The Seattle Mariners, and the San Francisco Giants,are looking at trading for Chicago White Sox outfielder Dayan Viciedo according to MLB Trade rumors. General Manager Jack Zduriencik is looking to add more right-handed power bats to the line-up to help balance out the left-handed hitters on the roster. Seattle is also in desperate need of more consistent offensive production from the left fielders.

That’s why the interest in Viciedo makes a lot of sense for the Mariners. He is a right-handed power bat, that is young (25) and under club control for a few years (until 2017).

Apparently the Mariners initially engaged in discussions to acquire Viciedo during Spring Training. But with the White Sox scuffling — 40-46 record, 10 games behind the Tigers in the AL Central on July 4th — and the Mariners currently in the second wild card spot — and trailing Oakland by 4.5 games in the AL West — it makes sense for these two squads to again be talking about the “struggling” outfielder. Continue Reading->

A quick look at Endy Chavez’s MLB performance in 2014

Sports with Neil and Friends

Endy Chavez was first called up from the minors in 2001. He has since spent the entirety of his 14-year career bouncing the minors and the majors. The 2014 season has been more of the same for Chavez, as he started with Triple-A Tacoma before being called up to Seattle on May 30th. Chavez has been getting plenty of playing time since his call-up, a move that has generated a lot controversy among fans. That controversy is for a good reason, as his peripherals are really weird — no like really weird — but he hasn’t been a black hole for the Mariners; and most of his production has come with him at the top of the batting order.

Chavez is in his third stint with the Mariners

Chavez’s slash line this season isn’t exactly encouraging, and in fact gives you the impression of an aging athlete who is over…

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Here is Why Mariners’ Fans Are Overreacting To The 6-Game Losing Streak

The Seattle Mariners started off the 2014 season hot, the team won seven of the team’s first 12 games and many people were on the band wagon ready for a playoff run. But that hot start masked the fact that the M’s were without two of their five projected starting pitchers at the beginning of the season, and then the squad promptly lost No. 4 starter — James Paxton — during the home opener. With the rotation’s injury troubles, it came down to the team’s offense to provide enough juice for the squad to continue its recent winning ways…but unfortunately the offense began to struggle at around the same time Paxton was injured.

As a result, the reaction on the internetz has been; “BECAUSE MARINERS”

When in reality the reaction should be; “BASEBALL IS WEIRD”

Baseball is weird is the appropriate reaction because of the fact that the decline in production from the team’s offense is the result of some really bad luck. In fact, the biggest areas where the team has struggled is getting on base and “..hitting it, where they ain’t“; and the offense’s ability to score runs has all but vanished as a result. And the reason for these struggles is that several of the team’s key bats are struggling to produce during this six game stretch. Continue Reading->

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Rants From the Palouse: My Mariners Home Opener Streak Ends at 22

The Seattle Mariners are my hometown baseball team, they have been since the day I was born and they will continue to be until the day I die. No matter how many 101-loss heartbreaking seasons the M’s put me through, no matter how many times some no body pitcher throws a perfect game against it, this franchise will always be my hometown team. That’s just how it is when you grow up with a father who’s first baseball games were with a franchise that only existed for one year.

I wish I could tell you I remember my first baseball game, but I can’t…because I was merely four months old at the time. It was the Mariners’ home opener that year (April 16, 1993) — that season was also the second time in franchise history that the team finished with a .500 record — and I went to the next 22 home openers; without missing a beat, despite the fact that I go to school 300+ miles east of Seattle.

Five Things To Watch For During The 2014 Seattle Mariners Season

The Seattle Mariners’ off season has been, for the most part, a series of smart moves that compliment the big off-season splash signing of Robinson Cano. For M’s fans, this was a move that has improved fan expectations for the 2014 season. Now the question becomes, what exactly do these improved expectations mean for fans should be watching for?

The added pieces this off-season are better pieces than were brought in last season — Mike Morse, Robert Andino, Kelly Shoppach were all signed prior to the 2013 season — and that has led people to think that the 2014 squad is going to compete for a Wildcard slot. Those expectations are a little too high for the team as currently constructed; but there is a lot of reasons for M’s fans to be optimistic, and excited, for this season.

