Sunday, August 07, 2005
GAME 110: WHITE SOX 3, MARINERS 1
White Sox 3, Mariners 1
In 25 words or less: When losses are quicker, they take up less of your day when you're watching them. Thank goodness for this series.
This one featured Jeff Harris, 31 years young, making his first Major League start, and today he was matched up against Jon Garland. Just in case, it was a good thing that Jamie Moyer was able to get into the eighth inning on Saturday night to save most of the bullpen in case Harris blew up. As for the team as a whole, the Mariners were once again going for a series win. Could they do it against a 15-game winner and the team with the best record in baseball?
TOP 1ST
Grade: C-
No fight against Garland here. Ichiro bounced a 2-0 pitch out to second. Willie Bloomquist got ahead 2-0 but whiffed on a high 2-2 pitch. Raul Ibañez bounced out to third on the first pitch.
BOTTOM 1ST
Grade: A
Harris looked good early in his first Major League start. Scott Podsednik got behind 0-2 and took a 1-2 breaking ball over the outsdie corner for a strikeout. Tadahito Iguchi got behind 0-2, took a 1-2 pitch just off the plate outside, then couldn't hold a checkswing on a 2-2 pitch inside. Aaron Rowand grounded hard to Beltre at third on the first pitch.
TOP 2ND
Grade: C-
The game was going quick, at least. Richie Sexson grounded the 2-0 pitch hard to third. Adrian Beltre rolled the second pitch to short. Jeremy Reed flew out to the track in leftfield.
BOTTOM 2ND
Grade: B
Harris didn't implode. Paul Konerko took a full-count breaking ball over the outside corner. AJ Pierzynski fouled off a couple of 2-2 pitches before ripping a single into rightfield. Jermaine Dye popped out with a broken bat nearly to the track in leftfield. Timo Perez got ahead 3-0 and walked on a 3-1 pitch outside for a walk. Joe Crede flew out to Yuniesky Betancourt moving backward into shallow leftfield after Chris Snelling fell down in pursuit of the ball.
TOP 3RD
Grade: B
A case of the run. Yuniesky Betancourt popped high to Rowand in rightcenter. Chris Snelling walked on four pitches. Wiki Gonzalez grounded off Garland's glove, and the ball ricocheted near Juan Uribe at short, but it got past him and into leftfield, and the alert Snelling took third on the play. Ichiro poked a single past the shortstop and into centerfield, scoring Snelling and moving Gonzalez to second.
»» MARINERS 1, WHITE SOX 0
Bloomquist smoked the second pitch right into Garland's glove for a lineout. Ibañez worked a 1-2 count full before grounding out to second.
BOTTOM 3RD
Grade: B+
Not bad by Harris. Juan Uribe got ahead 2-0 and eventually flew out to leftfield. Podsednik tagged a pitch right into Beltre's glove (reaching up), for a lineout. Iguchi nubbed an 0-2 pitch to first, and Sexson underhanded to a covering Harris.
TOP 4TH
Grade: C-
This one was fairly quick. Sexson took a 2-2 pitch over the outside corner. Beltre grounded the second pitch hard to third. Reed got ahead 2-0 and later tapped a full-count pitch back to the mound.
BOTTOM 4TH
Grade: B-
Big fly. Rowand knocked a single past a diving Beltre and through the right side. Konerko bashed the first pitch just inside the foul pole in leftfield.
»» WHITE SOX 2, MARINERS 1
Pierzynski bounced the first pitch to Sexson for a 3-1 putout. Dye took Ibañez to the leftfield track for a flyout. Perez lined out on the first pitch to a running Reed in centerfield.
TOP 5TH
Grade: C-
The bottom of the lineup made it quick. Betancourt flew out high to leftfield on the second pitch. Snelling hit a checkswing nubber to third on the first pitch, and Crede charged and threw over in time. Gonzalez flew out high to centerfield on an 0-2 pitch.
BOTTOM 5TH
Grade: B-
Not another one. Crede got behind 0-2 and eventually mashed a 1-2 pitch about six rows into the seats in leftfield.
»» WHITE SOX 3, MARINERS 1
Uribe took an 0-2 pitch barely off the plate outside, then flew out to rightfield. Podsednik flew out to leftfield on the second pitch. Iguchi hit a ball off of Beltre's glove, and the latter bobbled it and couldn't make a throw (error). Rowand blooped the first pitch into centerfield for a single, moving Iguchi to third. Konerko grounded the second pitch hard to Beltre, with no error this time.
