Ichiro traded to the Yankees!

By Kshell

Many thought this day would never come but shockingly it has. The Seattle Mariners traded away Ichiro Suzuki to the New York Yankees for two pitching prospects. What the Mariners received at this point doesn't matter what matters is the fact the face of the franchise since 2001 has been traded away. Since 2001 Ichiro has occupied mostly right field and some centerfield while batting leadoff for the Mariners. He had 10 consecutive 200+ hit seasons for the Mariners but his production has dramatically declined in 2011 and this year. Ichiro actually was the one who asked to be traded as he probably would like to win to end his career. Jack Zduriencik didn't receive much in this deal but two b-list pitching prospects. This was a trade that was more about addition by subtraction. This trade was so the Mariners franchise can finally move forward. So the new faces behind Felix Hernandez can finally emerge. Much like the Seahawks last year getting rid of Matt Hasselbeck so the youth can take over this roster the Mariners are doing just that with today's trade. The Mariners franchise led by for better or for worse Howard Lincoln and Chuck Armstrong are showing they are allowing Zduriencik to do what he wants. For that you have to be excited knowing our general manager has no restrictions and most likely never did.

As if Zduriencik's job hasn't been hard enough in Seattle under his watch the two greatest Mariners of all-time had awkward endings. Ken Griffey Jr. the Mariners greatest player ever had a nice comeback in 2009 but in 2010 was horrible. Griffey ended up turning the clubhouse against manager Don Wakamatsu which cost him his job as Griffey quit midseason. I do believe Ichiro is the second greatest Mariner of all-time. He'll finish his Mariners career with .322 career batting average, 2,533 career hits, and 438 stolen bases. He won the MVP and rookie of the year in 2001. He has won two batting titles in 2001 and 2004. He has led the league in hits seven times including 2004 when he had 262 hits which is a major league record breaking George Sissler's record back in 1920. Ichiro has won the All-Star game MVP in 2007 as he was selected to 10 all-star games and won 10 gold gloves. He also won three silver slugger awards in Seattle. Like Griffey and most athletes for that matter his career didn't have that fairy tale ending. Instead his ending leaves a sour taste in your mouth but that is sports. Sadly this is the typical ending we must endear as a fan base when one of our beloved heroes is at the end of his career.

In 2001 the Mariners had just lost Randy Johnson in 1998, Ken Griffey Jr after the 1999 season and Alex Rodriguez after the 2000 season. The Mariners were desperately looking for the new star and they got that in Ichiro Suzuki who came over from Japan. In 2001 Ichiro took the league by storm as he become only the second Mariners player to ever win the MVP award as he led the Mariners to a record tying 116 wins. During that season he hit .350/.381/.457. Had 242 hits, 8 HR's, 127 runs, 69 RBI's and 56 SB's. He took home the rookie of the year award, batting crown, all-star game, gold glove, silver slugger and of course MVP. During that postseason Ichiro hit 16-43(.421) with three RBI's, seven runs scored and 3 stolen bases as the Mariners lost to the New York Yankees in the ALCS.  In 2001 that was a magical time for Ichiro as he came in so mysterious like and immediately dominated the game of baseball. That year would start a run of 10 straight seasons where he had 200+ hits, made the all-star team and won a gold glove. Ichiro due to being such a great player in 2007 was resigned for 5 years at 90 million paying him 18 million per year. The Mariners have been restricted due to that wage and Ichiro's production fell off as he is now 38 years old. Ichiro has declined which is natural but what he gave this franchise in 2001 shouldn't be forgotten as that was the last great moment for the Mariners.

Ichiro was traded for right handed pitchers D.J. Mitchell and Danny Farquhar. Mitchell this year for the Yankees has appeared in four games having pitched 4.2 innings with a 3.86 ERA, 2.14 WHIP and 2 strikeouts. This year in the minor leagues he appeared in 15 games making 14 starts where he is 6-4 having thrown 85.2 innings he has a 5.04 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 72 K's(7.6 K's per 9). For his career he has appeared in 94 games making 87 starts. He has thrown 538 innings sporting a 3.56 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 421 K's(7.0 K's per 9). Farquhar has been in three different organizations this year in the minor leagues and has pitched only two innings in the major leagues giving up three runs. In his minor league career he has appeared in 208 games where he is 14-17 with 59 saves in 282.2 innings. He has a 3.06 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 290 K's(9.2 K's per 9). The Mariners didn't receive much as currently Ichiro is no longer the player he was. Ichiro this season is hitting .261/.288/.353 with only 15 stolen bases. Ichiro last season was worth 0.3 WAR and this year he is at 1.4 due to mainly his defense not his bat. The Mariners didn't receive much and would have gotten more had they dealt him back when I suggested in July of 2010 but that isn't the point. The point is this franchise is moving forward which should be rewarding to so many fans who have questioned this managements leadership over the years.

This day is a bittersweet day for me. Ichiro for years was my favorite Mariner and if I were going to the Mariners-Yankees game tonight I'd cheer Ichiro as he deserves to be cheered. He has done a lot for this franchise and will be our second first ballot hall of famer. Still his production has fallen and this was a move that had to be made. Hopefully Ichiro can finally taste some team success being in New York and hopefully the Mariners young kids can finally grow to be what we had hoped. Zduriencik didn't receive much for Ichiro and they pretty much released him. That shouldn't be held against Jack Z though as Ichiro is 38 with a big contract and is declining fast. He no longer brings in fans as Mariners attendance has been dwindling for some years now. Ichiro will leave Seattle like Matt Hasselbeck, Ken Griffey Jr, Gary Payton and many other stars before him on awkward terms. Saying goodbye to your superstar is tough to do especially when he still views himself as a superstar when in reality he is no longer that guy. The Mariners had to make this move, this move doesn't hurt or help the Mariners right now and I'll always remember the great run Ichiro gave this franchise. I wish Ichiro luck and more importantly I hope the Mariners can start playing some meaningful games in September something they haven't done since 2003.

On this date in history: June 2nd

By Kshell

On this date in sports history some signficant events happened that I remember very vividly. The one event that happened was 16 years ago was when the Seattle Supersonics defeated the Utah Jazz in game seven of the Western Conference Finals 90-86 which was their first Finals appearance since 1979. I was in 4th grade and since the Sonics were going to play the Chicago Bulls I knew we had no chance so my dad and myself celebrated like we had one a title. That same school year the Mariners began the season with their magical 1995 run which saw the Mariners defeat the New York Yankees in five games. Edgar Martinez had the double heard around the northwest as Ken Griffey Jr scored the game winning run to defeat the Yankees. Sports was looking well for the northwest teams back then and on June 2nd the Sonics going to the Finals was one of the happiest sports days of my life.

