The harsh reality vs. some positives

[TTown]

HRs hit in a Mariner uniform -- The Race to Double Digits:

1. Parker Bros., 8
1. Guti, 8
3. Saunders, 7
3. Kotchman, 7
5. Lopez, 6
5. Sweeney, 6
7. Branyan, 3
7. Ichiro, 3
9. Smoak, 2
9. Carp, 2
11. A whole mess o' crappy players.

I'm hoping Smoak can catch the group, though pushed a bit by Saunders. Milton hit one at the end of June so that should last him till mid-August or so, but unless Lopez gets hot I do think we'll see a Saunders/Smoak/Guti 1-2-3 by season's end. Topped out at around 12, probably.

But depressing power numbers aside, there have been some positives lately:

Saunders has looked very good. He's raised his BA 20 % points so far in July, and his OBP is over .300 for the first time since he got settled in after his call-up. He just looks more comfortable up at the plate. None of this Milton/Langerhans nonsense in left. Unless Saunders breaks a foot, play him.

Vargas was great again today, but didn't get the win because we "pulled a Mariner" and scored one run for him. I may have said this before, but -- if you were to tell me during Spring Training that in mid-July Jason freaking Vargas would have a 2.97 ERA after 17 starts, I'd be printing up my playoff tickets. Felix, Lee, Bedard (presumed back in June originally, I think?), and the back end of our rotation is slingin' a sub-3 ERA? Take that, AL West! God, reality sucks. But Vargas is pulling his weight.

Smoak was .333/2/4 in the 4 game Angel series. Hard to fault him for struggling in the two games he played vs. the Yanks prior to the break, but props for taking the days off to readjust to his surroundings. It'll be interesting to see what returning to Safeco will do for him. We've got 7 with the Chi and Bo Sox coming up. Both are good teams, but both can be hit. We've got 4 with Boston so we'll probably draw both Bucchholz and Lester, but I do believe we'll miss both Danks and Buerhle in the ChiSox series. Since winning doesn't really matter anymore, my new, smaller goals for the season are to track the progress of Smoak and Saunders.

[Sweezo]

Saunders has looked very good. He's raised his BA 20 % points so far in July, and his OBP is over .300 for the first time since he got settled in after his call-up. He just looks more comfortable up at the plate. None of this Milton/Langerhans nonsense in left. Unless Saunders breaks a foot, play him.

You know...I doubt Saunders will ever hit for a high average in the majors. With his height I think he'll always be somewhat susceptible to hard stuff inside, or breaking stuff away if he's focusing too much in the hard stuff inside.

But that's fine...he has a good eye, is very good on defense, and has enough power and speed that he might be a 20/20 guy. If he hits for a decent average, I think he'll be a pretty good player.

I like Langerhans in LF on days where Saunders just needs a break. Dude's purely a bench player, but even when he played the other day...he scored on a play at home that was nothing more or less than a good baserunning decision. On one hand, it's a shame he rides the pine when the players we count on to carry them team seem to be struggling with fundamental rules in baseball on the basepaths.