Game 42, Mariners at Rangers
Carlos Silva v Scott Feldman. 11:05.
Clement’s catching, which should be interesting, Kenji goes to DH, and 1B-0 Cairo is still batting second. I don’t feel like saying a lot more about this game if McClaren cares that little about it.
Okay, okay, so here’s the would-you-swap-’em for today.
C – Ennnhhhh… yes, because I think he’s the better catcher. This should not in any way be taken as denigrating Clement, who I think will hit but may not end up catching.
1B- Yes. You believe Shelton stinks? Doesn’t matter even if he does. Yes.
2B- Yes.
SS – Uhhhhhh…. no. Maybe? I don’t like his deal, and his defense is horrible. Is that enough to spike a deal, though?
3B – No. No. No.
LF – I’m going to have to give this some more thought. My initial reaction was “yes” and then I started to backtrack pretty quickly.
CF- No. I don’t care, I’m not trading Ichiro in one of these, ever.
RF – No.
DH – No, but it’s a weird DH thing going on tonight. Cat v Vidro, absolutely.
And Silva for Feldman? Sure.
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Good thing I am at work and don’t have to watch them on TV. Stat tracker is far less painful.
Cairo! Unbelievable.
Given the information we have available to us, one thing is clear: McLaren should be fired. Today. It is the next logical move, and it sure sounds like that clubhouse needs some new leadership.
This team may not be as good as the optimists (including me) thought, but no way is it the worst team in the majors.
I hope Jose Lopez gets a walk or two today, because his BA/OBP inversion is kind of freaking me out right now.
I also hope to win the Lotto, a gold-plated Mercedes, etc.
Silva’s gonna get shelled…Cairo will do jack squat…we’ll have another couple errors…and I’ll have to wait till I get home tonight to watch the recording…so the real question is, “Who’s the more foolish? The fool or the fool who follows him?”
Here’s the question though: say you fire McLaren — what then? You stick Riggleman or Perlozzo in there for the rest of the season while you look for a replacement? How is that better? If there was a great candidate out there you could jump on, sure, but who would that be? Would they want to join up mid-season? If not, what’s the rush? And McLaren is far from the limit of the problems. Shouldn’t there be a housecleaning from top to bottom? Shouldn’t the (hopefully) new GM have input on the new coach?
I think the swap M Young for Betancourt isn’t really fair, because Young is a 2B playing out of position. Would you take Young for Lopez/Vidro/Cairo? And I think you answer that is Yes-in a heartbeat, in spit of his contract. Sure, he’s paid too much, but as a slight -defensive 2B, he’s worth it.
Also, Saltalamacchia is not that good of a defensive C either. He’ll also probably be moved eventually. But I would take his stick over Clement’s. Salty scares pitchers more so than Clement does.
Jose Lopez’ “inversion” is kind of cool, actually. Maybe he’ll keep it up all season and set the season record for Sacrifice Flies in the process (19 – Gil Hodges, 1954)… at 8 already, he’s well on his way.
I agree. The GM should be sacked first, and the replacement should choose the field manager.
It would be interesting if someone in the media asked McLaren what the rationale is behind having your worst hitter hitting in the #2 hole.
I think it’ll be interesting to make that Saltalamacchia – Clement comparison next year, or the year after, or at the end of their respective careers.
So anybody want to lay odds there’s a rain delay long enough that at least some people will get to watch the end of this game after work?
Lopez has gone 121 at bats since his last BB. During that time, his BA has gone up from .308 to .319, but his OBP has gone down from .341 to .316.
oooh, a threat of rain– so they could lose this one in just 5 innings!
Brad Wilkerson had 10 BB’s in his rather limited time with the M’s. Lopez and Betancourt have combined for 6 BB’s this season. While Lopez is enjoying a good year so far, batting average-wise, the Lopez/Betancourt combo is a contributing factor to the offensive anemia we’ve seen.
In fact, Cairo’s OBP is pretty much equal to Betancourt’s, even though he’s only hitting .154.
I’d love to say that I’m surprised by the placement of Cairo again in the two hole, but I can’t lie to myself.
Honestly at this point, I’m more curious as to how short or long of a leash Mac is on at this point. Has there been any indication of this publicly or privately at this point?
So (courtesy of Rizzs) the Rangers own the best record in baseball since April 15th. Think a schedule that gave them four games against KC and six (now seven) against the M’s might have something to do with that?
Looks like Feldman has the drill totally figured out. Throw nothing but strikes, let the Mariners get themselves out. This one will be over quick.
“A couple of hours before the game, Armstrong offered a vote of confidence in McLaren and his coaches.
“He’s doing a fine job,” Armstrong said. “I like our staff. I like the manager. … I think Mac is doing a fine job. He’s got a good staff, and they give him good support.”"
To think, just last monday we were all looking at 6 more games vs. the Rangers in 9 days and eyeing the prospect of getting back in the division race.
This one will be over quick.
Depends on how many times the Rangers bat around.
“Honestly at this point, I’m more curious as to how short or long of a leash Mac is on at this point. Has there been any indication of this publicly or privately at this point?”
I would be surprised if they fired MacLaren at all this season since whoever they stuck there wouldn’t be a long term replacement and the season’s virtually over for the Ms anyways barring nothing less than a miracle.
At this point it’s likely that both Mac and Bavasi will get canned at the end of the season so might as well let them tough this year out, fire Bavasi and let his replacement pick his own manager.
