It’s Probably Time To Find A New Short Stop

Posted on May 15, 2012 by Steven A. Taylor

UZR.  Defensive Runs Saved.  Ehh.

Yeah, I guess Brendan Ryan is a good defensive short stop.  He makes supposedly difficult plays look routine, he makes routine plays look like he’s doing them in his sleep, WHATEVER.  I don’t care.  First of all, he’s not the greatest short stop ever, okay?  Hell, he’s not even the best short stop the Mariners have had on their roster!  When was the last time you saw him dive all the way to his right, then hop up and throw a runner out at first?  He doesn’t make AMAZING plays.  He’s not Little O, okay?

There are better short stops out there than Brendan Ryan.  Better players who also – news flash – have the ability to hit above .140!  I know, it’s a shock to us all, but there are guys out there.  There are guys out there in Triple-A, Double-A, fuck, probably even in Single-A RIGHT NOW who could do what Brendan Ryan does with the glove while also batting better than .140.

There are also guys on this team right now.  Guys like Kyle Seager.  You’re telling me a guy who is a natural second baseman (so he has to range far to both sides of his body for balls), who has been getting the bulk of his playing time at third base (a position further away from the first base bag than short stop), he can’t play short stop for this team?  Really.

He might not bring the flash and sizzle that Brendan Ryan has with his glove, but I’m willing to bet that Seager would be more than capable out there.  He’s not going to switch to short stop and immediately turn into Russ Davis for Christ’s sake!  Put him out there!  Give Liddi some time to blossom and let’s do this thing!

I’m getting REALLY sick and tired of seeing batting averages below the Mendoza Line.  This shit has to end someway, somehow.  Getting rid of Brendan Ryan is a start.

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Wedge Looking For Any Reason To Get Ichiro Out Of The Lineup

Posted on May 14, 2012 by Steven A. Taylor

That’s essentially how I take information like this, to say nothing of his quotes about the veterans not getting the job done in general.

Here’s what I don’t understand:  why does Wedge have SUCH a hard-on for not allowing Ichiro to bat leadoff?  Is it part of a pissing contest, where allowing Ichiro to return to his rightful spot in the lineup – a spot he made his own over the past decade in his Hall of Fame career – would be like admitting defeat and caving in to the pressure of his most successful veteran player (a guy who is perceived to have flaunted his ego in the past on such matters as playing time, playing right vs. center field, and batting leadoff vs. every other spot in the lineup; even though Ichiro has never publicly expressed his desire for anything except to be 1 of 25 guys on a team, more than willing to follow the manager’s decisions).

I honestly don’t see what the big deal is about just putting Ichiro back at leadoff.  You complain about him not producing at the 3-hole, but he was never intended to PLAY in the 3-hole!  YOU put him there, out of position, and then you complain that HE isn’t getting the job done.

And you know who could probably handle the 3-hole?  Casper Wells.  Who is the guy blocked from playing consistently because there’s a veteran in his position?  Casper Wells.

Wedge bemoans the fact that he doesn’t have any veterans who can carry some of the load offensively, but I think he secretly wants to rid this team of ALL veterans (except, of course, for Olivo, because when you can have defense like Olivo’s, why would you want to start a guy who has competent at bats, and why would you want a guy who DIDN’T lead the league in Passed Balls?)

How much better would our lineup be if we had Wells in right field instead of Ichiro?  Ehh, tough to say.  You’re obviously going to get more power, but you’re losing out on average and likely defense.

It just seems to me that Ichiro has a shorter leash than most guys, and it’s totally undeserved.  Ichiro is doing what he’s told, playing where he’s asked to play, and he’s producing.  Maybe not in the traditional 3-hole numbers like RBI and slugging percentage, but just because Ichiro’s batting average with RISP is low right now doesn’t mean it’s going to stay that way all season.  I bet if you looked into it, you’d see that Ichiro has been remarkably unlucky thus far and his success rate will likely regress to something more pleasing to the eye.

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The Mariners Have Lost Two Games To The Yankees

Posted on May 12, 2012 by Steven A. Taylor

So, here’s the deal:  if you stayed home this afternoon just to watch the Mariners game, I feel sorry for you.  I REALLY feel sorry for you.  If you’re old and sick and can’t get out of bed, I feel sorry for you.  If you’re in prison and today was your day to control the television, I feel sorry for you.  If you’re just a REALLY big Mariners fan (for some reason) and make it your mission to watch every game, I feel sorry for you.