TOP 6TH
Grade: C-
Again, too quick. Ichiro got behind 0-2 and later grounded out to second. Bloomquist got behind 0-2 and later bounced out to short. Ibañez slapped a second-pitch lineout to leftfield.
BOTTOM 6TH
Grade: B-
Harris had some trouble on the way out. Pierzynski got ahead 3-0 and later took a full-count pitch outside. Dye flew out high to Betancourt behind the mound. Perez grounded the first pitch to Bloomquist in the hole on the left side, moving Pierzynski to second. Crede got the hitters' counts and took a 3-1 pitch high and outside. Uribe got behind 0-2 and eventually took a 1-2 pitch to the hip, loading the bases.
Julio Mateo came in for Harris. Podsednik grounded to short for a 6-4 fielder's choice.
Harris' line: 5 2/3 innings, 3 runs, 5 hits, 3 walks, 3 strikeouts, 96 pitches (60 strikes)
TOP 7TH
Grade: C
The offense had little fight. Sexson grounded to third on the second pitch. Beltre took a four-pitch walk. Reed bunted the first pitch perfectly along the third-base line for a single, moving Beltre to second. Betancourt took a 1-2 pitch barely off the plate outside, then whiffed at a dirtball on the next pitch. Snelling popped the first pitch to Podsednik just past the foul line along the leftfield line.
BOTTOM 7TH
Grade: A
Mateo did his job. Iguchi took a full-count pitch right over the plate. Rowand flew out to Ibañez near the corner on the second pitch. Konerko got behind 0-2 and later whiffed on a 1-2 pitch up and away.
Mateo's line: 1 1/3 innings, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 2 strikeouts, 15 pitches (9 strikes)
TOP 8TH
Grade: C
Dave Hansen came in to hit for Gonzalez, and dribbled the first pitch, a grounder past Iguchi's backhand side at second and into centerfield for a single. Ichiro laced the second pitch into rightfield for a single, moving Hansen to second. Bloomquist smashed the first pitch right to Konerko playing on the infield grass, who nearly doubled off Hansen at second.
Damaso Marte came in for Garland. Ibañez flew out high to leftfield on a 2-0 pitch.
Cliff Politte came in for Marte. Sexson flew out to Rowand reaching up at the wall in centerfield on the first pitch (f#$*!!).
Garland's line: 7 1/3 innings, 1 run, 5 hits, 2 walks, 3 strikeouts, 89 pitches (54 strikes)
Marte's line: 1/3 inning, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 3 pitches (1 strike)
Politte's line: 1/3 inning, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 1 pitch (1 strike)
BOTTOM 8TH
Grade: A
George Sherrill came in for Mateo (Yorvit Torrealba came in for Gonzalez). Pierzynski mashed the second pitch near the corner in rightfield, but Snelling ran it down for the catch. Dye got ahead 2-0 and reached for a groundout to third. Perez whiffed on an 0-2 pitch up and in.
Sherrill's line: 1 inning, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 1 strikeout, 8 pitches (6 strikes)
TOP 9TH
Grade: C-
Dustin Hermanson came in for Politte. Beltre flew out to rightcenter. Reed got ahead 3-1 and whiffed on a full-count pitch. Scott Spiezio came in to hit for Betancourt. Spiezio got behind 0-2 and eventually flew out to Rowand on the track in rightcenter. Ballgame.
Hermanson's line: 1 inning, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 1 strikeout, 15 pitches (8 strikes)
---
Gameball: Julio Mateo.
He was called on in the sixth to get the final out after Jeff Harris loaded the bases after the beanball. Mateo came through there and also pitched a scoreless seventh inning with the Mariners down 3-1. Two of the four outs he got were via the strikeout. Basically, he held the Mariners close enough to have a chance to pull off a tie or a win, and when Richie Sexson came up in the eighth, we all realized how close the Mariners could have come to stealing away the win in the late innings. Alas, it was not to be. Nonetheless, Julio Mateo keeps doing his job, with flareups and missteps comnig along quite rarely than compared to when the one start threw him off for a week or two back in May. I said a few games that I was glad Mateo survived the trade deadline as a member of the Mariners, and it's games like today that remind me of why I said that. Mateo did his part, but the offense just couldn't pull up their end of the bargain, not that it's anything new this year. I just realized that Julio Mateo wears the same number that Mike Schooler used to wear as a Mariner long ago. Of course, Schooler later changed to 29. In a totally unrelated note, Wiki Gonzalez (31) and Carlos Garcia (13) take care of Bobby Ayala's old jersey numbers.