Fast forward to 2010 and I was in Las Vegas, Nevada on a 10 day vacation. I was playing a lot of poker which you can see as I'm playing in a World Series sponsored sit and go(took 3rd place had chip lead got rivered back to back hands). Whenever I'm in Las Vegas with my friends I'm about having a good time and staying out late. Las Vegas is a great social city and this trip was no different than every other trip I've had down there. For whatever the reason whenever I'm in Las Vegas a major event happens in my life. The year before while I was in Las Vegas pop icon Michael Jackson had died and being in Vegas when that happened was a very surreal moment for me. Now in 2010 I didn't expect another big moment to happen. Instead I had two moments happen on the same day which was pretty crazy.

I woke up on June 2nd in the afternoon to a ton of text messages from my friends telling me that Seattle Mariners legendary outfielder Ken Griffey Jr. had suddenly retired without warning. Now there was rumors leading up to this as Griffey was struggling in 2010 hitting .184/.250/.204 on the year with zero home runs in 98 at bats as the team was experiencing a horrible season. There was no final goodbye to Griffey which was the sad part instead he retired. Griffey had retired with 630 home runs and a batting line of .284/.370/.538 in 9,801 at bats. Griffey scored 1,662 runs and drove in 1,836 runs in his future hall of fame career. Griffey had won an MVP in 1997 and finished in the top five in the MVP race in 1993(5th), 1994(2nd), 1996(4th), and 1998(4th). He was a 13-time all-star and had won 10 gold gloves. The Griffey retirement hit home to everyone in my age group who grew up with Griffey and was very sad to see the way he went out. Normally when a player of his calibar retires that is the big news of the day. Instead Griffey was overshadowed that day by a pitcher with a 26-30 record and a 4.69 ERA for his career.

Later that day I was watching the t.v. when sportscenter switched to the Detriot Tigers-Cleveland Indians game as Armando Galarraga was working on a perfect game. The Detroit Tigers had a 3-0 lead going into the 9th inning as Galarraga was three outs away from perfection. After recording the first two outs he was one out away facing shortstop Jason Donald. Donald hit a grounder inbetween second and first where Miguel Cabrera decided to snag the ball and toss it to Galarraga for the final out. As you can see Galarraga made the out but umpire Jim Joyce called the runner safe. I screamed in shock waking up my friend who I was staying with who is a night shift poker dealer on the strip in Vegas. When he saw the replay he couldn't believe it either as Galarraga was robbed of the perfect game. He would record the next batter but that opportunity to be perfect was lost forever. That story was the story that everyone was talking about on national t.v. and later on that night on the strip in Vegas at the poker tables all anyone could talk about.

For whatever reason when I go to Las Vegas major events happen. Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett die on the same day, Griffey retires same day as the perfect game was robbed by an umpire then last year when I found out I was going to be an uncle for the first time. This date in particular was special as the Sonics had clinched a trip to the NBA Finals back in 1996 and then the biggest Seattle sports legend we had ever seen retired on that same day 14 years later. June 2nd will always be a special date in Seattle sports history due to the Sonics and Griffey. I was just glad I can recall these moments so well and glad I can share those memories with you guys.

How Mariners management turned the magic of 1995 into a mess today

By Kshell

We all remember the magical run of 1995 that saved baseball in Seattle. The Seattle Mariners who were playing in their 19th season headed to the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. Now 1995 suddenly has been 17 years ago. When the Mariners defeated the New York Yankees in a best of five game series in the first round the town was crazy for the Mariners. When Ken Griffey Jr. slid into home plate for the winning run Mariners play by play announcer Dave Niehaus screamed "It just continues! My oh my!" well unfortunately that run didn't continue. The Mariners lost the next series to the Cleveland Indians in six games. With a core that featured Ken Griffey Jr, Randy Johnson, Jay Buhner, Edgar Martinez, and Tino Martinez who were all in their prime plus up and comer Alex Rodriguez on his way things appeared bright for this franchise. They also had a future hall of fame manager in Lou Piniella running the show as well. Instead the Mariners made the playoffs just three more times after that and are the only American League franchise to have never played in a World Series. The Mariners are currently in a rut having finished in last place six of the last eight seasons. How did this happen? In this following post I'll explain in 11 basic steps how the franchise went from a magical run to in the mess they currently find themselves in right now.

1. Traded Tino Martinez and Jeff Nelson to the New York Yankees:

After defeating the Yankees in a hard fought series the Mariners ownership decided to cut back on payroll instead of go all out. Meaning a choice had to be made. The Mariners announced only one Martinez(Edgar or Tino) was going to be dealt. Since Edgar had just saved baseball Tino was dealt. Trading Tino Martinez was bad but what made this deal particularly bad was he was dealt to the New York Yankees. The Mariners also included reliever Jeff Nelson. Martinez was coming off of an All-Star season at the age of 27 years old he hit .293/.369/.551 with 31 home runs, 111 RBI's and 92 runs scored. Martinez was a former first round pick of the Mariners so this trade really hurt. Nelson who was a 28 year old reliever finally had a break out year going 7-3 in 62 appearences. He pitched 78.2 innings, saving two games, posting a 2.17 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 96 strikeouts(11.0 K's per 9). Both Nelson and Martinez would help the Yankees win four World Series titles. While what the Mariners got in return was Sterling Hitchcock who would win the 1998 NLCS MVP award as the Mariners shipped him away for Scott Sanders who they then dealt for Omar Olivares and Felipe Lira. The other piece was Russ Davis who posted a negative 1.3 WAR in his four lack luster seasons in Seattle. The Mariners help build a dynasty with a team they just defeated while potentially costing themselves from 1996-2003.

2. The Bullpen was historically awful:

After trading away Jeff Nelson and over using Norm Charlton in 1995 the bullpen suffered in 1996. After 1996 the Mariners inexplicably resigned Bobby Ayala back and let Mike Jackson go. The 1997 Mariners set the all-time home run record for a team which featured two batting champions in Edgar Martinez and Alex Rodriguez. Also featured MVP Ken Griffey Jr who belted 56 home runs that year and Randy Johnson finished that season second in the Cy Young race. The terrible bullpens of 1997 and 1998 made sure a team with Griffey Jr, Martinez, Johnson and A-Rod would never win a playoff series together in their prime years.

