SSB weekly rant: May 26th-June 1st edition

By Kshell

Happy booze day to all my readers who like liquor! Today of course is the first day in this states history where alcohol can be purchased inside a store such as costco, fred meyers, wal mart, QFC, etc. So now it is much easier to purchase alcohol as you are buying your mix drinks. Not to mention the money now goes towards our state and it actually cheaper despite what many have you to believe. Hopefully those of you out there are taking advantage of this new law as you are reading my blog post. This week I have plenty to rant about as the NBA playoffs are now in the conference finals, while David Stern had yet another fishy NBA lottery, one team in the playoffs is denying tickets to fans who happen to live in 47 states in the United States and the Mariners are bowing down to a legend who is way past his prime.

The big news out of Seattle today is Ichiro is being moved from the 3rd spot in the lineup. That was expected since he is only hitting .271/.305/.367 on the season with just one home run in 223 PA's. He only had 15 extra base hits and when he was given the day off the Mariners erupted for 21 runs against the Texas Rangers. So most people thought the slumping Ichiro would hit at the bottom of the order as the kids develope. Instead Ichiro will bat leadoff in a move that pisses me off. Look I understand batting order doesn't matter and scrubs like Miguel Olivo still play against right handers. The reason this move pisses me off shows that Ichiro still has management by the balls. It shows that Ichiro is still running this franchise that has finished in last place six of the last eight seasons and is currently in last place right now. The Mariners continue to bow down to their legendary right fielder despite the fact he isn't hitting that well the last two years. The last two years Ichiro's production has fallen and with these young kids playing all the time it's time to develope them and worry about Ichiro less.

This week the NBA held their annual draft lottery where they determine who receives the number one pick. This year it matters more so than other years because the player with the number one pick will be Kentucky Wildcats center Anthony Davis. Davis who was the Final Four most outstanding player as he led the Wildcats to their first NCAA championship since 1998. Davis who was the #1 player coming out of high school didn't disappoint as he won the college basketball player of the year award when he averaged 14.2 PPG, 10.4 RPG, 1.4 steals and 4.7 blocks per game while shooting 62.3% from the field. So Davis is the obvious choice what made this lottery so fishy is the fact the New Orleans Hornets won the lottery. Yes the same team that David Stern and the NBA had taken over for over the past year. The same team that nobody wanted to buy then suddenly a month ago New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson bought the team despite not showing any interest in the team before. Look I don't know if Stern rigged the lottery or not but Sonicsgate did show he is a corrupt man. I wouldn't be shocked one bit if he promised Benson the #1 pick if he buys the team from the league. Stern is not someone you can trust as the NBA always has a way of getting the teams they want in the NBA Finals.

For yesterday's game three of the Western Conference Finals the Oklahoma City Zombie Sonics denied all fans who weren't from Oklahoma, Arkansas or Kansas to enter the game. If your billing address wasn't from those states you couldn't buy tickets. So that includes even famous people like rapper Lil' Wayne was denied to go to the game. As Charles Barkley has said in the past Oklahoma City isn't a city for black people and they are holding that statement true by denying a black rapper. This is very North Korea like in an attempt to keep Spurs fans and Sonics fans away. They know most of the NBA is rooting against them as they stole a team from a dedicated fan base like Seattle. Now they are denying people from other states to attend their games. These guys continue to show why they are at the bottom of the NBA when it comes to class. Oklahoma City with the way they still bash Seattle has shown they have no class and they are denying the world from their shithole city because they know the whole world will bash that city. Welcome to Oklahoma City folks where they resemble North Korea more than the United States!

Meanwhile the conference finals are heating up as the home teams have won all five games. The Miami Heat survived game two over the Boston Celtics in overtime 115-111. Ray Allen had hit a three pointer to force the overtime, Rajon Rondo scored 44 points, dished out 10 assists and grabbed eight rebounds as it wasn't enough. Lebron James had a "quiet" 34 points and 13 rebounds while Dwyane Wade was quiet all game until he scored eight in the overtime period to finish with 23 points. The Heat now lead 2-0 heading back to Boston tonight for game three. As for the other series the San Antonio Spurs led by Tony Parker and Tim Duncan led two games to zero winning 20 games in a row before finally losing to the Oklahoma City Zombie Sonics led by Kevin Durant who had been quiet the previous two games in the fourth quarter. That series is now 2-1 in the Spurs favor which should make for a terrific game four which can swing the series. I still like the Heat in five games and I like the Spurs in six games. The Heat-Spurs Finals might be one of the better finals we've seen in years.

Well hope you guys are enjoying your new alcohol freedoms today and watch the Heat-Celtics game. The Mariners are still showing that they will do whatever it takes to bow down to an aging star than worry about the future. Just don't say that to a certain media member on twitter or he'll attack you(and many others) in the process for simply disagreeing with him. Oklahoma City has continued to show they are a classless city, classless fan base and classless organization. For them to deny ticket sales to 94% of the states in this country is straight bullshit! Anyways for the playoffs I'll say this go Heat! Go Spurs! Hopefully when Ichiro retires at 45 years old the Mariners can finally start to win some games because you just know they'll bring his old ass back for another un. Anyways hope you enjoyed my weekly rant and drink safely guys!

