ve saturated your market and need to write a sequel. Maybe some fiction about a washed-up second baseman whose batting glove starts talking…and get this….tips him off to the pitch type and location….
I’ve bought several more, even after being the stunned and ecstatic lottery-winner of the preview copy
why do I visualize that with the FSN talking microphones?
I read both ’spectives, and enjoyed both. Sorry about the lack of comments.
DMZ, I provided two comments on your first HoRam post, although one of them was rightly deleted when I spelled Chaves name incorrectly.
Here’s an interesting tidbit for tonight. If Batista throws a minimum of 6 innings, a monstrous feat by a non-Felix M’s starter, that would eclipse the combined innings pitched by Ramirez, Weaver, and Wash in their last three starts, all against the juggernaut D-Rays.
Mark Ellis is fragile? In the last four years, he’s had 542, 441, 434, and 553 at-bats, missing about 30 games in two years and playing full seasons in the other two. That’s a pretty liberal definition of fragile.
Ellis is a legitimate league average hitter, as a second baseman, which makes him an asset to start with. Toss in the +15 to +20 defensive value, and you’ve got a guy worth 3-4 wins over a replacement level second baseman right now.
If Jose Lopez turns into a 3-4 win player, I’ll be very happy. Ellis is already there.
There’s no way that I’ve saturated the market. I haven’t even sold a copy to every regular USSM reader, which is disappointing.
Mark Ellis’ spine is made of pre-broken porcelain plates that crackle when he walks! His club option in 08 is for $5m, which, uh…. I thought he’d be out of arb by then. We’re paying Lopez that much to get all the way to 2010.
Ellis missed all of 2004 with a shoulder injury.
You could always make that a rule, which would cut down on the trolling commenters
add me to the list of royal USSM readers by the end of the week. I’m a newbie.
On a side note, very disappointing that the local (Anchorage AK) M’s affiliate chooses Monday Night Football over M’s coverage.
I’ve got another one I’d take in a position-by-position comparison… Haren over Batista.
That should be loyal, not royal.
22- Going out on a limb with that one aren’t you? LOL
RE: Ramirez…
The final word is just that, “FINAL.”
Hey all,
Is it against policy here to offer up seats I can’t use? I mean at face, no markup or profit, etc. They are great seats and I’d just rather give first crack to other big fans, before I move on to unloading them at work to (very) casual fans who I know will spend half the game chatting about where to go for cocktails afterward.
Is it not allowed? Please advise…
Thanks!
I’ve bought a couple copies….one of which was stolen in the Boston airport. If you can’t trust people in Boston, who can you trust?
Also, Geren over McLaren.
speaking of Haren ….
kick him while he’s down!!! Kick him!!!!
If you want to post and offer them, do it, but do it once.
crap. Haren might not be down anymore.
Marrying a princess?
Okay, scratch the by the end of the week. Just ordered it now. Looking forward to it should be a great read.
32 – Either that or signing a contract with Kansas City!
Wow, Ramirez *might* be removed from the rotation.
With kind permission of DMZ in little rectangle 30, here goes:
I have a pair of tickets for the Cleveland doubleheader.
Section 119 / Row 3 (!) / Seats 3,4
Got them for face, offering them for face.
Offering them here before offering them around at work.
Googletalk – fearofspeed
Thanks!
Picth counts and patient hitters. It seems Batista is destined to throw at least twice as many pitches as Haren tonight, until Batista gets yanked.
Umm, awesome.
Mr. DMZ – you only got a couple comments each because Dave’s massive Geoff Baker post quickly drowned those out. I read both and thoroughly enjoyed each one, in all their depressing exactness.
Baek ready to pitch tonight!
Batista needs to get to 62 pitches this inning to maintain his 2X pace over Haren.
OMG OMG OMG they got Barton out.
I have a question — if Ibanez is supposed to be such a great role model and whatever, why is it cool for him to stuff enough chaw in his face to make himself look like a squirrel storing food for winter?
Soooooo… I guess MNF has a good game going…
MNF?
Just for my own personal agony. Anyone watching on TV think Jones would have gotten to that line drive to LF by Cust?
It seems like everytime I tune in to the M’s Sims is saying “Ball gets past Ibanez” again.
Monday Night Football
MNF?
Oh… right. *sigh*
Baek’s been activated. Any guess who gets Ho-Rams next start?
wait wait wait, they got Barton out twice in a row? What the heck is going on (looks at beer suspiciously)
> Baek’s been activated. Any guess who gets Ho-Rams next start?
Willie?
It’s his dream… Mac should let him have an inning. His scrappicity has earned it. Why not?
MNF isn’t a great game tonight, but Charles Barkley was on the air for awhile. That’s always fun.
What’s the opposite of fun? Nuf? Ramirez is nuf.
Kojak!!
If Willie gets an inning, will Ichiro be upset if he doesn’t get one? Think of the Chemistry, people!
There’s no way that I’ve saturated the market. I haven’t even sold a copy to every regular USSM reader, which is disappointing.
You know, as part of the registration process for people to be able to post on the site, you could require that folks enter a word found on line n of page m of “The Cheater’s Guide” where n and m are chosen randomly. That isn’t going to force people to buy the book but it will (mostly) ensure they had it in their hands however briefly….
