Are these the Mariners...??

[ichiro262]

Did anyone else see the game against the D'Backs?? The Mariners of the last two seasons would have just given up down 2-1 going into the 9th. But Ibanez came up big, Kenji got a triple (A TRIPLE!!!) and then Betancourt delivered the go-ahead hit. Watching it unfold was like watching a different team than I've been seeing for the last couple of years (and even ealier this year). Do you guys think we have a chance to make some noise this season, or is this just wishful thinking (knock on wood)?

[KillaK]

i wont mention the numbers 1... 9...9...5... but...

this team is very impressive. it will be tough to make the playoffs, but they have some spunk. something to stay up and watch the ninth inning for. and really, that's all we can ask for. they, as a franchise, are way ahead of alot of teams that the so called "experts" were comparing them to. they aren't perfect yet, but they have something going for them, something to root for. and that makes me happy. good luck, m's. it's fun to watch again.

[papa~smurf]

Being in the weakend division of the AL west seems to help our playoff potential. I think we have a legitiment shot at the West title. I think most of what has helped our team make this run in the past month is loosening up. Back in 2004 or 2005, or even 2006, every individual was thinking, "I have to do this to carry the team." This attitude didn't help. Recently, if you look at the clubhouse in warm ups, they are loose. Not a bad loose, like I don't care, but a sort of reliance on others, they are having a good time. Now that they know that their teammates can help them out, they are not so hard on themselves, and are being more productive. Watching them in warm ups, you can tell they enjoy themselves. Down in Arizona I watched them before they started batting practice, they were playing some kind of "King of the Circle" game, and goofing around, laughing, and just generally having a good time. This might be what is helping the entire team heat up at the same time. As long as Ichiro, Raul, and Lopez remain consistant, and Sexson and Beltre reach their potential, we are in this.

[SABR Matt]

Wow...are these the same posters who were talking just a month ago about whether it was time to give up on this team? The ones I told were crazy...the ones I insisted were overreacting?

For the record...I've been very public about my CERTAINTY that this was a good team from day one just waiting to bust out...

Enjoy the ride...it's going to be a long pennant chase. :)

[ichiro262]

Haha...didn't expect those reactions. Wow. Not so fast my friends, we are two games over .500. I admit, it looks good now -- but lets not forget what happened in 2002 and 2003. Those years we were winning the pennant race and managed to fold in the final third of the season. I like it right now too, but I'm not ready to say we're going to be neck and neck with Oakland at the end of the year.
And, for the record, SABRMatt is right. You guys were saying a month ago that we were dead with no chance of revival. It's a long season, but I agree. Right now it's FUN.

[papa~smurf]

Wow...are these the same posters who were talking just a month ago about whether it was time to give up on this team? The ones I told were crazy...the ones I insisted were overreacting?

For the record...I've been very public about my CERTAINTY that this was a good team from day one just waiting to bust out...

Enjoy the ride...it's going to be a long pennant chase. :)

No we arn't actually. That would be Leecemark. I don't think any of us ever said we doubted the Mariners, just that we were getting tired of Eddie and Hardgrove.

[leecemark]

--I'm enjoying the June Mariners as much as anyone. However, I don't think June represents our real talent level. The true Mariners are probably somewhere in believe the red hot play of late and horrible struggles of earlier. In other words, our current .500ish record is about where I expect the team to end up (hoping for more though:gt ). The bright side to that is the AL West is shaping up to be a pretty lackluster division. Winning 90 games might get the job done (well even less might) and that appears to be doable for the Ms.
--I'm actually optimistic about of our lineup now. Everett is the only regular I really don't feel good about and hopefully he'll be platooned with new M Junior Perez.
--I still have some doubts about the rotation holding up. Can the Ancient Mariner keep it up through the dog days of summer? Has long time tease Gilly Meche turned into a pitcher we can count on? Will Joel Pinero manage to pitch at least a few decent games for us? Felix is coming around nicely and nobody can doubt his stuff. Washburn I think will give us at least a little more than he has, although I wasn't a fan of his signing. Our pen is good enough that decent starting pitching could be enough. In sum, this is not a great team but it isn't a great division either and my earlier pessimism
was premature.

[ichiro262]

That's more like what I expected. Keep in mind since I posted this the team has dropped 2 out of 3 and is on the verge of losing now -- which would put them back at .500. I just hope the guys we need to be able to count on will continue to step up and they continue to believe they can win this division.

[Rennie Stennett]

The exciting part of this is the M's have some youngsters and some new players (Kenji) and I think it will be fun to watch them grow into a good team. The chemistry is good. The defense is good. The pitching has been good and the hitting is coming around. Sometimes you just have to tip your cap to the opposite team and say they took it to us today. If we get hot and stay hot, who knows what might happen, if we get into the playoffs. The M's destiny is in their own hands. That is all you can ask for. The Mariners will play all the teams that lead us in the wild card and the divison. Bring it on !

[ichiro262]

Welcome back to earth Mariners. They started to look like a bad AL team recently. Dropping three to the "are they or aren't they" Angels didn't help anything, and now we are back two games under and about to open a series against the Tigers. This month has good written all over it.