SSB weekly rant: May 19th-25th edition

By Kshell

Happy memorial day weekend everyone! I hope everyone has a great memorial day weekend even though the traffic is a nightmare currently in Seattle. On this memorial day weekend there is plenty to talk about in the sports scene as I continue my weekly rant. The NBA postseason is providing some nice moments. In this following post I'll mainly be talking about the NBA postseason, why some fans in this area are against Chris Hansen's arena proposal and do a nice little rant on a certain Cougar fan on the Seattle Times who is bashing our Seattle Sounders. I honestly don't understand the sports fans in this town. Anyways I hope you guys enjoy this following rant and be sure to remember your loved ones who have passed away this weekend by decorating their graves with flowers.

cougforlife2011 on seattletimes

"meredith is one of the worst if not the worst goalies i have ever seen in my life. The guy couldn't stop a shot from going into the back of the net if it was only 3 feet wide. Time to put him on the bench and start weber. Our front office has no clue on how to bring evaluate and bring in talent. Sounders are becoming the mariners of seattle. Oh wait the mariners have a youthfull team that actually tries and puts out effort, never mind."

I don't understand this rant at all by this dumb Coug fan. The Sounders have made the playoffs the last three seasons and are top 10 in the world in soccer attendance. While the Mariners rank 11th out of 14 teams in the American League in attendance. The Mariners haven't made the playoffs since 2001 as well. This was just a stupid overreaction by a dipshit fan who obviously hates soccer. I'm not a big soccer fan myself but to go off on the Sounders at least say something intelligent like complaining how they haven't reach the second round of the postseason. Sorry there Coug fan but the Sounders are not the Mariners, they actually win some games every now and then.

I don't get why fans are against Chris Hansen's arena proposal? See to my right is Hansen with  our good friends from Bring Back Our Sonics. This arena in the SoDo area will bring in the NBA and the NHL. This will also make the SoDo area a kickass area to be around in. Sure the Mariners will be jealous but you know what? Screw em! Win some damn games then you have a right to complain! I'll admit I wanted the team to be in the Seattle Center but it's looking like that isn't going to happen so time to join forces and rally behind Hansen. Hansen is doing what Steve Ballmer has claimed he'd do for four years now only Hansen is actually going through with it instead of blowing smoke up our asses like Ballmer. Hansen is paying for the arena too as the tax payers are getting off. The SoDo district will finally be cleaned up as well and we can have a kickass part of town basically dedicated to us sports junkies. I'm fired up over this plan and I suspect Hansen is going to make this happen regardless of what the longshoreman or Chuck Armstrong think.

Kevin Durant who should be for the Sonics will be playing in his second straight Western Conference finals for Oklahoma City as they take on the San Antonio Spurs and Tim Duncan. For Duncan this is his seventh Western Conference Finals trip as he has won four NBA championships. While Durant is still looking to reach his first NBA Finals after losing last year to Dallas Mavericks in five games. Both teams have cruised in the playoffs as the Zombie Sonics are 9-1 after defeating the Lakers in five games. While the old Spurs are 8-0 this postseason including two comeback wins at Staples Center to sweep off the Los Angeles Clippers in the second round. This should be a great playoff series which could set up for a good NBA finals. You have the battle of the up and comers(Zombie Sonics) against the old consistent team since 1999(the Spurs). These are the type of matchups the NBA dreams about.

What a difference a week makes for Dwyane Wade and Lebron James? This time last week they were trailing 2-1 to the Indiana Pacers.  Now they are resting to see who they host in game one of the Eastern Conference Finals starting this Monday. Lebron James had a historic performance in game four scoring 40 points, grabbing 18 rebounds and dishing out 9 assists becoming the first player to do that since Elgin Baylor back in 1961. Lebron in the last three games averaged 32.7 PPG, 11.3 RPG and 8.0 APG with 2.0 steals and 1.0 blocks per game. Wade since his horrific game three responded as well in game six scoring 41 points on 17-25(68.0%) shooting with 20 points in the second quarter alone. In the last three games Wade averaged 33.0 PPG, 7.3 RPG and 3.8 APG. He is averaging 1.7 steals and 1.0 blocks per game as well. The Heat proved they can win a tough playoff series and this was without seven-time all-star power forward Chris Bosh who should return this series. When James and Wade are clicking like they were this series they are impossible to beat. If the Heat advance past the winner of the Celtics-76ers that should make for another great highly rated NBA Finals.

This has been another fun week in the sports scene and this weekly rant ran a little bit longer than most. I must admit I probably left off a few things like I always do. Next week my rant will be taking place in Boise, Idaho as I'll be there next week the home of two-time Fiesta Bowl champions Boise State Broncos. These NBA playoffs have been great and I'm back into the fold as a NBA fan once again which is good since our Sonics are coming home very shortly. The NHL playoffs is compelling as well with the L.A. Kings making the Stanley Cup Finals while the New York Rangers-New Jersey Devils are battling it out in a hard fought series. Well guys have a fun and safe memorial day weekend and hope you enjoyed my weekly rant!

