LATEST STORIES FROM TATONKA, A MARINERS BLOG
Don't get mad, get Wlad
April 27, 2009 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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Welcome back, Tad. And welcome back me. I posted a fair amount last season, but stopped midseason as the Mariners hit rock bottom and my interest in curling exceeded that of baseball - and the only thing I know about curling is that it's essentially goofy-looking shuffleboard...
It’s Hero Time
April 19, 2009 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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This blog has been dark for the better part of a year.Last year's the M's mis-management team turned me off so bad that I largely lost the joy of baseball. I barely followed the playoffs, discontinued my subscription to Baseball Prospectus and came perilously close to folding...
The Time is Right
June 23, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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Bryan LaHair, come on UP!Victor Diaz, come on UP!Matt Tuiasosopo, come on UP!Rob Johnson, come on UP!Ryan Feierabend, come on UP!You're the next contestants on "The Time is Right"! Ahem, Lee? Want to do something to give Armstrong and company something to think about...
Blown Away!
June 19, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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Ready ... aim ... FIRE!Bill Bavasi and John McLaren, shown the door by the Mariners over the past few days.I actually now believe that a wholesale youth movement is on its way. And speaking for the majority of "stat geek" Mariners fans who never once believed the team was...
Blown Away
June 01, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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In case you hadn't noticed, I started a rather lame movie title theme in my last two posts. Watching the M's in May (and now to start June), I'm compelled to use another one - this one being the Jeff Bridges/Tommy Lee Jones bomb squad thriller, not the British blow-up doll...
Philosophy on young players
May 27, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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So we are fast approaching the "play the kids" portion of the season. In fact we are already there, its just a matter of when the M's braintrust wakes up and sees it.I saw this quote from Billy Beane on Athletics Nation:We think Daric is going to be a great major league...
Speed
May 06, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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What do you do to tweak a team that has poor-to-middling power (.425 slugging percentage in 2007, .383 so far in 2008), sub-par fielding (.979, 13th in the A.L.), mediocre pitching (4.21 ERA) and few prospects for immediate improvement in any of these areas - all leading to a disappointing...
Back to the Future
May 01, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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Flipping aimlessly through the channels, I saw that Back to the Future, Part II was being replayed for the one millionth time on HBO tonight. Seemingly for the first time in the Bavasi era, a version of that theme is being played in Mariner-land as we speak.The Mariners have finally...
Winnin' yoo-glee
April 27, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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I went to my first M's game last night, and although I sat in the third deck overlooking left field, enjoyed watching Bedard pitch. He wasn't overpowering (the gun showed his fastball to be in the 89-92 range), but he seemed to keep the A's hitters off-balance all night...
What's at Stake? The Lineup
April 21, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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Absolutely fucking nothing. This is the lineup:1B - Sexson2b - LopezSS - Betancourt3b - BeltreC - JohjimaLF - IbanezCF - IchiroRF - WilkersonDH - VidroDoes that look like the lineup of a pennant winner to you? I suppose that if Lopez struggles they could start Bloomquist, but instead...
45 or 6-2-4
April 20, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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I've discussed this before, but in the absolute sense, is strong pitching enough to overcome weak hitting on a baseball team? Through the first 11 games of the year, prized #1 starter Eric Bedard has performed fairly well in his first two starts: 1-0, 3.27, 10 K's in 11 IP. His control h...
Ahhhh, 161-1, anybody?
April 20, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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And the optimism is tempered a bit. M's blow a won game on Felix's watch. Yikes.And to make matters worse, J.J. Putz is felled by an injury I can't even pronounce.We're seeing exciting baseball, to be sure, but I'm not very reassured that its exciting baseball involving...
Snow!
April 19, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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In April. What the hell?I am a huge fan of DirecTV. Way better than cable. Unless it snows. Then you miss a tremendously exciting early season game with first place on the line.Grrrrr!
Felix is fun!
April 17, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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There was nothing that was not fun about last night's performance from Felix. The way he pitches, his enthusiasm, his interaction with his teammates. Just awesome.And that wasn't even on of his best performances! He had 7 flyballs and only 8 K's. Super Felix is a ground...
Things we've learned after two weeks
April 14, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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1. Eric O'Flaherty has some issues right now. Normally, I'm in the he'll be fine, keep rolling him out there camp, but he is really struggling. Expect him to get sent down today.2. Mike Morse cannot play the outfield. He's really, really bad. When you end up injuring...
Towel, part deux
April 08, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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2-5. If you go 2-5 at some point in May it is no big deal. 2-5 to open the season just feels worse somehow. I also contend strongly that late inning losses are bad for a team's morale. Although I tend to discount chemistry type arguments, I do think that a series of bullpen blows...
Too early to start looking for the towel?
April 06, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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So, we're at the end of week one. Putz is hurt, Big Sexy still can't hit, and we've swung from last to first in the division in a matter of a couple of games.Sure, sure. It's too early to panic. (Well--not really. After all, this is just what we expected, right?) "...
A rented mule
April 03, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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Ever heard the taunt I'm going to beat you like a rented mule? Wikipedia attributes that bit of slang lexicon to Mickey Redmond, a former NHL player and current Detroit Red Wings color commentator. It's my current pet phrase. I'm a fair ping pong player, and prior to most...
162-0 still in sight....
March 31, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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There's nothing like winning the opener in an exciting game. I'm going to ignore all the warning signs here, and just cheer on the M's.One down, 161 to go.
Opening Day, woot!
March 30, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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Well, if we ignore that two-game set in Japan last week anyway.The M's retain all 162 opportunities to win games at this point. No yelling at Mac for stupid manager tricks. No bemoaning the sorcerers of roster construction (we'd just be adding to the din anyway). Not even any...
Spring Training Battles - Update
March 24, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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As ST winds down, here's where the battles we outlined in our What's at Stake series stand.BenchBackup catcher: Clement and Johnson are back in Tacoma, and Burke wins the job as predicted.Backup OF: Jimerson, Reed and Morse are all still alive. Morse has hit the snot out of...
What's at Stake? The Bullpen
March 18, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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As spring training gets under way, We'll run down the position battles (such as they are) that make camp interesting. Last time we took a look at the rotation, today, the pen!We'll assume a 7 man pen, and that we have to have two lefties, because the M's are obsessed with...
What's at Stake: The Bench
March 06, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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The bench might be the most interesting of the pieces this Spring. Lots of guys fighting for just a few spots.Assuming a 12 man staff and a 9 man lineup, that leaves just 4 bench spots open. And we know Willie is getting one of those. That leaves room for a backup catcher, a backup...
My oh my!
February 27, 2008 by
Tatonka, a Mariners Blog
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The P-I is reporting, via the AP, that original Mariner Dave Niehaus is this year's winner of the Frick Award. The winner of this award gets inducted into the broadcast wing of the Baseball Hall of Fame!Way to go Dave! We here at Tatonka make no secret of our Non-Sexual Man Crush...
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