(I just realized that would screw me out of posting, since I gave my copy to my father and he lives a thousand miles away. Well, I guess I could call him and have him do the lookup. Hmmmm)
57: Or he could just use the site to advertise it
(I bought it, read it, it was great)
This inning brought to you by beer.
I’m glad you liked it. If you want to do me a solid, you could go the extra mile and write up a review on Amazon. It’s a big help.
Who are those chanting girls?
How shall we celebrate a Mariner starter going six innings? Drink more beer?
That’s what I’m doing.
Jose! Feel the love!
OH HELLS YEAH
Take that, Ellis-lovers! Yeah! He hit that for you!
Wow. I didn’t realize Lopez could pull the ball.
60: Yeah, I’ll do that.
I’m still reading your book, Derek, but I’ll be sure to write a 5 star review on amazon no matter how much it sucks.
It’s very enjoyable so far.
Yeah – I thought Lopez was supposed to hit a grounder to the right side in that situation? You know, advance the runners.
I certainly can’t endorse giving it a five-star review if it sucks, but I also do appreciate it
Yes, I just used an emoticon
dang. I drank my beer before the game got much into the 1st.
give into the emoticons.
Guess this means RRS isn’t taking HoRams spot.
re: chaw– I don’t understand it to start with, but what amazes me is that before every game we hear Tom Huytler tell us that “Safeco Field is a no smoking (including smokeless tobacco) facility”
That’s a good point. I should call and ask them about that.
It’s nice to the team’s fourth or fifth best hitter pinch running.
There’s a productive out.
#74– at least Jamie was discreet about it when he indulged on non-pitching days.
interesting that baseball does so much work for breast & prostate cancer research, but pretty much ignores Garagiola’s work concerning oral cancer & spit tobacco…
Yeah, I know.
Also, it’s gross.
Maybe the kids think its bubblegum.
If kids are that dumb, our public education system’s even further gone than I’d feared.
#79– that, too.
I’m reading the Washington Clean Air Cat, and I don’t understand why they think it covers spit tobacco, for one, but then… I’m not looking all that hard.
Ellis sticks it to us Lopez-lovers! Ow!
They should outlaw smoking within 50000000 feet of doorways, just so people don’t get secondhand smoke cancer.
I wouldn’t say dumb. I think better choice of word is Naive. Plus my older brother does it. Its nasty.
Does it relax them at all or anything, kind of like cigarettes, or do they just do it for style?
I think they mean the Washington Clean Indoor Air Act.
It’s a stimulant.
86… does he put a pinch between his cheek and gum?
COLBY LEWIS!!!
He should meet up with HoRam after the game and talk about their respective historic seasons
amazing what a difference a decent start makes.
Err… Morrow? Oh, I get it. A save situation is when you are up by three runs or less, and Putz is a closer, so . . .
hmm.
well, according to HEALTH AND SANITATION Title 8 “Smoking or the chewing of tobacco is prohibited in the areas in which meat is being stored, handled or cut and expectorating on the floors is prohibited.”
Squint a little . . . it’s the ghost of Mike Piazza.
89 – yea he puts a pretty big chunk in his mouth, not as big as Raul’s though. But then he’ll spit them into bottles and leaves them around, which is even more gross.
I turned the chew question into a front-page post. The thing is, the team claims that it’s because of the smoking ban… which as far as I can tell, it’s not.
HOOOO YEAH
Nicely done, team. Nicely done.
So that’s interesting. In the “would you swap ‘em” game, you wouldnt’ take either Haren or Blanton over any of our starters not named Felix Hernandez? Or Street or Embree over some of the guys in our bullpen?
#16. Tek Jansen said, “Here’s an interesting tidbit for tonight. If Batista throws a minimum of 6 innings, a monstrous feat by a non-Felix M’s starter, that would eclipse the combined innings pitched by Ramirez, Weaver, and Wash in their last three starts, all against the juggernaut D-Rays.”
Give that man a gold star. Batista, I mean…
Really. And somehow not letting the A’s score through 6+ innings (also thanks to team defense).
DMZ, I know that Swisher played center tonight but are you honestly going to say you wouldn’t take him over Ibanez/Guillen/Sexson? He’s a 26-year old walk machine (99 this season after 97 last year) who can hit well from both sides of the plate as well as play all three outfield positions and first base. Even if you don’t think last year’s 35 HR’s are for real, he’s a significant upgrade at one of the corners or at first.
Well, arbitrary as it is, the rules of the USSM Lineup Swap ‘em include “position player for the opposing player at that same position”.
And I wouldn’t trade Swisher for Ichiro, even considering their contracts.
Sorry… I don’t make the rules.
Actually, that’s not true, I did make up the rules.
“Spot start” — can you say “HoRam’s spot”?
I would swap Vidro for Cust in a heartbeat. I’ll also take Ellis and his 5.0 RC/G over Lopez and his 3.8 RC/G (not to mention the advantage in defense to he had there). I’ll take Barton too, obviously, and I might be tempted to go with Suzuki if we’re considering contracts.