The Sports Gods Put Seattle To the Test

What a horrible time for sports in Seattle right now! Or for Washington as a whole, for that matter. The Mariners have always been my #1, and I haven't been able to bear watching their games for over 2 months now. This is how you know it's getting bad: when you're watching a game, and every time your team comes up to bat, you go about doing things. Running to the bathroom, making a bite to eat, or whatever else you have going on. Then when you realize your team is back in the field, you start watching again. Or as my good friend Kelly explained to me the other day, he said "It's gotten so bad, that when I'm watching something else, I don't even turn back to the M's game during commercials of the show I'm watching." That's when you know you've packed it in. When you'd rather watch commercials than your favorite baseball team, hope is lost.
But lets not limit this to the Mariners. Has anyone seen the Seahawks lately? Wow. Week 1, the Hawks definitely looked like one of the worst 3 teams in the league. I watched just about every game on Sunday Ticket so I have a pretty good idea of how bad we just might be. What is the deal with the receivers?! I mean honestly... our top 6 receivers, all hurt? The bad karma is radiating from the Hawks. Did someone on the team kill a guy this offseason and get away with it?? Someone did something bad, because wow... the receivers are our bread and butter in the west coast offense, and without them we won't be successful. When you constantly put your defense out on the field with bad field position, you can't expect much.
Not that I'm blaming anyone within the organization. If we had Engram, Branch, and Burleson we would be a lock for the NFC West title once again. The fact is that we don't, so we had better find another way to win football games. The recent acquisitions of Koren Robinson and Keary Colbert are actually looking good at the moment. While I once hated Koren because of his inability to catch the ball, it now appears that he was most likely hung over or drunk most of the time during those games. The fact that he put up a 1,000 yard season during his alcoholic years is actually pretty impressive. If he has truly turned his life around, then why not give him another chance? He's got the ability to be a #1 or 2 wide receiver in this league. Keary Colbert I'm not so sure about, but I'm thinking he's an upgrade from Jordan Kent at the very least. I liked what he did at USC, and when he was given his chance in Carolina a couple of years ago, he did decent. He's a #3 receiver at best though, a possession guy who is pretty safe with the ball, not overly quick, and has above average hands. I'd say that he'll fit the Engram mold quite well until Bobby is back, and Robinson will be a good deep threat once he gets the offense down again. Julius Jones will never be the most consistent back in the league, but when you give him a hole he can break off some nice runs. Once he finally realizes he needs to hit the hole hard, and stops dancing behind the line of scrimmage every 3rd play... he could become reliable. He's a better runner than Maurice Morris. I like using Morris on 3rd down, but the runs up the middle aren't his thing.
As for the defense, they've looked pretty bad so far... but they just need to get some games in and gel as a unit again. One thing I noticed so far this season: Kelly Jennings is a good cover corner, but he's getting beasted at the line of scrimmage. It appears that teams are opting to attack him rather than Trufant, and he's getting picked on by opposing offenses. Josh Wilson may have to take over the #2 corner spot if this keeps happening. Jennings is just too small to deal with elite recievers, especially in one-on-one coverage. Jennings has really good ball skills, but the fact that he can't get off his blocks downfield is a big hit to our run defense as well. Maybe he can overcome it, but right now it's looking like something needs to be done.
Moving on to college football, the Huskies continue to get smashed. While I think they're not the worst team in the Pac-10, that totally depends on Jake Locker and whether his receivers and running backs can give him ANY help. Locker is almost always the most talented player on the field for either team, but once guy can't win a football game... especially when his primary option is running the ball. Defenses don't hesitate to put 8 or 9 guys in the box against the Dawgs because the receivers can't get open downfield... and even when they do it's basically a crapshoot as to whether Locker will throw a lame duck or a strike. He's talented, but his accuracy on the deep ball is still a work in progress.
Don't lose hope. Things could turn around for the Seahawks in a few weeks when Branch and Engram are healthy again... but I expect it will take another 2-3 games once they are all healthy for them to start clicking as an offense again. So much of the west coast offense is about timing, that it could take a while. I still think we have a very good chance to take the NFC West once again. The 49ers aren't better than us despite their victory, and the Cards always end up choking in the end.

