2014 Seattle Mariners

[CPHawk]

Is Pete and John building the team now? No. Then 75-82 wins and a bunch of late game Ls.

 

[Smelly McUgly]

Smoak is the only 1st baseman on the team, hardly redundant. I think it's funny to assume you can take any broken down catcher or OF'er and throw them at 1-bag, thinking the level of defense between them and a guy who has played there his entire life(and is one of the better defensive 1B in the league) is negligible enough to disregard entirely because of hitting #'s.

LoMo? Corey Hart? We have too many 1Bs that can barely hit.

 

[davidonmi]

Smoak is the only 1st baseman on the team, hardly redundant. I think it's funny to assume you can take any broken down catcher or OF'er and throw them at 1-bag, thinking the level of defense between them and a guy who has played there his entire life(and is one of the better defensive 1B in the league) is negligible enough to disregard entirely because of hitting #'s.

LoMo? Corey Hart? We have too many 1Bs that can barely hit.

with lomo I agree however when healthy hart is a perennial 25-30 hr guy, don't lump him in with the rest of the garbage

 

[Smelly McUgly]

True, Hart can play a little. I hope they don't have him in the field, though. I think we need to platoon Hart and one of Smoak/LoMo at 1B and then keep Gutierrez as healthy as possible by running him out as our fourth outfielder to back up Cruz/Saunders/Ackley. If he stays healthy, good for us. If not, I have faith that Abraham Almonte can play a bit and back up those guys. Of course, if we could just trade for a legit RF or CF, we might be able to do something.

The infield looks good, though. Hart/Cano/Miller/Seager is legit. Zunino needs work, but at least Buck is a solid backup (and maybe we can stash Sucre too just in case).

Hell, am I talking myself into this team again? If they sign Ubaldo Jimenez and Taijuan Walker is ready for the show...dare I hope? Dare I dream?

 

[Storts]

4th in the Division

 

[davidonmi]

4th in the Division

I would go 3rd
Texas 96-66
Oakland 88-74
Seattle 80-84
Los Angeles 75-87 (people who think they bounce back are off base, that team is flat out bad)
Houston 65-97

 

[SonicHawk]

4th in the Division

I would go 3rd
Texas 96-66
Oakland 88-74
Seattle 80-84
Los Angeles 75-87 (people who think they bounce back are off base, that team is flat out bad)
Houston 65-97

If Seattle is that close to .500 that's a huge step forward. I expect them to do a lot come next off-season if they are starting to put together a decent team.

 

[m0ng0]

I see 87-90 wins, the pitching staff is that good.

 

[davidonmi]

4th in the Division

I would go 3rd
Texas 96-66
Oakland 88-74
Seattle 80-84
Los Angeles 75-87 (people who think they bounce back are off base, that team is flat out bad)
Houston 65-97

If Seattle is that close to .500 that's a huge step forward. I expect them to do a lot come next off-season if they are starting to put together a decent team.

it depends, if they are 500 because Hart, and Baker, and Iwakuma, and Rodney took them there. I wouldn't call it a step forward. But if they get to 500 because players like Miller, and Franklin, and Seager, and Ackley, Zunino, and dare I say smoak take steps forward I consider that huge improvement. We can talk about the offseason moves all we want, but in the end it will come down to the growth of the young kids

 

[Uncle Si]

4th in the Division

I would go 3rd
Texas 96-66
Oakland 88-74
Seattle 80-84
Los Angeles 75-87 (people who think they bounce back are off base, that team is flat out bad)
Houston 65-97

If Seattle is that close to .500 that's a huge step forward. I expect them to do a lot come next off-season if they are starting to put together a decent team.

it depends, if they are 500 because Hart, and Baker, and Iwakuma, and Rodney took them there. I wouldn't call it a step forward. But if they get to 500 because players like Miller, and Franklin, and Seager, and Ackley, Zunino, and dare I say smoak take steps forward I consider that huge improvement. We can talk about the offseason moves all we want, but in the end it will come down to the growth of the young kids

we also added Cano..

Lets be real here. This whole thread seems to ignore the fact that we just added 30+ HRs at 2nd base, and another 20+ in Hart. I agree that we are a .500 team. But if Miller, Franklin, Zunino, Ackley and Smoak (Seager still needs to prove himself? He'll be an All Star this year I think) improve this team will be pushing for 90 wins.