SSB Weekly Rant: May 12-18th edition

By Kshell

This week on the 32nd anniversary of Mt. St. Helens erupting which shook up the northwest for the worst especially my home town down in South Washington I'll be doing my weekly rant. The mountain erupting is very symbolic of the Seattle Mariners who have lost four games in a row and are currently 1-6 on this road trip. The Mariners should have did what the Seahawks are doing under Pete Carroll which is blow the team up completely instead of messing around with washed up veterans. Anyways with the NBA playoffs going on and today marking the 16th season of interleague play in baseball there is plenty to talk about this week. I'll start off with the baseball talk as the Mariners are taking on the Colorado Rockies.

This weekend the Seattle Mariners take on the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. The Mariners are 13-12 all-time against the Rockies but only 4-7 at Coors Field. The Mariners first ever interleague game was against the Rockies at the old Kingdome in which the Mariners won 12-11 back in 1997 in which Bobby Ayala recorded the save. The Mariners dominated this series early on from 1997-2002 going 12-7 against the Rockies but have gone just 1-5 since. I know some fans are tired of interleague play but personally I still like it. I know with free agency you have the chance to see most every player but there are some you don't get a chance to see.  It was nice seeing Tony Gwynn, Barry Bonds, Greg Maddux and Sammy Sosa playing at Safeco Field. It was nice seeing Ken Griffey Jr having his return to Seattle which let him know that the city of Seattle still loves him so he could return in 2009(I'll pretend 2010 never happened). I think interleague play still has a place in this game and was one of the better things that Bud Selig has ever done in his time as commisioner.

The Miami Heat are in serious trouble right now with Chris Bosh being out for this playoff series as the Heat have lost back to back games to the Indiana Pacers in Bosh absence. If the Heat fail to win a title again these clips of their celebration and Dan LeBatard's rant about the Heat are becoming more and more hilarious on the unintentional comeday scale. The Heat are down 2-1 and with Bosh down they are in danger of losing this series. Even if the Heat escape this series alive I don't see them beating the Boston Celtics next round and definately can't see them beating the Zombie Sonics or the San Antonio Spurs. The Heat could possibly go down as the biggest joke in sports history if they fail to win a title with the "big three" . Bosh going down has hurt the team but there is absolutely no excuse to lose to the Pacers when you still feature by far and away the two best players on the court in Dwyane Wade and Lebron James. This is their legacy right now on the line as those two choked away game two and failed to even show up for game three. Those two made the ridiculous statements and there is no turning back now. Time for those two to finally step up or they can continue to point fingers at their coach or their teammates. Years from now nobody is going to remember that Mike Miller wasn't very good they'll remember that the trio of Lebron, Wade and Bosh choked!

Sports is kind of funny cause there is always that one team that you hated but respect so much you actually start to like them. That is how I feel about the San Antonio Spurs. I've never been a big fan of Tim Duncan but there is something about how consistent he is. The Spurs are the exact opposite of the Heat. They aren't flashy, their stars don't make stupid statements, you don't see them on commercials. Instead they just win and win titles. Duncan has won four championships and three have came with teammates Manu Ginaboli and Tony Parker. I figured the Spurs would be done by now as their age had caught up to them but instead they have posted the NBA's best record two years in a row. The Spurs this postseason are 6-0 and have yet to really be challenged. Everyone assumes the Zombie Sonics will make the Finals but I feel like we are all sleeping on the Spurs. In a way a Boston Celtics-San Antonio Spurs finals would be special. It would show that good ole fassion team work, hard work and accountability still exists in today's game. The Spurs are the real deal and I think they are going to end up winning the championship which would give Duncan five titles. Could that put him in the top five players of all-time? Perhaps it can. Duncan may be boring but he is also a winner.

Well guys that is my weekly rant for this week. The Spurs just have something special about them and I thought I'd never root for them in my life yet I find myself pulling for them right now. They are the opposite of the "South Beach" media hype machine and there is something redeeming about that. The Spurs represent what is right about the NBA while "South Beach" represents what is wrong with the league. Judging by Chris Hansen's recent press conference the NBA appears to be returning to Seattle very soon. I won't write about it until it's official as I don't want to jinx anything. Once again thanks for reading my weekly rant and I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.

SSB weekly rant: May 5th-11th edition

By Kshell

This week my rant won't be as controversial as last week which received some hate messages for calling out a KJR host. Instead this week I'll focus on the Seattle Mariners going to play the New York Yankees at Yankees stadium. As the Mariners prepare for the Yankees they'll have a rookie returning to the place where he was supposed to be part of their future but was traded. The Mariners will also be sending their ace Felix Hernandez who lately has been fantastic in New York. I'll also touch on a former Sonics coach who is doing everything in his power to provide a major upset in these playoffs. A coach who in my personal opinion someday belongs in the basketball hall of fame as he is one of the most underrated coaches in the NBA.

