Super Bowl Update

By Kshell

In big playoff games especially elimination games you tend to have great hype heading into the contest. Then once in a while you have a game like this game where the game actually exceeds the hype. In today's game five elimination game which saw the Philadelphia Phillies who are the heavy favorites to win the World Series take on the St.Louis Cardinals who were left for the dead just two weeks ago. You saw two former Cy Young award pitchers in Roy Halladay for the Phillies take on Chris Carpenter of the Cardinals. Both aces and former teammates were terrific as they combined to pitch 17 innings allowing only one run. Carpenter won the matchup with a complete game three-hit shutout to advance the Cardinals. The Cardinals scored early in this contest and that was all the scoring they would need.

The first inning would begin like the last time Roy Halladay took the hill for the Phillies. With the Cardinals scoring right out of the gate then be shutdown for the next seven innings. Halladay gave up a leadoff triple to Rafael Furcal to start the game. Skip Schumaker followed that up with an RBI double scoring Furcal. The Cardinals with the first two batters of the game already had a 1-0 lead on Halladay. Pujols would ground into a fielders choice as the Phillies recorded the out on Schumaker who tried to go to third. Pujols then moved up on a wild pitch into scoring position. After a fielding error by the Phillies Halladay finally put the scoring threat away. He got Matt Holiday to fly out then had a ground out to end the inning. That was a shaky first inning for the Phillies ace who was fortunate to only allow one run.


This game was a great pitching duel between Halladay and Carpenter. Both pitchers would go back and forth throwing up zero's on the scoreboard. In the fourth inning the Philles finally had a rally against Carpenter. The inning began with Utley being hit by a pitch. Hunter Pence grounded into a fielders choice for the first out. Ryan Howard came up only to line out to right centerfield for the second out. Shane Victorino singled advancing Pence to third base. Raul Ibanez came up to plate against Carpenter hoping to at least tie the game up. Carpenter made a mistake pitch to Ibanez as he smashed the ball to deep right field. The ball hung high up in the air only to be caught by Berkman at the wall as the Cardinals continued to lead 1-0 after four innings.


The game continued to go scoreless as both teams aces brought their best stuff. The Phillies were running out of outs as they were trailing 1-0 heading into the top of the seventh inning. The Phillies had one last chance in the bottom of the seventh inning. Leading off the inning was their slugger Howard who Carpenter fell behind 3-0. Charlie Manuel decided to green light his slugger. Carpenter left a ball over the plate as Howard had a good swing on the ball. The ball was a line drive to right field for the first out. Carpenter would retire the next two batters with ease. Carpenter was set to leadoff the eighth inning which left Tony LaRussa with a tough decision to make. With the Cardinals already up 1-0 so technically they don't have to score anymore LaRussa would stick with his ace and let him hit the in the eighth inning.


In the top half of the eighth inning the Cardinals had a chance to put Halladay and the Phillies away. Carpenter facing his old friend Halladay would actually single to lead off the eighth inning. Furcal tried to bunt and was safe on an error by the Phillies catcher. After a bunt and then Halladay intentionally walked Albert Pujols to face Lance Berkman. The Phillies were down just 1-0 but the Cardinals had the bases loaded with one out. Halladay would show why he is one of the games best pitchers. Halladay went after Berkman with cutters and changup's. On a 2-2 count he busted Berkman inside with a 90 mile per hour cutter for a huge second out for the strikeout. Halladay wasn't out of the jam yet as he still had to face Matt Holliday. Halladay would fall behind in the count 2-0 on Holliday but battled back to pound two more strikes. Then Holliday almost quieted the crowd as he belted the ball to deep left field. Holliday hit it at the end of the bat as Ibanez made the catch in left to keep the game at 1-0. For Halladay who was coming up to bat knew his night was over. Halladay who gave up a run in the first two batters settled down to allow no more runs like he did during game one. His fishing partner Carpenter was pitching so well that Halladay was on the hook for the loss 1-0.

