The Mariners Don't Look Any Different

The AL Cy Young winner + Cliff Lee + 2 gold glove winners + the best hitter in baseball = 100 losses for the Seattle Mariners in 2010. The club was last in home runs and lost more one run games than anyone in baseball. The free agency market yielded no new talent and the youngsters in Tacoma don't look like they're ready to step up and meet the challenge. Will the Mariners have another 100 loss season?

If you look at it on paper the answer is yes. The Mariners haven't addressed any of their glaring needs offensively and the team still doesn't have an identity. With the exception of Chone Figgins and Ichiro no one on the squad has the ability to manufacture runs with their speed. In addition, when Chone and Ichiro get on base the Mariners don't advance the runners and leave a ton of men on base. The Mariners also have to deal with a change at the managerial position. It was clear that Don Wakamatsu lost the confidence of the players and control of the team last year and Eric Wedge is supposed to be the solution. It's still too early to tell if the new skipper will have a profound impact on the team's hitting and the overall moral.

Safeco Field is the greatest ball park in baseball when the Marines are winning, the sun is shining, and the fans come out to support. Seattle deserves that kind of atmosphere and there's no excuse for not putting a quality product on the field. In the end the Nintendo guys are going to have to open up their check books if they want to see results. So far the check book has been closed and it looks like this season will be a repeat of last season. Lets hope the 2011 Mariners prove me wrong.