Fire them all.
Seriously. Fire them all and bring in a whole new group of baseball people from Bavasi down. We need fresh eyes and fresh ideas.
wow. they didn’t even wait until the 5th to lose.
Niehaus sounds kinda dejected.
That’s an awful lot of points in one paragraph!
(I tease you solely because I do this same thing myself sometimes, don’t be mad)
Maybe both Bavasi and McClaren have standing job offers elsewhere, and both are trying to get fired (kind of like George and Mr. Wilhelm on Seinfeld). Its the only thing that would make sense.
Its been said before, but pulling line-ups out of a hat would probably yield better results than having McClaren choose line-ups. This season is becoming very interesting in its own way…I no longer look forward to winning, but wonder what zany and wacky thing McClaren will think of next.
Yep, it didn’t even take Silva 15 minutes to put the game completely out of reach.
(Rizzs plugging “your local Chiropractor”) — say Rangers fans, if you’re getting whiplash from watching all the balls your guys are hitting off Silva…
Unlike Managers, GM’s and other front office gurus don’t grow on trees and finding the right fit for your organization takes time and timing (i.e. the off-season). Firing and replacing McLaren would take all of five seconds. Who cares if a new GM will replace McLaren’s interim replacement? The Mariners should at least insert somebody who can fill out a freaking lineup card until that day arrives.
Heh, too funny that you pointed that out. I didn’t even realize that, and I did find the humor in it myself.
Two runs aaaaand the game is officially out of reach.
Well, ok, the ONE TIME the M’s have overcome a two-run deficit is when it occurred in the first inning. They’ve got eight innings to catch up this time. The problem is, Silva will still be pitching for at least five of those innings.
bring in a whole new group of baseball people from Bavasi down
You need to go higher than that. Or you’ll just get the same hiring process that yielded Bavasi.
Despite predicting a quick ending, I’m still shocked by just how fast it was.
Not that this means anything in pro sports these days. Front offices routinely praise managers/coaches right up until (and sometimes past) the point when they fire them.
They’ve got eight innings to catch up this time.
Not if the rain moves in. Silva may have a complete game loss in those five innings.
27 – Awesome.
So which would be more excruciating … watching this team or the Phantom Menace?
The other problem is that the bullpen will be pitching after that. It seems like they’ve been good for allowing at least 2-3 runs in 3+ innings of work every night lately.
6-inning, rain-shortened perfect game for Corey . . . oops . . . Scott Feldman. You heard it here first.
Hey. The M’s have a chance to make history today: So, does a “complete game” 5 inning no-hitter count… because I’ve got a hunch.
If these guys end up getting no-hit by a rotation bottom-feeder like Feldman, that’s gotta be hitting rock-bottom.
ah! beaten to the punchline!
Chad Fairchild makes himself even more popular.
Nice catch Ichiro.
Ichiro never argues…
The next time someone says that Ichiro’s lazy, I’m going to go Clockwork Orange on them and make them watch that play over and over until they repent.
Ichiro did as close to a dive that he’s going to do for a ball–give him the damn out!
I’m actually shocked that something went the M’s way.
[no]
I believe so…I think they were talking about that last year in that game which Paul Byrd started against us in Cleveland…
Which ended up getting suspended short of being “official” due to that raging blizzard.
For some reason, the fact that Cairo is regularly starting at 1B and hitting 2nd in the line-up has pushed me over the edge. In the grand scheme of things it’s not that big of a deal, and no where near as meaningful as, say, the Silva contract or insisting that Ibanez play LF all the time. But when I keep seeing Cairo at 1st base AND getting the 2nd most plate appearances each game, I want to pick up my monitor and throw it against the wall. There’s just no reason that should be happening.
Kenji likes this ballpark, doesn’t he?
#38…in the analogy of M’s game to Episode I…who is the M’s answer to Jar Jar Binks? Who is so annoying, foolish and useless that you simply spend the whole show hoping Obi Wan decapitates him with a light saber?
My vote is for Miguel Cairo who kind of looks funny and adds nothing to the team. If Ron Fairly were still around, however…
Kenji!
Officially ending the no-hit discussion…
Has USSM been lagging for people lately? It’s been chugging the past couple days for me.
Chuck Armstrong as Senator Palaptine? Willie as Amidala?
1 hit shutout still alive, and VERY VERY possible.
Isn’t Willie more like the chick that pretends to be the actual princess, but really isn’t?
Raul as Qui-Gon?
It’s just the one server… it gets hit really hard during game threads. Sorry, we don’t have our own shared server farm with a hundred other sports blogs or anything.
Or just give them a real horrorshow tolchock to the glazzies. Moloko anyone?
The game is moving rapidly, isn’t it? At least it is when the M’s are batting. Feldman must be a genius pitcher.
Kenji gets a no-out double, and we can’t get the ball out of the infield the rest of the inning. Fundamentals…
Who’s Vidro? The Frog king dude from Jar Jar’s world!
Don’t worry DMZ, McLaren keeps throwing out this lineup and no one will be on the game threads anyways.
“in the analogy of M’s game to Episode I…who is the M’s answer to Jar Jar Binks? Who is so annoying, foolish and useless that you simply spend the whole show hoping Obi Wan decapitates him with a light saber? ”
Mike Blowers?
A scout quoted on Baker’s blog sums up my feeling about the Mariners right now: “You want to see a team waiting to lose every night, that’s them.”
