Game 115, A’s at Mariners
Braden vs French, 12:40 pm.
A little afternoon game for you today, as the M’s play early and then take tomorrow off before heading out on the road.
It’s only 27 innings, but French is having a pretty weird year for the M’s. He’s only issued four unintentional walks in the big leagues, and as a soft-tossing fly-ball guy, throwing strikes is a pretty big key for him, but then you see that he’s also hit three batters and thrown two wild pitches and realize that he hasn’t exactly been pounding the strike zone. He’s reduced his slider usage this year and is leaning more on his fastball/change-up combination, but his platoon split has actually been bigger than usual.
That said, it’s Safeco and he’s a flyball lefty, so he doesn’t have to be great to have success. If he avoids the HBPs and WPs today, he should be okay.
Ichiro, RF
Figgins, 2B
Lopez, 3B
Branyan, DH
Gutierrez, CF
Kotchman, 1B
Bard, C
Tuiasosopo, LF
Josh Wilson, SS
If there is anyone in baseball I want the Mariners to light up, its Braden. The guy takes douche to a whole new level
Screw you lopez…
Come on Frenchie. Damage control!
Now this is the mariner baseball we are used to…
2 innings, 2 double plays. This offense is beautiful!
True that. I think it would be hilarious if every Mariner player ran across the backside of the mound after every play…
Ethan-
RE: Braden
I respectfully disagree… When a rookie takes Alex Rodriguez to task in the national media, over something as stupid as A-Rod himself is, I’m a lifelong fan!
(Plus, as just a so-so pitcher I think it’s awesome that he threw a perfect game on Mother’s Day, in honor of his deceased mother, with his Grandma in the stands… Having lost my mother too.)
(But I still want him to lose…)
Personally, I have nothing against A-Rod. I would’ve gladly taken a 200+ million dollar contract, even if it did mean having to live in Texas…
As for Braden, as touching as the story was, I have zero respect for the guy. His grandma told A-Rod to stick it. Way to have some class lady. Braden got angry for A-Rod running across the mound, which really isn’t that big of a deal. Its not like he ran up to front of the mound and messed with Braden’s landing spot.
Not only that, but Braden stated in an interview he didn’t want the A-rod encounter to become a huge deal. Shortly after this interview, Braden sends A-rod a gift box including a signed ball, a t-shirt, and a few other things commemorating their encounter and his perfect game.
Call me ridiculous, but I think the guy is just a big old pile of douche
I like him. And I think the grandma thing was hilarious. I believe the quote was “Screw A-Rod”.
And my problem with A-Rod, and always will be with A-Rod, is that he said OVER AND OVER AND OVER, it’s not about money, I want to play for a winner…
Then he went to possibly the worst team in baseball at the time, for the largest contract ever signed… A contract that actually kept his team from ever being able to be a winner, until, well… This year. (And they’re STILL paying A-Rod… That’s a little more selfish, and Douche-like in my book.)
Although, I’ve never understood why people don’t like douches? I fully support their purpose in the world!
No it was “Stick it, A-Rod”. Coincidentally I came across that quote this morning having no clue Braden was starting today lol.
And my bad, I’m only 19, so I was pretty young when A-Rod left. I never heard the part where he said it wasn’t about the money.
Still love the guy though, he is my biggest hope at someone catching Bonds. I’m sure we can all agree Bonds is a douche, yes? 🙂
I don’t like A-Rod the person at all – but he is one of the great players of our time.
Also, I really don’t get all the people who boo him so vociferously when the Yankees come to town. Unlike certain other superstars, A-Rod didn’t pout, he played hard for his entire Mariner tenure, and as far as I remember he didn’t jerk us around.
He may be a douche, but he sure knows how to play baseball.
Ethan-
Yeah, I’ve got a little more bitter taste in my mouth for A-Rod…
And he’s awesome, no doubt, Westside Guy, which I think lends itself to why M’s fans boo him. We miss his talent, even if we don’t like him. Hell, now more than ever.
The douche. *laugh*
(And I’m not sure Bonds is a douche… I mean, there’s NOTHING clean about that guy!)
Are you kidding me French?!? The A’s are batting about .500 with 2 outs and RISP right now
It seems insane that we can’t find a replacement level player to play instead of Kotchman.
Hell, half of the damned Tacoma Rainiers could play first and do a better job than him.
Carp, Mangini, Nelson (assuming we can find a bus to bring him in), Everidge… Anyone. I hate watching garbage. I hate watching old garbage even more.
Except, you know, none of that is really true.
I think we’re all tired of that story line being recited almost a decade later, when a closer inspection pretty much debunks the whole assertion.
Also, A-Rod actually out-performed his contract in Texas – he produced 17.6 WAR in his 3 years and was well worth the money. The Rangers weren’t fnancially hampered because they gave A-Rod $22 mil/year, they were hampered becase they gave guys like Chan Ho Park $13 – $15 mil/year.