If you had literally anything else you could possibly do, I ask you with exasperation:  why didn’t you DO that thing?  Are you insane?  Are you clinically insane?  And if not, could you go see a doctor and have that confirmed, because today was TOO FUCKING NICE for you to sit at home watching the fucking Mariners!

I don’t care if you watched it elsewhere.  If you went to a bar to do a little day drinking (like I did), or if you simply dragged your TV set out to your deck with your flip flops and your kiddie pool.  Just so long as you weren’t cooped up watching the fucking Mariners lose 6-2 to the fucking Yankees.

Life is too short you assholes!  Stop being assholes when it’s the nicest weekend the Seattle area is ever going to see!

That’s all I have to say.  Noesi sucked dick (as usual, against teams that are better than the Twins & A’s), the batters sucked dick (except for Carp, who was robbed of a 2-homer game by stupid, stupid replay), and the bullpen sucked dick.

Oh, and Felix lost yesterday (and didn’t look too good in the process).  But, it’s the middle of May and the weather is nice, so I reiterate:  who gives a shit?  Go outside!  Get a farmer’s tan for crying out loud!

If you waste Mother’s Day tomorrow by watching this fucking team, you’re a fucking idiot.  That is all.

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What Is The Ideal Height For An NFL Quarterback?

Posted on May 9, 2012 by Steven A. Taylor

There has been a lot of talk about Quarterbacks and Height ever since the Seahawks drafted Russell Wilson in the third round.  There’s a pretty good article over on Field Gulls about recent trends in drafting quarterbacks according to height.  I thought I’d go the other way in looking at the very best the NFL has had to offer at the position.

I’m not going to replicate the list, so just open this link and refer to it as we go along.  Obviously, we’re going to look at the top quarterbacks of all time according to total passing yards, because I’m not all that adept at any kind of sabermetrics the game of football has to offer.  Aside from a few long-timers who were always mediocre, but just so happened to play forever (Testaverde, Collins, Everett, Hart, Hadl, among others), it’s a pretty good indicator of who was good.  Once the shock of seeing Kerry Collins in the Top 10 of all time quarterbacks in yardage wears off, take a step back and realize that all of these guys had some success in the league, and if Russell Wilson turns out to be any of the top 60 guys on this list, I’m sure the Seahawks would be ecstatic.

I stopped at the Top 60 quarterbacks because it’s an arbitrary number (besides, if I went very much deeper, I’d be including guys like Daunte Culpepper and Steve Beuerlein … yeesh!).  But, before we go too much further, go ahead and open this link as well, and look at the top active quarterbacks.  It’s not critical, as I won’t be naming any names, but of the Top 20 active quarterbacks, below you’ll find the heights and the number of players at those heights:

  • 6’5 – 6
  • 6’4 – 4
  • 6’3 – 1
  • 6’2 – 5
  • 6’1 – 2
  • 6’0 – 2
  • 5’11 – 0

You’ll notice that 16 of the top 20 quarterbacks are 6’2 and higher (but, no taller than 6’5).  You’ll also notice that exactly 0 of the top 20 quarterbacks playing at the moment are 5’11 (which is Wilson’s height).

That should give you a fair idea of where the game is at right now, but what about All Time?  Well, of the Top 60 all time quarterbacks, you’ll find the heights and the number of players at those heights:

  • 6’5 – 10
  • 6’4 – 11
  • 6’3 – 12
  • 6’2 – 12
  • 6’1 – 9
  • 6’0 – 5
  • 5’11 – 1

That would be 45 out of 60 between the heights of 6’2 and 6’5 (with none in the top 60 over 6’5).  Now, I don’t know how many quarterbacks there have been over 6’5 in the history of the NFL, but wouldn’t you think there would have been at least ONE in the Top 60?  Hell, there’s ONE at 5’11 (the late, great Sonny Jurgensen, at number 30 all time).

Anyway, those are the numbers.  It’s interesting.  The optimal window you’re looking at is 6’2 – 6’5.  However, if you want me to give you one definitive height for your ideal quarterback, I’ll see if my 5th grade education can work something out.

