2012 Mariners vs. A's Tokyo Japan: 6th Straight Opening Day Wins Longest in MLB

I stayed up all night to watch Felix battle Brandon McCarthy and the A's. While I have done this before during the World Baseball Classic, this game was truly a first. The Mariners were unwilling to pay the fee (roughly twice the expense of an out of town game) to broadcast live from Japan. So Mike and Dave called the game from the Root Sports office in Bellevue, while Rick Rizz and Ken Levine did the radio feed from the Tokyo Dome. It was very bizarre. It also meant no pregame show.

After showing Mike and Dave from the studio, we could see the A's players standing around the field chatting. Apparently the bullpens are underneath(?) the stands, so there was perhaps a mis-communication and McCarthy didn't realize he needed to be out on the field.

Very strange with someone other than Ichiro batting lead-off, but that didn't seem to impact his performance: 4 - 5, all infield singles, with an RBI. He's currently leading the league with a batting average of .800, though I don't expect it to last long. He also tied Ken Griffey Jr.'s record for most hits on Opening Day by a Mariner. Despite his great night at the plate, the real MVP was Dustin Ackley. Led off the 4th with a solo home run then made up for his error by smacking the go-ahead base hit in the 11th.

Felix was solid, going 8 innings with 6 Ks, 0 walks and one earned run with the A's scattering 5 hits. I'm concerned about his two hit by pitches and he was lucky to get himself out of potential trouble. At one point he retired 10 straight. Tom Wilhelmsen threw two hitless innings and was credited with the win. Brandon League pitched the 11th and earned his first save of 2012.

Not too sure why Bob Melvin kept replacing pitchers, using 5 after McCarthy's departure in the 7th. It seemed very unnecessary to me; it's not like the Mariners are (or will be) an offensive Juggernaut anytime soon.

After pulling off a 3 - 1 victory in 11 innings, it will be interesting to see what the Mariners do in game 2.

Year Two

As the Mariners officially opened the season last night, so began our second season without Dave.

Picture taken 4/9/11. Still undecided whether to have my patch sewn on the sleeve of my Felix jersey or leave it as is.

Dave Niehaus Press Box at Safeco

Dave Niehaus Way, unofficially

(Non) All-Star Game 2011

A record of 82 players were selected to play in the 2011 All-Star game at Chase Field in Arizona. For an event that lasted less than three hours, it was slow, non-competitive and almost boring.

The starters, as elected by the fans:

American League

C Alex Avila, Tigers

1B Adrian Gonzalez, Boston

2B Robinson Cano, Yankees

SS Derek Jeter, Yankees

3B Alex Rodriguez, Yankees

OF Jose Batista, Blue Jays

OF Curtis Granderson, Yankees

OF Josh Hamilton, Rangers

DH David Ortiz, Red Sox

SP Jered Weaver, Angels

Jeter and A-Rod were replaced by Asdrubal Cabrera (Indians) and Adrian Beltre (Rangers), respectively.

National League

C Brian McCann, Braves

1B Prince Fielder, Brewers

2B Rickie Weeks, Brewers

SS Jose Reyes, Mets

3B Placido Polanco, Phillies

OF Ryan Braun, Brewers

OF Lance Berkman, Cardinals

OF Matt Kemp, Dodgers

SP Roy Halliday, Phillies

Carlos Beltran (Mets) was named DH. Reyes (Troy Tulowitski, Rockies); Polanco (Scott Rolen, Reds); and Braun (Matt Holliday, Cardinals) were unable to play.

For the first time in his Major League career, Ichiro was not selected. Other big names such as Chipper Jones and Josh Beckett were absent due to injury.

I don't like the rule that a pitcher who plays the Sunday before the All-Star game is automatically ineligible. While that was a blessing to Michael Pineda, who was selected due to Justin Verlander's Sunday outing, it's still a dumb requirement. Pineda is having a great year and should have been selected on his own merit. I'm sure 2011 is his first of many All-Star appearances to come. However, I would have rather seen Felix. Unsure that a rookie, albeit one as talented as Michael, should take the spot of a big-name veteran.

I'm also disappointed in Jeter. I understand that he had an emotional weekend and didn't want to play. But he should have at least made an appearance in Arizona. He is absolutely a first ballot Hall of Famer. Perhaps his selection will be unanimous. However, his playing days are numbered. I predict he will play one or possibly two more seasons before he retires. Jeets is the only Yankee player I vote for. Compared to some of his teammates, he's classy, well-liked and clearly dedicated to his team. Not showing up is selfish. The fans wanted him there despite his declining numbers.

Another thing I hate is the home field advantage for the World Series. Flip a coin. Alternate years. Or have the team with the best home record get it. 32 players per team is too many. Not all will play unless it goes to extra innings or there's an injury. The American League ultimately used 29 players; for the NL, everyone except Ryan Vogelsong of the Giants participated. Tyler Clippard (Nationals) was credited with the win though he threw a mere three pitches ... and allowed a hit. Doesn't make sense.

2012 All-Star game will be held in Kansas City. Hoping it will be better than its predecessor.

For a complete list of the 82 players selected:

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/allstar11/news/story?id=6732660

To Trade or Not to Trade?

Like many other Seattle fans, I panicked when I heard the news: Our new ace Cliff Lee needed rest after suffering an abdominal injury and would miss the start of the season. He was placed on the 15-day DL but at the time, no one knew how long he would really be out. His highly anticipated debut came at last on April 30. His stats for the night? 7 innings of no hit, shut out ball with 8 strikeouts. No walks. A great outing by all accounts but one the Mariners eventually lost, 2 - 0 to Texas in a 12 inning game. The most stunning stat of the night, however, is not from Lee's line. Rather, it's from the time of the game. A mere 3 hours and 12 minutes for 12 innings. I guess that's what happens when there's no offense. I love fast pitchers and am amazed by Lee's speed and efficiency.

The man is a true workhorse. He currently leads the American League with 5 complete games (and should have had his 6th today, which would have been his 4th consecutive). He averages nearly 7 strikeouts per game. I think he's a great candidate to start the All-Star game this year.

ESPN.com projects him to finish 16 - 6, 2.34 ERA with 10 complete games.

Lee also seems to have had a positive impact on Felix Hernandez. In his last several starts, King Felix has returned to his dominating form of the past. The one-two punch of Lee - Hernandez is living up to the preseason hype of the best in baseball. Mariners fans have such little to cheer for lately. Please, Jack Z., don't take this from us.

On the other hand ... Trading Cliff Lee at the deadline could be tremendously helpful. The team is sorely lacking in offense (currently 29 out of 30 in three categories and 27th in batting average) and are in dire need of a big bat. The re-acquisition of Russell Branyan is a temporary fix that ultimately won't do much. No names have been leaked so I'm not sure who the target is. Or we could always go with prospects. Short of some unprecedented miracle, the Mariners are far out of playoff contention for 2010. Cliff will demand a huge contract next season as a free agent. His time as a Mariner is almost up.

I've enjoyed Lee's time here and will be interested to see what Jack does. If all else fails, Zduriencik could always trade Milton Bradley for Carlos Silva. Oh wait...