After retiring the Phillies in the eighth inning instead of going to his closer the Cardinals turned to Carpenter to finish the Phillies. Carpenter retired Utley to start off the ninth. Then Pence was robbed of a base hit which set it all up for Howard. Carpenter would finish the Phillies season as Howard grounded out to first base. Howard on the play possibly hurt his MCL and will be evaluated later. The mighty Phillies were eliminated in the first round which was a stunning upset. The Phillies losing pitcher was Halladay who went eight innings, allowed six hits, one run and struck out seven. He was outshined by Carpenter who pitched nine innings, gave up just three hits while striking out three in a 1-0 shutout victory. For the Cardinals who were left for the dead  just two weeks ago to eliminate the "Dream Team" that was huge.

In conclusion, the baseball playoffs had our first stunning upset in years. The Phillies who had four aces were eliminated in the first round. Meanwhile the Cardinals will face off against the Brewers in the NLCS in a battle of the NL central. The Cardinanls led by LaRussa are back in the hunt for yet another championship. This was an incredible first round of playoff baseball. Hopefully the league championship series can follow this up. The Cardinals a team nobody was even talking about just two weeks ago are suddenly just four wins away from the World Series.

By Kshell

The baseball playoffs continued today as three games were all compelling. In a best of five game series game two is so crucial as teams are trying to even the series stealing homefield or teams are trying to go up 2-0. Today saw two road teams win  to steal homefield advantage while another team took care of business with a big inning to go up 2-0 in the series. One team saw a former Cy Young award winner blow a 4-0 lead. In another game the home team was down early but rallied late in the game with the go ahead man at the plate. In the third game saw a team blow a 4-1 lead only to score five runs to put the game away. In this following post I'll give a short recap of the three playoff games.


Brewers use five run sixth inning to win 9-4 over D-Backs; leads series 2-0:

The Brewers began this critical game two hoping to go up 2-0 in the series to be one game away from their first postseason series victory since 1982. The Brewers sent former Cy Young award winner Zach Greinke to the hill. In this game Greinke couldn't hang onto a 4-1 lead but the Brewers offense rallied in the bottom of the sixth to take the lead for good as the Diamondbacks bullpen imploaded.

The game started off terrific for the Brewers as Ryan Bruan hit a two-run homerun in the bottom of the first inning off of Daniel Hudson to give the Brewers a 2-0 lead. The Diamondbacks would respond in the top of the second inning with a Paul Goldschmidt homerun to cut the lead in half at 2-1.

In the third inning the Brewers would score two more runs as Prince Fielder would single in Ryan Braun with a shallow single. Richie Weeks would triple to deep centerfield scoring the slow footed Fielder from first base to give the Brewers a 4-1 lead. Chris Young of the Diamondbacks in the top of the fourth inning would go yard as the Diamondbacks pulled within 4-2.

In the fifth inning Greinke trying to hold a 4-2 lead couldn't do so. After allowing an Aaron Hill base hit he would make a mistake to all-star Justin Upton who homered to deep left field to tie the game up at 4-4. That would be Greinke's final inning as he last just five innings, allowing eight hits, four earned runs, three homeruns while striking out seven. The Brewers would change the series in the bottom half of the sixth inning.

In the bottom of the sixth inning Daniel Hudson retired the first batter he faced. After allowing a double to Jerry Hariston Jr. that would end Hudson's night as he was pulled for Brad Ziegler. After a walk and a balk the Brewers had first and third with one out with Jonathan Lecroy up. Lecroy had a sacrifice to Ziegler who committed a two base error scoring Hariston Jr. while allowing the Brewers to have second and third with one out while being up 5-4. After an intentional walk with the bases loaded the Brewers saw Corey Hart come up with an RBI single to give the Brewers a 6-4 lead. Nyjer Morgan would put the game away with a two-run RBI single extending the lead to 8-4. Braun would record an RBI single to give the Brewers the 9-4 lead. That is when Ziegler's day was finally over as he allowed four runs while not recording a single out. Hudson would receive the loss allowing five runs in 5.1 innings.

The Brewers were led by their offense and bullpen once again. The bullpen went four shutout innings striking out six Diamondbacks hitters. For the offense they were led by Ryan Braun who was three for four with three RBI's and two runs scored. The Diamondbacks were carried by Chris Young who was three for four with a homerun. For the Brewers they just have to win one game in the next three to win their first playoff series since 1982. For the Diamondbacks they are hoping to avoid being swept for the third time in franchise history in the postseason.

