Before the season began, I had the usual conversation with my friend about how we thought the Mariner's would do this season.
The M's were coming off a poor season, had made zero significant acquisitions in the off season, and the other teams in the AL West had gotten stronger. With that in mind, I declared it would be a successful season if the Mariner's won 70 games.
Given these expectations, I have been reasonably surprised with Seattle's near five hundred record this late into the season. However, amidst a 3-game losing streak, the M's are starting to look more like the team I expected them to be.
This does not mean there is not hope for the future. Here are six reasons to be optimistic about the future if you are a Mariner's fan...
He is the best young pitcher in baseball and has the build to be successful for a long time coming. At only 25 years of age, King Felix has already won 79 games, one Cy Young, and should win many more of to come, of both. More importantly for the Mariners, Hernandez is under contract through 2014, giving the team a reliable Ace to build around for the next several seasons.
While Felix is the best young pitcher in baseball, Pineda is staking his claim as the best rookie pitcher in baseball this season. Pineda is the front runner for rookie of the year and is putting up numbers that have him legitimately involved in Cy Young discussions.
Pineda is only 22 years old and is already one of the most dominating pitchers in baseball. Like Felix, Pineda has solid mechanics, a big frame and is built to sustain big innings for years to come. Get the Mariner's in the playoffs, somehow, and a duo of Hernandez and Pineda would scare a lot of teams around the league.
Another young star who is making a name for himself this season. Drafted second overall two years ago behind Stephen Strasburg, Ackley has looked totally comfortable at the plate since being called up a few weeks ago. His combination of speed, contact hitting and power, make him an ideal hitter to follow Ichiro in the two spot of the Mariner's lineup. Since being called up, Ackley has hit in 10 of 12 games, and has made it on base in all 12. 4. Patience to develop players
Free agents are nice, but building a contender from within is always a more stable and reliable route, especially in the long run. After making some risky trades in the past several years, Erik Bedard and Cliff Lee to name a few, the Mariner's front office has switched their philosophy to building their team through the draft.
So far the patience has paid off, as guys like Pineda, Ackley and Justin Smoak, have begun to make an impact in the big leagues. Even guys like Greg Halman and Carlos Peguero have shown positive signs since being called up.
5. Eye for young talent through draft and trade
Showing patience and relying on he youth is one thing, being able to draft the right players is another. The Mariner's have done a great job of identifying young talent through the draft and in trades. Ackley and Pineda have moved up swiftly through the M's system since being drafted by the team, while Smoak was the product of the Cliff Lee trade.
The team would be wise to move a player like Erik Bedard to a contending team short on starting pitching, in exchange for more young talent to build around the players already in place.Identifying talent is an area Seattle has always been strong. Twice the team has held the number one pick the draft. Their two selections? Ken Griffey, Jr. and Alex Rodriguez. Not a bad track record.
6. Core of young pitchers
In addition to Hernandez and Pineda, Seattle has two more reliable and relatively young starters in Doug Fister, 27, and Jason Vargas, 28. All four pitchers eat up innings, saving the bullpen and keeping the team in games. While Hernandez and Pineda are a pair of Aces, Fister and Vargas are much better than the average 4th and 5th starters in the league, giving Seattle four above average pitchers moving forward.
Pitching doesn't appear to be a problem for Seattle. They've got more arms than a North Korean missile silo.
Now if they could find a way to hit the ball.
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