I’d say McLaren 62. Blowers is better than Valle and Fairly.
Mike Blowers?
I dunno, that exchange with Sims the other night about the wind and the old stadium was worth the price of admission. Funniest thing I’ve heard at a Mariners game for some time.
I’m glad I had the first Star Wars reference of the day in comment 4…
And predicted that Silva would get shelled…right on so far…
I find your lack of faith disturbing.
Cairo hitting a ball that deep should be worth 12 runs. Might be a close game then…
DMZ – don’t apologize when you are already doing so much for all of us.
It’s fun watching Raul “run”
“The odds of successfully making a hyperspace jump to the front of the division with a rusted scrapheap of a team–”
“Never tell me the odds!”
Raul moves like a cartoon character. But I won’t mock–it’s a run.
DMZ is like Yoda, providing his wisdom from a tower in the clouds millions of miles away.
Holy cow! Two out rally?!
You mean Feldman isn’t the second coming of Sandy Koufax?
Guys! I have my M’s hat on today though! I’m not supposed to wear it at work, something has to change…… I am doing what I can. GO M’s! *Laughs at myself at desk*
The 2008 Seattle Mariners: “Another Night, Another Zero!”
Laird to Gabbard, as Richie is charging the mound: “Let the Wookie win”
Too bad Beane hates the Pacific NW, otherwise you spend whatever it takes to lure him out of Oakland, trade for him a la NFL coaches, anything!
But Dave sounds like Yoda. If Yoda was hopped up on meth and coke and six double espressos.
Does is go without saying that Sims is Jar Jar Binks?
joser-
Best comparison yet. Freakin hilarious!
And see, McLaren probably thinks this guy is “tough to hit” because “he hasn’t started against us before”.
Hmm…interesting that scouting reports and video tape have not been invented yet.
maybe the Rangers know the Ms lose when two runs are scored, and they have gotten complacent …
78- That’s rad…
Chris Young v. Washburn? Ugh… chalk that up as another loss.
“Isn’t Willie more like the chick that pretends to be the actual princess, but really isn’t?”
Willie would be the annoying lil kid version of Anakin.
Team overall: Bantha poodoo.
Too bad Beane is a part-owner of the A’s …
Beane has a small ownership share in the A’s, they’re on their way to a new stadium and all the added payroll that entails, and he’s got a nice pool of young talent with no ugly overhanging contracts. Why would he leave for anything less?
Thanks joser, I’d forgotten he had a share of the team now, and I live down here with them.
I just like the way he consistently moves the AAA manager up to the show to be a bench coach for a year or two, and then they get the manager’s job.
As if that upcoming series wasn’t promising to be painful enough, we don’t even get to see Peavy or Maddux go for our Hated Rivals.
Good thing it’s supposed to be 80-85 and sunny this weekend…they might actually draw 20k for one or two of those games.
Hee, can’t you just see Richie standing at 1B waiting for a pitch, occasionally letting out that wookie yowl?
As a long time Sacramento resident, and supporter of the Kings; that’s how you judge when a team is truly awful: when more people show up to watch the opposition’s stars than their own team.
Too bad Richie didn’t play in more games back in ‘98…he could’ve been “Wookie Of The Year”!
If Mike Blowers were a Star Wars character he would be Steven Wright, but only if Steven Wright were a Star Wars character.
Bavasi sort of reminds me of that tall, bald dude with the proboscis sticking out of his head who answers the door at Jaba’s palace. “I am sorry, but you cannot enter. Your OBP is much too high. But you . . . what did you say your name was? Cairo? Yes, you may enter at once.”
Bedard is Han Solo frozen in carbonite.
Yeah, the A’s know what they’re doing. No doubt about that. It almost doesn’t even matter who the manager is. Look at how Art Howe did so well there, the moved on to the Mets, sucked, and is probably now knitting.
well, saturday. on sunday, when I have tickets it is supposed to drop to the 60s.
Just reading Baker’s blog, and he said that the coaches adjusted the outfield alignment, pulling them in so there’d be fewer singles sending runners to third, if the balls go over their heads, so be it. And how many doubles have the Rangers had so far? They were pushed in both runs, right?
Jeez.
um, Art is sitting across the field next to Ron Washington
96: Isn’t he hosting a cooking show on the Food Network these days?
Anyone pay any attention to Brian Myrow, down in P-town? The guy is stuck in AAA with the Padres, who have Adrian Gonzales at first. Since the M’s have put their money on youth, why not go all the way. Talk to the Padres while they’re in town. Myrow could have four or five good years in the majors, and he would be a massive step up from what the M’s have had the last four or five years.
I vote Bill Bavasi as Jar Jar binks. So annoying and pointless.
Speaking of wookies, Niehaus just mentioned that Sexson’s suspension will be over on Friday and that he should be in the lineup.
Hoo-boy…can’t wait for that excitement!
Why the hell is Cairo bunting?
Because he and Mac both know he can’t reach base swiging away.
Ok, I’m sorry, but very little is supposed to be OT in a game thread and, well, this game is dull and the M’s have that Japanese connection, so….I found this (while reading about Sony’s financial results, I swear). It’s pretty amazing that somebody can invent a solar-powered bra and that’s not the most ridiculous thing about it:
(from the picture caption)
Does anyone track 3-1 counts converted into strike outs?