 Cabrera has huge game for Tigers as they even up the series with a 5-3 win over Yankees:

The Detroit Tigers earned the road split that they wanted as they return home hoping to finish the Yankees off in four games like they did in 2006. The Tigers received a lights out performance from Max Scherzer and fended off a late rally by the Yankees to tie the series up at 1-1.

Going up against veteran playoff pitcher Freddy Garcia the Tigers jumped on the board in the first inning. Miguel Cabrera hit a two-run home run opposite field scoring Miguel Ordanez to give the Tigers a 2-0 lead which is all Scherzer would need.

In the sixth inning after Garcia had settled down the Tigers got to Garcia again. Cabrera would single scoring former Yankees top prospect Austin Jackson to give the Tigers a 3-0 lead. Victor Martinez would also single giving the Tigers a 4-0 lead. That was all for Garcia as he went 5.1 innings, allowing four runs, three earned while striking out seven.

Curtis Granderson finally got the Yankees on the board with a homerun in the bottom of the eighth inning to cut the lead to 4-1. In the top of the ninth Don Kelly who came in as a defensive replacement would single to shallow center scoring Brandon Inge giving the Tigers a 5-1 lead. The ball was then handed to their closer Jose Valverde who hadn't blown a save all season long.

Yankees made the ninth inning interesting as Nick Swisher led the inning off with a homer cutting the lead to 5-2. Jorge Posada would triple to deep center and then Valverde would walk Russell Martin would brought the tying run at the plate. Andrew Jones recorded a sacrifice fly scoring Posada cutting the lead to 5-3. Valverde then struck out Derek Jeter for the second out but would walk Granderson. Robinson Cano the go ahead runner at the plate who had six RBI's the previous game was the batter. Valverde got Cano to ground out to end the game as the Tigers held on.

The Tigers were led by Cabrera who was three for four with a homerun and three RBI's. Magglio Ordonez was three for three with a run scored. Scherzer went six shutout innings striking out five Yankees batters. Now the series will resume in Detroit as both aces will be taking the hill in what is now a best of three series. The Tigers recorded the split they wanted and now for the Yankees they must have at least a split or their season will end in disappointment.


Cardinals rally from 4-0 deficit to Lee to even series up:

The Cardinals who rallied just to make the postseason were asked to rally again. After blowing a 3-0 lead in game one it was the Cardinals who rallied this game. The Cardinals sent their ace Chris Carpenter on three days rest in game two. Carpenter was blown up but the bullpen kept the Cardinals in the game. After falling behind 4-0 to Cy Young award winner and postseason legend Cliff Lee the Cardinals rallied to beat the Phillies 5-4.

The game began horribly for Carpenter and the Cardinals. He loaded the bases with nobody out for Ryan Howard who had burned the Cardinals in game one. Howard then recorded a two-run RBI single to give the Phillies a 2-0 lead. Raul Ibanez would single scoring Hunter Pence to give the Phillies a commanding 3-0 lead in the first inning. The Phillies would tack on another run in the second inning on a Hunter Pence RBI single scoring Jimmy Rollins. With Cliff Lee on the mound the 4-0 lead seemed untouchable.

The mighty Lee would finally start to show signs of being human in October in the fourth inning. The inning would begin with a rare walk by Lee followed up by a strikeout. Lee would allow a base hit to set up first and second with one man down. Ryan Theriot doubled to right scoring Berkman while Molina advanced to third base to pull the Cardinals within 4-1. Jon Jay singles to right cutting the lead to 4-2.  Lee would record another strikeout only to allow an RBI base hit to Rafael Furcal scoring Theriot but Jay was gunned out at the plate by Raul Ibanez to keep the lead at 4-3. Carpenter was lifted for a pinch hitter lasting only three innings giving up four runs striking out just two.

In the sixth inning the Cardinals would finally tie the game up on Lee. After recording two quick outs Lee would allow a double to Theriot. The game would be tied up as Jay singled in Theriot. Allen Craig would lead off the seventh inning with a triple off of Lee. Setting up Albert Pujols who singled in the go ahead run to give the Cardinals a 5-4 lead. Lee would be finished going six innings, allowing 12 hits, five runs while striking out nine.