Today the Seattle Mariners are taking on the New York Yankees as Felix Hernandez takes the hill. In his career against the Yankees Hernandez is 6-4 in 11 career starts having thrown 79.1 innings with three complete games and one shutout. He has a 3.29 ERA and 1.35 WHIP with 66 strikeouts. However since 2009 Hernandez has simply dominated the Yankees.  Hernandez in seven starts has been 5-1 having thrown 55 innings(7.2 IP a start) with 2.12 ERA and 1.12 WHIP. He has recorded 47 strikeouts(7.7 K's per 9) with three complete games including a shutout. His lone start last year at Yankees stadium he recorded the win having pitched seven innings allowing one run. That win was signficant because the Mariners had been on a 17 game losing streak which of course their ace ended. Hernandez the last three years has stepped up his game when going up against the Yankees and I'm excited to see what he will do today.

This series in New York will also have the return of Jesus  Montero to Yankees Stadium. Montero this offseason was traded to the Mariners for Michael Pineda(who is out for the season). Montero was the prized prospect for the Yankees and last year in 61 AB's he hit .328/.406/.590 with four home runs and 12 rbi's with nine runs while catching only three games. This year Montero is experiencing his first full season in the majors as he is the Mariners DH but also catches some. This year in 112 AB's Montero is hitting .268/.282/.420 with four home runs and 16 RBI's. He has also scored 10 runs while playing in 11 games at catcher all of which were starts. Montero is only 22 years old and since Pineda is out for the year the Yankees will be very bitter if Montero were to have a big series. Since New  Yorkers drive me nuts I hope Montero has a big weekend so the Yankees crowd can turn on their own because that makes me very happy.

How about the job that former Sonics head coach George Karl is doing? He lost what should have been his franchise player in Carmelo Anthony last year only to continue putting the Denver Nuggets in the playoffs. This year after trailing three games to one to the heavily favorite Los Angeles Lakers the Nuggets led by Karl have forced a game seven. Karl is coaching circles around Lakers head coach Mike Brown which TNT analysis Charles Barkley makes a note of every game. Karl is one of the most underrated coaches in the NBA. In his NBA career he is 1,074-731(.595) in 24 seasons. In those 24 seasons Karl has seen his teams win 50 plus games 11 times and two of those years were strike shorten seasons. Karl has coached five different teams leading all five teams to the playoffs.

In Seattle the Sonics won the championship in 1979 with 52 wins then followed that up with 56 wins in 1980 as they lost in the Western Conference Finals. After 1980 until Karl's first full season in 1993 the Sonics won over 50 games just once which was in 1982 when they won 52 games. Then Karl comes to town and the Sonics win 55 plus games every year from 1993-1998. After Karl was fired the Sonics won 50 plus games just once in 2005 when they won 52 games. Karl took the Milwaukee Bucks who had won 52 games to a game seven of the Eastern Conference Finals in 2001 a franchise that prior to his arrival hadn't advanced that deep since 1986 when they lost to the Boston Celtics. That was the Bucks first 50 win season since 1987 and his first year he took them to the playoffs in 1999 which was the Bucks first playoff trip since 1991. He then takes a one year break to go to the Denver Nuggets. During the 2004-05 season Karl took over midseason as the Nuggets were only 17-25, Karl went 32-8 with the Nuggets leading them to the playoffs. He has taken the Nuggets every year to the playoffs in his eight year career with them. In 2009 he led the Nuggets to the Western Conference Finals their first playoff series win since well they beat his Sonics in the famous 1993-94 upset. That was the Nuggets first Western Conference Finals since 1985 when they lost to the showtime Lakers. Karl has won seven division titles, made four conference finals and one NBA finals in his career. Karl is a legendary coach and I hope every finally appreciates his greatness as he belongs in the hall of fame damn it!

Well that was my weekly rant sorry if my Karl rant ran a little long but it does bother me that his name doesn't get brought up with the elite coaches. The Mariners will have a fun series this weekend in New York as the Yankees prized prospect returns home wearing the Mariners gear. Meanwhile King Felix gets to pitch on the big stage which he has done a great job of lately. The NBA playoffs has been terrific so far which hurts because I miss the Sonics even more. I'm glad you listened to my rant and hopefully my rant on Karl either confirmed what you had already thought or changed your mind a little on him. Karl is one of the greatest coaches in Seattle sports history and firing him just started the downhill spiral of our franchise.

SSB weekly rant: April 28th-May 4th edition

By Kshell

Last week I took a week off from my weekly rant instead to cover the NFL draft. This past week including today plenty has been going on that I would like to rant about. My main picture is of a sinking ship which can be confused as the Seattle Mariners current logo given their six game losing streak and how they have been a terrible product from the 2004 season until now. I also will talk about the NBA playoffs some in particular one player who has so far had a terrific playoffs. In this rant I'll address rumors by our local radio hosts to boost struggling ratings. This week has seen plenty and like usual I'll give my two cents on everything. So in this rant once again hope you aren't too offended and make sure to enjoy what one man has to rant about.

In year four of the Jack Zduriencik experiment the Mariners offense still looks pathetic and the team is experiencing a six game losing streak. Zduriencik's big trade acquisitions like Franklin Gutierrez and Justin Smoak are proving to be busts while his free agents Chone Figgins and Miguel Olivo are also terrible. Zduriencik is on his second manager Eric Wedge who doesn't appear to have the slightest clue on what is going on. Wedge is in love with veterans when the Mariners should be rebuilding and Zduriencik can't fire him or else he will have failed with both his managerial hires. Last year I suggested that Zduriencik isn't the guy to lead the Mariners to the promise land and unfortunately I'm right once again. Jack Z has proven to be a fraud so far and the Mariners 11-16 record and already seven games back in year four just further proves my claim. The fact that 22 of the 25 guys on this roster are a product of Zduriencik(Felix, Ichiro and Saunders are the three who aren't) just gives more evidence he doesn't know what he is doing to be a major league general manager. Time for Zudriencik and Wedge to pack their bags and move on.

