88-74

[Sweezo]

Overall, not a horrible year. I certainly have my list of complaints, but at the very least the team managed to put a product on the field that was worth watching more often than not and held my attention for the better part of the season.

And there were some positive signs for the future. Some of the younger players like Jones and Clement were able to showcase a bit of their potential. The bullpen looked solid before it wore down at the end. Ibanez turned it around after looking done for most of the year. Beltre was solid all around.

What can Bavasi do to shore up the rotation? Felix is coming along, Batista was actually pretty solid, and Washburn serviceable. Once McLaren started to treat him like an innings eater and letting him try to work out of trouble instead of going to the pen, his numbers plummeted. And, quite frankly, I'm resigned to him being on the team until his contract's done. Who do they turn to after those three? Would the team be better off turning to the likes of Baek/RRS/Morrow to fill those spots instead of spending millions of dollars on a proven players who's likely to provide similar numbers?

Certainly Bavasi has to realize he's dodged bullets by having offered huge contracts to the likes of Millwood, Schmidt, and Zito only to see them sign elsewhere. Is he cognizant of that fact or does he decide to give a gift to another pitcher that doesn't really deserve it?

What are the team's plans at second base? Have they given up on Lopez? Could part of his problems be mitigated by giving Vidro more spot starts as Lopez just seems to wear down in the second half?

What does the team do at DH? Do they realize Ibanez sucks defensively and put Vidro on the bench as a spot starter/pinch hitter?

If the team can find two starters, and realize Jones is the answer in LF, I actually think they could have a chance to take down the Angels next season. But does anyone trust Bavasi to find replacement for Ramirez and Weaver? Keeping mind this is what he has to choose from in the offseason?

Code: Select all

Kris Benson   Baltimore Orioles   Option
Paul Byrd   Cleveland Indians   Option
Shawn Chacon   Pittsburgh Pirates   
Roger Clemens   New York Yankees   
Matt Clement   Boston Red Sox   
Bartolo Colon   Los Angeles Angels   
Scott Elarton   Cleveland Indians   
Josh Fogg   Colorado Rockies   
Casey Fossum   Tampa Bay Devil Rays   Option
Freddy Garcia   Philadelphia Phillies   
Livan Hernandez   Arizona Diamondbacks   
Jason Jennings   Houston Astros   
Brian Lawrence   Colorado Rockies   Option
Jon Lieber   Philadelphia Phillies   
Kyle Lohse   Philadelphia Phillies   
Rodrigo Lopez   Colorado Rockies   
Wade Miller   Chicago Cubs   
Eric Milton   Cincinnati Reds   
Odalis Perez   Kansas City Royals   Option
Joel Pineiro   St. Louis Cardinals   Option
Mark Prior   Chicago Cubs   
Kenny Rogers   Detroit Tigers   
Curt Schilling   Boston Red Sox   
Carlos Silva   Minnesota Twins   
Julian Tavarez   Boston Red Sox   Option
John Thompson   Kansas City Royals   
Brett Tomko   Los Angeles Dodgers   Option
Kip Wells   St. Louis Cardinals   
Randy Wolf    Los Angeles Dodgers   Option
Jaret Wright   Baltimore Orioles   
Victor Zambrano   Pittsburgh Pirates

[BlackMamba]

i was also pleased with the M's this season, i didn't think they could finish with a good record, 6 games behind the al west title and to the wild card.

i think the offensive side of the M's is pretty stable, heck, they finished 2nd behind the yankees with a 0.287 BA. still, players like beltre, sexson and vidro need to produce more runs.

what could have been the problem with seattle was their pitching. i think the only trust-wurthy pitchers were felix and putz, all the other either a great game or a 8 runs in an inning game.

i can't say i trust bavas.