Convert the heights to straight inches, multiply by the number of players at each height, add up the total inches & divide by 60 … that puts you at 74.7 inches, or just a few hairs under 6’3.

That is your ideal height.  74.7 inches.  Spread the word, we know how to fight them.

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Will Mike Williams Make The Team?

Posted on May 8, 2012 by Steven A. Taylor

As long as we’re speculating wildly about veteran Seahawks without a shred of anything other than hearsay, I might as well look at our Wide Receiver position and take a look at things.

It’s tough to say right now how many guys the Seahawks are going to keep at the position, but I think it’s appropriate to believe six is the magic number.  Field Gulls talks about it a little bit and seems to believe there are already five guys who are as safe as safe can be, considering no formal Training Camp or Preseason has taken place  yet.  They say:

Sidney Rice, Doug Baldwin, Golden Tate, Mike Williams, and Kris Durham should all make the team.

Leaving one spot for three other guys (Obomanu, Butler, and Lockette).

First and foremost, the only guy who is ACTUALLY safe to consider a lock for this team is Doug Baldwin.  You gotta figure Sidney Rice is at least a 90-95% lock, but that other 5-10% involves whether or not he can stay healthy.  At some point, you get tired of watching a guy lose half a season to some malady and just cut ties.  I figure Golden Tate is fairly safe, but he’s going to have to take a major step forward or else this will be his last go-around with the team.

As for Kris Durham and Mike Williams, I don’t think they’re safe AT ALL.  Here’s my take on the matter:  why would you want two guys on your 53-man roster who are pretty much the exact same?  Both are tall, relatively slow, and not particularly big leapers.  Essentially, they’re both 6’5 slot receivers, which makes absolutely no sense!  Yeah, they’re going to play one of the flanker positions, but how productive can you expect them to be?

Kris Durham has a slight advantage over Williams in that he’s younger, but the same red flags remain.  He’s a guy who missed most of last season with an injury.  Williams played most of last season, but was seemingly CONSTANTLY battling some nagging thing or another.  To say he had a down season last year would be sugarcoating the obvious:  he was TERRIBLE.  And, for once, we can probably say that Mike Williams had a terrible season unrelated to him dogging it with his physical fitness.  I just think his body is breaking down and he will never again be able to contribute at a high level for a full 16-game season.  Yeah, he’s only 28 years old, but when you’re talking about a guy who has battled weight issues for a long stretch, that’s certainly going to take some years off of your legs.  Last year, Mike Williams played football like a 34 year old would play football:  slow and invisible.

If Durham can figure out a way to make a dent this offseason, I could see the Seahawks just keeping him and dropping Williams.  Then again, if they both come out and struggle, I could easily see the Seahawks waiving both.

Personally, I don’t think the Seahawks would be at all smart to let Ricardo Lockette go.  That guy might have only caught two passes last season, but those were some impressive fucking catches!  With the dearth we have as far as high-end wide receiver speed, the Seahawks can’t afford to let this guy go!  Rice isn’t a speed guy.  Williams and Durham certainly aren’t speed guys.  Obomanu and Baldwin are quick, but I wouldn’t say they have the kind of down-field burning speed we’re looking for.  As far as I can tell, it’s just Lockette and Butler (but who knows if Butler has recovered from his leg fracture?).

If I had to give you the six wide receivers the Seahawks will keep going into the 2012 season, I’d say it looks something like this:

  1. Sidney Rice
  2. Doug Baldwin
  3. Ben Obomanu
  4. Ricardo Lockette
  5. Golden Tate
  6. Kris Durham

But, we’ll see.  Maybe I’ll be surprised by one of these undrafted free agents.  Maybe some other team cuts a guy that we like.  Either way, I don’t think there’s any way in hell Mike Williams makes this team.  He was a nice feel-good story for a while there, but it looks like his time is up.

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Who Was The Better Seattle Supersonics Player: Ray Allen or Xavier McDaniel?

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Steven A. Taylor

I was doing some research over the weekend.  If you’re familiar with this page, you get the idea of what I was doing with my precious, precious time (we only have so many years on Earth, what am I DOING with my life???).

For the most part, it’s pretty easy to determine who was the best Sonic at each respective jersey number, but there are a couple numbers giving me trouble.  Probably the most trouble comes with Jersey #34.

You, sir, were good ...

... but were you better?