Ayala took most of the blame of the bullpen failures as he pitched with the Mariners from 1994-1998 posting a 27-26 record in 292 games pitched. He threw 367 innings with a 4.88 era, 1.41 WHIP and had 374 strikeouts with 56 saves. His final year in Seattle in 1998 he was 1-10 with a 7.29 ERA. In the playoffs Ayala posted a 17.47 ERA allowing 11 runs in 5.2 innings in the 1995 and 1997 playoff series combined. The bullpen struggles of 1997 not only cost them that season but put the Mariners franchise in a state of panic which cost them down the road.

3. Mariners trade away three young stars in Varitek, Lowe and Cruz Jr in 1997:

In 1997 the Mariners bullpen was killing the team as the division race was falling away. So the Mariners decided to trade Jose Cruz Jr. who was the 3rd overall pick in the 1995 draft to the Toronto Blue Jays for setup men Mike Timlin and Paul Spoljaric. Cruz. Jr at the time was hitting .268/.315/.541 with 12 home runs and 34 RBI's in 183 at bats. He would finish the year second in the rookie of the year. While Spoljaric flopped and Timlin left the Mariners after the 1998 season. Cruz Jr. posted back to back 30 home runs season in 2000 and 2001 when the Mariners lost back to back ALCS trips. In 2001 Cruz Jr hit .274/.326/.530 with 34 home runs and 32 stolen bases. He could have been the missing power the Mariners needed. What is sad is he wasn't even the worst trade that day.

Cruz. Jr stole all the headlines that day but another trade set the Mariners back. The Mariners traded former first round pick catcher Jason Varitek and pitcher Derek Lowe to the Boston Red Sox for closer Heathcliff Slocumb. Slocumb was the closer for the 1997 division champions but was ineffective. In less than two seasons with the Mariners Slocumb was 2-9 in 84 games. He threw 96 innings posting a high ERA of 4.97, a 1.63 WHIP and had only 13 saves. Meanwhile Varitek and Lowe ended the curse of the Bambino in 2004 as the Red Sox won the World Series title first time in 86 years. Varitek won another title in 2007 as he was the Red Sox captain. Varitek was named to three all-star games, won a gold glove and silver slugger award. In 15 seasons he hit .256/.341/.435 in 5,099 at bats. He belted 193 home runs while driving in 757 RBI's. 

Derek Lowe enjoyed a long career as well. Lowe is 166-146 in his career with a 3.94 era and 1.31 WHIP with 85 saves. Lowe made two all-star games where he led the league in saves in 2000 and then in 2002 as a starter finished 3rd in the CY Young race. During the 2004 playoff run Lowe was the winning pitcher in the series clinching game in all three series. The Mariners could have used Lowe as a bullpen arm in the late 1990's or used him as a front of the rotation pitcher in the 2000's. They definately could have used Varitek's power at the catcher position or Cruz Jr power in left field in 2000-2001. Instead it was all wasted away to pick up three crappy relievers.

4. Poor drafts from 1997-2008:

Starting in 1997 and going all the way until 2008(could be even longer but the rest are too early to tell) the Mariners have done poorly in the draft. Starting in 1997 when the Mariners took 6'11" left handed pitcher Ryan Anderson with 19th pick overall. Most of baseball fell in love with Anderson as he instantly became compared to Randy Johnson. Anderson was also a top prospect for the longest time but never threw an inning in the major leagues.

Here are the list of the names of the Mariners first round picks after Anderon.
1998-Matt Thornton(did nothing for the Mariners but turned good for the White Sox after Bavasi gave him away).
1999- Jeff Heaverlo(never pitched in the major leagues)
1999- Ryan Christianson(11th pick overall, catcher never cracked the major leagues)
2001- Michael Garciaparra(never played in the majors)
2002- John Mayberry(never signed with Mariners, re-entered draft)
2003- Adam Jones(Bavasi traded him away for Bedard in 2008, currently an all-star with the Orioles)
2005- Jeff Clement(3rd pick overall as a catcher. Hit .237/.309/.393 with just 7 HR's in 219 AB's. Currently in minor leagues)
2006- Brandon Morrow(5th pick overall and was chosen ahead of hometown pitcher Tim Lincecum. Lincecum has won two Cy Youngs and a World Series. Morrow has since been traded).
2007- Matt Mangini(has had just 38 AB's with Mariners)
2007- Phillippe Aumont(11th overall pick, is still in the minors. Part of the Cliff Lee trade)
2008- Josh Fields(has yet to make the majors and is in double A as the Mariners have traded him).

Add it all up zero all-star game appearences for the Mariners, seven guys who never played one game for the Mariners and six who were traded away. Hard to win when you whiff on every single first round pick in a 12 year stretch like the Mariners did.

5. Getting rid of Randy Johnson too early:


After finishing second in the Cy Young race in 1997 Johnson was entering his final year on his contract. Johnson wanted a three year deal while the Mariners told him he didn't have three years left. During the 1998 Johnson didn't pitch up to his usual standards and was traded for Freddy Garcia, John Halama and Carlos Guillen. Now that ended up being a decent trade but make no mistake none of them were worth a Randy Johnson. Johnson proved he had several years left as he pitched until the 2009 season.

 Johnson after leaving the Mariners would go on to win four straight Cy Young's then finished second in 2004. He was also World Series MVP in 2001 as well. With the Diamondbacks Johnson was dominant over the next six seasons. Johnson went 103-49(.677) while throwing 1,389.2 innings posting an ERA of 2.65 and a 1.05 WHIP. He also had 1,833 strikeouts good for 11.87 K's per 9. The Mariners desperately needed an ace during the 2000-2003 run when Johnson was winning three of his four Cy Young's in a row and finished in second place in 2004. Even at the end of his career Johnson proved to be a quality pitcher as he won over 300 games in his major league career. The emotional scars of trading away Johnson set up a bad three year stretch for the Mariners as they saw three straight offseasons where they were asked to replace a future hall of famer.

6. Losing both A-rod and Griffey Jr in back to back seasons:

After losing Johnson the Mariners saw Ken Griffey Jr. demande a trade after the 1999 season. The Mariners traded him for Mike Cameron, Brett Tomko and two prospects who never panned out from the Cincinnati Reds. The Mariners without Griffey became Alex Rodriguez team as they advanced to the ALCS before losing in six games to the eventual World Series champions New York Yankees. Griffey who had always owned the Yankees could have been the difference that playoff series as the Mariners lost two heartbreaking games. After that series Rodriguez left the team for a record 10 year 252 million dollars to the Texas Rangers.

