Willie Bloomquist

Regular readers of baseball blogs know Willie has set a team record for most at-bats without an extra base hit. How many times does this get mentioned in the local papers?

I mention this because every time I see Reed on the bench and Bloomie playing my anger level rises, and I feel like the local papers are giving the team a free pass on this obviously terrible move.
Willie and Cairo are pretty much the same player, but the local boy gets extra love for really no particular reason. He is one of the worst hitting players in baseball, yet continues to get a pass from his team, his manager and seemingly his press corps. While he sounds like a nice enough guy, this isn't about Willie as a person. This is about a team continuing to trot out a player who has no future as a Mariner. If the Mariners are serious about getting better, they need to stop wasting at bats to Mr. Ballgame and get Reed in the line up every chance they get.

As Bloomquist continues on his record setting ways, perhaps the local press can stop the fawning for a second and focus on why a team makers terrible managerial decisions on a regular basis. Larry Stone will touch on it during a blog update, but the paper copy carries no mention of the "curious" lineup choices.

Stop the Willie madness if you are at all serious about getting better next year.