While watching the Tigers "play" the Yankees...
I am reminded yet again of one of the dumbest decisions Mariners management has ever made- running Carlos Guillen out of town. Man, as time goes on that "trade" is going down in M's history as one of the worst ever in our short history. No, not Varitek/Lowe bad, but pretty close.
I won't post the numbers here- they are too painful to even cut and paste. Needless to say, Guillen's numbers this year would have made him the top hitter on the M's club. Better than Ibanez, better than Beltre, better than Ichiro. The guy the "committee" couldn't get rid of fast enough could have really helped the M's the past few years, and I'm surprised we don't hear more complaining from M's fans about this decision.
For those that don't remember, the M's traded Guillen to Detroit for a bag of peanuts. After a poor attempt to sign Tejada, and a failed attempt to give Omar a decent physical, the SS position has been a black hole for years until Betancourt took over the position.
The first year after the trade, Guillen exploded into an All Star caliber hitting machine. Yet injuries reminded us one of the legitimate reasons the M's had an issue with Guillen. It was hard to rely on him as your every day shortstop; roughly 120 games a year was more like it. And with the M's philosophy of running the same veteran lineup out there, I guess figuring out how to go to Plan B for roughly 42 games a year was simply asking too much of the Front Office.
But Guillen hasn't been a one-season wonder, like say Scott Posednick (sic- close enough) and has continued to put up great numbers. While he won't win the MVP this year, he should get some votes. A top ten finish would be quite appropriate for the season he has put up. If you blanked out Jeter's numbers with Guillen's, you'd be surprised how close the two matchup.
So the Yanks continue to cruise, and will win the World Series this year, meaning we have to listen to "Jeter is God" for at least a year. (BTW- ask yourself this, Yankees fans- Why did Jeter make it rain yesterday? How did he know it would help the Yankees?)
But we shouldn't forget the M's might have won a few more games over the years if they hadn't run Derek-lite (we could call him Jesus?) out of town.
I am reminded yet again of one of the dumbest decisions Mariners management has ever made- running Carlos Guillen out of town. Man, as time goes on that "trade" is going down in M's history as one of the worst ever in our short history. No, not Varitek/Lowe bad, but pretty close.
I won't post the numbers here- they are too painful to even cut and paste. Needless to say, Guillen's numbers this year would have made him the top hitter on the M's club. Better than Ibanez, better than Beltre, better than Ichiro. The guy the "committee" couldn't get rid of fast enough could have really helped the M's the past few years, and I'm surprised we don't hear more complaining from M's fans about this decision.
For those that don't remember, the M's traded Guillen to Detroit for a bag of peanuts. After a poor attempt to sign Tejada, and a failed attempt to give Omar a decent physical, the SS position has been a black hole for years until Betancourt took over the position.
The first year after the trade, Guillen exploded into an All Star caliber hitting machine. Yet injuries reminded us one of the legitimate reasons the M's had an issue with Guillen. It was hard to rely on him as your every day shortstop; roughly 120 games a year was more like it. And with the M's philosophy of running the same veteran lineup out there, I guess figuring out how to go to Plan B for roughly 42 games a year was simply asking too much of the Front Office.
But Guillen hasn't been a one-season wonder, like say Scott Posednick (sic- close enough) and has continued to put up great numbers. While he won't win the MVP this year, he should get some votes. A top ten finish would be quite appropriate for the season he has put up. If you blanked out Jeter's numbers with Guillen's, you'd be surprised how close the two matchup.
So the Yanks continue to cruise, and will win the World Series this year, meaning we have to listen to "Jeter is God" for at least a year. (BTW- ask yourself this, Yankees fans- Why did Jeter make it rain yesterday? How did he know it would help the Yankees?)
But we shouldn't forget the M's might have won a few more games over the years if they hadn't run Derek-lite (we could call him Jesus?) out of town.
posted by Tom at
11:25 AM