Sexy Time Is Officially Over

The Mariners released Richie Sexson today. Let's all pause for a moment of silence... okay let's not do that, but let's at least pause for a sigh of relief. Ok done. Thank God! I don't think you'll find many M's fans who weren't calling for this for the last 2 years now. I know it wouldn't have made sense, and financially it still doesn't really make sense... but I'm okay with that. The fact that we still owe Richie a little under $7 million for the remainder of the season stings a bit, but at least we'll be able to call someone up who can possibly not strand 7 base-runners per game for the last few months. Richie has been such a huge disappointment. Not that I was thinking he would be the savior of the franchise when we signed him. I've said since day 1 that it was a bad signing, but let's face it... if he'd been making even half of that enormous salary of his, he would have been sent down or released long ago. He was hitting .218 with 11 HR's and only 30 RBI. And that was an IMPROVEMENT from last year already! If you've hit 11 HR's and you only have 30 RBI to go with it, that's not good. That basically means you either hit a home run, or you strike out... and he's definitely striking out at a much higher rate than he's hitting jacks. The worst part is that he's been playing better lately. A few weeks ago I saw his stat line and it was like 10 HR's and 21 RBI. I'm not sure if he was just trying too hard to do well, or if his skill really just fell completely off, but he will be doing much more for the M's by not being on the team than he's been doing on the field the last 2 seasons. Richie seems like a nice guy, and I feel bad for him... I think if you asked him if he'd trade half the salary to get half the skills back that he once had, he'd take the skills. As a fan, I'm just glad that we can finally put this era behind us a concentrate on the future.

NBA: Where "Finding A New Team Because Mine Got Stolen" Happens

So the search for a new favorite NBA team has now begun for most of us Sonics fans. For me personally, this isn't a hard decision at all. The Kings have been my other team for years, and now they'll just move up a slot and officially take over. I'm now a part of the Sacramento Kings' fan-base. A #23 Kevin Martin jersey is in my near future... the home jersey of course. I'm not going to lie, I wouldn't be mad if the Kings decided to adopt a new logo and colors for the upcoming season. Or even if they went back to some of the throwbacks. I'm just not a big fan of the current color-scheme. That's alright though, it's more about the team than the jerseys.


If I was going purely on jerseys, I'd definitely become a Blazers fan. I just don't see how any long-time Sonics fan can just jump right on with the Portland Blazers. I was just discussing this with my buddy Art, who has been the biggest Blazers fan of all time, basically since birth. He was telling me how he's mad how everyone from Seattle is now going to jump on the Blazers bandwagon. For fans that are a little older and actually follow basketball closely, we both agreed that you can't jump onto the bandwagon with the rival, ever. If you're 18 or younger, haven't followed the NBA for too long and are only old enough to remember the Sonics as a bad team... then it's alright. But I've been around for a while. I remember when the Sonics-Blazers matchup was a heated rivalry. Lately we've been so bad that it hasn't been too competitive, and games at Key Arena between the two teams have been pretty lame. There is always this thing with the Blazers when they come to Seattle, where the Seattle fans have actually been cheering for both teams. Not only because we've been horrible, but also because Brandon Roy and Martell Webster, two home-grown Seattle products, both play for the Blazers. You know what I say to that? That's bush! Sure, I like Brandon Roy. He played at Garfield High, he played at U of Washington... but he's been on the Sonics' main rival. You can still like the player, but don't cheer for him while he's making buckets against your team. If you want to root for Roy and Webster while they're playing the Lakers, go right on ahead!


Of course, this is no longer an issue. The team is gone, and it isn't looking like Seattle will be getting it back any time soon. If Seattle ever gets another team, I'll be right there at the front of the line to get some new gear and tickets. And if the rumors of Sacramento moving come to fruition, and they don't move to Seattle, I'll have to formulate an entire new plan. But for now, I'm going to do everything I can to stay off the Blazers bandwagon. Those red jerseys sure are nice though!

The Breakup

Dear SuperSonics,

I'm sorry that things are finally coming to an end for us. We had a good run together. 41 years! That's longer than most relationships last in this day and age... although I am a little old fashioned. I don't really believe in splitting up. I know we had some bumpy times the last few years, but I tried to make it work! Remember how much we used to love each other? All those wild early years with Lenny Wilkins, Walt Hazzard, Bob Rule, and Spencer Haywood. We were young and still blossoming, but we did put a few good years together. I'll admit, a few rough and rocky years followed. But then there was that special year: 1979. We couldn't withstand those Bullets in '78, but '79 was a whole different story. Slick Watts, Dennis Johnson, Jack Sikma, Gus Williams... that's how we'll remember the '70's.


The '80's weren't anything special... by that time we were growing a little restless. Sure, we had a few memories... the trio of Tom Chambers, Dale Ellis, and X-Man Xavier McDaniel each averaging over 20 ppg in 1988-89... but other than that, mostly forgettable. To be honest, I was, for the first time, doubting that our relationship would hold up. But something happened toward the end of that decade: new life.

1989: With the 17th pick, the Seattle Sonics select Shawn Kemp.
1990: With the 2nd pick, the Seattle Sonics select Gary Payton.