Goat: Raul Ibañez.
I've put him here for the second straight game. He went 0-for-4 for the second straight game, and went 1-for-11 with one RBI, one walk, one strikeout, and a stolen base in the series against the White Sox. He left four runners on base. Let's go over his at-bats. He grounded out with the bases empty and two out in the first. With the Mariners looking to add to their early 1-0 lead and with runners on first and second and two out in the third, he grounded out to second. He lined out to left with two out and the bases empty in the sixth. The killer came with runners on first and second and one out in the eighth. Ibañez flew out to leftfield on a 2-0 pitch. It was the opposite of clutch. Richie Sexson nearly made the entire game turn over on the very next pitch, but it wasn't quite meant to be. Still, if you figure Raul was 0-for-3 coming up to that at-bat and had gone 0-for-4 the night before, you figure he should be due for a hit. That would have been a really nice spot for one. If he gets one down right there, maybe a run scores, and maybe Sexson goes nuts or something and the Mariners win the game. But as we know, "what if" isn't "what is."
Yr W-L Pct GB Stk
2001 80-30 .727 -- W4
2002 68-42 .615 12 W5
2003 67-43 .609 13 W1
2000 64-46 .582 16 W2
2005 47-63 .427 33 L2
2004 41-69 .373 39 W1
Don't try to think about this year's Mariners being 33 games off the 2001 pace. It's perfectly okay to realize that last year's team was 39 back of that pace at this point. I guess what dismays me about the current team is that they've kept up their pace long enough to the point that they'd have to reel off sixteen straight just to get to the .500 mark. That's quite depressing. But hey, it's got to be better next year. Adrian Beltre has to get better and won't have the excuse of not knowing AL pitching. The Mariners got the big bats in the lineup last winter, and they should get a money arm or two and have Felix for a full season. This season has already had good moments in greater abundance than last year, but as I've been saying since before this season started, I can't wait to see the 2006 Mariners. There has to be playoff contention next year. It's sad how far this team has fallen from the end of 2001, or even the All-Star break in 2003.
As for the standings above, this year's Mariners are the only team since 2000 to lose their 110th game (big deal, I know). The 2001 team at this point was in a stretch where they won 11 of 14. The 2004 team was winning four of six before losing three straight and 10 of 13. The 2000 team was in the middle of a five-game winning streak. The 2003 team was in the midst of a six-of-seven tear. The 2002 team was in the middle of a six-game winning streak. Since it was the year I graduated high school and everything, I remember the 2000 season most fondly, even if they had a stretch in August where they lost eight straight and 11 of 12. Man, was that painful. However, that same team won 13 of 18 to close out the year.
What to say about this game? We bag on Ichiro when he's in an 0-for-22 slump, he snaps out of it with two multi-hit games, then the rest of the offense behind him sucks. The Mariners second through fifth hitters in the lineup today combined for a stellar 0-for-15 with a walk and two strikeouts. Yep, one baserunner out of that quartet. Willie Bloomquist and Raul Ibañez left four runners on base apiece, and Sexson left the two on base when he barely missed the homer in the eighth that would have put the Mariners ahead 4-3 (man, that would have been awesome). It was (I think) the second half of 2003 (maybe early 2004) when Bob Melvin said something to the effect of, "we're capable of being a good team, it's just that when we have pitching, we don't have hitting, and if we have hitting, we don't have pitching." The KJR radio jocks were torn on what to think of the Mariners, with Dave Grosby and Mike Gastineau being optimistic, and with David Locke being the negative (though realistic) nellie. There was a heated crosstalk segment with Locke and Gas regarding John Olerud, whose bat was ice cold. Gastineau thought Olerud would get hot "because he's a career .300 hitter." Locke fired back and asked if Gas had seen any signs that Olerud might be snapping out of it. We know how that turned out. Anyway, Locke or Dick Fain or someone over there heard that Melvin quote (about the pitching and hitting) and very correctly said, "isn't that the mark of a bad team?"