I’m having a hard time with this.  Mainly, I’m struggling because I saw the entirety of the Ray Allen Era and I saw none of the Xavier McDaniel Era.  I don’t want to be one of those guys who jumps to the conclusion he’s familiar with just because he never saw the other guy play.

So, here’s what I’m going to do.  I’m going to bust out a ton of numbers here and then I’m going to try to talk my way through this.

Ray Allen (SG)
 Xavier McDaniel (SF)
Seasons 2002/2003 – 2006/2007 (29 games in 02/03 after mid-season trade for Gary Payton & other players/picks) 1985/1986 – 1990/1991 (15 games in 90/91 before mid-season trade for Eddie Johnson & two #1 draft picks)
Games 296 408
Games Started 296 331
Minutes Played 11,654 13,786
Minutes per Game 39.37 33.79
Points Scored 7,273 8,438
Points per Game 24.57 20.68
Field Goals 2,520/5,724 3,496/7,074
Field Goal % .440 .494
Free Throws 1,364/1,517 1,411/1,980
Free Throw % .899 .713
Three Pointers 869/2,252 35/130
Three Point % .386 .269
Rebounds 1,375 2,839
Rebounds per Game 4.65 6.96
Assists 1,241 1,006
Assists per Game 4.19 2.47
Turnovers 750 1,142
Turnovers per Game 2.53 2.80
All Star Games 4 (2003-2007) 1 (1987/1988)
Team Record 172-185 207-218
Reg. Season Win % .481 .487
Best Reg. Season Finish First (1 time) Fourth (1 time)
Playoff Appearances 1 (lost 2nd round, 04/05) 3 (Lost in West Finals 86/87, Lost 1st Round 87/88, Lost 2nd Round 88/89)

***

Now, I’ll start here and get it out of the way.  If we were comparing overall careers, it would be no contest.  Ray Allen has been the better NBA player overall.  But, we’re exclusively looking at what they did while wearing a Sonics uniform.

You could argue, successfully, that both players experienced their greatest statistical successes while wearing the Green & Gold.  Ray Allen was in the heart of his prime.  On top of that, he was the best player on the team, so the offense pretty much ran through him.  He came to the team and averaged 24.5 points in his 29-game first season with the team; he finished his tenure with the Sonics averaging 26.4 per game over a 55-game injury-shortened 06/07 season.  Then, he was traded to the Celtics for a high draft pick that helped kick-start this team into the powerhouse you see in Oklahoma City today.

The X-Man, on the other hand, was drafted by the Supersonics and came out of the gate on fire.  In his rookie season, he averaged 17 points and 8 rebounds; in his second (and best) season he averaged 23 points and nearly 9 rebounds.  His scoring per-game average remained in the 20s for the duration of his Sonics career before he was traded for a bounty to the Phoenix Suns (and, subsequently, started his long, slow decline towards obscurity).

These two guys have a TON in common, even though they were very different types of players on the court.  Probably the most important thing they have in common is:  when they were traded away, the organization eventually went on to a sustained high-level of success (after some initial growing pains).

But, if you really want to see how similar they are, just take a look at the table up there!  Essentially, McDaniel played an extra season, but Allen averaged more minutes per game, so they’re close on that score.  Both averaged over 20 points per game.  McDaniel had the higher field goal percentage, but Allen has him beat on free throws and three pointers.  McDaniel has Allen on rebounds, but Allen has him on assists and turnovers.  Allen had greater individual success (4 straight All Star Game appearances during a time when Kobe Bryant was a thing that existed in his very own conference), but McDaniel had greater team success (3 straight playoff appearances, including a trip to the Western Conference Finals).

If you took every catagory in that table and picked a winner for each, Ray Allen wins 12 and Xavier McDaniel wins 12.  So, it comes down to:  what do you weigh more heavily?

McDaniel played in more games and therefore scored more points, there’s gotta be something said for that.  But, Allen had more points per game, so you could argue he was more integral to the team’s offense and its overall success.  However, if you’re going to bring overall team success into the argument, then it’s no contest:  McDaniel played a key role on a Sonics team that made it all the way to the Western Conference Finals (losing 4-0 to the Lakers), in what was statistically his best season.  Ray Allen could only lead this team to one playoff invitation, and even then we ended up losing in the second round.  Then again, if we’re going to look at the MVP argument, you could argue that Ray Allen was more important to the team’s success.  He led a team that only had Rashard Lewis and a whole bunch of scrubs.  X-Man was on a team with Tom Chambers and Dale Ellis both crushing it from the outside.  You take Ray Allen off of any of those Sonics teams and you’re looking at one of the worst (if not THE worst) in the entire league.  Take X-Man off of those 80s Sonics teams and I think they might still be okay.