See, we just needed that spark. I've always loved you, Sonics... but over time, the daily grind can get a little mundane. I just needed some excitement, some spontaneity. That wasn't too much to ask, was it? Of course not. We both enjoyed it. Of course, even then we were still fighting like a couple of savages. When we were good, we were real good... but there were those times when you would go and refuse to take your meds. You were doing so well all season, and then you ran into Mt. Mutombo. Relapse. We left our tears on the Key Arena hardwood, but we went straight to rehab and got you back on track for the next year. With a new lease on life, you knew what it would take to be the best. That 1995-96 season might have been our best year together. Sure, we didn't win it all... we ran into a certain tongue-wagging god in Nike's, in the midst of his prime... but I still enjoyed that year. Gary, Shawn, Nate, Hersey, Detlef, Sam... we all know them by their first names.


Those were the days, you know? I sometimes wish we could go back to that time, if only just to bask in the moment a little while longer. We knew what we had was special, but we didn't appreciate it enough. I guess we probably just assumed there would be many more years just like that. That the excitement would never cease... but eventually, all good things come to an end. I'm not saying this was the end, there were the Rashard and Ray years, which were fun but just weren't the same. We had that magical 2004-05 season where our love flickered back to life, but only momentarily.


We both saw this end coming long before now, but it seemed inevitable and I don't think either of us thought we could do anything to prevent it. Maybe we could have. Maybe we both should have tried a little harder. Nothing was ever good enough for you. I bought you that beautiful new $95 million renovation back in '95, and just 12 short years later: "This is unsuitable for NBA games. There aren't enough courtside seats. There aren't enough luxury boxes."


But then comes that moment when it finally hits you, that after 41 years together, this is really coming to an end. Up until now, it didn't seem real. Well it is real. This really is happening. So we make that last ditch effort, we see that there might be a future here after all. We're starting to see a little bit of why we got together in the first place bubble up again. Kevin Durant, Jeff Green, Nick Collison, and now Russell Westbrook could all have been ours. Save our Sonics! Save our Sonics? Yeah, but it's much too late. Realization has come and gone, and it's time for acceptance. I'll accept the fact that you're leaving, but you'd better change your name. I can tell you you're not going to make it out there in Oklahoma, but you'll go anyway. You're stubborn, always have been. I'll find another Sonics someday... and when I do, I hope she's just like you.

Love,

City of Seattle
(Bennett Sucks!)

Rick Reilly's Latest "Life of Reilly"

In Rick Reilly's latest column for ESPN (Life of Reilly), he delved into all of the different and extravagant ways professional athletes choose to waste all of their earnings. It's really funny because of the sarcasm that he brings with it... and it's really the only way to write an article like this. Don't pro athletes see their colleagues going bankrupt and think about it? My beef isn't just with the fact that they buy nice stuff... if you're making $10 million per year, you can buy very, very nice stuff. But if you have that kind of money, you can EASILY make much more. Put half of it in savings, invest it... something!

Take a middle-of-the-road MLB contract these days: 4 years, $30 million. You're making about $7.5 million per year. Now take half of that, $3.75 million, and throw it in an account where interest is accrued. Do that each year of your contract. When you have that kind of money in an account where it's gaining interest, just the amount of money you're gaining each year in interest is more than enough to live off of! Say this account gives you 5% interest per year. You're looking at making around $187,500 just the first year. The second year, you're looking at gaining $359,375. Third year $546,093. Fourth year $804,648.

I mean, come on! In just 4 years time, you've just made almost $2 million by just saving your money! And it's only going to keep going up from there... each year the interest accrued will be larger because the total sum is larger. Why don't professional athletes think about this? I know that being a superstar seems to be all about wasting money, making it rain, and spraying champagne... but when the career is over and it's all said and done, living off of a couple million dollars a year isn't a hard thing to do.


In staying with the sarcasm of Reilly's column, I'll say this: All pro athletes should look at Lofa Tatupu here. The man was arrested and served a DUI, but he was driving a very energy-efficient and value-priced Hyundai! Even with the DUI fines, and court costs... he's still saving money.