In 2001 the Mariners would once again get better without a superstar. The Mariners won a major league record 116 games but failed to reach the World Series. After that season the Mariners little did they know at the time would never reach the playoffs again. While Rodriguez has since joined the Yankees and won a World Series. The Mariners survived at first losing three hall of famers in three successive years but no franchise can survive that long term and the Mariners were no exceptions.

7. Stood "Pat" during the 2000-2003 trade deadlines:

The Mariners posted the best record out of any major league franchise during the four season stretch from 2000-03 yet had no World Series banners to show for it. The reason was the Mariners management refused to upgrade at the trade deadline. In 2000 the only trade was John Mabry for Al Martin(whose blunder in the outfield in the 8th inning of game two of the ALCS started the big inning for the Yankees). In 2001 the Mariners had the division title practically wrapped up by May so fans started to wonder what they need come October. Most felt the Mariners could use one more stick but most of all was a frontline starting pitcher(Randy Johnson would have been nice). The main guy on the block was Al Leiter who was in his second season of five straight seasons of having his ERA in the mid 3.00 range. Leiter had won a World Series with the Blue Jays and along with Freddy Garcia and Jamie Moyer could have made up a nice playoff rotation. Then Mariners general manager Pat Gillick didn't want to be another Woody Woodward from 1997 where he was known as the guy who gave away the next young prospect. Instead the Mariners stood pat and lost in the 2001 ALCS as Aaron Sele the #3 starter had to pitch games one and five and got shelled in both games. In 2002 and 2003 the Mariners once again made no moves and missed the playoffs down the stretch. Since then the Mariners have finished in last place six of the last eight seasons.

8. The roster got old and there was no young replacements ready:

The Mariners in 2004 woke up one morning and were suddenly old. After winning 90+ games four years in a row the Mariners lost 99 games in 2004. I'll list the Mariners opening day lineup in 2004 with their ages next to their name.

1. Ichiro RF(30 years old)
2. Winn CF(30 years old)
3. Boone 2B(35 years old)
4. Ibanez LF(32 years old)
5. Martinez DH(41 yeards old)
6. Olerud 1B(35 years old)
7. Aurilia SS(32 years old)
8. Wilson C(35 years old)
9. Bloomquist 3B(26 years old) was filling in for Scott Spiezio(31 years old)
SP- Moyer(41 years old)
Closer- Guardado(33 years old)

That roster was old. The Mariners didn't bring in any youthful pieces to take over for some of their veterans. Due to the poor drafting there was no up and comer to take over for when a Jay Buhner retired or when Edgar Martinez retired. Nobody to take over when Moyer or Dan Wilson got old. This franchise got old pretty quick and with steroid testing about to begin players stopped being in their prime in their mid 30's.

9. Lou Piniella left the franchise after 2002:

When the Mariners stood pat in 2002 after Piniella screamed to the press over and over he wanted one more hitter for this team. After winning 116 games in 2001 the Mariners stormed out of the gates in 2002 with the best record again after April. Due to injuries and regression to the mean the Mariners were being overtaken by the Oakland A's(the money ball season) and the Anaheim Angels. Eventually losing out the division and wildcard race to both. Frustrated with ownership and seeing that this roster wasn't getting any younger Piniella decided to leave for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

While in Seattle Piniella went 840-711(.542) in 10 seasons. The Mariners prior to his arrival had just one winning season. During his 10 seasons the Mariners had seven winning seasons, four trips to the playoffs and three trips to the American League Championship Series. Since Piniella's departure the Mariners have had just three winning seasons and six last place finishes. The Mariners are just 665-793(.456) since Piniella has left the team. It's looking more and more like Piniella made this franchise as before and after he was here the franchise has produced just four winning seasons(one of which was right after he left). The Mariners have had six full-time managers in the nine seasons that Piniella has been gone and a total of eight overall. This franchise has been a huge mess since he has left.

10. The Bill Bavasi years:

The Bavasi era really sank this franchise. He came into a difficult task as the Mariners roster was old heading into the 2004 season and like I pointed out had drafted poorly from 1997-2003(which doesn't include 1993, 1994 and 1995 first rounder A-rod, Varitek and Cruz Jr no longer part of the franchise) meaning he didn't have a great situation. So it was important that the Mariners got that GM hire correct. Instead they got it so wrong the franchise is still struggling from it. Bavasi is known as the GM who built the first ever 100 loss team from a 100 million dollar payroll. In his five years with the Mariners they went 359-451(.443) with four losing seasons all of which saw them finish in last place.

In fact the Bavasi era was so disasterous I hope you take the time to read my blog post about the Bill Bavasi years as his era deserves a separate post. Adam Jones, Asdrubal Cabrera and Shin Soo-Choo were all traded away under his watch. Jeff Clement was chosen ahead of Ryan Zimmerman, Troy Tulowitzki, Ricky Romero and Ryan Braun. He also chose Brandon Morrow with the 5th pick overall. Taken shortly after him was currenty Cy Young pitcher Clayton Kershaw who went 7th overall and two-time Cy Young award winner Tim Lincecum who was picked 10th overall. Bavasi blew payroll, lost games and developed no talent in his years. The franchise was a mess by the time he stepped away.

11. This franchise has no identity:

Jack Zduriencik was asked to take over for Bill Bavasi. Jack Z basically has walked into a room full of crap all over the walls and ceiling. So far Z has been able to clean a spot off so there is some hope but the place still is covered in crap. In Jack Z's three years in Seattle the Mariners are 213-273(.438) with 196 losses the last two years finishing in last place. The problem with the franchise now is they appear to have no identity. The Mariners are in a rebuilding mode with young prospects yet are trotting Chone Figgins out there over Kyle Seager. Ichiro will receive as much at bats as possible while Casper Wells and Trayvon Robinson rot away. The Mariners farm system far as the hitting goes is still a mess. The Mariners are just a franchise with no true identity anymore. Second straight  offseason where they did nothing after appearing to go for it in 2010 when trading for Cliff Lee and signing Figgins(which blew up in Jack Z's face). Yet in these offseasons the Mariners are signing older guys like Kevin Millwood, Miguel Olivo, Jack Cust, etc. Jack Z inherited a mess as I just explained the franchise was in the toilet well before he arrived but he isn't exactly getting them out of the toilet either. This franchise needs to full on committ to rebuilding which should start with cutting bait on the older guys and going with the young guys.