When it comes right down to it, I think you have to look at some advanced stats.  Basketball Reference has some good ones if you feel like comparing.  The bottom line is:  Ray Allen was a better offensive force and Xavier McDaniel was a better defensive force.  But, when you put it all together, Ray Allen’s offense was SO good while he was in Seattle that he overwhelms whatever defensive advantage McDaniel had going for him.

Just look at Win Shares, if nothing else (an estimate of the number of wins contributed by a player).  It’s almost like WAR in baseball.  Ray Allen’s looked like this:  4.8 (in his 29-game first season with the team), 6.9, 10.7, 9.5, & 6.3.  Xavier McDaniel’s looked like this:  5.1, 7.4, 6.2, 5.3, 5.4, 0.9 (in his 15-game final season with the team).  If you add them all up (which I suppose is a thing you could do; I don’t see why you couldn’t) then you’ve got 38.2 wins contributed by Ray Allen and only 30.3 wins contributed by Xavier McDaniel (who, as noted above, played in more games).

So, I guess my answer is going to reluctantly be Ray Allen.  It’s too bad too, because if we were factoring in Trash-Talking Bad-Ass-ness, or one’s highlight reel, choosing the winner would be an X-Man slam dunk followed by a 5-second stare-down of a posterized Ray Allen.

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The Mariners Had One Of Their Best Pitching Nights Ever Last Night

Posted on May 6, 2012 by Steven A. Taylor

While overall it may suck to be a Mariners fan this year, there are still individual games worth watching.  Worth getting excited about.  And worth dwelling upon in morning-after posts.

Invariably, these games almost exclusively involve Felix Hernandez in some way.

I’m visiting family this weekend, which means I get to be around cable television for a few days.  Which means I get to see the Seattle Mariners play baseball for free.  Which means I made it home in time on Friday to watch that 7th inning meltdown of epic proportions.

It also means I made last night’s game Appointment Television.  6pm, I would be parked on the couch in front of our flat screen as the Mariners sought to end their 7-game losing streak against the Minnesota Twins.  Felix Hernandez was taking the hill vs. Some Dumb Skank for the Twins, and boy did this game not disappoint!

I seem to be good luck for this team when I’ve had a few many beers.  A real fan would notice this trend and become a full-blown alcoholic for his team.  Just sayin’.

The night started out as a Very Mariners Kind Of Game.  Five shutout innings for both sides, with the Twins being let off the hook thanks to three double play ground balls.  FINALLY, Some Dumb Skank made one mistake too many and Kyle Seager of all people pounded that mistake back up the middle for a 2-run single.

From there, the bullpen took over.  And in the 7th inning, the Mariners exploded.  Walk by Carp, bunt single by Saunders, walk by Ackley, sac fly by Brendan Ryan (who I’d been killing on Twitter all night, so good job there, I guess).  Then, the big guns took over.  Those big, small, Japanese guns attached to the torso of one Ichiro Suzuki.  He absolutely dismantled a pitch into the right-center gap for a 2-run triple to blow the game wide open (and give guys like me hope that Felix would be allowed to finish the game in the 9th if things kept going his way, which they most certainly would have).  Kyle Seager finished the barrage with a 2-run homer, firmly implanting himself into this lineup every day for the rest of the season.

The Mariners won this game 7-0.  They were rotten for a while, then they were special, and then they cruised to victory.  One man who was NOT rotten was Felix Hernandez.  He was everything I ever could’ve asked for in an Ace and then some.

I’m not gonna lie to you, I went into this game thinking No Hitter.  Truth be told, I go into just about every Felix start thinking No Hitter, but that’s because this has been building up since his Cy Young season of 2010.  Hell, this has been building up since he made his very first start in the late summer of 2005!  I can only describe the feeling as being like having your first-born spend 10 months in the womb … COME OUT OF THERE ALREADY AND PITCH THAT FUCKING NO-NO!!!