This playoffs once again no player matters more than Lebron James. In this picture shows Lebron going up against Carmelo Anthony. I bring up these two because at one point they were both in the same breath. James will win his third MVP in the last four years in a couple of weeks while Anthony has made it past the first round just once in his career as he falls to 0-7 in playoff games with the Knicks. Lebron is killing the Knicks this series averaging 27.7 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 5.7 APG and 2.7 steals while shooting 50.9% from the field. While Anthony is averaging 21.0 PPG and 9.0 RPG but shooting just 34.4% from the field. Anthony appears to be this generations wasted talent a guy who can rack up stats but can't translate to wins. While James has had his problems in the playoffs he has never lost a first round series in his entire NBA career. James scored 17 of his 32 points in game three in the fourth quarter making a two point game into a 17 point victory. James is stepping up his game while Anthony once again is falling short. At one time Anthony falling short in the playoffs used to be a major story instead now it's a non story which speaks even further of Anthony's career in New York.

Today on his KJR show and on his twitter Dave Softy Mahler speculated that the Eugene register is sitting on a big story that will put the Oregon Ducks basketball and football on probation. Of course his source quickly turned into a rumor when he caught lying. Now Mahler can sit behind that he was just spreading a rumor but as the case he was just flat out wrong. Then on the Dawgman message boards fans were saying that writer from the Eugene Register is just a Ducks fan with an agenda. What fans don't realize is newspaper writers have to hold some sort of integrity while radio hosts like Softy or those who run Dawgman don't. Dawgman is a glorified fan site just like Softy's show is a glorified fan show. They never break any real news yet the fans in Seattle eat it up like it's the gospel. Use common sense people in today's era with bloggers, radio hosts, and other newspapers you really think a small-time newspaper is going to sit on a huge national story?!! Really?!! This was just a sad attempt by a KJR host hoping to boost his ratings and the fans ate it up. I've been hearing for a while the Oregon Ducks are going on probation but until it actually happens I'm sick of it. Right now these Husky fans are misrepresenting the true fans which is a shame. These hacks would rather see Oregon fail than see the Huskies succeed which is a shame. So in the future guys don't listen to anything this guy has to say because his "sources" are Hugh Millen, Kim Grinolds of dawgman  and Elderidge Recasner. Basically he has no real sources just guesses and hoping it sticks.

Well guys those are my rants for the week. Hopefully in football season I can be more positive although you guys don't read my blog for positive rants. The Mariners are a team that is in a sinking ship and we should be enjoying the NBA playoffs but our team was stolen. There isn't much going on in this city since the draft has just been completed so expect more rumors with no facts supporting them behind it. Anyways hope you enjoyed this post and make sure to read my Mariners weekly post this Monday.

SSB weekly rant: April 14-20th edition

By Kshell

Happy 420 to all my readers who happen to enjoy the green. This weekly rant has plenty to rant about this week. First I'll begin by saying that I'm sure every 7-11, smoke shop, fast food drive thru will be quite packed this Friday as it's 420 day which is a big "holiday" for all those weed smokers out there. For those of you who managed to put the bong down(or continue smoking I guess) while reading this I'm very happy that my blog has appealed to you. Now back to what I'll be ranting about this week. In this following post I'll mainly be talking about the Seattle Mariners and I'll spend some time discussing the Seahawks schedule. For the Mariners there will be plenty to discuss this week that has me in a bit of a pissed off mood. Once again I hope my weekly rantings will at the very least entertain you guys. For those who don't smoke you can enjoy this April 20th as well and thanks for reading my blog.

This week the NFL schedules were released and like always people were curious how the Seahawks schedule was. Well earlier this week I broke down the Seahawks schedule week by week to see who the Seahawks play as I gave my two cents on each game. The obvious game that stands out is the third week of the season as the Green Bay Packers come to Seattle to take on the Seattle Seahawks on Monday Night on September 24th. Matt Flynn will be taking on his old team and the Seahawks will be hosting a rare Monday Night game in September. The Seahawks have won four in a row on Monday Night at home and have won five in a row overall. The 12th man will be rocking on that night as the Packers stroll in led by Aaron Rodgers who might be the games best player. The Packers last year went 15-1 as they looked to defend their title but were upset in the divisional round to the eventual Super Bowl champions New York Giants. This will be a big stage for the Seahawks to show the nation they are a serious threat this year as most national experts are picking them as a team poised to bounce back this season.