Back in 1995 the Mariners took over the city. The Sonics were in the middle of their prime and Husky football was towards the end of their run as well. Yet it was the Mariners who captured the cities heart during that time. Ever since 1995 Mariners management has slowly but surely destroyed that feeling. When the Mariners are sitting at home watching the playoffs for the 11th straight year you'll now know why it got to that point. Ever since that magical ride in 1995 the Mariners have made one key blunder after another as attendance continues to drop each season. Look for Safeco Field to be empty yet again as the Mariners continue to be lost this year. Do we compete now? Do we rebuild? Should we play the young guys and punt this year? Should we give Ichiro one last final send off? That is the problem the Mariners don't even know and they never fully commit to one solution. The Mariners are a mess and this was painful to write but felt it had to be done. Maybe on the 20th anniversary of the Mariners magical 1995 run the Mariners by then can finally compete for a playoff spot. One can only hope but knowing this ownership I have my doubts. After reading this how can anyone trust this ownership ever again? I sure as hell don't.

All-time Seattle Mariners starting nine

By Kshell

In the past week in my Seattle Sports Blog group there has been debates on the NBA all-time team, all-time centers and point guards. Well I figured since we are in the middle of baseball season to do a three part series on the all-time Seattle Mariners team. In this edition I'll focus on the starting nine which includes the DH. I have a few rules which includes what you did as a Seattle Mariner is the only thing that counts so you won't see Rickey Henderson on my list. Another rule I have is you have to have played that position when you racked up your statistics so you won't see me move a center fielder or a right fielder to left field. I also won't be moving Alex Rodriguez to third base either. I also tried to keep emotion out of this which means some fan favorites won't make my starting nine. However, in my third edition I'll go over the bench hitters and bullpen so maybe a few guys that I've snubbed will pop up on the bench. Well like I did with my Seattle Mariners season preview I'll post them in the batting order I'd have if I was the manager.

1. Ichiro- Right Field:

Career statistics as a Mariner: .322/.366/.418. Has 2,533 hits, 99 HR's, 1,176 runs, 633 RBI's, 438 SB's

Career achievements: 2001 MVP, 2001 ROY, 10 time all-star, 10 time gold glove winner, Three-time silver slugger award, Two-time batting champion, All-Star game MVP(2007), all-time hits leader in a single season:2004-262 hits

Best Season: MVP season of 2001: .350/.381/.457. Had 242 hits, 8 HR's, 127 runs, 69 RBI's, 56 SB's

I know if this was a popularity contest some might put Jay Buhner. No disrespect to Buhner but Ichiro is clearly the greatest right fielder in Mariners history. Ichiro as you can see in the career achievements has accomplished quite a bit. He is the franchise's second ever MVP award ever and has never missed an all-star game. He has yet to not win a gold glove although that streak looks likely to end this year. Ichiro is slumping this year which players do but hope that doesn't tarnsih the greatness he achieved as a Seattle Mariner. Take sentimental stuff out of it he is clearly the second greatest Mariner of all-time. That is why Ichiro is my right fielder and will lead off my lineup which is murders row my first four hitters.

2. Alex Rodriguez- Shortstop:

Career statistics with Mariners: .309/.374/.561. Had 966 hits, 189 HR's, 627 runs, 595 RBI's, 133 SB's

Career achievements: Four-Time All-Star, Four-Time Silver Slugger award, batting champion, hit for the cycle in 1997, hit 40/40 in 1998: 42 HR's/46 SB's, second in MVP in 1996, third in MVP in 2000

Best Season: 1996 where he was runner up in closest MVP vote ever. .358/.414/.631. Had 215 hits, 36 HR's, 141 runs, 123 RBI's, 15 SB's

Like I said with Ichiro you can't have a realistic list and leave off Alex Rodriguez. For the Mariners Rodriguez finished second in the MVP race in 1996 and third in 2000. I recently wrote a piece defending Rodriguez so I won't get into that again. Now I decided to bat Rodriguez second in my lineup because as a Mariner he mainly hit second in the lineup. Early in his career he was a terrific hitter who rarely struck out, had good power, and had good speed. Plus as I was going through my all-time team the Mariners didn't really have a number two hitter which is why I went with Rodriguez. For the Mariners Rodriguez achieved great things for the team and so far a pitcher would have a tough first inning facing Ichiro then Rodriguez. The guy I have next would really make life difficult for him.

3. Ken Griffey Jr.- Center Field:

Career statistics as a Mariner: .292/.374/.553. Had 1,843 hits, 417 HR's, 1,113 runs, 1,216 RBI's, 167 SB's

Career achievements as a Mariner: 1997 MVP, fifth in MVP in 1993, second in MVP in 1994, fourth in MVP in 1996, fourth in MVP in 1998, 10-time all-star, 10-time gold glove winner, Seven-time Silver Slugger award, led league in HR's four times, All-Star Game MVP(1992), Three time Home Run Derby Champion(1994,1998,1999)

Best Season: Clearly his 1997 MVP year. .304/.382/.646. Had 185 hits, 56 HR's, 125 runs, 147 RBI's, 15 SB's

This was my easiest pick to make and putting him third in the batting order was a guarantee as well. If you have a problem with Ken Griffey Jr being on this list then just stop talking please. Ken Griffey Jr. is the greatest Seattle Mariner of all-time and will be the first Mariner to wear a Seattle Mariners logo on his hat in the baseball Hall of Fame. Griffey was the best player in the 1990's and was the Mariners first star they ever had. He wasn't some northwest star no he was a national star and the most popular player in all of baseball in the 1990's as he lived on Nike commercials. As you can see with Griffey's numbers, achievements and especially his 1997 season was just simply jaw dropping. Could you imagine facing this lineup so far having to face two MVP's and a combined three batting titles in the first three hitters? So far this lineup could chase some pitchers out of the game pretty quickly. The next guy in my lineup would be a tough out as well.

4. Edgar Martinez- DH:

Career statistics: .312/.418/.515. Had 2,247 hits, 309 HR's, 1,219 runs, 1,261 RBI's, 49 SB's

Career achievements: Seven-time All-Star, Five-time Silver Slugger award, Two-Time Batting Champion, Third in MVP in 1995

Best Season: It was 1995 when Martinez saved baseball in Seattle and finished third in the MVP race. .356/.479/.628. Had 182 hits, 29 HR's, 121 runs, 113 RBI's, 4 SB's

You know how I said Griffey was my easiest choice well Edgar Martinez was just as easy. Hitting Martinez cleanup was a pretty easy decision as well. Martinez was a great hitter having won two batting crowns and as he showed in the 1995 playoffs and later on against the Chicago WhiteSox in the 2000 ALDS he had a feel for the dramatic hit. Martinez always hit cleanup behind Griffey or Rodriguez from 1995-2000 which made life difficult on pitchers. Whenever they would choose to walk the guy in front of him Martinez would make them pay. Martinez if not for injuries could have really racked up some numbers. For a team that doesn't have much history in my first four hitters I have two MVPs and a combined five batting crowns. The Mariners are still trying to replace Martinez as they have yet to find a suitable DH since his retirement back in 2004.

5. Brett Boone- Second Base:

Career statistics as a Mariner: .277/.336/.478. Had 863 hits, 143 HR's, 467 runs, 535 RBI's, 50 SB's

Career achievements as a Mariner: Two-time All-Star, Three-time Gold Glove winner, Two-time Silver Slugger award, Third in MVP in 2001

Best season: That was in 2001 when he finished third in the MVP. Hit .331/.372./.578. Had 206 hits, 37 HR's, 118 runs, 141 RBI's, 5 SB's

As a Seattle Mariner you couldn't get much more production from a second baseman than Brett Boone. Boone in his second stint with the Mariners was pretty awesome winning three gold gloves in four seasons while almost winning an MVP in the other season(2001). Now some people who are sentimental might want to put Harold Reynolds in here but Boone was a power hitter. Boone brought the glove too like I said and probably should have won the MVP over Ichiro in 2001. I put Boone fifth because as a Mariner he would have been a great fifth hitter. This lineup is pretty stacked in the first five hitters. Now there is a steroids cloud hanging over Boone's head but I'm not holding that against him. What he did was a Mariner at the second base position you probably won't see ever again.

6. Alvin Davis- First Base:

Career statistics as a Mariner: .281/.381/.453. Had 1,163 hits, 160 HR's, 563 runs, 667 RBI's, 7 SB's

Career achievements: 1984 ROY(first in franchise history), One time All-Star

Best Season 1984: .284/.391/.497 . Had 161 hits, 27 HR's, 80 runs, 116 RBI's, 5 SB's

For me this was my toughest decision as I barely put Alvin Davis in over John Olerud. Ultimately I had to put "Mr.Mariner" on my all-time team and he also is my only player on the list who played before the Mariners became a playoff contender. Davis was the first real solid player the Mariners had when he won the rookie of the year in 1984 for the club. Hard to judge how good Davis could have been on a good team. As you saw his rookie year his on base percentage was close to .400. In fact he has the second highest on base percentage as a Mariner on this list. He simply didn't get many pitches to hit as he was on some weak linups. The fact he put up the numbers he did without get a ton of pitches to hit shows how good of a ball player he was.

7. Raul Ibanez- LF:

Career Statistics as a Mariner: .284/.346/.464 . Had 967 hits, 127 HR's, 486 Runs, 547 RBI's, 21 SB's

Best season as a Mariner: In 2006 he hit .289/.353/.516 . Had 181 hits, 33 HR's, 103 runs, 123 RBI's, 2 SB's

First of all Left Field hasn't been a very kind position to the Mariners franchise. I kept my word and didn't move Jay Buhner or Mike Cameron to left field because they didn't play left field. I didn't put Rickey Henderson or Ken Griffey Sr. there because as Mariners they didn't accomplish what Ibanez did. For Ibanez his first stint with the team was as a fourth outfielder who can hit right handed pitching. After the Mariners got rid of him they signed him for 2004 when he was a pretty productive bat for the Mariners. In his second stint his average never dropped below .280 and he drove in over 100 runs his final three seasons in Seattle. If Ibanez is your seventh hitter then you have a pretty good lineup I'd say.

8. Adrian Beltre- Third Base:

Career statistics as a Mariner: .266/.317/.442. Had 751 hits, 103 HR's, 372 runs, 396 RBI's, 49 SB's

Career achievements as a Mariner: Two-Time Gold Glove winner, hit for the cycle in 2008

Best Season as a Mariner: In 2007 he hit .276/.319/.482 . Had 164 hits, 26 HR's, 87 runs, 99 RBI's, 14 SB's

Like Left Field there wasn't many candidates to have at this position. I could have put Edgar Martinez but then I'd be forced to have someone like Jose Vidro at DH(gross). I could have had Jim Presley but other than one season his time in Seattle was pretty bad. The biggest myth facing Seattle sports is that the Adrian Beltre signing was a bust. Sure Beltre never lived up to that one season for the Dodgers but when Beltre was healthy he gave the Mariners some power. He also gave the Mariners the best defense they have ever seen at third base. I'd take Beltre's worst season in Seattle over what they currently have. I think when you check sabermetric statistics out it would show Beltre earned his money exactly. Beltre wasn't a bust and is the Mariners best all around third baseman they've ever had.

9. Dan Wilson- Catcher:

Career statistics as a Mariner: .262/.309/.384. Had 1,071 hits, 88 HR's, 433 runs, 508 RBI's, 23 SB's

Career achievements as a Mariner: 1996 All-Star

Best season as a Mariner: 1996 season he hit .285/.330/.444. Had 140 hits, 18 HR's, 51 runs, 83 RBI's, One Stolen Base

For me this was another easy decision to pick Dan Wilson as the catcher and pencil him into the 9th hitter. Wilson played 12 seasons in Seattle and was part of four playoff teams. In his 12 seasons the Mariners had a winning record in seven of them. Wilson was known for calling a good game and he was great at stopping the ball. Then in 1996 and 1997 Wilson displayed some power for the catcher position hitting 33 home runs during that two year stretch. With Wilson in the ninth spot back then he would roll over nicely to the top of the lineup as he had a decent batting average in his prime years.

In conclusion, this was my all-time starting nine for the Seattle Mariners. For a new franchise this hitting lineup is pretty good especially at the top of the order where it is stacked. For tomorrow I'll do one on the five man starting rotation then on Tuesday do the bench/bullpen. I hope this starting nine makes people appreciate what we've had the opportunity to witness. While I also hope this gets people discussing the Mariners once again. I'm sure some people will disagree with who I put in here or even my lineup. Feel free to share your team either on here or in my group. I feel as if a starting pitcher would be lucky to get through five innings against this starting lineup. The current ballclub could use a couple of these guys as well.

Is it time to finally forgive A-Rod?