Not watching it that avidly (watching the UEFA Cup final at the same time) but I thought I saw Balentien bunting at some point – seems to make no sense having your best power threat bunting in a one run game.
joser, that is quite possibly the most off-topic thing I’ve ever seen posted on this site.
I don’t think I can even bring myself to nuke it, but I can’t guarantee someone else won’t.
106: Gee, maybe Terry and Dale Bozzio can get Missing Persons back together for a revival tour — Dale has something new to wear now!
108- Who is winning? You watching online somehow?
I’m in the UK. It’s 0-0, but it’s all Zenit at the moment.
109 – Screw Griffey, can I get chris bosio back?
Are we winning?
Well, I don’t care if it gets nuked, as long as it amuses the dozen or so people who got to see it while it was there.
Missing Persons, the Bozios, whoa, there’s an 80s flashback.
It will never cease to amaze me how huge a one run deficit appears when behind and how slim a one run lead looks when ahead.
112- Thanks for the reminder, got it on Gamecast now. I know it’s OT but who are you pulling for in the Champions League Final?
On my cable line-up, I get FSC, which is some Fox soccer network, and it’s on there.
I’m confused about storing beverages in a bra. Are there cupholders, or little sacs?
And a man on second, no outs! Goooo, M’s!
Man,… Clement better not K!
Hey look, balls can go over the head of the Rangers’ fielders too.
Was that really Clement’s first RBI this year??
Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good, I’ll take it.
I would argue a Japanese solar-powered bra would be a better $24 million investment than… oh, never mind.
Dang it all. Sexson will be back for the weekend?
Sheesh.
It looks like Portland fans might think they’re at PGE Park this Sunday. Estes will be pitching, Carlin will likely catch. With Gerut in the outfield, and Edgar Gonzales off the bench, this weekend will seem a lot like a Rainiers-Beavers game from a couple weeks ago.
Speaking of 80’s flashbacks, Clement was really, ah, “motorin’” right there!
CAN I GET A FLY BALL
Arg! Man on third, no outs, tie game and nobody can get it out of the infield?
Come on Yuni, bloop one in!
Woot – woot, atta boy!
The way the two “major” league parent clubs are playing, a Rainiers-Beavers matchup is liable to outdraw a Mariners-Padres matchup.
Today’s Apocalypse Update: Mariners have a LEAD!
w00t! We’ll take that too!
Balentien and Yuni seemed to have decided to try the ol’ “Let’s change our pants and see if it makes us hit better” trick.
Worked for one guy for one at-bat.
Man, Yuni will never take pitches when he rips the first pitch like that.
WOO HOO!!! We’re winning!!
Sorry..I don’t get to say that very often…
Dammit, team finally wakes up and I have to leave for an appointment!
Oh, well. Goooooo, M’s! Keep that lead!
Regarding Clement’s triple…for those watching on tv was it a legit shot or was it ‘outfield aided?’
Uh-oh…wonder what’s up with Silva?
Yeah, TV watchers, what kind of injury?
I can’t watch the game so I’m just using MLB.com’s Gameday thing. Is Silva hurt?
Injury? Watching the gamecast I just assumed that it was time to get the bullpen involved in R v. L matchups.
“Silva removed from game: excessive stomach pain caused by delicious smells of clubhouse spread”
DMZ, I’ve never seen you more wrong about anything, ever! It was the delicious Texas’ clubhouse spread. Not the M’s. He’s busy sneaking in there right now.
Blowers was going on about some local place with fantastic fried chicken; maybe they stock the Texas clubhouse.
So I guess today is Bad Morrow.
How is this the same Morrow we saw the other night?
133 – MLB Gameday posted the video. Hamilton got a terrible read on the ball off the bat. It was definitely outfield aided. I don’t think Hamilton realized that the mojo was rising, that causes balls to carry you know.
I thought it might be due to Silva eating Bloomquist.
Clement’s triple was outfield-aided: Hamilton took a couple of steps in and then started backpedaling but it went over his head.
Morrow is so crafty. Why don’t more pitchers realize that it favors the defense when you can get a force out at any base.
Is it a bad thing that I want to wear a bag over my head when I’m listening to the game at work?
In the future, they need to warm up both Lowe and Morrow simultaneously and figure out while they’re still in the bullpen which one of them has his control that day.
Hmm…didn’t know there were Taco Del Mar’s down in DFW…darn those day-old fish tacos!
Time for Vasquez to beat the crap out of the M’s. Again.
10 pitch walk. Sweet.
Vazquez, up with yet another chance to kill us.
WTF does this happen every time with Green? There was already one on, bring him then instead of Morrow. I do not agree whatsoever with Mac’s use of the pen this year. Brutal!
Phewww…Arthur Rhodes. We’re safe.
I forget…what carton of sunflower seeds did we get for Vasquez again?
Geez guys, how come we want to be anything close to contender, ever, without having a solid back up for any infield position??? TIme to dig some young guns from the farm
Leaving Rhodes in against a righty? No, 4 straight righties?? Seriously?
Holy crap, they got out of it?
Wow, and the middle infield didn’t boot it.
Hey, great job Mac. Just like you planned it. Phewww.
that’s gritty veteran toughness right there
Today on Arson Squad: Seattle, the squad actually manages to get through the bottom of the seventh with a lead intact!
Lucky > Good
Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while.
It’s Amazing! The M’s had something go their way? Arthur even tried to screw it up…..and Vasquez didn’t destroy us!