The talk of Felix Hernandez and his fastball have died down after last night. Hernandez used mostly his cut fastball and his change up as he went eight strong innings, allowing only five hits while walking just one. He recorded 12 strikeouts including back to back strikeouts with the bases loaded and one out in the eighth inning. All that was for nothing as Brandon League blew the save and the Mariners lost 2-1 losing the series to the Cleveland Indians. For Hernandez he once again failed to get the win which has been a sad case over the years. In fact since his debut he has had 16 no decisions where he pitched at least seven innings and allowed one run or less. That is the most in baseball since he's been called up. This year in four starts Hernandez has pitched 29.1 innings with an ERA of 2.76, 1.02 WHIP and 31 strikeouts. What he has to show so far is only one win(which was the start he allowed six of his total nine runs actually). For Hernandez who has been surrounded by the Mariners garbage since 2010 as he is only 28-27 this has to be getting old. Last year in August I actually talked about how the Mariners are wasting an incredible ace in Hernandez. If the losing continues and with Hernandez a free agent after 2014 look for him to demand a trade in the offseason or at some point next year. Every athlete wants to win and he's no different. I wouldn't blame him one bit Bill Bavasi and now Jack Zduriencik have failed to build a winner around Hernandez.

Eric Wedge is starting to piss me off with his stance on Miguel Olivo. His quotes to Mariners propaganda person errr beat writer Shannon Drayer were quite alarming.  "Miggy is our starting catcher, Jesus is going to get time as well, it is going to be tough to get Jaso back there,” he said. “Not that I am against it but right now I feel like I need to give the time to Miggy and Jesus. I still want to get Jaso’s bat in the lineup from time to time if I can so that is what we are trying to do.” Then he followed it up with another gem of a quote as well "We’re trying to get it going,” he answered. “I have had conversations with him. I was really pleased with what he did this spring he’s working up the middle more, he is trying to go the other way which is against what you have seen from him in the past typically. He has done a nice job with it. I think he has been a little anxious here early on I think he has been pressing a little bit but his confidence hasn’t wavered and I feel he is going to hit but he just has to do some things in an adjustment period to make that happen.”. Translation our manager is a moron just like John McLaren. He believes in crap like "this guy is gritty", he just "looks" like a ball player, he's "tough", etc. This is all nonsense when John Jaso is left handed, better and younger than Olivo. This year in only 11 AB's Jaso is hitting .273/.333/.727 with one home run and five RBI's. Olivo on the other hand in 42 AB's is hitting .143/.163/.190 with three RBI's. Another thing that pisses me off about Wedge is with a lead late in the game he keeps Figgins in left field instead of substituting a defensive replacement in Casper Wells. Let's face it guys Wedge doesn't know what he is doing and Zduriencik failed on his second manager hiring in four years.

The problem with this picture isn't that there is so many empty seats the problem is you can't tell which game it is or what year. The Mariners crappy play has caught up to them. On a night when Felix Hernandez was pitching the Mariners barely drew over 13,000 fans a day after setting their worst mark in Safeco Field history. Last year I wrote a piece how the gimmicks are no longer working to draw in the fans. This franchise had a great fan base but they are saying enough is enough with the losing. With the price of concession stands, parking and as Chuck Armstrong pointed out the traffic it simply isn't worth it to go to a game. Sure at home I miss out on hydro races and dancing grounds crew but I can enjoy a meal for 1/10th the price. I can yell at the T.V. and not worried about being ejected by the super sensitive folks at Safeco Field. The Mariners need to build a winner then the fans will show up. As of right now I'm supportive of the fans who don't show up because the Mariners management has spit on us fans lately.

Later on today I'll be going to the Mariners game as I'll be forced to interact with the worst kinds of fans in the world.........the bobblehead fans. I'm going to the game with my sister, her boyfriend and my best friend and they are excited to get an Ichiro bobblehead. Which means I'll have to deal with several idiots who don't know the game and are there for the bobblehead. The same type of fans who like Olivo because Wedge says he is good so he must be good. One of these days I'm going to plan a brown papersack game and I hope I can get a huge following to join me on this. Sure we might get kicked out but it would make for a great story and a better time than watching the groundscrew dancing. Anyways since I'll literally be sitting behind our dugout if we are getting blown out I'll let Wedge know exactly how I feel about him as a manager in this town.

That was my weekly rant I hope you enjoyed it. For those who say I'm too negative on Seattle sports well what is there to be positive about? The fact the Mariners made the playoffs 11 years ago? Maybe our new slogan will be "at least we aren't the Pirates". There is plenty to be upset about in Seattle and since I don't have to worry about having credentials revoked I'll continue to speak my mind on the Mariners poor ownership. Hope you enjoyed my blog and for those tokers out there may this be a special 4-20 to you as well!

Seattle Sports Blog weekly rant: April 7th-13th edition

By Kshell

This week in my weekly rants happens to fall on Friday the 13th. Now thankfully there is no new crappy Friday the 13th movie that we all know would suck. Instead if you do decide to go to the movies this weekend I'd see American Pie Reunion if you happen to be under the age of 35 this movie will hit home to you. Now that I got my two cents on movies out of the way I'll once again rant about what is on my mind for what happened this past week in sports. The new baseball season has hit and our Seattle Mariners are 4-4 as they are about to open up their home season this year. I'll also talk a little bit about the Washington Huskies offensive line problems which had a huge hit this week with Colin Porter having to retire. So hope you enjoy yet another week of my weekly rants.

