Mariners a Contender?

Growing up in Alaska it was hard not to like the Mariners. Their games where on TV and on the radio. And Dave Niehaus’s screams blasting through the radio "And it’s a Grandsalomi!" on the way home from church in Anchorage, forever indented in my brain a love for both baseball, and the Mariners. Then when I got a little bit older I started to appreciate the prestige that the mariner organization was building, with the exception of the occasional Lou Pinela rant. What with guys like Jay Buhner, Tino, Edgar, and of course Griffey…. I mean I could list dozens more but that’s a separate post in itself. They haven’t been to the playoffs since 2001. So it is very easy for me to get excited when they are only 1.5 games back. Granted they are in an inferior division as compared to the AL East. But it seems to me that all the right pieces are coming together for a championship contending team. Maybe not this year, but hopefully by next year they will be considered a serious contender. And no, their pitching staff does not solely revolve around King Felix. David Pauly who has been a dominant reliever hasn’t lost a game this year, and has a .96 ERA in 40 IP. And I’m sure everyone has heard of the hard throwing Pineda. And Jason Vargas is starting to pitch really well; he had 9 scoreless innings against Baltimore and got a no decision. So great, they have good pitching but no run support. Well first off Chone Figgins needs to be shot, batting .198. But there is hope. Obviously Ichiro. Although his average is considerably lower than normal .258, but it’s still early and come on, it’s Ichiro. Also hard hitting Justin Smoak is starting to pan out in a big way, and he’s a Switch hitter. And with Gutierez back we have some mediocre speed on the base paths and the best centerfielder in baseball. Their closer Brandon League is starting to be quite successful as well, 18-21 in save opportunities, tied for the best in the majors. All I am saying is that I want an Ichiro jersey for Christmas. Also we need to get Noah on here. Quit going to NPR and contribute! Last thing. Can we get a picture of Kevin Costner on the picture slide? If Kenny Powers gets to be on there so should KC.