Another thing I hate about gamecast:
The “ducks on the pond” graphic changed to just men on second a third. So I start to flip out, thinking that Rhodes gave up a double, then it changes again to “End of the 7th”
I’m so relieved, but that was cruel….
I thought #2 hitters were supposed to make contact…
Yeah, that was a bad move by the Rangers. Don’t they know by now that Vasquez is an M’s killer?
Oh yeah…it was the legendary Ben Davis.
How could I ever forget that first-ballot Hall Of Famer?!
In the same year we traded for Ben Davis we also forfeited our 1st round pick for Greg Colbrun. That was a good move.
Gameday is saying Carlos left with an injured back.
That may not be good…
“I knew I shouldn’t have eaten Bloomquist.”
Was it a vertebrae?
…classic
Maybe he forgot he wasn’t a snake, tried to unhinge his jaw to make Willie easier to get down, and threw out his back?
Grittiness is seems to be rough on the old digestive tract…
Jabba the Silva?
Another poor defensive play in RF by Wlad.
Bobble or a bad read?
uh oh. This looks bad.
They must WANT to lose this game. They need more GRITTINESS!
I’m watching the game on ESPN MLB Gamecast. Any suggestions for something better?
Can we just pretend we won this game after its over. I want to see a blog post on our win.
I’m watching the game on ESPN MLB Gamecast. Any suggestions for something better?
Go read a good book. You’ll enjoy it far more.
Go punch yourself in the face with a brick. That is also more enjoyable.
I think WFB is the Wedge Antilles of the M’s. He’s the only rebel pilot that appears in, and survives all three original Star Wars films. Like Willy, he’s a bit player that you just can’t get rid of no matter how many Tie Fighters / Cheaper Replacement-Level Players you throw at him.
Very nice play Wlad!!! Diving grab. Just when I thought you couldn’t do any worse, you go out there, and totally redeem yourself!!!!!!!!!!
Raul coulda been there…
Anyone want to wager on which Ranger gets the walk off home run?
#186 – Except Wedge is probably the second or third best pilot in the entire Star Wars universe.
Vazquez….
189
I’m going with Will Clark
I didn’t think you could make that claim unless you were a Jedi or a Wookie.
I would rather have Putz come in and drill Laird in the dome. I am sick of that piece of @#$%. It would be worth a loss to see that guy go down.
Two of the better suggestions I’ve had in some time.
195 – mlb.tv if you want to watch other teams play live
WFB….good play. That is why he is the MVP.
Wlad! Come on baby, get us that fly ball this time.
Wlad 0/3 trying to bring in run from 3rd with 1 out.
on that wlad´s ball, was the infield in?
CLUTCH!
Go put a 80’s thrash punk disc on and smash your head into the wall repeatedly. That would be more fun!
And that, my friends, is why this team is the worst in the league. And they don’t even have anyone to bring off the bench to hit for Wlad/Betancourt, as you would with a guy on 2nd/3rd and it was the bottom of your lineup.
Well, here we go….another nail biter!
All aboard the doom train.
Is the RRS vs. Salty contest historic? Is that the most letters ever combined in a Pitcher vs. Hitter matchup?
Nothing says Mariners baseball like a walk to lead off the inning.
Hey, don’t worry. Lowe is coming in with his WHIP of 2.09.
20 bones says he scores.
What is it…..75% of lead off runners score or something?
Yep…it’s shapin’ up to be another one of those days where the poor ponies go over the cliff like a herd of bison.
I love the M’s (in general), so it pains me to root for them to keep losing.. but it’s the only way some drastic changes are going to get done.
C’monnnn FAT PITCH.
#193
Anakin Skywalker
Luke Skywalker
Wedge Antilles?
Han Solo?
Jango Fett?
Boba Fett?
Lando Calrissian?
Obi Wan Kinobi?
How do you figure? At least in the movies Wedge is just a good pilot that gets lucky and doesn’t die.
207
In the bottom of the 9th in a tie game with the SECOND to last team in the division….
That lead runner doesn’t appear to be scoring.
what the ‘eck just happened with one out and Bloomquist on 3rd?
(I’m restricted to gameday – which is no help here)
211- I’ll drink to that when I get home.
We need BIG changes.
What was Wedge’s VORP?
Great play by Cairo. Nice call to put that on.
Wow…Shelton BUNTING into a double play? That’s a Mariner-esque move if ever I’ve seen one!
Please, Bill, don’t run out and get this guy!
At this point comparing us to the Rangers at all does the Rangers a disservice. If this were the English Premier league the M’s would have been booted down to the NL West and Diamondbacks would have been called up to the AL.
How do you bunt into a double play? Was that the worst bunt ever?
Extra Innings! No rain delays! Silva wasn’t shelled! The Mariners haven’t been no hit! Our walks aren’t even coming around to score!
Welcome to bizzaro world.
Pulling this out today should give the team a shred of hope — hey, we *can* compete when we don’t play like little-leaguers.
But the upside of a win vs. the downside of a loss? That clubhouse would be a tough one to take.
Raul goes deep right here. Calling it. 2-1 pitch.