The anticipation is killing me, God damn it!  Of course, I’m not blaming Felix or anything, because I have no doubt that it’s going to happen eventually.  I just want to get it out of the way so we can see half a dozen more before his career ends!  And, for crying out loud, I want to see it in a Mariners uniform!

Anyway, I think there was a little extra juice for my no hitter hopes last night because of the Twins (and the fact that they’re so bad AND they’ve already been no-hit this season).  Of course, what you have to realize is, with Felix, when it finally happens, it’s not going to be against the team you expect.  It’ll be someone like the Red Sox or Royals or Rockies.  Some out-of-nowhere kind of situation where he’ll do it and it won’t be ENTIRELY unexpected … just not as expected as it would be against teams like this year’s Twins, last year’s Padres, or any year’s Athletics.

With 9-up and 9-down last night, I finally let myself get a little more excited.  But, that fucking 10th batter knocked a clean single between first and second base and that was that.  No big, suspense-filled evening.  No sitting on the edge of my seat.  All that was left was wondering how the Mariners would blow another gem of a start from their King.

As I described above, that didn’t happen.  The second half of this game was quite enjoyable.  All that remained was seeing if that 1 hit would hold up.

9-up and 9-down over the first three innings.  15-up and 15-down from innings 5-9.  Felix never got the opportunity to finish the game, but he did go 8 innings having given up just the 1 hit, walking 2, and striking out 9.  The 1 hit and 2 walks were all in the 4th inning.  Given the final score, you can see how that scoring threat concluded.  At only 107 pitches, Felix easily could’ve gone out in the final frame and finished what he started, but what would be the point?  I have a feeling if the score was still 2-0, Wedge might have left Felix in (remembering what happened the last time League tried to save a Felix start).  But, who knows?  I’m almost certain Wedge would have left Felix in if our season meant anything more than giving experience to our youthful hitters, but that’s neither here nor there.  Felix came out, and Steve Delabar shut the Twins down in the 9th.

1 hit.  2 walks.  10 strikeouts.  Of the 17 other outs, 11 of them were grounders.  1 was a sacrifice bunt.  5 were fly ball outs.  3 total base runners, all of them in one inning.  I don’t have an extensive history of individual pitching performances (or combo performances with relievers), but I have to believe this was one of the very best we’ve ever seen!  Right up there with the two no-hitters and Felix’s 1-hitter against the Red Sox in 2007 against Dice-K.

History.  It may not be the kind of history that will be remembered forever, it may not be the kind of history we WANTED to see.  But, it’s the kind of history we deserved.  I’m Batman.

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Two Terrible Decisions Involving Brandon Morrow & The Mariners

Posted on May 4, 2012 by Steven A. Taylor

If you’re new to the site, I highly encourage you to take some time out of your day and check out my “Seattle’s Worst Trades, Draft Picks, & Free Agent Signings” page.  It’s chock full of slap-your-forehead, pull-your-hair-out goodness awfulness!

As you make your way towards the bottom of that page, you’ll notice what happened on June 6, 2006:  the day the Seattle Mariners drafted Brandon Morrow.  “But, how can THAT be a bad thing?  Isn’t he a pretty good pitcher?”

Slow down, friend!  He’s okay, but he still has his flashes of complete ineptitude.  However, I believe he’s well on his way toward being great … let’s just not get ahead of ourselves.

Drafting Brandon Morrow was a mistake.  It was a mistake because we passed on Tim Lincecum, who was a home-grown product who went on to win back-to-back Cy Young Awards.  Tim Lincecum is great, in spite of his rocky start to this season.  Brandon Morrow is not great.  Brandon Morrow will probably NEVER win a Cy Young Award.

But that doesn’t mean he won’t be a damn good pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays (and then, when his contract ends, the New York Yankees).

I know Mariners fans are pretty happy with the young pitchers we have coming through the pike:  Danny Hultzen, Taijuan Walker, and James Paxton.  But, the Mariners could have had all of those guys PLUS a top-flight starter in Brandon Morrow.

And instead, we gave him away for a would-be closer and a guy named Johermyn Chavez who COULD be a good outfielder for us, or he could be absolutely nothing.

I always liked Brandon Morrow.  Not as much as I would’ve liked Lincecum, but I thought he had raw ability that would take him far.  And essentially, we gave him away for a relief pitcher who probably won’t be around beyond this season, and an outfielder who’s probably many years away from making a dent (if he ever makes it at all).

