By Kshell
What a terrible week for the Seattle Mariners which saw the team lose all four games this week. To make things worst the Mariners had a lead going into the final at bat in three of those losses then were rained out in Cleveland. So the Mariners went 0-4 on this road trip and will have to make up two more games in Cleveland. The Mariners are currently on a six game losing streak which saw them lose four games in the final at bat. To say the Mariners are going through their roughest stretch of the season would be an understatement. What happened against the Baltimore Orioles was horrible as the Mariners lost two games in extra innings in which they had the lead. The Mariners still aren't hitting and the once reliable bullpen mainly Brandon League has given fans flashbacks of Bobby Ayala this past week. Like I've done in the past I'll break down the good(that was hard), the bad(way too many) and the ugly(where do I begin?).
The Good:
The good this week was again the starting pitching which saw them get three good performances of the three starts. The Mariners besides League had good pitching performances from their bullpen as well. Whenever a team goes 0-4 and isn't hitting I find myself grasping at straws to fill out the good. The hitting wasn't good as the usual suspects like Ichiro and Justin Smoak didn't kill the ball. Instead the Mariners really only had one hitter step up which was Jack Cust who appears to finally coming around.
Hitting Stars:
Jack Cust: 6-16(.375), run, 3 walks
Jack Wilson: 2-6(.333), run
Justin Smoak: 3-13(.231), HR, 3 RBI's, run, 4 walks
Pitching Stars:
Jason Vargas: 9 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.89 WHIP, 4 K's
Doug Fister: 8 IP, 2.25 ERA, 0.63 WHIP, 6 K's
Aaron Laffey: 3 IP, 0.00 ERA, 2.67 WHIP, 2 K's
David Pauley: 4 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 2 K's
The Bad:
Whenever you go 0-4 there is plenty of bad for the week. The Mariners parted ways with Milton Bradley and Ryan Langerhans but still got no production from left field. The Mariners Cy Young award winner Felix Hernandez was roughed up as well. The Mariners saw closer Brandon League have one of the worst weeks a reliever could possibly have as he blew three saves and went 0-3 this week. Dating back to Sunday League is 0-4 with a 30.00 ERA in his last four outings. The Mariners saw themselves get swept by the Baltimore Orioles then lose a heartbreaker to the Cleveland Indians in Eric Wedge's homecoming back to Cleveland. The Mariners will also have to make up some games but given the way they were playing that rain out could have been a good thing.
Hitting Bad:
Brendan Ryan: 2-12(.166), RBI, run, 2 K's
Miguel Olivo: 2-12(.166), 2 RBI's, run, 3 K's
Michael Saunders: 3-17(.176), HR, RBI, 3 runs, 5 K's
Carlos Peguero/Mike Wilson: 2-17(.117), HR, run, 2 RBI's, 5 K's
Pitching Bad:
Felix Hernandez: 0-1, 5 IP, 7.20 ERA, 2.00 WHIP, 4 K's
Brandon League: 0-3, 3 blown saves, 1.2 IP, 37.72 ERA, 5.40 WHIP, K
The Ugly:
The terrible defense and lack of hitting by the Mariners continues to be a major problem. The defense isn't making any outs unless the ball is hit right directly at them. While the hitting still isn't hitting at all on the year as the team features just one .300 hitter. The Mariners have just two regular everyday hitters who are hitting above .250 which simply won't cut it. In the American League you have to be able to hit the ball or you simply can't win scoring piss poor low totals. The closer problems of League are magnified because the team can't hit ever to blow anyone out.
Ugly Hitting:
Seattle Mariners team: .228/.302/.326 which is a terrible line for a player let alone an entire team. The Mariners currently rank 29th out of 30 teams in home runs, batting average, slugging percentage and on base+slugging percentage. The Mariners rank 28th in runs and hits while ranking 27th in runs batted in and on base percentage. So the Mariners rank in the bottom four in all of baseball in home runs, batting average, OBP, OPS, runs, hits and RBI's. That won't get the job done at all.
Michael Saunders: .171/.225/.270 with 32 K's in 111 AB's(3.5:1 ratio). Saunders makes me beg for the Jeremy Reed days in center that is how pathetic he has been. He was once a promising prospect but it appears he is destined to be quadruple A material for this franchise.
Miguel Olivo: .207/.250/.276 with 32 K's in 116 AB's with only two home runs. This is the Mariners clean up hitter.....ladies and gentlemen your 2011 Seattle Mariners.
American League West standings:
L.A. Angels: 22-19, first place
Texas Rangers: 21-19, 0.5 GB
Oakland A's: 20-20, 1.5 GB
Seattle Mariners: 16-23, 5.0 GB
The Mariners still can't hit so while it's fun to bitch and moan about Brandon League the real problem isn't going away. No matter who Wedge puts in the clean up hole odds are he will suck since Ichiro and Smoak are the only two hitters on this roster. This was a terribly ball club built by a third year general manager. Yes Jackie Z inherited a mess from Bill Bavasi but he isn't helping that mess. To date he sounds like Tyrone Willingham who made nothing but excuses about his mess he inherited while failing to mention he isn't doing shit about the mess. The Mariners hitting we all knew was going to be a disaster and Dustin Ackley better be called up soon because this is beyond pathetic. The Mariners better spend at least 40 million this offseason on hitting or the fans will continue to not show up.
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