The Cardinals would hang on for the 5-4 win sending the series back to St.Louis tied up at one game apiece. The Cardinals were led by Jon Jay who was two for three with two RBI's. Pujols was two for five with an RBI while the Cardinals bullpen went six shutout innings striking out six batters. For the Phillies who were the "dream team" they have lost their homefield advantage in a game they had to feel they let go.

In conclusion, the baseball playoffs at least had some drama and we have three of the four series tied up at one game apiece which is good. Baseball needs these series to go pretty far because too many times in the past the series have been short lived. I love the baseball postseason and hopefully this week when not competing with football others will enjoy them as well. October baseball nothing beats it. We saw two road teams rally to even up the series which is what playoff baseball is all about.

By Kshell

The baseball playoffs on day two saw a rare moment in baseball playoffs. All four home teams won as there was plenty of offense to go around in these games. You saw Texas-Tampa Bay battle to see if this will be a series or if the Rays will control the series. The Yankees-Tigers resumed play after the game was postponed at 1-1 tie in the bottom of the second inning which proved to have a wild inning. In the Phillies-Cardinals game two great franchises saw Roy Halladay get roughed up early on but then return to form. Then the fourth game saw two teams who aren't in the playoffs very much in the Brewers and Diamondbacks. That game was your typical playoff game where there was no big innings but instead death by papercuts. In this following post I'll give a quick recap of each playoff game.


Robinson Cano drives in six runs as Yankees win 9-3 to take 1-0 series lead:

The game resumed at 1-1 in the second inning as both teams lost their ace pitchers. The Yankees went with Ian Nova while the Tigers went with Doug Fister. The game remained 1-1 until the fifth inning when Robinson Cano drove in former Tiger Curtis Granderson with an RBI double to give the Yankees a 2-1 lead.

In the six inning that is when Doug Fister would fall apart. Brett Gardner would have a two-run single driving in Mark Teixeira and Jorge Posada to give the Yankees a 4-1 lead. The Yankees would put the game away when Cano would hit a grand slam off of Al Aburquerque to give the Yankees an 8-1 lead.

The Yankees would win 9-3 as Cano would finish the game three for five with a home run, two doubles and six RBI's. Yankees "reliever" Ian Nova would get the win going 6.1 innings, allowing just two earned runs while striking out five. For the Tigers Doug Fister had a rough outing lasting only 4.2 innings giving up six runs while striking out six. For both teams losing their aces really hurt but the Yankees took advantage to take a 1-0 series lead.


Rangers use five run inning to even series with 8-6 win:

After being embarassed in game one at home the Texas Rangers bounced back in game two. After trailing 3-0 the Rangers exploded in the fourth inning scoring five runs off of James Shields. The Rangers also saw young pitcher Derek Holland step up when his team needed them most.

Leading 1-0, Matt Joyce hit a two-run homerun driving in Casey Kotchman to give the Rays a 3-0 lead in the top of the fourth inning. That is when the Rangers offense finally woke up after being outscored 12-0 through the first 12 and a half innings of play in the playoffs.

With the bases loaded former Mariners third baseman Adrian Beltre was hit by a pitch to make the game 3-1. Mike Napoli came up with a big two-run base hit which tied up the game up at 3-3. Then Beltre would score on a wild pitch giving the Rangers a 4-3 lead. Mitch  Moreland would ground out which allowed Napoli to score. When the inning was over the Rangers held a 5-3 lead over the Rays.

In the sixth inning Ian Kinsler would add to the Rangers lead with a two-run double giving the Rangers a 7-3 lead over the Rays. In the top of the seventh the Rays would strike back as Eva Longoria would hit a three-run homerun to cut the lead to 7-6.  Mitch Moreland would homer in the bottom of the eighth to give the Rangers an 8-6 lead. The Rangers would hang on for the 8-6 win which would tie the series up at 1-1.

