Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Today's Lineup

First off, congrats to Cliff Lee for another great outing.  3 shutouts in a row is pretty insane.  I would like to stick to all the people in May who were saying we overpaid for the guy.  It seems pretty short sighted to judge a guy based on 2 months of pitching when you have him signed for like 5 years.  just stupid!

The M's lineup tonight is interesting and it is performing.  I'm not sure I like the order of it, but it is getting closer to what it should be.  Here is what it is and then below that is what it should be.
1. Ichiro - RF
2. Ryan - SS
3. Kennedy - 3B
4. Smoak - 1B
5. Ackley - 2B
6. Giminez - C
7. Carp - LF
8. Cust - DH
9. Halman - CF

1. Ichiro - RF
2. Ackley - 2B
3. Smoak - 1B
4. Cust - DH
5. Gutierrez - CF
6. Olivo - C
7. Carp - LF
8. Ryan - SS
9. Figgins/Kennedy - 3B

My other "minor" concern is what happened to Nick Franklin.  I still haven't seen any word on exactly what happened and where the bat hit him.  Hopefully he is ok and it didn't hit him in the head.  I would hate to see a Brian Roberts scenario.

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Movin' on up!!!

Seager gets the call up to Tacoma
Franklin gets the call up to Jackson

The Seager move is well deserved.  He has been very consistent the last two years and with the opening left by Ackley, it makes sense.  The only question is whether 2B is where Seager will stick in Tacoma.  I think the general consensus is that his potential in the majors is probably limited to a utility guy.  So I would assume we would see him play a little 2B and a little 3B.  If Seager is sticking at 2B for the whole next month, then I will assume they are using him as a trading chip.

The Franklin move is exciting but is a little unexpected.  Franklin had a nice April, but overall wasn't showing the same power he did last year.  We need to keep reminding ourselves that he is only 20.  But I do like the move and at the beginning of the year I almost expected him to start AA, if it wasn't for being so young.  This now raises the question as to what is happening with Triunfel.  Tonight he is playing 2nd, but is that the long term plan for him?  Have the scouts been noticing enough about him to not consider him a SS going forward?  And if they decide to play him at 2nd, isn't he blocked by both Seager and Ackley.  I guess we would have to consider him another possible trade chip. 

On the Phillies end -
It is exciting to see Singleton's bat start to warm up.  His avg is up to .270 and he hit 2 HRs tonight.  My hope is that now that is bat is coming back to life that they move him back to LF.  He is a guy we want around for awhile and I don't want to see him traded away or get stuck behind Howard. 

I think this is where some things get interesting.  The Phils just promoted Overbeck to LHV, but is he up there to play 1B or 3B?  I hope 3B.  Does this mean there is an open spot for Rizzotti to be called up to LHV?  Between 2010 and 2011, Rizzotti has put up good numbers over more than 500 at bats.  I think that is usually the measuring tape, a full year's worth of at bats at a certain level.  With all that being said, I would love to see Singleton challenged at AA, but I don't want it to be as a 1B. 

Hopefully we see some more minor league moves over the next couple of weeks.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Their Offense is Offensive

You start Ackley every game.
Figgins - your job in the 9th inning when we are down by 1, get Ackley to the plate.  Know your role.

Very frustrating.  The Nats are not a good team, they are actually extremely annoying.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Pujolsless Cardinals

Well the Phillies are currently tied in the top of the 8th against the Cardinals.  Polanco was just hit in the hand, which scored a run.  Hopefully nothing is seriously wrong with his hand.  I'm not sure I could stand Valdez at 3rd for an extended period of time.  Ibanez is up now with the bases loaded.  This is one way to win back the Phillies fans.....and he struck out.  Not good! He has to start coming through on those types of at bats.  Here comes the kid (Brown).  Hey look at that!  Brown Francisco comes through with a single and the Phils take the lead. 

On a minor league note, we have been waiting for Singleton to start hitting the way he was last year.  If tonight is any indication, maybe he is about to go on a roll.  3-4, 2B, HR and 6 RBIs!  The only question I have is why is he playing first instead of out there patrolling LF.  On the pitching side, it wasn't a great outing for Cosart.  Maybe it was the extended break.

I'm still upset about the Mariner's game, so I'm choosing to not look at the box score or the recap until tomorrow.