It was bad enough having to watch Hawk Harrelson and Darrin Jackson on MLB.tv for the second time in three games of the series, but it just poured fuel on the fire when pinch-hitter extraordinare Scott Spiezio came up in the ninth with two out. Naturally Hawk and DJ could only talk about the 2002 World Series, which of course never happened. They completely gloss over the fact that his average this year is somewhere in the "weekday newspaper" range, and way below "hitting his weight." I'm glad Raul Ibañez has gotten me to shut up a bit about the contract (which is still bad) that he signed to rejoin the Mariners, but Spiezio's contract looks exponentially worse right now than it did when he signed the thing. I wish we could go back in time and quantify what percentage of the Mariner fan base thought plugging Scott Spiezio into the third-base slot was a great idea. It wasn't even passable.
Jeff Harris had a decent first start in the Majors. He was prone twice to the long ball, though, and those dingers did him in for this game. He had a decent line for a first start in the bigs, but it's too bad that he had to start for this broke-ass team, or he could have gotten the win. If Sexson's fly ball in the eighth gets over the wall, he's at least spared from his first loss in the big leagues. Of course, the Mariners were facing a good-this-year Jon Garland, so maybe there wasn't that much hope to begin with. Oh well. Ironically, the offense couldn't get him the win this time, but it was Julio Mateo that blew his relief win against the Tigers by giving up a single run. Go figure. It's gotta be something with this team.
The Mariners just played three games in Chicago, known as a park that's friendly to hitters. They hit one homer in the entire series (Sexson in the first game). Though Sexson nearly got another one today, that's still bad. When Ibañez goes 1-for-11 in the series and Beltre goes 2-for-11, that doesn't help. Sexson hit the only homer, going 3-for-12 in the series with the homer and a couple of doubles and two RBIs. A little more sickening is that after the mega-July that Richie had, he's 3-for-22 so far in August. That's an average of .136. This month better not turn into the Dog Days, or I might just vomit everywhere. I'd rather have another June or April than another May. Anything but a 9-18 month, please.
It's back to Seattle for three against the Twins, an off day on Thursday, then three each against the Angels and Royals before four in Minnesota. The off day following that is on Monday the 22nd. I just want a winning streak this month. Win consecutive games, that's all I ask. They've gone 19 games without a winning streak, folks.
Silva. Meche. Tomorrow.
In 25 words or less: When losses are quicker, they take up less of your day when you're watching them. Thank goodness for this series.
This one featured Jeff Harris, 31 years young, making his first Major League start, and today he was matched up against Jon Garland. Just in case, it was a good thing that Jamie Moyer was able to get into the eighth inning on Saturday night to save most of the bullpen in case Harris blew up. As for the team as a whole, the Mariners were once again going for a series win. Could they do it against a 15-game winner and the team with the best record in baseball?
TOP 1ST
Grade: C-
No fight against Garland here. Ichiro bounced a 2-0 pitch out to second. Willie Bloomquist got ahead 2-0 but whiffed on a high 2-2 pitch. Raul Ibañez bounced out to third on the first pitch.
BOTTOM 1ST
Grade: A
Harris looked good early in his first Major League start. Scott Podsednik got behind 0-2 and took a 1-2 breaking ball over the outsdie corner for a strikeout. Tadahito Iguchi got behind 0-2, took a 1-2 pitch just off the plate outside, then couldn't hold a checkswing on a 2-2 pitch inside. Aaron Rowand grounded hard to Beltre at third on the first pitch.
TOP 2ND
Grade: C-
The game was going quick, at least. Richie Sexson grounded the 2-0 pitch hard to third. Adrian Beltre rolled the second pitch to short. Jeremy Reed flew out to the track in leftfield.
BOTTOM 2ND
Grade: B
Harris didn't implode. Paul Konerko took a full-count breaking ball over the outside corner. AJ Pierzynski fouled off a couple of 2-2 pitches before ripping a single into rightfield. Jermaine Dye popped out with a broken bat nearly to the track in leftfield. Timo Perez got ahead 3-0 and walked on a 3-1 pitch outside for a walk. Joe Crede flew out to Yuniesky Betancourt moving backward into shallow leftfield after Chris Snelling fell down in pursuit of the ball.
TOP 3RD
Grade: B
A case of the run. Yuniesky Betancourt popped high to Rowand in rightcenter. Chris Snelling walked on four pitches. Wiki Gonzalez grounded off Garland's glove, and the ball ricocheted near Juan Uribe at short, but it got past him and into leftfield, and the alert Snelling took third on the play. Ichiro poked a single past the shortstop and into centerfield, scoring Snelling and moving Gonzalez to second.
