According to an ESPN report, it looks like Felix Hernandez will be pitching for the Mariners for a minute. Very cool. I hope the Twins sign Joe Mauer to an extension too.
Mariners have been busy and effective this winter, impressively so. My one query for that team: who hits for ANY power? Small ball and pitching are fine but this looks exaggeratedly a power-free ballclub.
[1] yeah the mariners have had quite an off-season. i am glad they are in a position to come out of the west.
yeah they are pretty devoid of power.
maybe ichiro will start flirting more.
from the yankees perspective i would see what mirnada could net - he would be a better dh than griffey and could play 1b on occasion.
[1] This is a little flip, but what the heck? Its January 19th. The 1998 Yanks had no one hit 30 HRs; Tino led the team with 28. Only 4 guys hit more than 20 HR. They still won a lot of games.
There must be 4 guys on the Mariners who could hit 20+ HR.
And of course, power doesn't equal home runs. If they get on base a lot, and hit a lot of doubles and triples - which, with that lineup, you could see - they'll score enough runs.
[3] The 1998 Yankees collectively had a lot of power. They hit 207 HRs. The Mariners only hit 160 last season and still haven't resigned Branyan, who hit 31 HRs. There's no reason to think Seattle will be much better than a decidely below average offense in 2010, so their pitching and defense have to be great if the Mariners are going to win the West.
[5] Yes, I know all that - I did say I was being flippant . . . errr, except that the "pant" seems to have been left on the cutting room floor.
In any case, my larger point remains: a team that gets on a base at a league average clip and has league average power - as measured by their home runs and doubles and triples - will score runs. Last year the M's finished last in runs scored . . . and OBP. Bring that OBP up - and with Bradley and Figgins and Kotchman and a full year of no Betancourt, it will go up - and the runs scored goes with it, even if Jose Lopez leads them in HR with 23.
[7] That is to say, look at the 1985 Cardinals and how they stacked up versus their league:
87 HR (11th of 12)
.379 SLG (6th of 12)
59 3B (1st of 12)
245 2B (4th of 12)
.335 OBP (1st of 12)
747 R (1st of 12)
And of course their pitching staff allowed only 572 runs, good for 2nd of 12, and their Defensive Efficiency was .720, 1st of 12. No reason the M's can't follow this model, though I hardly think they'll lead the league in OBP or R, or hit that many doubles. But to win the AL West in 2010, they don't need to.
Dunno, Shaun, if you leave your pants on the floor people may ... misinterpret? I did say that small ball and pitching are fine ... but some pop matters or a ton of pressure gets put on your staff. Yes, they may manufacture runs very well (may), but if 20-23 tops the team in HRs they'll have some issues. On the other hand, I'm a fan of Gutierrez, and he may be a superstar in waiting. And no one has a 1/2 on the mound to touch them now, not even St Louis.
Mariners have been busy and effective this winter, impressively so. My one query for that team: who hits for ANY power? Small ball and pitching are fine but this looks exaggeratedly a power-free ballclub.
[1] yeah the mariners have had quite an off-season. i am glad they are in a position to come out of the west.
yeah they are pretty devoid of power.
maybe ichiro will start flirting more.
from the yankees perspective i would see what mirnada could net - he would be a better dh than griffey and could play 1b on occasion.
[1] This is a little flip, but what the heck? Its January 19th. The 1998 Yanks had no one hit 30 HRs; Tino led the team with 28. Only 4 guys hit more than 20 HR. They still won a lot of games.
There must be 4 guys on the Mariners who could hit 20+ HR.
And of course, power doesn't equal home runs. If they get on base a lot, and hit a lot of doubles and triples - which, with that lineup, you could see - they'll score enough runs.
"Hey, this is a Rock & Roll museum! You guys don't belong in here... (Weeping-type laughter)"
One of my favorite early videos, though nothing beats Rock Box. Just plain silly. I oughtta do a tribute at some point... >;)
[3] The 1998 Yankees collectively had a lot of power. They hit 207 HRs. The Mariners only hit 160 last season and still haven't resigned Branyan, who hit 31 HRs. There's no reason to think Seattle will be much better than a decidely below average offense in 2010, so their pitching and defense have to be great if the Mariners are going to win the West.
Deepless In Seattle (rimshot) ... starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan who hits for more power than yer average Mariner.
[5] Yes, I know all that - I did say I was being flippant . . . errr, except that the "pant" seems to have been left on the cutting room floor.
In any case, my larger point remains: a team that gets on a base at a league average clip and has league average power - as measured by their home runs and doubles and triples - will score runs. Last year the M's finished last in runs scored . . . and OBP. Bring that OBP up - and with Bradley and Figgins and Kotchman and a full year of no Betancourt, it will go up - and the runs scored goes with it, even if Jose Lopez leads them in HR with 23.
[7] That is to say, look at the 1985 Cardinals and how they stacked up versus their league:
87 HR (11th of 12)
.379 SLG (6th of 12)
59 3B (1st of 12)
245 2B (4th of 12)
.335 OBP (1st of 12)
747 R (1st of 12)
And of course their pitching staff allowed only 572 runs, good for 2nd of 12, and their Defensive Efficiency was .720, 1st of 12. No reason the M's can't follow this model, though I hardly think they'll lead the league in OBP or R, or hit that many doubles. But to win the AL West in 2010, they don't need to.
Dunno, Shaun, if you leave your pants on the floor people may ... misinterpret? I did say that small ball and pitching are fine ... but some pop matters or a ton of pressure gets put on your staff. Yes, they may manufacture runs very well (may), but if 20-23 tops the team in HRs they'll have some issues. On the other hand, I'm a fan of Gutierrez, and he may be a superstar in waiting. And no one has a 1/2 on the mound to touch them now, not even St Louis.
They'll be interesting to watch.
Funny; I was just listening to "Here We Go", that live Run DMC track.