Sunday, April 02, 2006
THE TIME APPROACHES
On opening day last season, the above happened, except in color. Richie Sexson hit two homers against the Twins on the 4th of last April and was well on his way to a 39-homer season that would have been over 40 had he not caught that horrid flu bug that went through the team on a road trip.
I've said many times that my realistic expectation for that 2005 team was 77 wins. They undershot that by eight. The factors involved in the Mariners' underachieving last year are too numerous to mention here, but no one ever said rebounding from the horrid 2004 season would only take one year. They still had some cobwebs to shake.
Everyone expects this team to be better, and I am no exception. As sad as it is for me to say this, a .500 club this year is enough for me. That's 12 wins on last year. Yes, it's sad. Going into last season, I wanted that team to be a little closer to .500 so they could make a run at a playoff spot in 2006. Right now, I can't expect this team to contend for a playoff spot. I do, however, expect this team to contend for a playoff spot in 2007.
If the Mariners have this .500 season I'm expecting, the jury's out as to whether Bill Bavasi and Mike Hargrove will still have jobs in Seattle. I'd give the both of them another year, but that's just me. However, I'd have to weigh that against any of next offseason's moves that are akin to Jarrod Washburn or Carl Everett, as well as how many pitchers a certain someone prefers to keep with the team. It better not be twelve.
But there are some things that have me at least slightly anticipatory about the upcoming season. For instance, no Ron Villone.
Enjoy the season, folks.
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