»» MARINERS 1, WHITE SOX 0
Bloomquist smoked the second pitch right into Garland's glove for a lineout. Ibañez worked a 1-2 count full before grounding out to second.
BOTTOM 3RD
Grade: B+
Not bad by Harris. Juan Uribe got ahead 2-0 and eventually flew out to leftfield. Podsednik tagged a pitch right into Beltre's glove (reaching up), for a lineout. Iguchi nubbed an 0-2 pitch to first, and Sexson underhanded to a covering Harris.
TOP 4TH
Grade: C-
This one was fairly quick. Sexson took a 2-2 pitch over the outside corner. Beltre grounded the second pitch hard to third. Reed got ahead 2-0 and later tapped a full-count pitch back to the mound.
BOTTOM 4TH
Grade: B-
Big fly. Rowand knocked a single past a diving Beltre and through the right side. Konerko bashed the first pitch just inside the foul pole in leftfield.
»» WHITE SOX 2, MARINERS 1
Pierzynski bounced the first pitch to Sexson for a 3-1 putout. Dye took Ibañez to the leftfield track for a flyout. Perez lined out on the first pitch to a running Reed in centerfield.
TOP 5TH
Grade: C-
The bottom of the lineup made it quick. Betancourt flew out high to leftfield on the second pitch. Snelling hit a checkswing nubber to third on the first pitch, and Crede charged and threw over in time. Gonzalez flew out high to centerfield on an 0-2 pitch.
BOTTOM 5TH
Grade: B-
Not another one. Crede got behind 0-2 and eventually mashed a 1-2 pitch about six rows into the seats in leftfield.
»» WHITE SOX 3, MARINERS 1
Uribe took an 0-2 pitch barely off the plate outside, then flew out to rightfield. Podsednik flew out to leftfield on the second pitch. Iguchi hit a ball off of Beltre's glove, and the latter bobbled it and couldn't make a throw (error). Rowand blooped the first pitch into centerfield for a single, moving Iguchi to third. Konerko grounded the second pitch hard to Beltre, with no error this time.
TOP 6TH
Grade: C-
Again, too quick. Ichiro got behind 0-2 and later grounded out to second. Bloomquist got behind 0-2 and later bounced out to short. Ibañez slapped a second-pitch lineout to leftfield.
BOTTOM 6TH
Grade: B-
Harris had some trouble on the way out. Pierzynski got ahead 3-0 and later took a full-count pitch outside. Dye flew out high to Betancourt behind the mound. Perez grounded the first pitch to Bloomquist in the hole on the left side, moving Pierzynski to second. Crede got the hitters' counts and took a 3-1 pitch high and outside. Uribe got behind 0-2 and eventually took a 1-2 pitch to the hip, loading the bases.
Julio Mateo came in for Harris. Podsednik grounded to short for a 6-4 fielder's choice.
Harris' line: 5 2/3 innings, 3 runs, 5 hits, 3 walks, 3 strikeouts, 96 pitches (60 strikes)
TOP 7TH
Grade: C
The offense had little fight. Sexson grounded to third on the second pitch. Beltre took a four-pitch walk. Reed bunted the first pitch perfectly along the third-base line for a single, moving Beltre to second. Betancourt took a 1-2 pitch barely off the plate outside, then whiffed at a dirtball on the next pitch. Snelling popped the first pitch to Podsednik just past the foul line along the leftfield line.
BOTTOM 7TH
Grade: A
Mateo did his job. Iguchi took a full-count pitch right over the plate. Rowand flew out to Ibañez near the corner on the second pitch. Konerko got behind 0-2 and later whiffed on a 1-2 pitch up and away.
Mateo's line: 1 1/3 innings, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 2 strikeouts, 15 pitches (9 strikes)
TOP 8TH
Grade: C
Dave Hansen came in to hit for Gonzalez, and dribbled the first pitch, a grounder past Iguchi's backhand side at second and into centerfield for a single. Ichiro laced the second pitch into rightfield for a single, moving Hansen to second. Bloomquist smashed the first pitch right to Konerko playing on the infield grass, who nearly doubled off Hansen at second.
Damaso Marte came in for Garland. Ibañez flew out high to leftfield on a 2-0 pitch.