The Rangers offense exploded today unlike yesterday getting shutout. The Rangers would pound out 10 hits while scoring eight runs. The Rangers were led by several guys including Ian Kinsler who was two for five with two RBI's, Mike Napoli was two for four with two RBI's and two runs, and Mitch Moreland who was one for three with a homerun and two RBI's. Starting pitcher Derek Holland went five innings allowing one earned run with two strikeouts. The Rays didn't receive a good outing from James Shields who lasted five innings allowing seven runs while striking out six.


Phillies erupt late to win 11-6 behind Howard's key homerun:

The game started off rocky for the Phillies ace Roy Halladay unlike last year. Last year in the NLDS Halladay threw a perfect game against the Reds. This year he began the playoffs by allowing a three-run home run to Lance Berkman in the first inning as the Cardinals took a 3-0 lead.

Trailing 3-1 entering the sixth inning the Phillies erupted off of Kyle Lohse. With two men on Ryan Howard did what he does best which is hit a home run to give the Phillies a 4-3 lead. Then Raul Ibanez followed that up with a two-run blast to give the Phillies a 6-3 lead.

The Phillies would score three more runs in the seventh innings. Howard would have a sacrifice fly to give the Phillies a 7-3 lead. Shane Victorino had a single scoring Chase Utley to give the Phillies a 8-3 lead. Raul Ibanez followed that with an RBI single to give the Phillies a commanding 9-3 lead.

The Phillies would hang on to win 11-6. Roy Halladay would earn the win going eight innings, allowing just three hits, three runs and eight strikeouts. The Phillies were led by their bats which saw Ryan Howard go one for three with a homerun and four RBI's. Raul Ibanez would go two for four with a homerun and three RBI's. For the Cardinals Lohse went 5.1 innings allowing six runs, five earned while striking out five.

Gallardo shuts down big D-Backs bats to lift Brew Crew to a 4-1 victory:

In a game which many expected to feature a ton of scoring instead was the low scoring game of the day. Led by Yovani Gallardo who pitched eight terrific innings for the Brewers. While the offense did just enough for the Brewers to earn the win.

There was no scoring until the fourth inning when Jerry Hariston had a sacrifice fly scoring Ryan Braun. The Brewers would score again in the sixth when Jonathan Lucroy drove in Yuniesky Betancourt to give the Brewers a 2-0 lead.

The game would be put away in the seventh inning when Prince Fielder hit a big two-run homerun off of Ian Kennedy to give the Brew Crew a 4-0 lead. Gallardo would allow a homerun in the eighth inning but that didn't matter as the Brewers won 4-1.

The Brewers were led by Gallardo who pitched eight innings, four hits, one run and struck out nine guys. While the Diamondbacks ace Ian Kennedy went 6.2 innings allowing four runs with three strikeouts. The Brewers were led by their stud hitter Fielder who was 2-4 with a homerun and two RBI's.

In conclusion, this was a good day for baseball as the home teams won so the crowd was exciting. I love this time of the year with the baseball playoffs. Expect to see more pitching as the playoffs go on as high scoring games only happen in the LDS while the playoffs go on pitching becomes more dominant.

By Kshell

This week saw the beginning of hopefully a new era for the Seattle Mariners. The Mariners finally called up highly rated prospect Dustin Ackley when they took on the Philadelphia Phillies who came into this series with a seven game winning streak. The Mariners partly because of Ackley's bat defeated the Phillies two out of three. The called up Ackley after losing two out of three to division rival the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. This week saw plenty of great pitching for the Mariners and once again the hitting slumped this week. This was a tough week hitting wise for any team as the Mariners went up against Jered Weaver, Dan Haren, Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels. So for the Mariners to go 3-3 this week was pretty incredible. The Mariners are also just a half game back of first place of the Texas Rangers in the closely tight AL West race. The Mariners went 3-3 this week but I'll keep things positive so I'll go with the good(pitching as usual), the bad(two call ups in Left Field) and the awesome(more on two specific pitchers). The Mariners under first year manager Eric Wedge are playing some good baseball and with the addition of Ackley look for the offense to improve.