 

[davidonmi]

we also added Cano..

Lets be real here. This whole thread seems to ignore the fact that we just added 30+ HRs at 2nd base, and another 20+ in Hart. I agree that we are a .500 team. But if Miller, Franklin, Zunino, Ackley and Smoak (Seager still needs to prove himself? He'll be an All Star this year I think) improve this team will be pushing for 90 wins.

Hart is no guarantee to hit 20 coming off an injury, it's just a hypothetical 82 wins. I agree completely that if those guys start living up to their potential we will be pushing 85-90 wins, and quite frankly shouldn't that be the expectation in year 6 after adding a bona fide superstar

 

[CrimsonWazzu]

we also added Cano..

Lets be real here. This whole thread seems to ignore the fact that we just added 30+ HRs at 2nd base, and another 20+ in Hart. I agree that we are a .500 team. But if Miller, Franklin, Zunino, Ackley and Smoak (Seager still needs to prove himself? He'll be an All Star this year I think) improve this team will be pushing for 90 wins.

Hart is no guarantee to hit 20 coming off an injury, it's just a hypothetical 82 wins. I agree completely that if those guys start living up to their potential we will be pushing 85-90 wins, and quite frankly shouldn't that be the expectation in year 6 after adding a bona fide superstar

For sure. Jack Z is still hanging on his crusade to make this group of players his legacy. Honestly, I don't think 80 wins is good enough. They need to be approaching 90 and in the hunt all the way.

You expect enough improvement out of every one of those guys where they are all hitting .260 or better and playing GG caliber defense because they are good enough to do that. If Smoak is healthy all year, he should hit 30 HR's, and I think he's the guy who breaks out this year. Sadly, Ackley had the highest potential out of all of those guys and looks to be the biggest washout. Maybe the switch will flip on for him, but I'm not holding my breath. Maybe Guti will stay healthy and finally get back to 2009 form, or better(as he should be), but I'm not holding my breath on that either.

This could be a 750 run offense if all these guys stay healthy, nut up and start playing to their potential. And if it does, this is a playoff team all the way.

 

[Tical21]

Meh. I'll watch about 20 more games than last year because of Walker, but there are just way too many prospects that aren't panning out. The core of this team hasn't improved at all. The front office finally pandered, waved the flag, and brought in underwhelming vets. The sooner they get rid of Hart and Morrison, and replace them with actual prospects, the better off we'll be. Sadly, we just don't have hitting prospects. This is going to take a long time. Poor Felix.

 

[jkitsune]

If Seattle is that close to .500 that's a huge step forward. I expect them to do a lot come next off-season if they are starting to put together a decent team.

it depends, if they are 500 because Hart, and Baker, and Iwakuma, and Rodney took them there. I wouldn't call it a step forward. But if they get to 500 because players like Miller, and Franklin, and Seager, and Ackley, Zunino, and dare I say smoak take steps forward I consider that huge improvement. We can talk about the offseason moves all we want, but in the end it will come down to the growth of the young kids[/quote]

we also added Cano..

Lets be real here. This whole thread seems to ignore the fact that we just added 30+ HRs at 2nd base, and another 20+ in Hart. I agree that we are a .500 team. But if Miller, Franklin, Zunino, Ackley and Smoak (Seager still needs to prove himself? He'll be an All Star this year I think) improve this team will be pushing for 90 wins.[/quote]
I'm usually on the same wavelength as you about the M's, but I feel a little bit different than you (or others in this thread). There's a lot of struggling talent on this roster that, if they grow, this team will be leaps and bounds better. I'm a bit skeptical of the coaching staff's ability in that regard, however, and simply adding home runs does not directly translate to any improvement in record if you suffer in other areas of the game.

Adding Cano is awesome (leaving aside the money), but that means either Miller or Franklin are probably out. Miller seems to be the preferred SS prospect, so that means a likely trade for Franklin, while his value is still pretty high. They could theoretically trade Ackley, but they wouldn't get as much for him at this point, and he still has upside in the OF, where we're pretty thin.

Zunino is exciting. Miller is exciting. Franklin is exciting, but I'm not sure he'll be with us.

Ackley and Smoak are both mixed bags, where they show flashes of being competent and valuable contributors to a roster, and then look utterly lost at other times. I feel more optimistic about Ackley, perhaps just based on his age and his particular skillset, both at the plate and in the field, but perhaps Smoak can carry forward his September.