In short, drafting Brandon Morrow was a bust of a move, and trading him for League and Chavez was a bust of a move.  Yesterday, Morrow 3-hit the Angels in Los Angeles.  He had 8 strikeouts and 0 walks.  Last week, he dominated the Mariners over 6 shutout innings (but, then again, who HASN’T dominated the Mariners over 6 shutout innings).  Last year, he might not have had the best numbers, but he showed flashes of what he could eventually become.  This year, I think he’s finally making that leap towards being an elite starting pitcher.  (and, let us never forget that 2010 game where he had 17 strikeouts against the Rays, while only giving up 1 hit … anyone who can do THAT, you gotta figure will eventually put it all together in the realm of Consistency).

Even if you think trading Morrow was a smart move, what we GOT for him isn’t NEARLY as much as we could’ve gotten if we would’ve just held onto him these past couple years.  Really, trading him when we did made little-to-no sense when you think about it.  Yeah, it coincided with the 2-week period where we made the Cliff Lee deal (which was awesome) and the Chone Figgins signing (which was lauded when it happened); but it would’ve been foolish to think we would seriously contend.  And, even if you DID think we were going to contend, I guarantee having Morrow at the back-end of our rotation would’ve been a lot more beneficial than having Brandon League locking down the 8th innings behind David Aardsma.

Pretty soon here, when I get around to it, I’m going to have to add a date to my Seattle’s Worst Trades, Draft Picks, & Free Agent Signings page.  December 23, 2009:  the day we gave away a potentially dominant starting pitcher for dandelion seeds.

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What the Seahawks Should Do At Quarterback In 2012

Posted on May 3, 2012 by Steven A. Taylor

In the event you can’t count, the Seattle Seahawks have four quarterbacks on the roster.  Well, not technically, but we expect Russell Wilson to sign his contract any time.  THEN we’ll have four quarterbacks.

In the event you’re new to the game of professional football, teams rarely – if EVER – keep more than three quarterbacks on the 53-man roster.  Sometimes, it’s as few as two.  Three.  Three is the cheese.

"Speaks so well" isn't a compliment!

Now, if you’re like me, you think Matt Flynn is going to be our starter going into Week 1 of the regular season.  The only conceivable way this DOESN’T happen is if he gets injured.  Matt Flynn getting injured would be very VERY bad for my mental well-being.  I can’t handle a whole fucking summer of the Mariners, followed by our best quarterback going into the regular season injured.

Depending on the severity of the hypothetical injury, we could see some interesting things shake out.  If Flynn goes down for the count early in the preseason, I don’t think there’s any question Tarvar enters as the Number 1 Quarterback.  If Flynn’s injury is something that’s only going to cost him a week or two … maybe not?

Here’s my thinking on the matter:  let’s say Matt Flynn wins the starting job in Training Camp, but let’s say it’s not exactly a landslide.  Both quarterbacks show flashes of brilliance, and both show flashes of why they should be backups in this league.  At that point, the last thing this team wants is a Quarterback Controversy.  Tarvar is in the last year of his 2-year deal.  Flynn is in the first year of a 4-year deal.  Obviously, all things being equal, all things are not equal.  That’s a notch in Flynn’s belt right off the bat, before he’s even thrown a pass in a Seahawks uniform.

I wouldn’t be surprised in the least if, given the closeness of the outcome between the two players, Tarvar is released before the regular season starts, in the final roster cut-downs.

Seahawks fans might not love the guy, but Tarvar showed a lot of grit and a lot of guts last season by taking a pounding behind an inexperienced offensive line.  Granted, some of that was of his own making by holding the ball too damn long, but still.  If Flynn comes out of the gate and costs us a couple of ballgames, who’s to say these fans around here wouldn’t be calling for Tarvar to replace our Golden Child?  Hell, these fans once chanted for Trent Fucking Dilfer!  They once chanted for Charlie Whitehurst!

On the one hand, I see the value of having a veteran guy who knows the offense as your second string quarterback.  QBs go down all the time in this league!  With the talent we have around the quarterback position, I could easily see Tarvar stepping in for a game or two (while Flynn works through an ankle sprain or something) and this team not missing a beat.