The Good:

Well there was plenty of good to talk about this week for the Mariners. The Mariners saw two prospects hit their first career major league home run this week. The fans packed the house this weekend including selling out Fathers Day for only the second sell out of the season. The Mariners also saw Justin Smoak break out of his slump last week and now this week saw Ichiro come alive. Ichiro who had been slumping badly for about six weeks broke out of his slump this week. Was it because he finally got a day off? Who knows but all I know is it was nice to see Ichiro on base. When on base Ichiro was stealing some bases this week as well. Another bright spot was the pitching especially by Jason Vargas who if not for a bad break against the Angels would have went 2-0 this week. As is Vargas threw a complete shutout to outpitch Cole Hamels and win 2-0 over the Phillies. There was indeed plenty of good things to talk about this week which was nice to see for the Mariners.

Good Hitting:

Ichiro: 12-25(.480), 6 runs, 4 SB's
Greg Halman: 3-10(.300), HR(first career), Run, RBI, SB
Justin Smoak: 6-17(.352), 2 RBI's, 6 BB's(.521 OB%)
Dustin Ackley: 3-11(.273), HR(first career), RBI, 2 runs. Hit .273/.273/.727 for the week

Good Pitching:

Michael Pineda: 1-0, 6 IP, 1.50 ERA, 0.83 WHIP, 5 K's
Erik Bedard: 1-0, 7 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.43 WHIP, 5 K's
Brandon League: 2 saves, 2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1.50 WHIP
Jason Vargas: 1-1, 16 IP, 2.81 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 12 K's


The Bad:

Well the Mariners still aren't scoring runs despite all the hype about the young kids being up. The offense like it has all year has been hurting this ball club. In particular the left field and DH positions plus third base the Mariners have received zero from those positions this season. You can also throw center field into the mix as well which is 44% of the lineup is giving the Mariners absolutely nothing. It appears Jack Cust is in Eric Wedge's dog house as he is playing the younger guys of Mike Carp and Carlos Peguero both of which struggled this week. Now this is going to come off as me picking on Peguero but I simply don't do that. I let the stats do the talking and right now he simply isn't getting the job done. The Mariners were hoping the return of Franklin Gutierrez would solve the centerfield problems but instead he is struggling badly at the plate. The pitching was once again good as I had to stretch to find some guys to make the slumping list.

Slumping Hitting:

Carlos Peguero: 2-15(.133), 2 RBI's, run, 6 K's
Mike Carp: 3-15(.200), 7 K's
Miguel Olivo: 3-23(.130), HR, RBI, run, 8 K's
Franklin Gutierrez: 2-16(.125), RBI 4 K's

Slumping Pitching:

Doug Fister: 0-1, 7 IP, 5.14 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 5 K's
Jamey Wright: 2 IP, 9.00 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 2 K's

Mike Carp on the year is hitting .217/.357/.261 in limited playing time.
Carolos Peguero on the year is hitting .208/.266/.426 with 33 K's to just 6 BB's.
Miguel Olivo on the year is hitting .230/.276/.410 but leads all catchers with 11 HR's.
Franklin Gutierrez on the year is hitting .187/.221/.253 which is behind Chone Figgins in all three categories.

The Mariners need some of these hitters to step up or make a trade ASAP if they wish to win this division. You can't expect to keep winning games 3-2 or 2-1 eventually you'll lose games like Saturday 3-1.


The Awesome:

Not just this week but for a while now you are seeing two guys emerge from two unpopular trades. Now I'm not going to defend those trades as I'd still rather not do either trade but you are starting to see what our GM's were thinking. The first trade was done by Jack Zduriencik who traded away high draft pick Brandon Morrow to the Toronto Blue Jays for reliever Brandon League. League who had one rough week has been lights out and peole aren't exactly asking for David Aardsma back anytime soon. The other trade which was extremely unpopular was of course done by Bill Bavasi when he traded away Adam Jones, George Sherrill and two prospects for Erik Bedard. Bedard up to this point had been injured so hard to call him a bust when injuries are things you can't predict. While Bedard this year especially in his last nine starts has been the best pitcher for the Mariners. On a staff that includes Cy Young award winner Felix Hernandez and Rookie of the year candidate Michael Pineda he has been the best. The Mariners are getting a lot back on two guys heading into the season the fan base wasn't really happy with.

Awsome Pitching:

Erik Bedard: 4-4, 77.0 IP, 3.16 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 70 K's, .233 BAA.
In his last 9 starts he is 4-0, 58.1 IP, 1.69 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, 53 K's.