I'm a bit concerned about Seager, although I have no reasonable justification for it. He hit a prolonged slump towards the end of the season, and I guess the fact that he came from (nearly) nowhere to be a star makes me worried that maybe he was overperforming his ability before.

Hart could either be a huge part of an improving offense or a lost cause. It's hard to know given his history. If he stays healthy and performs, that provides a boost, but we have a roster that is crowded with corner infielders, so I'm not sure how they all get into the lineup to actually provide value.

Felix and Iwakuma are great, but do we really know what we're going to have on the rest of the staff? Young players like Erasmo, Paxton, Walker, etc can impress, but they can also struggle, and we won't know until they get here.

This is all a really long way of getting to my overall feeling for the season: I think with reasonable luck, we can be a .500 team. But I really wouldn't be surprised if that didn't work out, based on the Mariners' history with player development. With great luck, and significant progress in the youth of our team, I agree we could get to 90 wins, but I think that would be a pretty magical outcome. I'd expect we'll be around 78-82 wins this year, pending any further moves this offseason.

 

[davidonmi]

that about echoes my thoughts ^
adding cano was great, and he will be a reliable player who will give us .300 25 HR 90 RBI and great defense, no problem.
The rest of the roster is like playing a game of chance, what are they gonna do?
Hart is a very productive MLB middle of the order hitter when healthy, but we don't know how healthy he is.
We expect walker and paxton to be good, but they've combined for about 10 major league starts
Smoak, Ackley, Saunders all have the potential to improve but the jury is definitely out on them.
Miller, Almonte and Franklin have potential, but they haven't proven anything.
Zunino I'm not expecting a lot from his hitting this year, he should still be in AAA
Baker hasn't been healthy in years
The bullpen is a complete mystery, even rodney and fahrquar.
We also have a 1st year manager.
The win range of this team (upside to downside) is huge

 

[400WattHPSHawk]

Hop on I-90 and head east as far as she'll go, stop. Remember 04' and them bastards finally breaking the "Curse of the Bambino"? And their football team brought home the Lombardi?

Now turn around and head back West...

Seahawks: Super Bowl 48 Champs...14'

Yeah you see where I'm going with this.

Mariners, the over achieving World Series Champions...14'

 

[CrimsonWazzu]

It's a double edged sword. If we're around .500 because of the additions, then the young guys haven't panned out. If we're .500 because the young guys have panned out, that means the guys we added haven't done jack crap and we're still left wanting. Because if Hart/LoMo/Cano are big contributors, and Smoak/Saunders/Ackley take their game up a big step, then we are far better than a .500 team.

We need it all to come together this year, or bust. 90 wins.

 

[Uncle Si]

It's a double edged sword. If we're around .500 because of the additions, then the young guys haven't panned out. If we're .500 because the young guys have panned out, that means the guys we added haven't done jack crap and we're still left wanting. Because if Hart/LoMo/Cano are big contributors, and Smoak/Saunders/Ackley take their game up a big step, then we are far better than a .500 team.

We need it all to come together this year, or bust. 90 wins.

this is a more realistic approach to the team... we are at worst (barring a massive decline in expected output from everyone) an 80-82 win team. Hart is expected to be a good contributor. There is not much expected of LoMo (or Guti). Cano, obviously will be expected to be an MVP level candidate (and should be, really)

if the youngsters exceed expectations (and right now Miller and Seager have higher expectations than some might anticipate) this team can push for 90 wins.

This team, though, isnt done. Adding Cruz would add another couple wins. Adding a front end free agent pitcher (Jimenez) would add a couple more. Using trades to get a Kemp or Price would put this teams expected output closer to 90.

 

[Smelly McUgly]

Iwakuma out 4-6 weeks with strained tendon in his throwing hand.

I hope this scares JackZ into giving 3/30 to Ubaldo Jimenez (is that what it will take? I'd be fine with going up to 3/36 personally before I got worried about the budget/cost-benefit).

 

[Uncle Si]

Iwakuma out 4-6 weeks with strained tendon in his throwing hand.

I hope this scares JackZ into giving 3/30 to Ubaldo Jimenez (is that what it will take? I'd be fine with going up to 3/36 personally before I got worried about the budget/cost-benefit).

good way of looking at it... maybe its a blessing. he'll be back by mid April (maybe early May).