Some optimistic thoughts on Seattle sports in 2016

[IndyHawk]

That was my thought on Walker as well.He could become a pitcher like Arrieta,they are not the same but pitchers come in all sizes and I think the guy will be good.

 

[IndyHawk]

Nice to see some M's fans who I wasn't aware of in Kearly and Tical.Nice write up Kearly,I can only imagine if people think the M's are bad now how they would write up on the teams I saw in 76,77,78 79 and 80 until I moved away to the stinking midwest.We need new owners who will let baseball guys make the moves needed as I'm seeing with my NL team (Cubs)The M's will always be my number one but they sure make it hard on the fans.Rick Jones-where are you?lol

Dunno if I really qualify as an actual fan anymore. Seems I've rooted for them to do poorly at least as much as I've rooted for them to do well over the past decade. I typically boo at games. For some reason I stop short of blaming ownership though. I think they've generally given the baseball people enough money and tried to hire good people. I just think they're really bad at finding good baseball people.

I can agree that they haven't had good baseball people in a while.As for you not being a fan you could fool a few
You seem to know the team like a fan would and more.I don't blame you if you got fustrated over the years and lost something but with a good baseball team it can come back.

 

[kearly]

Wow, you're quick! That post wasn't up long. Debating this stuff isn't going to sway the opinion of either one of us, and I didn't really leave you any room to say anything besides "agree to disagree", so I didn't see anything constructive about leaving the post up.

I agree Aoki's skills should translate to Safeco. At minimum, I'm happy to have his defense out there.

For me, it isn't praising the new guys. Most of the free agents Dipoto brought in are dead average players.

The room for improvement comes from just how awful some members of last years team were. It would be like replacing our OL with a dead average OL. "Average" would suddenly feel like a monster upgrade.

 

[kearly]

The thing is, Walker will be 23 for most of the season. He'll turn 24 in mid August. He's young. Not many guys are as young as him with as many MLB innings under their belt than Taijuan.

But the numbers you cite are excellent, and are a definite reason for pause. But the kid has simply been throwing up until this point. And as I said before, I think he takes a big step forward because he's actually learned to pitch in this league. Gut feeling.

Agree completely with the "thrower" comment.

Felix was a "thrower" once too. Like you said, sometimes young pitchers with good tools have to learn to rely on their tools less and actually learn how to pitch before they can reach their potential. Hopefully that is the case with Walker.

 

[kearly]

So PECOTA's projections just came out. They have Seattle winning 84 games and missing the 2nd wildcard by 1 game.

Based on that, Seattle should expect to be in the playoff hunt until the final day of the season with "average" luck. If they are even just a little lucky, they'll probably make the playoffs.

 

[Rob12]

So PECOTA's projections just came out. They have Seattle winning 84 games and missing the 2nd wildcard by 1 game.

Based on that, Seattle should expect to be in the playoff hunt until the final day of the season with "average" luck. If they are even just a little lucky, they'll probably make the playoffs.

Sadly, that sounds about right. Really fair projection for the M's.

The AL West is a tough division. Texas will be tough, as will Houston. You never know with the Angels.

I am not expecting this team to make the playoffs. Then again, I've loved this team since 1989 so I'm a bit sour.

The talent is there... But with a new regime, I think there's going to be some bumps and bruises.

 

[Rob12]

M's are top heavy with talent, and then it fizzles out. Cruz will have another good year. Cano should bounce back a bit. Seager is a star in his own right, despite not getting the accolades. Felix is a beast. But the pitching will likely falter. And the lineup will be good, but is heavily counting on some reclamation projects to have some bounce back years in a park that doesn't promote offense. I love getting Kuma back, but he's aging and gets hurt. Paxton is made of glass. Walker has some definite flaws. Karns got hurt last season. My guess is Felix and Miley are the M's most consistent starters this season.

80-83 wins. I think that's a fair expectation. I would love to see this team prove me wrong and win 90+ games. The sheer talent is there, but this is the M's, after all. New skipper, new philosophy - I just think this team is a year or two away.

 

[m0ng0]

Hultzen was throwing off the mound today, I wonder what becomes of this guy?

 

[IndyHawk]

Hultzen was throwing off the mound today, I wonder what becomes of this guy?

That guy is the wildcard in these win projections in my opinion.I was so high on him a couple years ago.When I see a rotation of Felix,Kumo,Pax,Walker and Hultz(healthy) throw that 80 win out the window.I see 90+ with a decent closer.

 

[m0ng0]

Hultzen was throwing off the mound today, I wonder what becomes of this guy?

That guy is the wildcard in these win projections in my opinion.I was so high on him a couple years ago.When I see a rotation of Felix,Kumo,Pax,Walker and Hultz(healthy) throw that 80 win out the window.I see 90+ with a decent closer.

it sounds like they are going to use him from the bullpen

 

[LegionHawk12]

I hope the Mariners can pull it together. It's such a far memory when they tied the most wins in a season and lost the first round of the playoffs. Talk about choke job...