Bedard has been terrific for the Mariners rebounding from his rough first four starts which feels like a decade ago. Bedard for all the crap he's taken from our media(Softy Mahler, Steve Kelly, etc), he is owed an apology. He was injured not hurt the last three seasons this isn't a matter of being "wimpy" at all. He is also giving the team innings this season as well as he has just 12 walks in his last nine starts. Bedard is going after hitters and hopefully for his career the injuries are a thing of the past. I think people are finally seeing what Bavasi saw in him and while losing Adam Jones hurts the other prospects never materialized. For a guy the Mariners didn't expect much from this season he has been fantastic for them and is a huge reason why the Mariners are fighting for the playoffs.

Brandon League: 0-4, 20 saves in 23 opportunities, 30.0 IP, 3.90 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 20 K's, .246 BAA.

Since May 13th League has pitched 14 innings with 11 saves, has a 0.00 ERA, 0.64 WHIP, 7 K's.

League is currently leading the American League with 20 saves and is tied for first place in all of baseball with 20 saves. League was involved in another unpopular trade and struggled last year. The fans of Seattle wanted to throw him out of town after his horrible week despite nobody on the roster capable of outproducing him. I'll give Wedge credit for sticking with his closer not because of his title but instead he is the Mariners best reliever. The other relievers are pitching great but none of them have the stuff that League has. League a guy who heading into the year was a shaky setup man has been a lights out closer to date. He is also a huge reason why the Mariners are contending for the division title.

Just goes to show that you can't freak out over trades and give the trade some time. Now I still think the Mariners will end up on the short end of both deals but neither seem as lopsided as they did just a year ago. The Mariners are getting big time production from two guys who were involved in popular trades. To acquire talent you must give up talent which the Mariners did. The Mariners however did receive some talent back in those trades and it's finally paying off for the ball club.

AL West Standings:

Texas Rangers: 38-35, First Place
Seattle Mariners: 37-35, 0.5 GB
L.A. Angels: 35-38, 3.0 GB
Oakland A's: 33-40, 5.0 GB

In conclusion, the Mariners are right in the thick of this playoff race in a season many including myself thought would be a rebuilding season. Like I pointed out though the Mariners are getting production from two pitchers who were very capable but they weren't counting on. If the Mariners can just score some runs they can run away with this division as they are 25-5(.833) when scoring just 4+ runs. Which means the Mariners are 12-30(.285) when they don't score four runs. So over half their games to date the team isn't scoring runs yet the pitching like yesterday found a way to get the win. With the call up of Ackley that is another hitter for the Mariners that can actually contribute. I have a feeling Zduriencik will be working on a trade even if that is a minor trade the Mariners need some bats in left field and DH. The Mariners are winning which is a surprise and hopefully Wedge moves Ackley up in the order sooner rather than later. I'm just happy that we are three weeks from the All-Star game and the Mariners are just a half game back of first place. The ride has been good and hopefully can last a few more months.

By Kshell

The wait is finally over Dustin Ackley will be making his major league debut tonight as the Seattle Mariners take on the Philadelphia Phillies. Ackley the #2 pick overall in the 2009 baseball draft out of North Carolina will bring a buzz to Safeco Field. The Mariners are hoping the young second baseman will be a mainstay in their lineup for a decade. The hope is the Mariners can have a consistent all-star at a tough position to find offense. Ackley was rated the 11th best prospect in baseball going into the 2010 season and was the 12th best prospect in baseball heading into the 2011 season. Ackley isn't your normal call up like a Greg Halman or Carlos Peguero. Instead Ackley is on the same level as Justin Smoak or Michael Pineda and in fact was regarded as the better prospect than those two. Ackley needed just two years in the minor leagues and 118 games in triple A. Ackley didn't even play in single A jumping right to double A to make his debut. Now Ackley will add a nice buzz to the Mariners and a much needed stick as he is already their third best hitter. I'll break down what Ackley has done in the minors, how his ovation will be the loudest anyone has heard at Safeco in two years and who he is compared to in this following post.