Sonics Draft

While the draft never goes the way fans want it to go the 2008 draft for the Sonics was in my view a success. Our roster is bad enough that we needed big help in almost every position. The only two that are somewhat reliable are the shooting guard and small forward which are covered by Kevin Durant and Jeff Green. Kevin Durant should be a small forward but weighing about one ninety at six nine makes him much too weak to guard anyone. So when the draft was beginning I thought that we should be looking for a center or point guard. We need help at four but it isn't one of our most pressing problems with Chris Wilcox being a pretty productive player. So when it came to the fourth pick my first thought was Brook Lopez, he may not be a superstar but I see him being a solid player from the start of his rookie season. I thought if they went big he would be the pick (even though later on in the draft Dicky V. was sure that the Sonics had made a huge mistake not picking Love), but I thought that if they went small they would pick either Jerryd Bayless, Russell Westbrook, or Eric Gordon. I heard that they were leaning towards Bayless but they picked Westbrook. While he isn't a pure point guard he is going to be a great addition for the Sonics with his athleticism and defensive abilities. With the 24th pick Seattle picked Serge Ibaka. This seems like another Sene but I like this pick. We had six picks and obviously not all of them could be on the roster so with drafting this player who is playing in Europe we not only get a pretty good player but we get someone who can play in Europe for a year or two without costing the Sonics anything. As long as he plays in Europe we have to pay him zilch. The second round was basically filled with us trying to find a center, something we have been doing for far too long. Robert Swift(Swifty McVeigh), and Sene aren't every going to be good. We got a center from California and Sacha Kaun from Kansas, but I heard that Kaun will probably play in Russia because he has been offered a ton of money. I am very excited that we traded For D.J. White, there is something to say for a four year player at a big school like Indiana. They know how to win much more than a soft 18 European player. I think that our draft was very good but we will be in the draft next year too and if we get the first or second pick who knows, playoffs in three years? With everything looking bad for the Sonics this draft was a small ray of light

Greg Oden: We'll Let It Slide

Here is a captivating photo of Greg Oden playing beer-pong. Last I checked, he was like 19, right? Although, since he does look like he's about 43, I'm okay with it. I've found that beer-pong really helps with your form, especially the follow-through... so I'm sure the Blazers are cool with it. Although judging from the picture, he doesn't appear to have a follow-through. In a totally random sequence of events, I see this profile on Myspace of this really foxy lady, so naturally I clicked on it. I check out her pics, and BAM there's Greg Oden. She's his partner in the beer-pong, and apparently her name is Bridgetta Tomarchio. Check out her IMDB page, she's kind of gorgeous.

On another note: I'd call leaning on him every time. "Get outta your face, Greg Oden?? I'll get inside your face."

So now the question: Who are we bringing in to replace everyone that's been fired?

With the recent firings of, well... basically the whole organization, it's time to put some serious thought into some likely candidates for the job openings. I'm not going to waste my time trying to figure out who we're going to hire to be our new 3rd base coach and new hitting coach... but we'll stick with the main two: GM, and Manager.


This is all just my opinion and I have no idea what the Mariners will actually end up doing, or who they like, but I'm going to give you some names that I think should be in the running for GM. Let's start with Pat Gillick. He's saying that after the season is over, he's going to retire from the Phillies and hang 'em up for good. I say we might have a chance to persuade him otherwise. He's always liked the Mariners organization, and he also has a home in the Seattle area... sounds like a possibility. And yes, I know he's the guy who traded Ken Griffey Jr... but he wanted out, I'm not blaming that on Gillick.


Personally, I'd give Steve Phillips an interview as well. The guy is magic on Baseball Tonight, and his insights and baseball knowledge on the baseball telecasts are really good. He was the GM of the Mets from 1997-2003 and he assembled their World Series team that lost to the Yankees in 2000. He was basically like the wizard of drafting during his time there too. David Wright, Scott Kazmir, and Jose Reyes were all drafted by Phillips. Not a bad record, eh?


Now for Managers. My favorite one out there right now, who I think would be a great fit for the M's current roster, is Joey Cora. He played for Seattle from 1995-1998 and was always a fan favorite. Not only that, but he's bilingual and since most of our players are of Latin descent, it would be great to have him around. Now if only he knew Japanese...
Some other guys who the M's might want to look at are Buck Showalter and Terry Pendleton.


As for the trade deadline, I know everyone wants us to make a move but I'm not sure if it's the smart thing to do right now. Bedard has been a disappointment, but he's shown signs of being dominant... and if we trade him right now we're not going to get anything close to the value that we gave up to get him. I'd much rather see Jarod Washburn hit the road. At least we know for sure that he isn't good, so maybe if we traded him to an NL team he would finish out the rest of the year good for them. NL hitting is much weaker, and it might take them some time to adjust to him since he's been an AL guy his whole career. PLUS he's making way too much money to be the #4 starter and have an ERA that's somewhere in the clouds. We're basically screwed for this year, but let's just wait and see if Bedard can't at least improve his value a little bit by stringing together 3-4 good starts in a row, and then pull the trigger. Otherwise we're just digging an even bigger hole.


As for the rumors that the M's are shopping Ichiro... that's too bad. He's been a great team player for us for many years now, he's never complained, but you get the sense that he's tired of losing. I'm sure he regrets that emotional decision last year during our improbable run at the wild-card to sign an extension... but what's done is done. The Yankees are always talking about how much they covet Ichiro, but doing a deal with them is probably not going to work either because they've basically completely depleted their farm system in the last few years... but maybe getting a guy like Shelly Duncan and Ian Kennedy would work... I just doubt the Yanks would give them both up.