Cliff Politte came in for Marte. Sexson flew out to Rowand reaching up at the wall in centerfield on the first pitch (f#$*!!).
Garland's line: 7 1/3 innings, 1 run, 5 hits, 2 walks, 3 strikeouts, 89 pitches (54 strikes)
Marte's line: 1/3 inning, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 3 pitches (1 strike)
Politte's line: 1/3 inning, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts, 1 pitch (1 strike)
BOTTOM 8TH
Grade: A
George Sherrill came in for Mateo (Yorvit Torrealba came in for Gonzalez). Pierzynski mashed the second pitch near the corner in rightfield, but Snelling ran it down for the catch. Dye got ahead 2-0 and reached for a groundout to third. Perez whiffed on an 0-2 pitch up and in.
Sherrill's line: 1 inning, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 1 strikeout, 8 pitches (6 strikes)
TOP 9TH
Grade: C-
Dustin Hermanson came in for Politte. Beltre flew out to rightcenter. Reed got ahead 3-1 and whiffed on a full-count pitch. Scott Spiezio came in to hit for Betancourt. Spiezio got behind 0-2 and eventually flew out to Rowand on the track in rightcenter. Ballgame.
Hermanson's line: 1 inning, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 1 strikeout, 15 pitches (8 strikes)
---
Gameball: Julio Mateo.
He was called on in the sixth to get the final out after Jeff Harris loaded the bases after the beanball. Mateo came through there and also pitched a scoreless seventh inning with the Mariners down 3-1. Two of the four outs he got were via the strikeout. Basically, he held the Mariners close enough to have a chance to pull off a tie or a win, and when Richie Sexson came up in the eighth, we all realized how close the Mariners could have come to stealing away the win in the late innings. Alas, it was not to be. Nonetheless, Julio Mateo keeps doing his job, with flareups and missteps comnig along quite rarely than compared to when the one start threw him off for a week or two back in May. I said a few games that I was glad Mateo survived the trade deadline as a member of the Mariners, and it's games like today that remind me of why I said that. Mateo did his part, but the offense just couldn't pull up their end of the bargain, not that it's anything new this year. I just realized that Julio Mateo wears the same number that Mike Schooler used to wear as a Mariner long ago. Of course, Schooler later changed to 29. In a totally unrelated note, Wiki Gonzalez (31) and Carlos Garcia (13) take care of Bobby Ayala's old jersey numbers.
Goat: Raul Ibañez.
I've put him here for the second straight game. He went 0-for-4 for the second straight game, and went 1-for-11 with one RBI, one walk, one strikeout, and a stolen base in the series against the White Sox. He left four runners on base. Let's go over his at-bats. He grounded out with the bases empty and two out in the first. With the Mariners looking to add to their early 1-0 lead and with runners on first and second and two out in the third, he grounded out to second. He lined out to left with two out and the bases empty in the sixth. The killer came with runners on first and second and one out in the eighth. Ibañez flew out to leftfield on a 2-0 pitch. It was the opposite of clutch. Richie Sexson nearly made the entire game turn over on the very next pitch, but it wasn't quite meant to be. Still, if you figure Raul was 0-for-3 coming up to that at-bat and had gone 0-for-4 the night before, you figure he should be due for a hit. That would have been a really nice spot for one. If he gets one down right there, maybe a run scores, and maybe Sexson goes nuts or something and the Mariners win the game. But as we know, "what if" isn't "what is."
Yr W-L Pct GB Stk
2001 80-30 .727 -- W4
2002 68-42 .615 12 W5
2003 67-43 .609 13 W1
2000 64-46 .582 16 W2
2005 47-63 .427 33 L2
2004 41-69 .373 39 W1
Don't try to think about this year's Mariners being 33 games off the 2001 pace. It's perfectly okay to realize that last year's team was 39 back of that pace at this point. I guess what dismays me about the current team is that they've kept up their pace long enough to the point that they'd have to reel off sixteen straight just to get to the .500 mark. That's quite depressing. But hey, it's got to be better next year. Adrian Beltre has to get better and won't have the excuse of not knowing AL pitching. The Mariners got the big bats in the lineup last winter, and they should get a money arm or two and have Felix for a full season. This season has already had good moments in greater abundance than last year, but as I've been saying since before this season started, I can't wait to see the 2006 Mariners. There has to be playoff contention next year. It's sad how far this team has fallen from the end of 2001, or even the All-Star break in 2003.