This year was different for the Mariners as opening day was taking away from us since it was started in Japan. Now the home opener this year has a special feel to it. The reason is because Felix Hernandez is starting the home opener. With the Mariners starting on the road since 2009 the following pitchers have pitched the home opener: Carlos Silva, Ryan Rowland-Smith and Jason Vargas. Not exactly top flight pitching and the last two years the Mariners have been blown out. So this year when the Mariners returned to the states they decided to have Vargas pitch the first game so Hernandez who won the 2010 Cy Young award can pitch the home opener. By having Hernandez pitch the opener the Mariners have guaranteed themselves a pack house. This will probably be the only time the Mariners have a packed house all year long not counting Yankees or Redsox games which are half of their fans anyways. The home opener is a special game and ticket prices are pretty spendy.

This year Mike Cameron will be throwing out the first pitch for the Mariners. In four years with the Mariners from 2000-2003 the Mariners won 90, 116, 93 and 93 games. Since his departure the Mariners have had just two winning seasons. Cameron who was an all-star in 2001 and won two gold gloves hit  .256/.350/.448 . With 554 hits, 87 HR's, 353 runs, 344 RBI's, 106 SB's while in Seattle. Cameron also hit four home runs in one game back in 2002 on the road in Chicago. Cameron won over the fans of Seattle despite coming over in a trade for Ken Griffey Jr. Last year I came up with my all-time Mariners team Cameron had made my 25 man roster as he was a fan favorite. I got his autograph back in the 2000 season and I'm sure plenty of fans are excited to see Cameron throw out the first pitch. That was one of the first of many terrible moves by Bill Bavasi was letting Cameron go as he obviously didn't value Cameron's defense or leadership. Bringing back Cameron was one of the few smart things that Mariners management has done. Hopefully Cameron delivers a strike to begin the Safeco season as Felix Hernandez caps it off with a win as he'll be facing the Oakland A's for the third time this year. Should be a magical night at Safeco Field as the home opener is always a special night.

Just like I had talked about earlier in the week. Huskies lost offensive lineman Porter for his career . Which was a stunning move to the Huskies program as Sarkisian enters year four. After losing out on the top three offensive lineman in his own backyard this news couldn't have came at a worst time. The Huskies football for now appears to be hurting but Sarkisian is bringing in five offensive lineman for the fall. Still if the Huskies offensive line is a mess that could spell doom for their season as they don't have an established running back and Keith Price doesn't have any experience behind him as no quarterback on the roster has thrown a pass besides him. The offensive line will make or break the Huskies. Sarkisian failing to lock down those key kids in his backyard could be his undoing.

Well that was my weekly rant for this week. That wasn't very long but don't worry I'll have more as the NBA playoffs are starting to roll around, the NFL draft is in two weeks and nobody has a clue what the Seahawks are going to do. I'm happy to see the Mariners offense is starting to actually hit which they didn't do last year and hopefully King Felix can get his King's Court friends something to cheer about. Last start Hernandez had his fastball dropping from last year and it showed as he allowed six runs. We'll find out this Friday if that is something to worry about or if that was just a bad outing for him. I love the home opener as I'll probably not be going to the game but I"ll be watching somewhere down at Pioneer Square as that should be a fun atmosphere for sure.

Seattle Sports Blog weekly rant!

By Kshell

This past week in Seattle sports a ton of stuff has gone down. Due to work and other obligations I haven't had the time to sit down and discuss each item. As you guys know by now I have strong opinions on various topics. In this post this is more or less going to be a rant about various topics. I'm not going to pretend I'm reporting anything just rant how I feel about various subjects. I must admit with opening day happening this week due to the Mariners playing in Japan, sucking for a decade straight and trying to prevent the NBA/NHL to return to Seattle it has been pretty hard to get up for this baseball season.  Throw in the fact that the Washington Huskies basketball team has lost two underclassmen who happen to be the two best players and this week has been tough. The Seahawks debut their new uniforms which most of the fan base simply didn't like. Then you have news from the Washington Huskies football that they don't even have enough lineman to possibly run a spring game. Throw in another five star recruit leaving this state to play in conference and Seattle sports in general just seems pretty bad right now. I'm going to rant on each topic and I'm sure not everyone will agree with my rants. Then again I don't really care if anyone cares for my rants as long as they are heard that is all I truly care about.

Okay first rant which I'm already getting annoyed of. Can we stop with this ridiculous lazy ass analysis that the Huskies will be better off without Terrence Ross and Tony Wroten? I mean come on people! They were our two best players both were named first team all pac-12 and both were up for player of the year. You don't get better losing two NBA players especially when you are an NIT. The Huskies missed the tournament because they still have no low post scoring options which they won't have next year. The Huskies had no leadership which they won't have next year either as Abdul Gaddy and Scott Suggs aren't vocal in your face leaders like Isaiah Thomas, Nate Robinson, Jon Brockman and Brandon Roy were. The Huskies free throw shooting cost them as well which has been a problem for Lorenzo Romar teams the past five seasons now. Next year the Huskies will have streaky shooters in C.J. Wilcox and hopefully Scott Suggs can emerge as well as Abdul Gaddy. The thing is everything has to fall into place just right for the Huskies to make the big dance and I mean get hot in the only games that count apparently(since the regular season means dick). Will fans stop bashing Wroten already unless they like playing in the CBI then go ahead and bash away please.