As the City gears up for another season of Mariners baseball, it is important for fans to keep an eye out for these five things in 2014: Continue Reading->

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SBM Exclusive: The BLAST-CAST, Volume 12 – Tales of Depression and Sorrow: The Seattle Mariners

It’s been a while, but the SBM Blast-Cast is finally making its triumphant return! Rest assured that while J-Dub and Meehan were serving time for DUI convictions working with the Ukrainian revolutionaries, they never once lost sight of the sports world and all it contains. However, Meehan’s return from Eastern Europe was delayed by the fact the Russian border guards took a dim view of the placement of his Vladimir Putin tattoo. So, while Meehan is getting a Soviet-era belt sander not-so-lovingly applied to his (REDACTED), the staff here at Sports Blog Movement had to scramble to keep our planned podcast revival afloat.

To save the day, in steps fellow Sports Blog Movement member and KUGR Radio personality Neil Roberts, who in an episode of Tales of Depression and Sorrow sits down with J-Dub to talk about the angst involved in being a fan of the Seattle Mariners.

Click here to listen to or download the Blast-Cast (MP3 format)…The Blast-Cast is also available on Itunes; just search “SportsBlogMovement.”

The Mariners Should Trade 2B/SS Nick Franklin For New York Mets’ SP Dillon Gee

The signing of Robinson Cano has left the Seattle Mariners second basemen Nick Franklin competing for the starting shortstop position with incumbent Brad Miller. There are some baseball writers out there who see Franklin as a surplus, and the M’s currently are in need of depth in the starting rotation; this combination of factors has led some baseball writers to speculate that Franklin’s time in Seattle is coming to  a close.

One of the clubs that is rumored to be interested in trading for Franklin is the New York Mets. The Mets currently have Ruben Tejeda penciled in as the team’s starting SS heading into the 2014 season; and apparently the team isn’t two enamored with the 24-year old. In fact, these rumors have the team as willing to trade 23-year old SP prospect Rafael Montero.

While Montero is an intriguing prospect, the Mariners are in need of a starting pitcher who can contribute immediately — during the 2014 season — and not be a steaming pile of dog manure. Continue Reading->

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Rants From the Palouse: Stupid Narratives Are Stupid

The media has a tendency to create these narratives that don’t make a lot of sense, and it’s all in the name of getting clicks/selling page views. These narratives often inform public opinion and in such a way as that the public becomes ill-informed, and an ill-informed public is a bad situation for all involved.

For example, there is a portion of the Mariners fan base that think the ownership group is unwilling to spend money to bring in top-notch free agents. This narrative ignores the act that the team spent $118 million for 101-losses in 2008; or the fact that there are currently $49 million a year tied up in Felix Hernandez and Robinson Cano. Fans in Seattle are starting to not go to ball games, and that makes it harder for the team to make money; and attract free agents.

The other narrative regarding the M’s is that the management is run by meddling people who don’t understand baseball.

Sports with Neil Podcast: Our Interview with Steven Silver from Fox Sports 1380

The Seattle Mariners have been stuck in a 12-year long playoff drought that has created a lot of animosity towards the current ownership group. Fans have been clamouring for the ownership to spend money to bring top flight free agents to the franchise and often forgetting about the fact that Bill Bavasi constructed the first 10o (0r more) loss team while pay roll was over $100 million roster in Major League Baseball history in 2008 — the 2008 team’s payroll was $113 million and earned the team lost 101 games.

That frustration has caused fan interest to wain, and attendance at Safeco Field to plummet. It is up to Jack Zduriencik to create a roster that can start to generate wins, while keeping the long-term health of the franchise intact.

During the last off-season, Jack Zduriencik has been able to bring in several intelligent off-season signings…but has avoided making that trade that could force the team into another five to six-year rebuild. These moves have also rapidly reactivated fan interest in the team, but this roster still isn’t anywhere near a team that could make the playoffs this season.

Continue Reading ->

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Some Thoughts on Nelson Cruz and the Seattle Mariners

The Seattle Mariners are rumored to be heavily involved in negotiations with restricted free agent Nelson Cruz. Cruz is an interesting free agent and the fact that the Mariners are looking into signing him has created a diverse reaction on the internet. Some of these opinions range from liking the potential move, to absolutely hating it.

There is a portion of the fan base that wants nothing to do with Nelson Cruz; his .198 batting average and .587 OPS at Safeco Field over the last three years make him seem like a poor fit up in Seattle. It is also important to consider that Cruz is a 33-year old coming off of a season that was shortened by a 50 game suspension for his involvement in the “Biogenesis Case“.

It is also important to note, that Cruz would cost the team a compensation draft pick. Since the Mariners has extended Kendrys Morales a qualifying offer (and he has yet to accept it) the team stands to lose the compensation pick that they currently stand to get from Morales not signing with them.

Continue Reading ->

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