I’m not denying that A-Rod’s kind of douchey, but just not for any of the reasons you listed.
Everidge isn’t even on the team anymore. Besides you don’t want him, he’s just a big ol’ fatty.
Seriously though we have one of the best 1st baseman prospects in the league, be patient. As for now, try looking away during Kotchman at bats.
A fatty could keep me entertained, at least. Kotchman is like Dane Cook. Not good at baseball, or funny.
Holy crap, Jamey Wright is OLD.
However, he still looks 17, which is marginally creepy.
20 comments for a whole game. New record?
Less comments than the 1899 Cleveland Spiders got on their website?
I don’t know, I heard time travelers were particularly fond of the Cleveland Spiders. However a large majority were fans of the Brooklyn Bridegrooms
I didn’t get to see the game, what with my actual job and all… was there any mention of why Tui was out in left? Langerhans has certainly shown himself a capable fill-in for Saunders, so unless he is hurt I don’t understand running Tui out there.
Brown said he has seen what Tui is capable of doing when he gets consistent playing time. Therefore he is finding everyway of playing him that he can
Tui is the only right-handed bench guy other than Moore. He also played a bit of left in Tacoma, didn’t he?
I think Brown said that Tui was playing in left “because Chuck Armstrong said so”.
And then he mumbled something about hopefully it was easier to hit a cut-off man than it was to throw to first base.
(laugh)
Uh, okay.
He DID say he it wasn’t about money.
He DID say he wanted to play for a winner.
He DID sign with an atrocious Rangers team for the largest contract ever.
Disagree on the rest, but 10 years ago, paying ANYBODY $25 million a year was a stupid decision. And STILL paying him, when he hasn’t been on your team for 6 years is pretty dumb too.
Oh, and the team is bankrupt.
But I guess I’m wrong.
And if you look at the analysis the Rangers used to justify the $252 million dollar contract, they used an annual payroll of $70 million every year from 2000 through 2020 (the Yankees were the highest payroll at the time, at $92 million– by comparison, the Yankees are now at $200 million, and we’re only halfway to 2020), with operating costs constant over that same span, and counted on an increased fanbase because Arlington’s population was expected to grow at the same rate it did in 2000 through 2020.
The Rangers payroll is actually DOWN to $55 million this year… Y’know, roughly the difference between $70 million and what they’re paying A-Rod.
And they also rated their odds of making the playoffs with Alex at 28% (yeah, that didn’t happen)… And counted on a World Series happening during the length of his contract, bringing in an estimated $20 million.
Anyways, you can look it up yourself. But Texas was horrible with math– hence their bankruptcy and forced sell. It didn’t just start last year.
Lest anyone think Hicks was merely “unlucky” with the Rangers, you should check out his botched purchase and ownership of Liverpool in the English premier league. Bought in 2007, horribly mismanaged, forced to sell the team right now.
The only thing stopping him from being the most hated EPL owner is the Glazer brothers, even more rapacious owners of Man Utd (also US “billionaires” who can’t find two quarters to rub together).
Did you read the post that I linked to? I suppose I shouldn’t have said “none” of it was true – that was hyperbole and I apologize. The parts I take issue with are saying he went to Texas because he’s a selfish greedy jerk (I’m sure you would have turned that contract down, right?), and that said contract kept the Rangers from winning. Specifically:
Yes, he did say those things and he did sign that contract, but that’s not nearly enough evidence to infer that he was being a greedy, selfish douche worthy of our hate 10 years later. It’s easy to look at things in hindsight and ascribe motive and blame, but the fact is the Rangers had won the division 3 of the 5 years prior to him signing. It’s not ridiculous at all to imagine he thought they were going to be more competitive, and if they were also offering more money, who could blame him? He’d already signed below-market deals with Seattle twice.
And as far as the money goes, his contract wasn’t “stupid decision” for the Rangers – he provided the value and then some. Whether or not some of it’s deferred isn’t really the point. I’m not defending the Rangers or saying anything about their decision making process. They’ve definitely made some braindead mistakes – I just don’t think A-rod’s contract was one of them. (Truth is they probably just got lucky with it.) Guys like A-rod and Pujols and Mauer get paid like superstars because they play like superstars. But, unless you’re the Yankees, when you sign a guy like that you need to compensate by reigning in spending elsewhere, and that’s where the Rangers failed. Rodriguez was worth his contract – if the Rangers hadn’t simultaneously thrown $15+ mil at guys like Chan Ho Park, they could have built a much better team, and we wouldn’t be having this discussion.
It would be cool to climb out of the Tardis and get a good seat at a Portland Greengages game too.
32 posts and a third of them are about A-Rod and feminine hygiene? That might be a record too.
Well, what less could you expect on a blog about one of the crappiest teams in baseball, ATM?