of the list:
Paul Byrd Cleveland Indians - veteran good option, but will probable resign
Roger Clemens New York Yankees - will he finally retire?
Matt Clement Boston Red Sox - could be a good option
Bartolo Colon Los Angeles Angels - overrated? i would give him a chance
Josh Fogg Colorado Rockies - another good option, but he could resign
Freddy Garcia Philadelphia Phillies - lol!
Livan Hernandez Arizona Diamondbacks - yes, but probably will resign
Jason Jennings Houston Astros - yes!!!
Rodrigo Lopez Colorado Rockies - yes
Wade Miller Chicago Cubs - yes
Eric Milton Cincinnati Reds - yes
Odalis Perez Kansas City Royals - yes
Joel Pineiro St. Louis Cardinals - lol!!
Kenny Rogers Detroit Tigers - if cheap, yes
Carlos Silva Minnesota Twins - yes
Brett Tomko Los Angeles Dodgers - cool name, but no
Randy Wolf Los Angeles Dodgers - yes
Jaret Wright Baltimore Orioles - yes

[PhilipNelsonFan]

After hearing the whispers that this team would struggle to 50 games, you can't help but believe that the ship is righting itself in some way. No thanks to the help of the general manager or manager.

Offensively, we recovered from anemia to see the likes of Jose Guillen and Jose Vidro come along and spark the team in critical situations. Raul Ibanez was as present as ever, and the young guys showed a little.

Pitching-wise....God. We don't have NEARLY enough starting pitching, but we have some great young arms in the bullpen. Constructing a 25-man roster for this team would be really hard. Bavasi can't do it, but there are some things he misses that are completely obvious.

As Sweezo mentioned, we have three competent starting pitchers under contract for next year, and we need to fill those holes pretty badly. King Felix occupies the role of ace, while I love Jarrod Washburn as the No. 2 starter. (I'm probably higher on Washburn than anyone else here, but I like what he brings to the table.) Miguel Batista did well but is, at best a fourth starter.

Of Sweezo's list, there are a lot of sexy names, but I'd prefer a somewhat younger guy with some upside. Should we fail to trade Sexson for anything of merit, these are the pitchers I'd like to explore:

Shawn Chacon
Paul Byrd
Josh Fogg
Casey Fossum
Livan Hernandez
Kyle Lohse

Wow, that's a short list. But there are a lot of crappy pitchers on that list (Tomko, Pineiro, the shell of Matt Clement).

Were it up to me, I'd sign Livan to be the No. 3 (with the stuff and experience to be a No. 2) and Paul Byrd as a back-end starter. Then I'd offer Casey Fossum a minor-league contract so that Ryan Feierabend doesn't have to get shelled in spot starts.

So, here's my pitching rotation for next year:

No. 1: King Felix
No. 2: Washburn
No. 3: Livan Hernandez
No. 4: Miguel Batista
No. 5: Paul Byrd

Long relief: Brandon Morrow, Ryan Feierabend
Middle relief: George Sherrill, Ryan Rowland-Smith, Jon Huber, Mark Lowe, Kameron Mickolio, Robert Rohrbaugh
Setup man: Eric O'Flaherty (you my boy!)
Closer: Joseph Jason Putz

Injury/suckitude call-ups: Casey Fossum, Cha Seung Baek
September call-ups: Austin Bibens-Dirkx, Tony Butler, Chris Tillman, Doug Fister, Travis Chick, Andy Baldwin.

How does that sound?

[Ex-hippie]

Of Sweezo's list, there are a lot of sexy names, but I'd prefer a somewhat younger guy with some upside. Should we fail to trade Sexson for anything of merit, these are the pitchers I'd like to explore:

Shawn Chacon
Paul Byrd
Josh Fogg
Casey Fossum
Livan Hernandez
Kyle Lohse

Yuck!

From that list, I would consider Byrd and Hernandez to be possibilities as mid-rotation guys. Byrd is the better pitcher although Hernandez might be desirable just for his miracle arm that should have fallen off years ago.

Chacon, Fogg and Lohse are three pitchers who should stay in the NL, where they will be only slightly less than adequate pitchers. If they try to move to the AL, they will have about as much success with it as Horacio Ramirez did. Lohse was, in fact, in the AL, and he was completely incompetent in his last year in Minny. Fogg is unimpressive as a soft-tossing righty (and was never that good in the first place). Chacon has been a decent reliever throughout his career but has faltered as a starter. I would not touch any of them with a ten-foot pole.