I don’t post here much anymore but I thought I would make a suggestion:
You all hate Mclaren and you all hate Bavasi (professionally, not personally). One thing that tends to screw up teams in places like New York (where I now live), is that the fans expect to win all the time. After a small sample of losses the fans get furious and start circulating false rumors and screaming obscenities about management. This is often not particularly firmly grounded in an analysis of those managers’ decisions and the information they had when they made them. It is essentially a “we’re New York, we should always be winning mentality” that gives any coach or manager 2 years or less to win. This is often counter-productive and leads to unnecessary setbacks which always accompany regime changes. Sometimes it is a good idea though, such as the recent firing of Isiah Thomas. I was at a Sonics-Knicks game at the garden (Durant was unbelievable) and the chants of “Fire Isiah!” were nutty. Do the idiots screaming in the stands understand the specific personnel deals Isiah made and why they screwed up the Knicks? No. But the result is what it is.
I know it is VERY un-Seattle to do something like this. But how about some “Fire Bavasi!”
He will probably get fired anyways but why not make sure =). This is the Mariners man.
Makes a lot more sense than booing Richie Sexson, which is misdirected because he is just a baseball player and it isn’t his fault the management wanted to pay him obscene money.
222 – not to mention that the Mariners have won 2 of their last 13 games… and they were the games where Washburn and Batista started.
OK…I know you guys all dislike the accuracy of Joe’s Tracer…how does it compare to the pitch location thing on ESPN GameCast?
Raul did go deep, to shallow right center field.
Why use Putz now?
Good thing Willie was used as a pinch runner so that we could prevent him from being a defensive replacement.
I’m just happy they keep hitting it to RF and not left…no particular reason…
I’m not sure you can really complain about using Willie as a pinch runner today. That’s one of his roles. They had to try and score a run, then they could have double switched, put Burke behind the plate and Willie in left.
Texas Rangers have Nolan Ryan as their team president. We have Chuck Armstrong. Wanna trade?
Jeeez Wlad…almost take out our 2nd baseman by not calling for it. Rough series for Wlad, except for HR Monday.
Seriously if this game continues after this inning who is going to pitch? Is Baek available? Ichiro! might get his shot at the mound.
Lowe – used
Morrow – used
Green – used
Rhodes – used
RRS – used
Putz – pitching
I wonder who is going to pitch in eleventh
Didn’t Mac tell us he would not overuse the BP the way Grover did? Of late he’s making Grover look conservative.
When will he be asking BB for a 13th Pitcher?
Argh this is frustrating. I want to give Mac chances, but he wastes his BP, bats his useless Willie clone 2nd all the time and can’t seem to motivate ANYBODY.
229- Mac probably thinks that they are going to score next inning. OR he wanted to give him a little extra work. Hard to say with that guy.
Gamecast and tracer are same at some parks and different at others. It weird.
I’m not entirely sure about the rules, but couldn’t Jo have been switched to catcher from DH?
I vote for Turbo in the 11th. He would be Silva-lite!
#233 – I’d rather see that than the lackadaisical defense we’ve been seeing of late. Nobody’s hurt and they showed some hustle out there.
We can bring in Bedard. He didn’t get any work Monday. He should be ready… ready as he’s gonna be.
I just looked up our roster certain that I was forgetting a player, and that we had SOMEONE for a defensive replacement in Right Field… but our choices are Vidro… Baek, Batista, Bedard and Felix.
Nice
I will bet he will use Batista if need be.
Then the pitcher would have to bat.
“Raul goes deep right here. Calling it. 2-1 pitch.”
Negative, neagative … it didn’t go in. Just impacted on the surface.
Everyday! I remember him.
you know, listening to the Mariners Care commercial? I think most of the Mariners’ brightest moments happened off the field this year.
232 – I know… it’s more that we can’t put anyone speedy out there in RF.
“Jarrod Washburn getting loose in the Mariner pen”–Blowers.
I
HAVE
NO
WORDS.
Oy vay…Washburn is warming up. I wonder if he will throw Burke under the bus if he pitches poorly.
His turn based on straw draw used to determine order ‘pen gets to buffet.
245
maybe the reason Kenji is still the DH is that HE will become the pitcher
Who’s “throw” day is it in the rotation? I would assume it’s either Wash or Batista
I hope this game goes 20 innings. I want to see Ichiro! pitch.
Of course! I should have known!
Burke speaks english right?
Gonna tough to blame Joh if Washburn has a bad outing here…
Bring Vidro in to pitch, and put Felix at short, Washburn in right field. What the hell does anything matter anymore?
Anybody see Manny’s catch in the 4th inning today against Baltimore? I don’t care for a lot of his antics, but this was pretty funny.
Oh, darn — and I was kinda hoping we’d get to see Willie pitch today, too!
Well that’s two more innings we have to pitch if we’re going to win this one. Just bean Rangers until the game’s over. It would save the bullpen and be oh-so-satisfying.
(j/k)
If you want to see a good piece of video, go check out the mlb.com gameday of the Bostom vs O’s game. Go to the video of Manny robbing Millar of extra bases. It’s classic…just check it out.
oops…259 beat me to it.
No Blowers, they fall in b/c it’s Raul Ibanez.
Raul in left is my rock in the road with this team right now.
I cannot get past the fact that he is “patrolling” left field. DH, please.
Joe’s tracer not the same as gamecast in Texas.
I get in the car after my appointment and the DJ says, we’ll have an update in the Mariner’s game later…so I roar home, and sure enough, like Groundhog Day, this damn game just keeps going.
Just in time to see Ibanez not catch a ball again. Say, why doesn’t anyone bitch because Raul doesn’t dive for balls all the time? Pity?