On the other, more favorable hand, I want Tarvar out of my life but permanently.  I want to see Matt Flynn thrash the shit out of him in Training Camp so there’s absolutely no question who the leader is of this team.  I want to see more of Josh Portis, because I think he can be exciting.  And, I want to see what Russell Wilson is capable of.

Essentially, Tarvar’s fate rests in Russell Wilson’s hands.  I think we’re all pretty confident in the fact that Josh Portis is a third stringer and no more.  But, Wilson is the real wild card here.  He’s a rookie, so off the bat everything is going to be difficult for him.  But, if he shows this coaching staff he can handle the workload, can remain composed on the field, and lead this offense on some impressive drives, then he could easily snatch that second string job from Tarvar and make the decision to waive him academic.

I, for one, hope exactly that happens.  Wilson seems to have a good head on his shoulders.  Seems like he’ll be willing to put in all the extra work required to be a major player in this league.  If he ends up being the reason why we jettison Tarvar, he will most certainly earn a place in this bitter blogger’s heart.

Tarvar was a move based out of necessity.  We needed to rid this team of Matt Hasselbeck because his best days were clearly behind him.  We needed a quarterback who knew the offense our coordinator was bringing in because we had no offseason thanks to the lockout.  Tarvar came in, tried his hardest, and led this team to a number of impressive wins.  But, he’s still a .500 quarterback at best.  It’s time to let him go and see what a real man can do with the position.

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Why It Sucks To Root For The Mariners This Year

Posted on May 2, 2012 by Steven A. Taylor

Look, I’m well aware of where the Mariners are at right now.  Anybody who’s anybody had the Mariners at about a 0% chance of making the playoffs this season.  But, for crying out LOUD!  We’re already 6.5 games out of first place in the AL West and it’s not even May 3rd yet!

Again, I get it, the Mariners were never going to do anything this year anyway.  But, would it KILL the Texas Rangers to not be this good?  Would it KILL the Seattle Mariners to win some of these close games?  You know, like in 2009 when we had that ridiculous 35-20 record in 1-run games?  Right now, we’re 3-5 in 1-run games, but it feels something like 0-8.

It sucks not just because we’re bad, but because we’re SO bad you might as well forget about the rest of the season entirely.  The last place team in the AL Central is only 6 games out of first.  The last place team in the East is only 5 games back and they’re the Boston fucking Red Sox.  We’re already 6.5 games back and we’re only in 3rd place!

I’m a rational human being who’s also a Mariners fan, but could you at least fool me for a couple months?  Could you AT LEAST suck me into believing that you might, in some freakish way, contend for SOMETHING that’s not a high draft pick?  I don’t ask for a whole lot; lord knows as a Mariners fan, I could NEVER ask for a whole lot and expect anything in return.  But, Jesus Christ!  We’ve played all of 26 games and it feels like the season’s already over!

Essentially, what we’ve got to look forward to, what we’re supposed to root for ISN’T contention for a post-season spot, but rather a whole bunch of moral victories.

We want to see the Mariners win more than 75 games, which would be a HELL of an improvement over the last two seasons.  We want to see young guys like Jesus Montero, Kyle Seager, Dustin Ackley, Justin Smoak, Alex Liddi, Michael Saunders, and Mike Carp make an impact on the big league roster, so they can be counted on going forward to lead this team back to prominence (just, you know, not THIS season, because Texas).  We want to see even-younger guys like Danny Hultzen, James Paxton, and Taijuan Walker make the jump while in Double-A so hopefully they too can help lead this team back to prominence.  And, to a lesser extent, we want to see Felix Hernandez continue to dominate every fifth day because we like Felix a lot.

It’s not an ideal situation, but it’s all we’ve got.  AND … it sucks.  The Texas Rangers will probably end up with the easiest path to the playoffs in the history of the playoffs.  Meanwhile, the Mariners are going to duke it out for whatever scraps lie in their wake.

I’ve already given up.  These Mariners, in conjunction with those Rangers, have officially sucked my will to live in 2012.  And the worst thing about it?  I’ve got a full summer of meaningless baseball to follow.  I’m beginning to think Junior Seau had the right idea …

Yeah, that was probably too soon.  A heartfelt “my bad” for that one.

Three Months, Eight Days, 23 Hours, and 10 Minutes until the first Seahawks preseason game.  Believe Big!

Posted in Mariners | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment