So far this Mariners spring training has shown us a lot of good things to come. Not just with Nelson Cruz but with players you didn't see coming. Players like David Rollins and Tyler Olson are making some noise, both are two pitchers nobody saw coming.
Both pitchers have been on fire this spring. Rollins has appeared in 4 games 4 innings with 4 strikeouts and Olson has been just as impressive going 5 innings in 3 games with 8 strikeouts in 3 games!
Both of these young pitchers could make the Mariners Opening Day 25 man roster, but they may not which is why I'm ready to give my projection for the M's Opening Day roster. And yes I know that Opening Day is a little over 4 weeks away but I still believe that these 25 guys will be the key for the Mariners to make a charge this season towards getting back to the postseason for the first time since their 116 win season. I also believe that this year's Mariners team will make a push towards winning the team's first World Series ever!
Lets begin with my projected pitchers shall I? I know your answer and its yes so I'll start off with my 5 man rotation.
1. Felix Hernandez
2. Hisashi Iwakuma
3. J.A. Happ
4. Taijuan Walker
5. James Paxton
There's your starting 5 rotation. Now I think most people would be saying right now "Yeah out of 4 of those guys I think your right but Walker come on dude!" Well here's the thing.....Walker is ready to show all you jerky haters out there what he's made of! Seriously Walker has been impressive this spring, yes again I effing know its spring training and don't give the old "look at Brad Miller last year" crap on me.
Walker has made a big impact this spring training in his 2 starts he's gone 5 innings and struck out 6 batters. His changeup and breaking ball have shown that he's ready to prove he was worth not trading as so many people wanted Jack Z to do with Walker. I truly believe that Walker will have a season worth remembering, including 10+ wins!
Now for our bullpen guys.
Danny Farqhuar
Charlie Furbush
Dominic Leone (setup guy)
Fernando Rodney (closer)
David Rollins
Tyler Olson
Carson Smith
Tom Wilhelmsen
There so far that's 13 spots filled. Now you see that Olson and Rollins are on my projected roster and I've already given my thoughts on why they should make the team so there's no point in discussing that. Although there is something I should interject about the bullpen. Let's say Olson or Rollins doesn't make the team, I actually have Danny Hultzen as a wild card to make the ball club. The Mariners may not use him as a starter but they could use him or Roenis Elias as a long innings reliever so there's my thoughts on that.
And now lets move onto my final 12 spots on the roster.
Catchers
Mike Zunino
Jesus Sucre
Infielders
Robinson Cano
Kyle Seager
Logan Morrison
Chris Taylor
Brad Miller
Rickie Weeks (OF)
Outfielders
Dustin Ackley
Nelson Cruz
Austin Jackson
Seth Smith
There's my starting 25! Now I will give my wild card players who will be in the call ups/injury replacement categories. Now D.J. Peterson may get the call up early in the season so we might see him in late June or early/late July.
Endy Chavez, James Jones, Justin Ruggiano, Stefen Romero, Willie Bloomquist, Jesus Montero, John Hicks, Patrick Kivlehan, and Franklin Guiterrez all will be in the same category as Peterson. Now, most people may not agree with my projected lineup but I would say about 22-23 of the players I picked will make the team but I do believe that all 25 will make the cut.
Showing posts with label Logan Morrison. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Logan Morrison. Show all posts
Friday, March 13, 2015
Wednesday, March 5, 2014
Mariners off to a good start
Its been a whole month since the Seattle Seahawks won their first Super Bowl in franchise history. Now, Seattle fans have the Mariners to watch. So far the Mariners have started the spring 6-1 after today's win over the Los Angeles Dodgers, and yet there is already worry about this team. The worries aren't coming from the M's players hitting or the Nick Franklin trade rumors, the worries are being focused on two of the Mariners prime pitchers Hisashi Iwakuma and Taijuan Walker.
Both pitchers have started the season injured. Walker has been shut down for the week due to inflammation in his throwing shoulder but ESPN reported that Walker may not be in the starting rotation until early/late April, but to be honest Walker should be back on the mound before the start of the season as he is taking medication to take the swelling down.
Iwakuma though is a different story, Kuma will have his right middle in a splint for three more weeks, he would have needed to throw 22 simulated innings or minor league innings to even be ready for the season. So you can imagine how both Seattle sports talk radio shows and the fans are reacting to this. Me though, I'm not worried. Kuma and Walker's absence will be missed but until they return the Mariners do have either Scott Baker, Blake Beaven, Erasmo Ramirez, and Randy Wolf to cover until they return. The worst case scenario is that Brandon Maurer gets called to be a starter and we can all remember his dismal season last year.
Putting both Kuma and Walker aside, the Mariners first 7 games of the season has seen the team hit, the speed, and great pitching that shows that this Mariners ball club is ready for the 2014 season and are wanting to make noise to push for the playoffs for the first time since 2001.
Now, how about we talk about the hitters now, shall I? First off Corey Hart, he's suppose to be having knee issues but the other day he didn't show any signs of that as he stole home plate. Hart signed a one year, $6 million dollar deal with the Mariners and so far he's taken only 6 at bats and in those at bats he's drawn 3 walks, 2 hits, and he's scored 3 times when he gets on base, so Hart's knees for some odd reason seem to be healed. As for Logan Morrison he's been getting at bats and making the most of it. Morrison was acquired from the Miami Marlins in a trade for pitcher Carter Capps, and again he's really done a great job in Spring Training. He's had 12 at bats and has had 5 hits and driven in 2 runs.
One player that seems to having a difficult time at the plate is Abraham Almonte. Almonte is predicted to be Seattle's lead off hitter but right now I'm thinking at being placed 8th in the lineup. Almonte has had 12 at bats and has only managed 1 hit. Almonte last year played in 25 games and finished with a .264 batting average and showed off his speed as well. If Almonte wants that lead off role he needs to pick things up and get some hits, because he's a great lead off hitter candidate because of his speed. One more concern is Stefen Romero he is hit less in 11 at bats this spring........nothing really more to say.
Romero is projected this year to possibly make his MLB debut this year, but to do that he's going to need to show manager Llyod McClendon that he's ready to make that jump. Dustin Ackley though has been tearing the cover off the baseball this spring. Ackley entered this spring with more beard and he has done nothing but show the fans that this may be his year. Ackley has had 10 at bats and has 6 hits to go with 1 homerun, and 6 RBIs.
There's a lot we can say about Ackley and the other players but I think I will finish things off by saying, that this team looks prime and ready for Opening Day in Anaheim. The Mariners can be that team that come straight out of spring training and make a loud noise in the American League. Yes Kuma and Walker will be out for a little bit but again the Mariners have the necessary replacement pitchers to help the team at the start of the season until their two prime starters return. Another thing is that this Mariners team looks to be the team that breaks the dead last in hitting streak they have had. Only time will tell. Tonight the Mariners face the Cleveland Indians at 7.
Both pitchers have started the season injured. Walker has been shut down for the week due to inflammation in his throwing shoulder but ESPN reported that Walker may not be in the starting rotation until early/late April, but to be honest Walker should be back on the mound before the start of the season as he is taking medication to take the swelling down.
Iwakuma though is a different story, Kuma will have his right middle in a splint for three more weeks, he would have needed to throw 22 simulated innings or minor league innings to even be ready for the season. So you can imagine how both Seattle sports talk radio shows and the fans are reacting to this. Me though, I'm not worried. Kuma and Walker's absence will be missed but until they return the Mariners do have either Scott Baker, Blake Beaven, Erasmo Ramirez, and Randy Wolf to cover until they return. The worst case scenario is that Brandon Maurer gets called to be a starter and we can all remember his dismal season last year.
Putting both Kuma and Walker aside, the Mariners first 7 games of the season has seen the team hit, the speed, and great pitching that shows that this Mariners ball club is ready for the 2014 season and are wanting to make noise to push for the playoffs for the first time since 2001.
Now, how about we talk about the hitters now, shall I? First off Corey Hart, he's suppose to be having knee issues but the other day he didn't show any signs of that as he stole home plate. Hart signed a one year, $6 million dollar deal with the Mariners and so far he's taken only 6 at bats and in those at bats he's drawn 3 walks, 2 hits, and he's scored 3 times when he gets on base, so Hart's knees for some odd reason seem to be healed. As for Logan Morrison he's been getting at bats and making the most of it. Morrison was acquired from the Miami Marlins in a trade for pitcher Carter Capps, and again he's really done a great job in Spring Training. He's had 12 at bats and has had 5 hits and driven in 2 runs.
One player that seems to having a difficult time at the plate is Abraham Almonte. Almonte is predicted to be Seattle's lead off hitter but right now I'm thinking at being placed 8th in the lineup. Almonte has had 12 at bats and has only managed 1 hit. Almonte last year played in 25 games and finished with a .264 batting average and showed off his speed as well. If Almonte wants that lead off role he needs to pick things up and get some hits, because he's a great lead off hitter candidate because of his speed. One more concern is Stefen Romero he is hit less in 11 at bats this spring........nothing really more to say.
Romero is projected this year to possibly make his MLB debut this year, but to do that he's going to need to show manager Llyod McClendon that he's ready to make that jump. Dustin Ackley though has been tearing the cover off the baseball this spring. Ackley entered this spring with more beard and he has done nothing but show the fans that this may be his year. Ackley has had 10 at bats and has 6 hits to go with 1 homerun, and 6 RBIs.
There's a lot we can say about Ackley and the other players but I think I will finish things off by saying, that this team looks prime and ready for Opening Day in Anaheim. The Mariners can be that team that come straight out of spring training and make a loud noise in the American League. Yes Kuma and Walker will be out for a little bit but again the Mariners have the necessary replacement pitchers to help the team at the start of the season until their two prime starters return. Another thing is that this Mariners team looks to be the team that breaks the dead last in hitting streak they have had. Only time will tell. Tonight the Mariners face the Cleveland Indians at 7.
Friday, February 14, 2014
New 2014 Seattle Mariners Projections
The Seattle Mariners off season has been looking like a playoff maybe even a World Series one. The M's just got done signing closer Fernando Rodney to a 2 year, $14 million dollar deal. So, again the Mariners are making noise in the offseason and are trying to see if they can pull off a playoff season and maybe perhaps a World Series title. The Mariners football counterpart the Seahawks just got finished with winning their first Super Bowl title in franchise history. So the Mariners have very high expectation's this year, especially when it comes to the playoffs cause lets face it the Mariners have been going-on 13 year playoff-less drought and with the signing's they have had they will look to end that drought this year.
Here is my newest projection on the Mariners with their newest additions.
Starting players
C Mike Zunino
1B Justin Smoak
2B Robinson Cano
SS Brad Miller/Nick Franklin
3B Kyle Seager
CF Dustin Ackley
RF Abraham Almonte
LF Michael Saunders or Nick Franklin
DH Corey Hart or Logan Morrison
Bench players
Logan Morrison
Willie Bloomquist
Nick Franklin or Carlos Triunfel
John Buck
Starting Rotation
Felix Hernandez
Hisashi Iwakuma
Taijuan Walker
James Paxton
Erasmo Ramirez or Scott Baker (if he makes the Spring Training cut) or a free agent
Bullpen
Blake Beaven
Stephen Pryor
Lucas Luetge
Yoervis Medina
Charlie Furbush
SU Danny Farqhuar
CL Fernando Rodney
The first thing that is up for discussion is the Brad Miller/Nick Franklin battle that will be going on at the beginning of Spring Training. To me its a no brainier, Miller will win this position battle no doubt. I mean last year Miller played great at shortstop so why replace a good thing with a struggling hitter? It would be just like having another version of Brendan Ryan......and seriously who wants that? For some reason after the All Star Break pitcher's figured him out. Franklin batted a horrible .194, struck out 77 times, and was less patient at the plate and swung at pitches that even Vladimir Guererro wouldn't have swung at.
Depending on how both Franklin and Carlos Triunfel does during Spring Training one of them will get a spot on the 25 man roster. Both have not produced hitting wise in the major's but they need to fill the 25 man roster with someone right? Now if Franklin fails at getting the spot at shortstop there is always a possibility that the M's will give him a shot in the outfield just like Ackley last year.
Next thing I should discuss is the 5th spot in the starting rotation. If the Mariners don't sign Ervin Santana then the final spot will go to either Ramirez or the non-roster invite Scott Baker. Ramirez is the first choice of course, but again if the front office goes out and spends a little more money on a possible big pitcher free agent then Ramirez could be seen doing early inning appearances in the bullpen. Also I came close to putting tom Wilhelmsen on the roster but decided better, why you ask, do I even need a reason? Or should I remind M's fans of the game in Boston on August 1st of last year?
I thought not. Wilhelmsen last year began the season with a great start, but then all of a sudden he had control problems and had major meltdowns and blew saves left and right. Danny Farqhuar on the other hand pitch amazing once he was given the closer position he was light's out, so with Rodney being signed Farqhuar will become the setup man.
Now before I end this post I do want to get on the bench players. First Willie Bloomquist, I'm happy that he has been brought back to his Northwest roots to play with the Mariners as a utility player and a speedy late inning pinch runner. Then we have John Buck, probably my favorite signing besides Cano this off season. Buck provides the necessary veteran role that 2nd year catcher Mike Zunino needs to learn about his position and become a better catcher and hitter. Basically the M's signed a bench player who still has a great arm as a catcher and can hit for power.
This off season has seen a number of great signings and the season is less then a month away from beginning. My only hope for the Mariners is that the team can improve with their hitting with runners in scoring position to help out Cano and score to win more ball games. If they do that, I see an 87-89 win season, with a Wild Card title and hopefully a World Series berth.
Let the season BEGIN!!!
Here is my newest projection on the Mariners with their newest additions.
Starting players
C Mike Zunino
1B Justin Smoak
2B Robinson Cano
SS Brad Miller/Nick Franklin
3B Kyle Seager
CF Dustin Ackley
RF Abraham Almonte
LF Michael Saunders or Nick Franklin
DH Corey Hart or Logan Morrison
Bench players
Logan Morrison
Willie Bloomquist
Nick Franklin or Carlos Triunfel
John Buck
Starting Rotation
Felix Hernandez
Hisashi Iwakuma
Taijuan Walker
James Paxton
Erasmo Ramirez or Scott Baker (if he makes the Spring Training cut) or a free agent
Bullpen
Blake Beaven
Stephen Pryor
Lucas Luetge
Yoervis Medina
Charlie Furbush
SU Danny Farqhuar
CL Fernando Rodney
The first thing that is up for discussion is the Brad Miller/Nick Franklin battle that will be going on at the beginning of Spring Training. To me its a no brainier, Miller will win this position battle no doubt. I mean last year Miller played great at shortstop so why replace a good thing with a struggling hitter? It would be just like having another version of Brendan Ryan......and seriously who wants that? For some reason after the All Star Break pitcher's figured him out. Franklin batted a horrible .194, struck out 77 times, and was less patient at the plate and swung at pitches that even Vladimir Guererro wouldn't have swung at.
Depending on how both Franklin and Carlos Triunfel does during Spring Training one of them will get a spot on the 25 man roster. Both have not produced hitting wise in the major's but they need to fill the 25 man roster with someone right? Now if Franklin fails at getting the spot at shortstop there is always a possibility that the M's will give him a shot in the outfield just like Ackley last year.
Next thing I should discuss is the 5th spot in the starting rotation. If the Mariners don't sign Ervin Santana then the final spot will go to either Ramirez or the non-roster invite Scott Baker. Ramirez is the first choice of course, but again if the front office goes out and spends a little more money on a possible big pitcher free agent then Ramirez could be seen doing early inning appearances in the bullpen. Also I came close to putting tom Wilhelmsen on the roster but decided better, why you ask, do I even need a reason? Or should I remind M's fans of the game in Boston on August 1st of last year?
I thought not. Wilhelmsen last year began the season with a great start, but then all of a sudden he had control problems and had major meltdowns and blew saves left and right. Danny Farqhuar on the other hand pitch amazing once he was given the closer position he was light's out, so with Rodney being signed Farqhuar will become the setup man.
Now before I end this post I do want to get on the bench players. First Willie Bloomquist, I'm happy that he has been brought back to his Northwest roots to play with the Mariners as a utility player and a speedy late inning pinch runner. Then we have John Buck, probably my favorite signing besides Cano this off season. Buck provides the necessary veteran role that 2nd year catcher Mike Zunino needs to learn about his position and become a better catcher and hitter. Basically the M's signed a bench player who still has a great arm as a catcher and can hit for power.
This off season has seen a number of great signings and the season is less then a month away from beginning. My only hope for the Mariners is that the team can improve with their hitting with runners in scoring position to help out Cano and score to win more ball games. If they do that, I see an 87-89 win season, with a Wild Card title and hopefully a World Series berth.
Let the season BEGIN!!!
Friday, February 7, 2014
Mariners making playoff moves
With all the hype on the Seattle Seahawks there's been only a small attention on the their baseball counterpart, the Seattle Mariners. The Mariners offseason has been unbelievable as they signed Robinson Cano to a 10 year, $240 million dollar deal, then they signed Corey Hart to a 1 year, $6 million dollar deal, and ended things by trading Carter Capps to the Miami Marlins for OF Logan Morrison. To give my honest opinion I was actually a little upset when they traded Capps, he had control problems towards the end of last season but I still think he had a future with the team. Now Capps will probably have a closing job in Miami and I wish him the best.
Now, back to the Mariners and their offseason. Yesterday the Mariners signed closer Fernando Rodney to a 2 year, $14 million dollar deal. So, remember my Mariners projection post? Yeah I'm going to have to make a big change in that post. With Rodney signed the Mariners now have one of the best closer's in the game and a position that was much needed. Danny Farqhuar was the closer last year after taking over for the struggling Tom Wilhelmsen, so most likely both those pitchers will compete for the setup role.
The Mariners have yet to have a consistent closer since Kazuhiro Sasaki, who closed for the Mariners for 4 years before retiring. Since Sasaki, the longest any closer has pitched for the Mariners was 3 years (Eddie Guardado), but since then no closer has gone more then 2 years before being replaced because of inconsistent play or control problems.
Brandon League and Wilhelmsen are a good example of how the Mariners have had closer problems. League blew a number of saves and was replaced by Wilhelmsen who had a great stretch for the rest of that year and the following year, but last year Wilhelmsen got off to a great start by converting 12 saves with a 0.75 ERA in the first two months of the season but things quickly fell apart as he ran into control problems and was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma.
Now, with Fernando Rodney you are getting a closer who saved 48 games in 2012 with a 0.60 ERA and then the following year saved 37........so basically to sum it all up you're getting one helluva closer. This spring training the Mariners will most likely will have a competition between both Brad Miller and Nick Franklin for the role of shortstop since Cano will be taking the second basemen role over Franklin. Hart on the other hand will most likely be put in the DH role and may play a bit of first base and the outfield and as for Morrison he will be used as a late inning pinch runner/pinch hitter and a day off player.
The Mariners offseason is still not finished as the rumors fly around about Nelson Cruz. The rumor is, that the Mariners are close to signing the former Rangers slugger to a 2-3 year deal and may bring back Kendrys Morales as well. Cruz, if you remember last year was linked to the Miami biogenesis clinic and was suspended for 50 games. So, is a 2-3 year multi million dollar deal a good idea for Cruz who will be turning 34 this June?
If you read @LookoutLanding and read their daily post then you would have already read their take on the Cruz situation and who they believe would be a better signing then Nelson Cruz. They have posted that the better option's would be to resign Morales, extend Kyle Seager's contract, or make a trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers for Andre Either or Matt Kemp. But, besides Cruz some MLB writers and experts think with Cano signing with the Mariners it will promote more Dominican Republic players to sign with the Mariners. Right now Ubaldo Jimenez and Ervin Santana remind unsigned and could find their way to Seattle.
The Mariners could use one more big bat or pitcher on the starting 25 roster, Bronson Arroyo, A.J. Burnett, and Stephen Drew are still out there and could be wearing Mariners blue and teal this season if the front office decides to go after them. Another free agent signing that I almost forgot to mention was catcher John Buck. Buck signed a 1 year, $1 million dollar deal. That was my favorite signing besides the Cano signing of the offseason. The reason I say that is because Buck provides not only a veteran role for the 2nd year catcher Mike Zunino, but he has a great throwing arm to gun down runners and he has the ability to hit for power and drive in runs.
The Mariners offseason has just been one of the best in a long time. Its going to be tough for this baseball team though, to follow up with a playoff season or a World Series year to the Seahawks Super Bowl winning season. I do see one awesome season for this Mariners team just because of the signings and the development of the players that are currently on the roster. When I went to Mariners FanFest I told both Mariners play-by-play Aaron Goldsmith and did the recorded ROOT Sports interview with Jen Mueller that I expect to see an 87-89 win season with a Wild Card berth and hopefully win a title just like the Seahawks. I'm excited for this season and hope for the best.
GO Mariners!!!
Now, back to the Mariners and their offseason. Yesterday the Mariners signed closer Fernando Rodney to a 2 year, $14 million dollar deal. So, remember my Mariners projection post? Yeah I'm going to have to make a big change in that post. With Rodney signed the Mariners now have one of the best closer's in the game and a position that was much needed. Danny Farqhuar was the closer last year after taking over for the struggling Tom Wilhelmsen, so most likely both those pitchers will compete for the setup role.
The Mariners have yet to have a consistent closer since Kazuhiro Sasaki, who closed for the Mariners for 4 years before retiring. Since Sasaki, the longest any closer has pitched for the Mariners was 3 years (Eddie Guardado), but since then no closer has gone more then 2 years before being replaced because of inconsistent play or control problems.
Brandon League and Wilhelmsen are a good example of how the Mariners have had closer problems. League blew a number of saves and was replaced by Wilhelmsen who had a great stretch for the rest of that year and the following year, but last year Wilhelmsen got off to a great start by converting 12 saves with a 0.75 ERA in the first two months of the season but things quickly fell apart as he ran into control problems and was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma.
Now, with Fernando Rodney you are getting a closer who saved 48 games in 2012 with a 0.60 ERA and then the following year saved 37........so basically to sum it all up you're getting one helluva closer. This spring training the Mariners will most likely will have a competition between both Brad Miller and Nick Franklin for the role of shortstop since Cano will be taking the second basemen role over Franklin. Hart on the other hand will most likely be put in the DH role and may play a bit of first base and the outfield and as for Morrison he will be used as a late inning pinch runner/pinch hitter and a day off player.
The Mariners offseason is still not finished as the rumors fly around about Nelson Cruz. The rumor is, that the Mariners are close to signing the former Rangers slugger to a 2-3 year deal and may bring back Kendrys Morales as well. Cruz, if you remember last year was linked to the Miami biogenesis clinic and was suspended for 50 games. So, is a 2-3 year multi million dollar deal a good idea for Cruz who will be turning 34 this June?
If you read @LookoutLanding and read their daily post then you would have already read their take on the Cruz situation and who they believe would be a better signing then Nelson Cruz. They have posted that the better option's would be to resign Morales, extend Kyle Seager's contract, or make a trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers for Andre Either or Matt Kemp. But, besides Cruz some MLB writers and experts think with Cano signing with the Mariners it will promote more Dominican Republic players to sign with the Mariners. Right now Ubaldo Jimenez and Ervin Santana remind unsigned and could find their way to Seattle.
The Mariners could use one more big bat or pitcher on the starting 25 roster, Bronson Arroyo, A.J. Burnett, and Stephen Drew are still out there and could be wearing Mariners blue and teal this season if the front office decides to go after them. Another free agent signing that I almost forgot to mention was catcher John Buck. Buck signed a 1 year, $1 million dollar deal. That was my favorite signing besides the Cano signing of the offseason. The reason I say that is because Buck provides not only a veteran role for the 2nd year catcher Mike Zunino, but he has a great throwing arm to gun down runners and he has the ability to hit for power and drive in runs.
The Mariners offseason has just been one of the best in a long time. Its going to be tough for this baseball team though, to follow up with a playoff season or a World Series year to the Seahawks Super Bowl winning season. I do see one awesome season for this Mariners team just because of the signings and the development of the players that are currently on the roster. When I went to Mariners FanFest I told both Mariners play-by-play Aaron Goldsmith and did the recorded ROOT Sports interview with Jen Mueller that I expect to see an 87-89 win season with a Wild Card berth and hopefully win a title just like the Seahawks. I'm excited for this season and hope for the best.
GO Mariners!!!
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About Me
Im a huge Seattle sports nut. Thats basically about me. But im an upcoming blogger who writes only about the Mariners, Seahawks, Sounders, and when they come back the Sonics. Now if you would like me to write about something tweet me and i will write it. Now i should mark that im also Irish and have a beard that is feared above Brian Wilson's beard. His beard can kiss my beard's ass!