Last night we saw what happens when Raul dives for balls….he doesn’t catch them.
Putz not even looking at Murphy.
bringing in the closer in non close situatin was stupid, so how do we call the act of keeping him in?
Indeed Putzy!
266
That’s probably because Joe’s tracer is worthless. FSN must be getting a ton of money to make everyone suffer through looking at that damn thing.
PUTZ!!!
I’m cranking up ‘Thunderstruck’ on the ‘ol iPod
thunder…nananananana
Well, I was being facetious. I sense if Raul did dive, he’d have to have one of those medical alert pagers for assistance in getting back to his feet.
Thank you, JJ.
PUTZ!!!
I’m cranking up ‘Thunderstruck’ on the ol’ iPod
Wlad´s better go yard
Is there some strategic reason why it is better to limit relief pitchers to no more than one inning pitched in a game? Or is it just some strange affectation that McLaren has, similar to Beltre asking the umpire if he swung at a pitch?
Wow, German ate Silva and Bloomquist.
Mac must really be working those foosball poles today!
Wlad catching a break. Nice. Yuni better bunt.
Juneau – Knew u were joking.
I have no problem with bringing Putz into a tie in extras, or using him for two innings. This team has few opportunities to win games. But of course none of this matters … pansies and ponies.
Of course, M’s offense means the most likely (and actual) result is to extend the game for another two innings.
A bunt…and fangraphs dives* in disapproval.
*decreases by 1%
Bringing in a closer in a non-save situation is not stupid, and analysts have been hammering that point for years now. You shouldn’t let a statistic dictate player use. Any crucial game situation can be a good time to bring your best reliever in.
Speaking of bad statistics, Cairo with a potential GWRBI? Holy frijoles.
284
If it is so, why didn´t he come in the eighth?
286: Because John McLaren completely believes that closers should be used almost exclusively in save situations, and the only situations that warrant a closer being used in a non-save situation are when there are no other relief pitchers or the closer has not pitched in a while.
CUBS WINNNN CUBS WINNN!
Washburn could be a bullpen master…
Pitch 1-25: .239 / .302 / .367 – 16.7% strikeouts, 7.5% walks, 2.7% HR
Pitch 25-50: 244 / .295 / ..393 – 14% strikeouts, 6.4% walks, 2.5% HR
It’s after that things go way down hill. Heck, let him throw an inning or two and dominate.
Am I totally bonkers here?
289…I was thinking the same thing. Put Wash in the pen as a long relief or 6th – 7th inning guy, and get Morrow stretched out and into the rotation.
Didn’t Washburn say that he’d do whatever it took in order to get a bobblehead next year?
If I got it right, and I am sure I did, if JJ would come in the eighth and keep the lead and then shut them out in the ninth he would get the save and he would actually HELP his team
Cairo RBI’s winning run!?!?!?
Who woulda thunk?
not to sound like someone who is never satisfied, but could they get a win sometime that wasn’t like pulling teeth?
Worst possible outcome. Cairo saves the day. We’ll be seeing a lot more of him, since McLaren & Co. will now be claiming that he’s “clutch”. I will be clutch too, as I will be clutching my groin in misery.
happy ponies
Steve – You can bet the FO will give him a two year multimil extension.
And as an added bonus Vidro didn’t get six plate appearances closer to 400 on the year. Hopefully, Bavasi will get the chance to waste that 6 million dollars elsewhere.
Ur doin it rong
What, it’s not supposed to hurt?
ok, time for more happy ponies.
“Steve – You can bet the FO will give him a two year multimil extension.”
I was thinking the same thing … Exhibit A to show that gritty veteran clutchiness saved the Ms collective bacon.
I’m glad they won the game. Just too bad it was Cairo, because now he just earned himself another month batting in the #2 hole.
I hate to say it, but the game today just proves the front office is right. If you get proven, grizzled veterans, they’ll always come through in the clutch. Well, 16 out of 42 times anyway.
This was the turning point in the season! We are going to go 25-15 in our next 40 games, get back to .500, and then play .750 ball in the second half and win the west. Washburn will win the Cy Young, and Vidro will be a silver slugger, and Raul is gonna get his first gold glove. Its true, you can’t mock me for saying this.
Watching Cairo hit in the 2-hole today was probably a lot like watching the Wright Brothers fumble around on their giant kite. You point fingers and laugh until *whoosh* it takes flight and you finally comprehend the genius of it all. The only difference is, this time there was no genius to comprehend – just weird luck because the giant kite is actually a poorly constructed log cabin engulfed in flames.
And true to form, on the post-game broadcast Angie Mentink comparing Miguel Cairo to Stan Javier and Mark McLemore.
Jesus wept.
She’d better be careful, Silva might try to eat her too.
That is terribly depressing. Why does she think she knows things about baseball.
Well, to be fair, that’s her job. She’s not paid to be an analyst, she’s paid to be a pretty and cheerful face on the post-game broadcast.
I don’t mean this as a personal shot at her, but she’s the Mariners broadcast equivalent of a perky weathergirl, so it’s wrong to expect too much.
They should get the girl from King5….she’s wayyyy prettier, and seems to be pretty spunky….
Jeff – you are right, but that type of poison trickles out to our ‘every day joe’ fan to the point where they believe it.
I doubt you see that type of reporting in New York … or Boston.
At least give me Erin Andrews.