By Kshell

The fans were hurt when he left us for a big payday. They couldn't believe how we lost another superstar in this town. After losing in the ALCS fans wondered out loud if he was on the team could we have finally reached a World Series? They couldn't believe how he betrayed the team and held the team hostage. The player I'm talking about of course is Ken Griffey Jr who demanded a trade after the 1999 season despite having one more year left on his contract. Not only did Griffey Jr demand a trade he demanded a trade to only one team which was the Cincinnati Reds. That meant the Reds were in no position to give the Mariners anything close to fair compensation. When the dust had settled Griffey Jr. was traded to the Mariners to be closer to his family(even though he lived in Florida) and the Mariners were robbed. They received Brett Tomko, Mike Cameron and two minor leaguers who never played in the major leagues for them. The Mariners lost that year in the ALCS to the New York Yankees in six games a team Griffey Jr historically has dominated. Yet when Griffey Jr came back to Safeco Field he was given a standing ovation. While Alex Rodriguez despite leaving the team 11 years ago still continues to be loudly booed for doing something everyone would have done in his shoes. So I beg the question when is it time to finally forgive A-Rod and move on?

While with the Seattle Mariners Rodriguez was a four time all-star, batting champion and pulled off the 40/40(40+home runs, 40+ stolen bases) season. While in 1996 Rodriguez finished second in the MVP race where had either Seattle writer voted him first or second he would have won the MVP and again in 2000 he took third in the MVP race. Rodriguez was a key player on two playoff teams including one team that went to the ALCS where he had a good series. The memories he gave the Mariners fans shouldn't go away and I'm happy to say I saw one of the games greatest players of all-time in person on my team. For the Mariners in seven seasons but in reality only five seasons he hit .309/.374/.561 and hit 189 home runs, drove in 595 runs, scored 627 runs and stole 133 bases. In the playoffs he also performed for the Mariners in a playoff loss to the Orioles he hit .313/.313/.563 with a home run back in 1997. Then in 2000 when he was the man against the White Sox he hit .308/.308/.308 with two RBI's in the three game sweep. Then in a loss to the Yankees in the ALCS he hit .409/.480/.773 with two home runs, five RBI's and four runs scored. So Rodriguez was big time for the Mariners as well. I can understand why at first fans were upset with him for leaving as I was too.

I still remember when Rodriguez left the Mariners for division rival Texas Rangers. I was a freshman in high school at the time and it made me so mad that for the third straight year the Mariners lost a future hall of famer. When the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets both pulled out of the Rodriguez sweepstakes I thought for sure he was going to stay in Seattle. Then out of left field the Texas Rangers gave him an offer he couldn't refuse. I was only 15 years old and was a Mariners fan so I couldn't understand the decision at the time. The Mariners offered him three years at 60 million and two option years making it a total of five years for 100 million. Rodriguez would have been a fool to turn down 10 years/252 million dollars making him the highest paid player in sports history. Rodriguez is a guy who grew up poor without a dad, a guy who finished second in the MVP race in 1996 making $442,334.00 so he needed to be paid what he was worth. I can understand the initial anger towards Rodriguez who left the Mariners an ALCS team for a last place Rangers club in our own division. What Rodriguez did was very professional in my opinion unlike the two previous guys who departed the Mariners.

I'll bring up a quick scenario for you guys to judge who truly is the "bad" guy. Player A demanded a trade to only one team and one team only despite still having a year left on his contract. By demanding a trade to only one team that team was forced to receive some crappy pieces. Player B complained his entire last season and underachieved for various reasons. He was even involved in an altercation with a teammate that season. Player C busted his ass to get the Mariners to within two games of the World Series and finished third in the MVP race. Player C didn't let his free agency be a distraction at all and the Mariners received two first round draft picks for him. Now after reading that clearly player C did the Mariners the least amount of wrong even though he is the only one of those three who receives boo's. Player A is Ken Griffey Jr and player B is Randy Johnson for those who couldn't figure it out. Now I'm not saying Rodriguez means more to the franchise than those two because well he doesn't. I'm also not saying you should boo those two either because that is just dumb. I think it's time we finally let it go on Rodriguez who played his heart out for this team. His last game ever as a Mariner in Yankee Stadium in game six of the ALCS he went four for five with a home run. After that game he sat in his locker crying knowing that could have been the last time he ever played for the Mariners. He gave the Mariners everything he could and I wish instead of booing him the fans would cheer him as a sign of thanks.

When Rodriguez makes it to the baseball Hall of Fame he'll go in as a New York Yankee. Whenever they show his highlights though they'll show some of his moments with the Mariners which for a franchise who had nothing going for themselves prior to 1991 is a great thing. When you walk in the Mariners current Hall of Fame you'll see Edgar Martinez, Jay Buhner, Dave Niehaus and Alvin Davis. Those guys are solid but unless you are from Seattle it shows how bad our franchise is. Eventually you'll see Ken Griffey Jr, Randy Johnson and Ichiro in there which will make our Hall of Fame seem legit. Well if the fans forgave Rodriguez having possibly the all-time Home Run king in our own Hall of Fame would look pretty cool. As long as the fans keep booing him though I doubt the Mariners would risk the PR nightmare of having Rodriguez featured. He will be remembered as a Yankee but he is a hired gun to them. He grew up as a Mariner as the #1 pick coming out of high school, to the kid who scored the tying run in 1995 when David Cone walked Doug Strange, to the man who became the most feared Shortstop hitter in baseball history from 1996-2000. I think time heals all wounds and it's time to stop booing Rodriguez like he personally did something wrong to us.

In conclusion, the Rodriguez who played in Seattle before he became a hollywood type figure in New York was a guy I could respect. He was a guy who worked hard every game, unlike Griffey Jr. on routine groundballs he would always run them out. He didn't care about stats either in game three of the 2000 ALDS against the White Sox he had a sacrifice bunt to move the runner along. His dad walked out on him as a kid and when he became famous his dad wanted to be a part of his life. Rodriguez wanted no part of the man who made life hell on his mom. In fact to this day Rodriguez says he only has one "dad" and his name is Lou Piniella. Rodriguez speaks highly of Piniella, Niehaus and owes his entire career to Edgar Martinez. The Mariners aren't even rivals with the Yankees and Rodriguez has never burned the Mariners in a big playoff game either. He currently has 622 career home runs at 35 years old. There is a very good chance he'll break Barry Bonds career home run record which is 762 home runs. It would be nice if the Mariners can celebrate that moment with Rodriguez. So fans he has been gone for 11 years now. Time to move on and remember the good times he gave the Mariners. I'm just happy and lucky to have watched a player who is as great as he is play for my favorite team. So fans stop booing A-Rod and surprise the nation while cheering him.

