I feel sorry for you, wizard.

I want to implode the Seattle Mariners’ front office right this very second. I can’t take another year of this, I just can’t. The lack of ambition, the lack of a big name in the off season (though there still is faint hope for that and it is the symptom of the first) and the flat-out idiocy of Bill Bavasi is frustrating and infuriating. For a franchise that was on the brink in the late ‘90s and was one win away from owning the all-time single-season wins record in 2001 to turn into a cellar dweller with no ambition is absolutely maddening for a fan.

The offseason after the 2004 season was the turning point. Even though we did manage to get Sexson and Beltre, this was the season of Beltran being a free agent and, while we did need the first- and third-base options, you have to imagine we made the wrong contract year choice in the end. Sexson has played admirably, hitting a lot of long balls but still whiffing a lot, but it’s doubtful Beltre, for all his defensive brilliance (and he *has* been brilliant defensively), will ever match his 2004 batting production ever again.

Last year was much the same. We need a top of the line pitcher to replace Freddy Garcia; who’s our big free agent purchase? Jarrod Washburn. Jarrod freaking Washburn. Another player with one good year and not much else.

So what do we do this year needing another top-shelf pitcher and a big bat. Who do we get? Miguel Batista from the D-backs, Jose Guillen for the outfield and Jose Vidro for some prospects.

I’m sorry, but am I the only one frustrated by all of this?!

This franchise needs a reinvigoration. The only real solution left is to go get Barry Zito for far too much money. We still need a top pitcher, and the bats should fill out in the lineup. But we need something to help the gate draws, and the only solution is a big-name free agent – Matsuzaka would’ve been too perfect, given the intrinsic Japanese ties the club has but we got outspent by the hellbent Red Sox – and sometimes you have to spend money to make money. Plus, imagine what a guy like Zito – who still has plenty of years of that nasty curveball left in him – can teach our young pitchers. King Felix behind Zito? It makes me drool.

Not only to improve the draw, but the Mariners need to do this just to show some ambition. Ichiro deserves better, and I’m afraid that a player and man who is the cornerstone of our franchise will want to leave sooner rather than later if we don’t appear to be anything but a cellar dweller for the fourth consecutive season. Even worse, I’m afraid he’ll be traded before he can leave for free.

The Mariners are my team; I’m from the northwest, and I’ve followed them since I was a child. Seeing the M’s play the A’s in the Kingdome was the first professional sports game I ever went to see and I’ve watched much of the season on TV since those dome days. I just don’t want to see a great team be any less than the best, and after being so close to see what’s happened is saddening.

more on the Blazers, Ducks (we're No. 22!) and the imploding Seahawks later. Blazer update after their game tonight against the Clippers.

Tags: mariners

Even though he's injured for the game, Isaiah Stanback has still led the Huskies out of the basement this year...and is still an image of derision for the rest of the Northwest

Whoever decided that we were playing the Washington Huskies for our homecoming game this year was an absolute genius. Hosting the Huskies is always a joy - because it's the most heated rivalry that we have - but giving the excuse to invite all the alumni who went to school when Oregon football was likely pretty bad and got killed by the Huskies on a regular basis...inviting them to the slaughter that could be this year's game....priceless.

Some context for those outside of the two universities: we hate each other. This is probably the most-heated rivalry on the West coast...except nobody knows about it, which Jacob May of the Daily Emerald writes about today. The rivalry, besides being geographic, stems back to the Huskies choosing Cal over us to go to the Rose Bowl in 1948; for students of my generation and even my parent's generation, the Huskies were the only respectable football program in the Northwest for years and never let anybody forget about that...hence the arrogance and swagger they still have.



the audio for this is absolutely priceless

Of course, what really touched the Ducks off into the Nike-fied stratosphere we now live in was the 1994 game, at Autzen, with the Huskies ranked in the top-25 nationally and Oregon off to a decent season that had hit a few bumps. We had the lead but the Dawgs were driving...until Kenny Wheaton picked the ball off on the 8-yard line and, as is seen before every home game on the Autzen scoreboard, ran it back to the house for the game-sealing touchdown. I'm getting chills just typing it out, nevermind the commentary call as well.

Game Analysis

The Huskies...I just don't want to call them at all. Looking at the stats, nothing stands out; not the running game, not the passing, not even their defense. The only stat they're high up on is penalties committed, sitting second in the Pac-10 behind Stanford. Now that Stanback is out, they have no real recognizable players.

If they're as smart as their cross-state brethren, they will try to rattle Dixon, isolate J-Stew, and run the ball early and often. Our pass defense is, once again, the best in the Pac-10 - even though maybe two of the five starters in the secondary can buy booze - but our run D is what has taken the hit from injuries. This game could be a blowout, or it could end up being settled by a last-minute field goal. The worst part is that, given our current form, I don't even know if we're going to win this. Washington is good. Unfortunately.

Quick notes

...you thought I was going to ignore the Blazers winning close in the opening game up in Seattle? yeah, right. Scariest quote: Z-bo is now the captain of the team? Holy hell...but he did drop 30, grab 10 boards, played smart and appeared to really hustle at times. His game is really the theme for the Blazers right now - steps in the right direction. Can't base a playoff run off of one game, but damn, if we play like that all year...

the Mariners aren't going to be in the Daisuke Matsuzaka sweepstakes....which is bad, because the kid will be at least a solid 2-3 starter in any rotation within a year or so, and has a good fastball and a wicked slider from accounts...but it's good, because in the same press release it insinuated that they were looking more at Jason Schmidt or Adam Eaton. Hrmm. We *need* a starting pitcher and one more big stick in the lineup to really climb...the no-name bullpen established themselves last year, defensively we were solid, but nobody really mashed and our starting rotation was a mess. King Felix is still a few years away, Washburn is *not* the #1 starter, and everyone else is subpar. Get Schmidt and somebody to hit the long ball routinely and we'll start talking about an AL West run.

I wish I could somehow sneak into the car with my Seahawks season ticket-wielding roommate, who is going up for the Monday night game this week, but I somehow really doubt that would happen. Still going to try and watch as much of the game as possible, though, and pray that Phillip Rivers has a good enough game to justify starting him over Seneca Wallace who - yes, indeed, in my league - earned more fantasy points than Rivers last week. BOGGLES THE MIND.

Tags: blazers, duck football, huck the fuskies, mariners, seahawks