In Article today,
hahaha oh how i love ichiro
That’s just not true. Just listen to 15 minutes of a YES broadcast or take a look at Hazel Mae on NESN.
While I love Ichiro too, of course, it’s important to remember that translation from Japanese to English is an approximation at best. The two languages just aren’t structured in the same way.
If you’re not pathologically averse to the idea, watch pretty much anime series and follow the translation of the song lyrics in the opening or closing credits. The translation is usually laughably nonsensical.
So Ichiro was probably saying the Japanese equivalent of “I’m looking forward to it”, but it’s sometimes difficult for the media to resist casting him as a modern-day Charlie Chan; and I think that, rather than getting angry about it, he probably enjoys leading them down that particular primrose path, so he probably semi-deliberately uses tricky turns of phrase.
No I completely understand, I just still find that comment pretty fantastic.
I mean how epic is “I hope he arouses the fire that’s dormant in the innermost recesses of my soul.”
so epic. so ichi
So last year. That’s from the lead up to Dice-K’s home opener in ‘07, when godlike Felix showed up and stole the show.
315 – that was a beautiful game indeed.
I have to say, I had to step away from the game for a bit in the extra innings, and when I came back I was still a fair distance from the screen, so I couldn’t read the name on the back of jersey of the new M’s closer. I don’t have the numbers memorized (well, beyond 51 and 29 and 34) so I was trying to guess based on the length of the name. Too long for Lowe, too short for the Hyphen. “Damn,” I thought to myself, “If I didn’t know better I’d guess that looks like ‘Washburn’” Finally I got up close and… holy crap.
So McLaren made a bunch of crazy decisions (Cairo batting 2nd? Washburn in to save?) and they worked out. The results-based analysis crowd would claim that McLaren is smarter than we give him credit for. Everybody else will mutter about blind squirrels and nuts and insist he sucks. Then the results-based folks would have to look at the results of 16-26 (and 2-9 in one-run games) and also conclude.. he sucks.
But hey, a win is a win. Even if it is nuts.
Let us all just hope/pray/whatever that this squad will somehow pull it together and make a run. I just need some excitement during this baseball season. In order to even make a remote comeback, this squad will need to crank off a few 6+ game winning streaks.
[this is not a quality comment]
So Putz get the W and Washburn gets the S. Weirdness.
I’d also like to offer Mr. Clement a big welcome to the top of the WPA chart at .360 (though truth be told, if defense factored into it Cairo would take the top spot thanks to that bunt DP). I expect it won’t be the last time we see Clement there (nor the last time we see him with an over-unity SLG).
well, she knows about playing baseball. As we know with most former athletes, talking about it is another thing.
Fox’s broadcast equivalent.
319 – in pic 2 not only is she smokin hot …. but all the guys behind her are checking her out. comedy.
Zaloumis comes out of DC ….
I don’t think it’s appropriate to be knocking Angie. If you talk to her, she knows as much about baseball as any of you. She was a starter for UW softball and was pretty damn good. In FSN’s contract with the Mariners, they are required to look at the bright side and promote the team and its players. So I really doubt she feels like Cairo is a great utility guy, but thats her job to make the players look as good as she can.
323 – i guess eye candy is imperative. Zaloumis is verrrry hot. angie on the other hand … i think some people dig her though.
I do like Elise Woodward on KJR night shows … she has some very intelligent analysis … or at least from what I’ve heard so far.
313.
It’s hard to say, sometimes phrases are impossibly idiomatic, and sometimes the speaker really is saying something offbeat.
I’m reminded of the Japanese admiral before the Battle of Midway, when the Japanese Navy sent out a massive fleet expecting to catch the Americans by surprise and capture Midway. Someone asked “what if the Americans know we’re coming?” and the admiral replied “One touch of an armored sleeve”. Which sounds impossibly inscrutable until you’re told it was a common saying, the equivalent of “we’ll brush them away” or in more modern lingo “we’ll kick their butts and take names”.
For these Ichiro quotes, I don’t know whether it’s hard-to-translate idiom or zen-like Ichiro-ness at work.
P.S. The Americans DID know the Japanese were coming, caught them by surprise, and pummeled them in one of the hugest upsets of WW II. Kinda like what Felix did to Matsuzaka’s home debut last year.
Speaking of Dice-K … who is this new phenom out of Japan … ‘Dice K 2.0′ … Yu Darvish?
Is this guy really going to cost 75 million just to talk to? No wonder idiot GM’s are willing to pay 16.5 mill to Richie
well, Deanna of Marinerds describes him as “the best Iranian-Japanese pitcher in the history of baseball, and the ace pitcher for the Nippon Ham Fighters”
Yu Darvish is a cocky bastard, but he’s a strikeout monster and is posting a sub-1 ERA this season so far with like 10Ks per 9.
On an unrelated note, has anyone noticed Cleveland’s dominant pitching of late? Their starters have gone over 43 consecutive innings without an earned run, and in their 3 game set with oakland have allowed a total of one run.
Absurdly good pitching is the story of this season. Is there a hitter in the AL that has 10 homers yet? Toronto has had similar stretches of excellent starting pitching. Of course neither Cleveland or TO can hit.
331,
Part of that is Oakland is actually a terrible offensive team.
Yeah everybody has noticed the lack of offense in the AL this year.
Oakland might have a terrible offense, but it’s not looking like it: right now they’re third in the American League in runs scored per game.