Seattle Mariners Midseason Analysis: More Interleague Play!

by user Andersed

About a week ago, a Yahoo! sports "expert" wrote a column about immediate pro prospects from the MLB draft, including Seattle Mariners signee Brandon Morrow. Of course, he slipped up and insulted the Mariners in the process. He joins the stupid bandwagon, which runs from the same stable as the Detroit Tigers vehicle.

For weeks the M's have languished in the high-to-mid 20s in ESPN.com's Power Rankings (which ultimately don't matter, I know) despite ravaging the NL West. After a loss last night, they're 12-3 in interleague play are and would be further over .500 if they hadn't played the A's ten times. Of course, they have to play the A's ten more times before this is all over. But these A's don't have much offense or the same pitching.

So on this July 1, I'm pleased with the Mariners at this point. They haven't gone in the toilet after routh stretches and have constructed a few runs of actual baseball for the first time in almost three years. That's big. Seattle fans haven't seen good baseball (from the home team) for a LONG TIME. I might even venture to cal this team entertaining. It's probably a bit early for that. On to individual evaluations...

Ichiro - At this point, the only question I ask regarding Ichiro is a morbid one: when will his career end? He already seems ageless, though he's in his early 30s. With his workout regimen and almost unparalleled health track record, he could be in the outfield for at least ten more years. If so, he'd probably reach 3,000 hits faster than any man in history. Roger Clemens will pale next to the clearly 'roid-less Ichiro. If the sometimes-maddening magician gets to 3,000, I hope he does it in a Mariner uniform and that people recognize his anachronistic greatness. He could one of the all-time greats, except he plays in an era where pure hitting isn't appreciated properly. You can't question the man.

Adrian Beltre - People are right - it's time we stop touting every Beltre homer or (equally rare) opposite field hit as evidence that he's finally turned the corner. However, he's showed slow, interminable improvement over the last month. The two hole seems like his spot, and I applaud Mike Hargrove for having the ingenuity to move a guy like him up there in the lineup.

Jose Lopez - He's been great, though I'm surprised that most people were surprised by his production. When he first came up in 2004, he was touted as the farm system's best hitter. He showed clear flashes in the last two seasons and I never had any doubt that he would blossom into a bona fide big league player. I didn't project him deserving the starting job in the All-Star game or claiming a utility spot on my front-running fantasy team, though.

Raul Ibanez - I still maintain that one reason why the Mariners aren't a great team is that Ibanez has a prime spot in the lineup. It's no knock on Raul - he'd be a fantastic 6-hitter - rather evidence of other guys not producing. His homer numbers are even up a bit and I bet he's done an invaluable job in the clubhouse blurring the line between American-born and Latin players. He might be the team's MVP right now. So scratch my original thought.

Richie Sexson - Richie's current production is more what I expected when they signed him (and Beltre the very next day in an unprecedented manipulative PR move). Last year surprised me. I've never seen anyone hit so many homers to center at SAFECO. Few men can do it. Like Raul, he's another guy who you can't evaluate just by what you see on the field. For him and Eddie Guardado to struggle and still keep the clubhouse positive is an achievement.

Carl Everett - Carl would be a huge disappointment if it weren't for two huge walkoff homers in games the Mariners desperately needed to win. You can't spend your bullpen in a tight game and then lose it. And he provided one of