1994: The year everything came to a crashing end for Seattle

By Kshell

There was once a time when the city of Seattle ruled the nation. In the early 1990's the city had it all. The city ruled the music scene as the grunge scene busted out with Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Soundgarden. The city was also experiencing some good sports with the Washington Huskies winning the national championship in 1991, the Seattle Mariners with rising star Ken Griffey Jr and the Seattle Supersonics with Shawn Kemp and Gary Payton. The time to live in Seattle was great in the early 1990's then 1994 happened and everything changed. I felt like writing this post today because I was listening to some Nirvana which featured Kurt Cobain as the lead singer. Cobain was a big part of the growth of Seattle and unfortunately was part of the downfall as well. So people please put down the bong today as I know it's 4/20 and give me five minutes of your time to read this following post. I'll talk about how 1994 was the year everything came to a crashing end for Seattle.

In the early 1990's the city of Seattle was buzzing. The Washington Huskies football program was at their peak going to three straight Rose Bowls including winning a national championship in 1991. Some consider that defense to be the greatest defense in Pac-10 history led by Steve Emtman and Dave Hoffmann. The sports scene has a whole was pretty good in Seattle. The Seattle Mariners had their first superstar with Ken Griffey Jr. who started his first All-star game in just his second season in the majors while winning a gold glove. The Seattle Supersonics were enjoying the alley-oops of Gary Payton to Shawn Kemp as the Sonics upset the Golden State Warriors in 1992. The music scene in Seattle was taking off in the early 1990's when this grunge band who is actually from Aberdeen Nirvana busted out on the scene. Nirvana crashed the scene with their album "Nevermind" in 1991 which featured the hit song that is still popular to this day "Smells like teen spirit". The lead singer was Kurt Cobain who wore flannel, jeans and had long blonde hair. Nirvana wasn't the only group from the Seattle area to bust onto the scene as Pearl Jam came out with the "ten" album also in 1991 which featured the song "Jeremy". Then Soundgarden who started off in 1988 had a huge album in 1994 which featured "spoonman". Another Seattle group Alice in Chains came out with "Man in the Box" in 1991 as well. Seattle was a city who had great sports and their music was the most listen to music in the entire nation. Then in one day everything changed for the music scene and the city of Seattle. What happened next started the ball rolling towards one of the worst years Seattle has ever seen.

The day was April 5th, 1994 when everything came to a crashing end. That was the day when news was broke that Kurt Cobain the lead singer and song writer of Nirvana had killed himself. The news was shocking that a guy who seemed to have had it all would feel the need to take his own life. This was shocking as Nirvana had just produced back to back top selling albums with "Nevermind" in 1991 then "In Utero" in 1993 was a huge hit as well. The whole city of Seattle as well as the rest of the country was just in shock. The grunge music which was mostly Seattle artists had killed the hair bands of the 1980's was about to come to an end. Without Nirvana the grunge scene was pretty much dead. The city of Seattle continued to mourn the loss of Cobain as he represented hope to all the kids who weren't "popular" in high school. With Cobain's death the city would be shaken forever. For the sports fans there was still hope as the Seattle Supersonics had the best record in the NBA for the first time in franchise history.

The Seattle Supersonics in the 1993-94 season had enjoyed their best season in franchise history. The Sonics were coming off a year in 1992-93 where they had the second best record in the Western Conference and lost game seven of the Western Conference Finals to the Phoenix Suns. The Sonics who had a young roster also aquired Kendall Gill and Detlef Schrempf to bolster an already stacked roster. The Sonics were 22-3 to start the year. The Sonics finished the season winning their first division title since the 1978-79 season which saw them win the NBA championship. The Sonics had a 63-19 record with 38 blowout victories on the year and were 37-4 at home which was also the best record in the NBA. The city was excited for the Sonics as Michael Jordan had retired the playoffs appeared open for the Sonics. The Sonics would draw a tough matchup with the Denver Nuggets who they split the season series with at two game a piece. The Sonics would destroy the Nuggets in game one 106-82 then win game two 97-87 to take a two games to zero lead. The Sonics after getting destroyed in game three would lose in overtime in game four 94-85 forcing the series back to Seattle. Then the Sonics who were 39-4 at home lost game five in overtime 98-94 becoming the first #1 seed to ever lose in the first round. Later that offseason the Sonics almost traded Shawn Kemp to the Chicago Bulls for Scottie Pippen but the trade fell through. It had appeared the sky was falling for the city of Seattle.

Just when you though the sky was falling in Seattle baseball season happened to the city. The Seattle Mariners were having yet another losing season but saw Ken Griffey Jr. have a big season hitting 40 home runs by August 11th. Then on July 19th, 1994 the Kingdome tile fell which made the Kingdome not a suitable place to play games. The Mariners would then have to play the remainder of the season on the road. The Mariners would play 20 consecutive games on the road until the baseball strike ended the season on August 12th. The Mariners were riding a six game winning streak and had cut a 7.5 game lead down to two games in the standings. So the Mariners were denied their first chance at a possible playoff berth due to the strike. Ken Griffey Jr had hit 40 home runs in just 112 games. Griffey had 51 games to hit 21 home runs to tie Roger Maris home run record. The Kingdome damage also affected the Seattle Seahawks who had to begin their season playing home games at Husky stadium. The year was just a total disaster for the city of Seattle. Then to end the year as the Sonics stadium was being remodeled they were playing their home games in Tacoma in the 1994-95 season. This year was a rough year for the city of Seattle.

In conclusion as you can see Seattle once had it all and then crashed. The city of Seattle is perhaps cursed from ever experiencing success on any level due to the Cobain death who knows. All I know is the city had a rough year in 1994 from sports and music. The city went through a ton of pain back then and it was hard to recover from. Just remember though at least the city of Seattle had their prime moment which is more than most cities can ever say. Seattle at one time had great sports that were on the rise and controlled the music world. It was a fun time to live in Seattle in the early 1990's when the grunge scene came alive. Then it all came crashing down on April 5th, 1994. Seattle survived 1994 which makes us a stronger city today. Seattle will always have the memories of that great time period. So do yourselves a favor and listen to some Nirvana right now. Pretend this is the early 1990's when Seattle ruled the nation. Just don't forget that all great things must come to an end. I can't wait until Seattle has their next great run.