As for the standings above, this year's Mariners are the only team since 2000 to lose their 110th game (big deal, I know). The 2001 team at this point was in a stretch where they won 11 of 14. The 2004 team was winning four of six before losing three straight and 10 of 13. The 2000 team was in the middle of a five-game winning streak. The 2003 team was in the midst of a six-of-seven tear. The 2002 team was in the middle of a six-game winning streak. Since it was the year I graduated high school and everything, I remember the 2000 season most fondly, even if they had a stretch in August where they lost eight straight and 11 of 12. Man, was that painful. However, that same team won 13 of 18 to close out the year.
What to say about this game? We bag on Ichiro when he's in an 0-for-22 slump, he snaps out of it with two multi-hit games, then the rest of the offense behind him sucks. The Mariners second through fifth hitters in the lineup today combined for a stellar 0-for-15 with a walk and two strikeouts. Yep, one baserunner out of that quartet. Willie Bloomquist and Raul Ibañez left four runners on base apiece, and Sexson left the two on base when he barely missed the homer in the eighth that would have put the Mariners ahead 4-3 (man, that would have been awesome). It was (I think) the second half of 2003 (maybe early 2004) when Bob Melvin said something to the effect of, "we're capable of being a good team, it's just that when we have pitching, we don't have hitting, and if we have hitting, we don't have pitching." The KJR radio jocks were torn on what to think of the Mariners, with Dave Grosby and Mike Gastineau being optimistic, and with David Locke being the negative (though realistic) nellie. There was a heated crosstalk segment with Locke and Gas regarding John Olerud, whose bat was ice cold. Gastineau thought Olerud would get hot "because he's a career .300 hitter." Locke fired back and asked if Gas had seen any signs that Olerud might be snapping out of it. We know how that turned out. Anyway, Locke or Dick Fain or someone over there heard that Melvin quote (about the pitching and hitting) and very correctly said, "isn't that the mark of a bad team?"
It was bad enough having to watch Hawk Harrelson and Darrin Jackson on MLB.tv for the second time in three games of the series, but it just poured fuel on the fire when pinch-hitter extraordinare Scott Spiezio came up in the ninth with two out. Naturally Hawk and DJ could only talk about the 2002 World Series, which of course never happened. They completely gloss over the fact that his average this year is somewhere in the "weekday newspaper" range, and way below "hitting his weight." I'm glad Raul Ibañez has gotten me to shut up a bit about the contract (which is still bad) that he signed to rejoin the Mariners, but Spiezio's contract looks exponentially worse right now than it did when he signed the thing. I wish we could go back in time and quantify what percentage of the Mariner fan base thought plugging Scott Spiezio into the third-base slot was a great idea. It wasn't even passable.
Jeff Harris had a decent first start in the Majors. He was prone twice to the long ball, though, and those dingers did him in for this game. He had a decent line for a first start in the bigs, but it's too bad that he had to start for this broke-ass team, or he could have gotten the win. If Sexson's fly ball in the eighth gets over the wall, he's at least spared from his first loss in the big leagues. Of course, the Mariners were facing a good-this-year Jon Garland, so maybe there wasn't that much hope to begin with. Oh well. Ironically, the offense couldn't get him the win this time, but it was Julio Mateo that blew his relief win against the Tigers by giving up a single run. Go figure. It's gotta be something with this team.
The Mariners just played three games in Chicago, known as a park that's friendly to hitters. They hit one homer in the entire series (Sexson in the first game). Though Sexson nearly got another one today, that's still bad. When Ibañez goes 1-for-11 in the series and Beltre goes 2-for-11, that doesn't help. Sexson hit the only homer, going 3-for-12 in the series with the homer and a couple of doubles and two RBIs. A little more sickening is that after the mega-July that Richie had, he's 3-for-22 so far in August. That's an average of .136. This month better not turn into the Dog Days, or I might just vomit everywhere. I'd rather have another June or April than another May. Anything but a 9-18 month, please.
It's back to Seattle for three against the Twins, an off day on Thursday, then three each against the Angels and Royals before four in Minnesota. The off day following that is on Monday the 22nd. I just want a winning streak this month. Win consecutive games, that's all I ask. They've gone 19 games without a winning streak, folks.
Silva. Meche. Tomorrow.
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