Then there's Fossum. He was once considered a decent prospect, but that was before he became a 30-year-old with a career 5.46 ERA. He could have value for the M's -- that is, in the role that Justin Lehr filled this past season.

Thoughts on some of the others from Sweezo's list:

Possible reclamation projects, but only if they can be had on the cheap: Matt Clement, Mark Prior

Man who would be happy to finally be in a forgiving park: Jason Jennings

Adequate back-of-rotation options (but not worth it if they're asking for Washburn-Batista money): Carlos Silva, Julian Tavarez, John Thomson, Randy Wolf

Guy who makes you go "hmm": Kenny Rogers

Don't even think about it, they're finished: Freddy Garcia, Bartolo Colon

Guys who will never wear Mariner uniforms: Roger Clemens, Curt Schilling

[Basketball Jesus]

After hearing the whispers that this team would struggle to 50 games, you can't help but believe that the ship is righting itself in some way. No thanks to the help of the general manager or manager.

The team outperformed their Pythagorean by nine wins, second-best in baseball (behind Arizona

[Ex-hippie]

They did? Which young guys?

I liked what little we got to see out of Clement and Wlad the Impaler.

So, you expect the Mariners to make two big-name (and probably big-ticket) FA pitching splashes this offseason? That

[Ex-hippie]

Why not this?

1. Felix
2. Jarrod Washburn
3. Jason Jennings
4. Miguel Bautista
5. Cha Seung Baek

I would stay away from Hernandez at all costs

[Basketball Jesus]

I have a feeling Prior

[BlackMamba]

i also believe jennings and hern

[Ex-hippie]

-= original quote snipped =-
I like Jason Jennings; I didn't list him because I think it'd be hard to pry him from Colorado, a prospect I would've laughed at three years ago.

Yes, the Astros had to work very hard to get him.

[PhilipNelsonFan]

-= original quote snipped =-



Yes, the Astros had to work very hard to get him.

LOL. I must be lightyears behind on things.

Ah well. At least my prediction that Jamie Moyer would have a good year with the Cubs wasn't TOO far off.

[34Celtic]

Jaret Wright Baltimore Orioles - yes

If you want a guy who will give you 5 innings a start, nothing more, nothing less than go for it. He sucks.

[MrNate]

Sure they went 88-74, but their pythag w-l was 79-83, and our starting pitching was one of the worst in the league. We were 25th in Quality Starts, finishing only ahead Of StL, KC, Was, Texas and Florida... I think you can see where this is going. Our starting pitching needs a lot of work this season if we want to have any chance at 88 wins again (without a large amount of luck). The Bedard trade rumors that have been going around would be amazing, as turning Adam Jones/Brandon Morrow, into a top level left handed arm like Bedard would go a long way to shoring up our rotation. We are still the front runners for Hiroki, and I think he will give us a solid middle of the rotation innings eater, who at times can be dominant (mostly because of the lack of scouting). Another rumor going around is that if the Cubs can't get Fukudome (a fun name to pronounce incorrectly on purpose) they will try to get Raul Ibanez for a pitcher, either Mark Prior (a name that hardly excites me) or Sean Marshall (:D), this would prove to be a double whammy as we can remove our black hole in left field defensively while at the same time improving our starting pitching.

If all this happened and we ended up with a rotation like Bedard/Felix/Hiroki/Marshall/Washburn (although Felix/bedard may be switched to break up the lefties? I dunno if McLaren is into that) And move Batista to the pen to cover Morrow's role, bring up Wlad to play left full time, play Clement at DH, Broussard at first, try to turn Sexson into a warm body to play right field (or if you have to move broussard out there and play sexson at first, though this is not preferred), get rid of Jose Lopez for someone who doesn't hurt you with both the glove AND the bat, just one or the other, and you could have a bonafied contender.

Leave the team as it is now and go to war with Felix/Washburn/Batista/Baek/(FreeAgent?) and you can say hello to an 80 win or less season, I'd almost guarantee it. With the way Detroit has loaded up and Boston has retained talent, we'd either have to beat the Yankees/Indians or the Angels, neither of which I think is very likely.