Official Mariners arm-chair GM offseason thread

[wazzu31]

I know Mariners have the longest playoff drought in all major sports, but I like to think of it as all 29 other teams in MLB have made the playoffs since the start of the 2002 season except for them.

Truly is amazing that they draw as well as they have. 14,000 isn't a great but looking at the norms for other sports teams in the market when they suck for an extended period of time attendance gets embarrassing.

 

[NWinAZ]

I'd agree if I were a Blue Jay or Phillie fan but IMO he screwed up the organization but we didn't get the payoff. Had 2 amazing seasons and I thank him for that but the Mariners had the roster to with farm system at the time to have won or at least gone to a WS in the 2000-02 window.

But how much of that was due to the one constant thorn in the side of winning namely Howie Lincoln?

 

[wazzu31]

But how much of that was due to the one constant thorn in the side of winning namely Howie Lincoln?

That is a good question and I think it is an unknown. My personal opinion is none and why Howard and Chuck went to yes man after Lou and Gillick. I believe after they bungled the Griffey and Randy deals they gave nearly full control to Pat. I have a bias against but like you said he did give Mariners fans two of the best 4 3/4 seasons we have had.

 

[SeattleCoug]

To be fair, I was against LaRussa also, but your point is spot on that the Mariners do need somebody in the front office who knows baseball.

Yea I was lukewarm on LaRussa at best. I just think it was an opportunity to go in a different direction from a structure that clearly wasn't and still isn't working. It could have easily been just as bad, but maybe it would laid the ground work for us to be ahead of where we are now which wouldn't have been hard.

 

[wazzu31]

Yea I was lukewarm on LaRussa at best. I just think it was an opportunity to go in a different direction from a structure that clearly wasn't and still isn't working. It could have easily been just as bad, but maybe it would laid the ground work for us to be ahead of where we are now which wouldn't have been hard.

I don't think it would've been a bad choice but personally I don't like the guy. But I agree they need a baseball guy running the organization. It's hard to turn the organization around when you give the keys to a Maverick like Dipoto and have no knowledge of the sport enough to step in. There is a line with an overbearing ownership like Dan Snyder but when nobody realizes their GM's are their own worst nightmare and don't realize they need to step in, it's a bad recipe

 

[SeattleCoug]

Weird. I’m no math expert but don’t you need 5 or even 4 to have 6?

 

[Sharkonabicycle]

I know Mariners have the longest playoff drought in all major sports, but I like to think of it as all 29 other teams in MLB have made the playoffs since the start of the 2002 season except for them.

It's all part of a bold strategy to continue a drought for 25-50 years and then reach the playoffs so we can make an epic Hollywood movie about this shitty franchise.

 

[NWinAZ]

Weird. I’m no math expert but don’t you need 5 or even 4 to have 6?

I laugh every time I hear about a freakin 6 man rotation. If you don't have enough quality SP's, you make room for more of them...#TheMarinerWay.

 

[Tapey]

Weird. I’m no math expert but don’t you need 5 or even 4 to have 6?

if felix can bounce back somewhat and Paxton can stay healthy, then with Leake you have a pretty decent 3 man rotation, but after that its a whole bunch of nope.

 

[NWinAZ]

Scott Boras:

"We kicked people out of the game when they tried to not win," Boras continued, referring to the Black Sox scandal, in which baseball banned eight members of the 1919 Chicago White Sox after they were accused of intentionally losing the World Series. "We have to get rid of the noncompetitive cancer. We can't go to our fan bases and sell the promise of losing to win later. That is destructive to our sport because it has removed one-third of the competition."

------------------------

The best thing dumbass ever said. He is talking to you Mariners! (I know he isn't but in my world he is)

 

[NWinAZ]

if felix can bounce back somewhat and Paxton can stay healthy, then with Leake you have a pretty decent 3 man rotation, but after that its a whole bunch of nope.

'If' the biggest small word in life. As the famous saying goes, "The greatest ability in sports is availability"

 

[wazzu31]

I'm not sure how many heard the Mariners lunch in but damn that was odd. Stanton says Seattle is a small market team, let alone doubled down and said it's the smallest market in the AL West. Dipoto says they have a chart of serendipity to select their prospects/farm system and also says the Mariners have the 5th best rotation in the AL..well technically said outside of the 4 playoff teams from last year theirs is the best.

So I'm confused on the serendipity remark, so is he admitting he has zero clue on how to trade for guys or is he saying he has the magic formula on who he is trading for.

 

[Tapey]

I'm not sure how many heard the Mariners lunch in but damn that was odd. Stanton says Seattle is a small market team, let alone doubled down and said it's the smallest market in the AL West. Dipoto says they have a chart of serendipity to select their prospects/farm system and also says the Mariners have the 5th best rotation in the AL..well technically said outside of the 4 playoff teams from last year theirs is the best.

So I'm confused on the serendipity remark, so is he admitting he has zero clue on how to trade for guys or is he saying he has the magic formula on who he is trading for.

so hes saying the Mariners are a smaller market than the A's? if so then thats the biggest joke ive ever heard

 

[NWinAZ]

Dipoto says they have a chart of serendipity to select their prospects/farm system and also says the Mariners have the 5th best rotation in the AL

Maybe he meant in the AL West...lol.

 

[NWinAZ]

so hes saying the Mariners are a smaller market than the A's? if so then thats the biggest joke ive ever heard

Technically our market covers multiple states while Oakland shares the market with SF and is probably 70/30 in favor of SF so WTF DIPoto?

 

[Tapey]

Technically our market covers multiple states while Oakland shares the market with SF and is probably 70/30 in favor of SF so WTF DIPoto?

Stanton is the one that said it, Dipoto said some other dumb shit

 

[DHoey]

That is a good question and I think it is an unknown. My personal opinion is none and why Howard and Chuck went to yes man after Lou and Gillick. I believe after they bungled the Griffey and Randy deals they gave nearly full control to Pat. I have a bias against but like you said he did give Mariners fans two of the best 4 3/4 seasons we have had.

Bungled the Randy deal? They got Halama, Caros Guillen and Freddy Garcia. Not a bad haul, unless you think that the M's could/would have resigned him.

 

[NWinAZ]

Stanton is the one that said it, Dipoto said some other dumb shit

My bad, but he is still an idiot...lol.

 

[NWinAZ]

• Right-hander Hisashi Iwakuma has been cleared to begin throwing as he rehabs from 2017 shoulder surgery, according to Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times (all Twitter links). Divish was among the reporters on hand when Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto spoke to the media about a wide variety of topics, including health updates on a number of Mariners. In addition to Iwakuma setting out on a throwing program, righty David Phelps and outfielder Guillermo Heredia are expected to be at or very close to 100 percent when Spring Training opens. Dipoto also said that lefty Marco Gonzales, who is out of minor league options, “will be given every opportunity to make our club.” Dipoto has taken some heat from fans for trading prospect Tyler O’Neill to acquire Gonzales from the Cardinals, though O’Neill’s .254/.304/.548 slash and 27 percent strikeout rate in Triple-A following the trade raise questions of their own.

 

[NWinAZ]

Bungled the Randy deal? They got Halama, Caros Guillen and Freddy Garcia. Not a bad haul, unless you think that the M's could/would have resigned him.

They should have re-signed Randy who wanted to stay, but that is not the Mariners way. I blame Lincoln/Ownership for that one. There is no way a GM would not want to re-sign the best pitcher in baseball. It was purely a money deal.