You see that guys? That is me standing next to a Washington Huskies national championship trophy. You wouldn't know that the Huskies once won a national title 20 years ago according to the Dawgman, Seattle Times and Softy's page crowd. Expectations are such an all-time low right now for Husky football it's embarassing. Steve Sarkisian is heading into year four and yet I'm still hearing about freaking 0-12!! Shoot guys 0-12 is about as relevant as 12-0 back in 1991.  Facts are Sarkisian is entering year four as is 19-19 as a head coach and more importantly he's 4-12 on the road. Last years collapse shouldn't just be on Nick Holt's shoulders when Sarkisian begged Holt to come to UW and bosted how he hired the top defensive coordinator in the nation. Now with Chris Polk leaving to the NFL you see Scott Eklund posting how you make an excuse for a losing season in 2012. I find that talk to be insulting considering most teams would kill to have  junior quarterback as good as Keith Price. Besides I was told the last three years how Sarkisian is this great recruiter so although the seniors might not be good there should be more than enough talent to produce a winning season. This culture of low expectations around Montlake has really worried me. You add in the fact they created the zone and going to Husky games is turning more and more into that crap feeling I get when I go to Mariners games.

Speaking of the Mariners what is this bullshit about the biggest complaint fans give to Chuck Armstrong is the traffic?!!! Are you kidding me Chuck?!! You don't think fans are more upset with you putting a constant loser out there that has finished last place six of the last eight seasons?!! How some are defending Chuck Armstrong and Howard Lincoln trying to sabotage the potential return of the Sonics and NHL to Seattle is beyond me. First of all this gameday traffic myth is just that. From 2000-2003 the Mariners averaged nearly 40,000 fans a game. Now that number is around 23,000 so adding the NBA/NHL's 17,000 that is the same number as back then. When the Sonics were in town back in 2008 they shared just TWO home dates that was it. If the Mariners had a winning product people would go to their games the fact they expect me to pay to see them lose constantly is a joke. A ticket at a baseball game may be cheap but the concession stands alone will cost you over $50. That money is going towards what again?!! Payroll keeps trimming down, they claim they are doing a youth movement yet I see Ichiro, Chone Figgins, Kevin Millwood, George Sherrill and Miguel Olivo out there. Last I saw those guys aren't young. I wish Clay Bennett had been a baseball fan and not an NBA fan. I'd glady sell the Mariners and let them keep mayor Greg Nickels plus they can have Starbucks for the Sonics. We get Kevin Durant you can keep those other morons.

I understand why baseball has the opening series in Japan. I also thought it was very cool for Ichiro to play in Japan in a Mariners uniform. Having said that I think opening the season in Japan is the dumbest thing baseball can do. Due to the season opening in Japan I along with many other fans were robbed of an opening day experience. Due to living a normal life back then meaning I had to get up in the morning I was unable to watch the games so I missed out. So when the Mariners play the Oakland A's this weekend it won't be the same as they have already played. The whole series was ticky tack anyways with Root sports having Dave Sims and Mike Blowers announce the game from Bellevue instead of actually in Japan was dumb as well. Plus the Mariners played two real games then came back for spring training breaking up the season. The Mariners already travel more than any other team by a large margain and Bud Selig asked them to travel some more. I understand why they did the trip but in the future if the Mariners actually cared about winning which they obviously don't they'll say no to this.

The NFL debut the new Nike uniforms this week with the Seahawks being the only team to truly change their uniforms. Now most fans are already bitching about the uniforms and how ugly they are blah blah blah. The important thing is the uniforms were a smash hit as most current NFL players raved about them on twitter. The Seahawks stole the headlines on the new uniforms as they were the talk of the NFL. Now as you guys know I hate the Oregon Ducks but all those wacky uniform combo's makes them the "it" team of college football and definately of the west coast. Notice even our very own Washington Huskies have different uniform combo's now? There is a reason you don't want to be left behind on the times. Recruits also noticed Oregon's uniforms and with the Seahawks having nine different uniform combinations they'll be luring key free agents. So yes these uniforms may ruffle the feathers of some fans but in reality I'd rather they do that than piss off the players. If the Seahawks land good players then the fans will come. Fans don't go to games to see the uniforms they go to see good play a concept the Mariners still haven't figured out yet.

Well I hoped you guys liked my rant. From here on out I'm going to do a weekly rant every Friday morning to catch you up on what is bugging me concerning Seattle sports. A lot of stuff went down this week for our teams and I'll be there to give my two cents on the situation. I like what the Seahawks are doing in general while I continue to hate what the Mariners are doing. I'm just puzzled with UW sports in a nutshell as they have good teams but accept being average so damn much it pisses me off. If the NBA/NHL doesn't come to Seattle look for a lot of fans including myself to never step foot at Safeco Field again. The Mariners ownership continues to alienate their fan base with crappy play and now this nonsense. Well guys I'm out until next week hope you enjoyed the SSB weekly rants!