Depression!

After winning a great series against the Phillies, the Mariners come out swinging against the Nats.  And by swinging, I mean clumping together a couple singles with a few FCs to score 5 runs.  Regardless, they scored 5 runs, which is a lot by Seattle standards.  Fister goes 8 and was destined to get his first win since May and everyone was happy.  Until.... the 9th.  League started to have one of those innings and then I haven't seen the replay, but it sounds like he was hurt on a come backer.  So then Pauley comes in.  The man with the great ERA, but no one really knows how he is doing it.  The result.  5 runs scored in the bottom of the ninth, with the last 3 coming on a 3 run shot by Ramos, to end the game. 

I mean it is tough to go back, but why couldn't Fister come back out to try to finish the game.  I think he was only at about 100 pitches.  If he gets in any trouble you have League ready. 

It is just depressing, a waste of a great outing by Fister and a nice output by the offense. 

Saturday, June 18, 2011

First Game

Nice win for the M's over the Phils.  Pineda pitched well and it was too bad he got a little shaky in the 6th.  He probably could have gone another inning.  Ichiro also had another nice game since having his day off.  That is great. 

The obvious story is Ackley.  A nice base hit off of Oswalt in his first AB and then a nice double play turned.  It was also awesome to see a nice big crowd at Safeco.  Those are few and far between right now.  Hopefully they continue at least through the weekend.

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Happy Dustin Ackley Callup Day!!

This is very exciting, especially with the Phillies coming to town this weekend.  Here is hoping he is batting 2nd.  Just throw him in the fire. 

Friday, June 10, 2011

Potential Lineup vs the Phillies Next Week

If it isn't obvious, I'm excited about next week's series with the M's playing the Phils in Seattle.  Obviously, the name of this blog gives it away.  I was born and raised in Seattle and then moved to Philadelphia.  I have my west coast team and I have my east coast team.  I have my AL team and my NL team.  In the end, who do I cheer for?  In next week's series, who will I cheer for?  I hope this answer is obvious.  The Mariners are my team and it doesn't matter where I move to.

Next weeks series.  I'm a little disappointed because I thought the Saturday matchup was going to be Felix versus either Hamels or Oswalt.  It turns out it my be Worley or Kendrick.  What a let down!!

Here is hoping for this lineup next weekend
1. Ichiro - RF
2. Ackley - 2B
3. Smoak - 1B
4. Cust - DH
5. Olivo - C
6. Gutierrez - CF
7. Carp - LF
8. Ryan - SS
9. Figgins - 3B

Hopefully, I will more to say about this as the week goes along.

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

DRAFT!!

Over the last year I've been caring much more about the minor league teams for both the M's and Phils.  I don't know if it is just because it allows me to pay attention to more games and look at more stats, or if I'm trying to have a better understanding of the big picture.  Either way, this interest in the minors makes the draft so much more exciting.  The problem is that I haven't extended my level to caring to college or high school, so unless the people drafted are already highly talked about, I don't really know anything about them. 

M's 1st Pick - Danny Hultzen - Virginia
This pick surprised almost everyone.  I was thinking like most people about Rendon, but that is not to say I'm disappointed with this pick (mostly due to my aforementioned lack of knowledge).  I like what Jack and Tom have done so far, so I will trust them.  He's a lefty which is exciting and I guess draws some comps to Cliff Lee (we will see).  The next lefty taken was at #15, so that show how much better a lefty Hultzen was compared to the next one. 

M's 2nd Pick - Bradley Miller - Clemson
This is an interesting pick.  Obviously it is someone who is closer to the majors, but doesn't really have a high ceiling from what I can tell.  TRUST IN JACK!

Phils 1st Pick - Larry Greene - Berrien County HS
So a big thumping OF.  I guess the Phils are a little concerned about their offense 5 years down the road.  Hopefully this guys doesn't decide to go off to college, because it sounds like he has a great approach.

Phils 2nd Pick - Roman Quinn
Looks like the Phils are trying to draft their next Jimmy.  A slick fielding, quick SS.  I'm excited to watch this guy come up through the ranks.  Guys with real speed are fun to watch because they can do so much to change a game. 

Day 2 is now over.
I guess I look forward to when I can start seeing these guys play in the minors.