While in the minor leagues Ackley has improved his average each stop of the way which is what you want to see in a prospect. The numbers in the minors don't matter as much as the improvement does. In double A West Tennessee last year Ackley hit .263/.389/.384 with two home runs, 28 RBI's and eight stolen bases. Plus he had 55 walks to 41 strikeouts in 82 games before being called up to Triple A Tacoma. Ackley was a big part of Rainiers PCL championship team the first for the city of Tacoma since the late 1960's. Last year in Tacoma Ackley hit .274/.338/.439 with five home runs and 23 RBI's. He also had 20 walks but 38 strikeouts in 52 games in triple A. Then this year he started off slow for the Rainiers again but destroyed Tacoma the last two months. Ackley finished his Rainiers career this season hitting .303/.421/.487 with nine home runs, 35 RBI's and seven steals. He also had 55 walks to just 38 K's in 66 games. Ackley as you can see isn't being rushed up here. Some think the Mariners might have waited a little bit too long. So for his minor league career which got better as he went along in only 200 games he hit .280/.387/.435 with 130 walks to 117 strikeouts. The guy is an on base machine and walks more than he strikes out. I don't know where manager Eric Wedge will hit him in the order but by the time this season ends he'll be batting second. There is a reason why the fans will be excited to see Dustin Ackley when he steps to the plate for the first time at Safeco.


I imagine Ackley will receive the loudest standing ovation by a Mariner since Ken Griffey Jr made his return to Safeco Field as a Mariner in 2009. Now Ackley won't receive an ovation close to what Griffey had but still the loudest one since then. Ackley will be facing a tough pitcher in his debut Roy Oswalt which Griffey did back in 1989 when he faced Dave Stewart of the Oakland A's. In Griffey's first at bat he hit a double off of Stewart. Then in Griffey's first ever home game in his first at bat in Seattle he hit a home run. I'm not holding Ackley up to that standard but it will be a magical moment when he steps to the plate. Very rare when you have the #2 pick overall in a baseball draft make his debut for your team. Ackley's debut will give the Mariners a shot in the arm and I'm sure the fans will give a loud standing ovation for Ackley. Regardless of what Ackley does tonight it will just feel nice to see Ackley up for the Mariners as him and Justin Smoak are the future of the Mariners offense. Ackley will be making his debut against a player he is often compared to.


The Mariners will be playing the Phillies which means they'll be facing perennial all-star Chase Utley. The talented second baseman is who many guys compare Ackley to and Peter Gammons went as far as saying it's an insult to Ackley to compare him to Utley. Now Utley is a five-time all-star and four-time silver slugger award winner as well. For his career he is hitting .293/.380/.513 with 180 home runs and 662 RBI's in 3,815 career at bats. Utley like Ackley was a former first round pick himself. Now I think Ackley will never have the power that Utley has but it does feel nice knowing the Mariners have a second baseman who can live at the All-Star game. Ackley will be a high on base percentage guy who is good at the plate as he rarely strikes out. The Mariners are hoping Ackley can eventually develope some more power and become their third hitter like Utley has been for the Phillies. It does feel good that on the fantasy homepage they are writing articles about Ackley being called up. He is a big time prospect with high expectations the buzz for tomorrow's game will be pretty special.

In conclusion, you'll be witnessing the future tomorrow as Michael Pineda takes the hill for the Mariners. Justin Smoak will be hitting third for the Mariners and Ackley will be making his debut. The Mariners are just a half game out of first place and Wedge is hoping Ackley can have the same impact that Buster Possey had last year for the San Francisco Giants. Adding Ackley will give Wedge more flexibility with his lineup as Adam Kennedy can come off the bench in late innings or Chone Figgins can come in as a pinch runner. Ackley realistictally is the Mariners third best hitter behind Ichiro and Smoak so adding him is a huge plus for this team. With the way the pitching has been if the Mariners get any offense at all they can make the playoffs. I'm happy that Ackley is making his debut as the team is playing well and there is some excitement. This isn't your typical top prospect being called up to sell tickets. Instead he is being called up to help this team right now and in the future. The game is going to be exciting and I'm happy to finally see Dustin Ackley in a Mariners uniform. Hopefully the Dustin Ackley era when it's all said and done includes multiple all-star games plus championship banners.