The Mariners seem pretty good

[Docwaukee]

Interesting.  

Thoughts?  

[Stradling]

Is it sustainable?

[bloodbrother]

I'd imagine most teams would be winning when they average over 8 runs per game. Angels scored over 100 runs when they started 13-3 last year too

[Chuck]

I've watched about 4-5 of their games, though two of them were when the Halos were in town. They're really impressive. 

A good blend of power, good hitters and a ton of speed. 

Vogelbach , Beckham and Santana are beasts. All three of which had crappy seasons last year. EE hit two bombs tonight and he was pretty quiet during their strong start up until the past couple days. 

They're doing this without Seager too. 

Their weak spot is their bullpen and the back half of their rotation. 

[AngelsLakersFan]

Remember 2018?

[bloodbrother]

Their offense certainly looks potent, though they are clearly playing far above their heads there. Their rotation, pen, and defense are all huge issues though

[Claude]

That F’n Jedi Genius. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They're a fraud! 

[UndertheHalo]

I can’t believe that all the guys that DiPoto brought in, who previously sucked.  Will continue to not suck.  They’re red hot now though that’s for sure. 

[Ender]

Maybe getting rid of PEDMaster Cano, Cruz and clubhouse cancer Segura wasn't a bad idea after all ..... 

Anyway ... the offense is hot as F*ck ... never seen a whole team clicking like this offensively over 12 games. They are working pitcher's counts up, they are smashing the ball around the stadium and out of it, the speedsters are stealing bases when they can. Domingo Santana went from losing his job in Milwaukee to leading the league in RBIs.

Our defense SUCKS. Our rotation is meh. Our bullpen SUCKS. But it's been fun.

 

As a Mariner fan, for so damn long, I know they will ultimately let me down ... but I will enjoy this while I can.

Not how I imagined the opening of the 2019 season when I saw our schedule was 2 against Oakland in Japan, 4 against the Red Sox, and then 2 against you guys ... I really thought we were gonna be 2-6 out of that. We're 2 blown saves from being 12-0 .... I miss you Edwin Diaz!

[Inside Pitch]

26 minutes ago, Dochalo said:

Interesting.  

Thoughts?  

Last year the Mets started the season 11-1, then reality set in.   They closed at 78-84.

 

Edited April 9, 2019 by Inside Pitch

[ScottT]

It's early. Very early. 

[Taylor]

How's their run differential?

[Ender]

12 minutes ago, Taylor said:

How's their run differential?

+37.

[Docwaukee]

19 minutes ago, Ender said:

Maybe getting rid of PEDMaster Cano, Cruz and clubhouse cancer Segura wasn't a bad idea after all ..... 

Anyway ... the offense is hot as F*ck ... never seen a whole team clicking like this offensively over 12 games. They are working pitcher's counts up, they are smashing the ball around the stadium and out of it, the speedsters are stealing bases when they can. Domingo Santana went from losing his job in Milwaukee to leading the league in RBIs.

Our defense SUCKS. Our rotation is meh. Our bullpen SUCKS. But it's been fun.

 

As a Mariner fan, for so damn long, I know they will ultimately let me down ... but I will enjoy this while I can.

Not how I imagined the opening of the 2019 season when I saw our schedule was 2 against Oakland in Japan, 4 against the Red Sox, and then 2 against you guys ... I really thought we were gonna be 2-6 out of that. We're 2 blown saves from being 14-0 .... I miss you Edwin Diaz!

Dipoto was mlb radio talking about how the Japan trip brought the team and their families together after spending 20+hrs on a plane.  

They're obviously not going to sustain this level of offense, but it still seems like it's pretty good.  

[Ender]

7 minutes ago, Dochalo said:

Dipoto was mlb radio talking about how the Japan trip brought the team and their families together after spending 20+hrs on a plane.  

They're obviously not going to sustain this level of offense, but it still seems like it's pretty good.  

Yeah I'm sure it helped. The chemistry between the guys in the dugout shows and picking the young kid up who made 3 errors in a row against the red Sox showed ... Same kid also hit a 432ft bomb for hosting first MLB HR tonight and they were pumped.

It's been fun to watch but it will be equally as unfun when it ends. Baseball can be so cruel.

[moccasin]

Dipoto tried to win all these years, and failed.

Now he can't even tank properly.

[Tank]

3 hours ago, moccasin said:

Now he can't even tank properly.

This requires a skill set only few possess.

[Stradling]

I’m sure any day now Dipoto will trade chemistry. 

[failos]

It’s a Dipoto team, so it’s not sustainable. All his teams have been streaky.

[Mark68]

Remember when we started 13-3 last year?

[mulwin444]

Bruce - .186 .280 OBP .908 OPS (!)

Beckham - .400 (!) .489 OBP (!) 1.314 OPS (!)

Healy .271 .321 OBP .925 OPS (!)

Santana - .340 (!) .431 OBP 1.071 OPS (!)

Encarnacion - .324 (!) .465 OBP (!) 1.142 OPS (!)

Vogelbach - .471 (!) .625 OBP (!!) 1.471 OPS (!!!)

Whoa!  Some top-heavy numbers to be sure.  Bruce has 5 BB and 16 K's so that OPS should drop.  Beckham is lifetime .748 OPS...with time spent in Camden Yards, so OPS will drop.  Healy's average and OBP are pretty on par with only the OPS a little high.  Santana has proven to be able to provide a high-.800 OPS at times so, even it seems a little high right now, he's also only 26 so who knows?  He could be capable of higher so, while .340 and .431 OBP don't appear to be sustainable an OPS in .900's isn't out of his reach.  Encarnacion has seen his numbers trending downward the last couple of seasons but is capable as well of putting up .800-.850.  And then there is Vogelbach...um, no.  He's put up impressive numbers in AAA so, let's be generous and say he's somewhere between a AAAA player and .850 OPS.

Conversely, Haniger is underperforming and Mallex Smith is producing about as expected.  

The offense, long term, could be decent to above average if everyone is healthy and performing at what they are capable of.  Having a 1-4 of Smith-Haniger-Santana-Encarnacion is actually potentially potent top half of the line-up.

As for the pitching, Kikuchi is an unknown but Gonzales, Leake and LeBlanc are 100 ERA+ starting pitchers capable of giving a decent, if unspectacular, 160-180 IP while Felix is toast.  Justus Sheffield appears to be the only thing of excitement waiting in the wings and he'll likely be seen at some point this season.

The BP is some guys...who throw the ball...after the starters leave.

TL;DR - Lots of hitters playing over their heads, rotation is 'eh, BP is meh...not seeing a lot of sustainability apart from some guys on offense.

 

[eligrba]

I am told it is too early to make any conclusions about teams and players.

 

Way too early.

[Lou]

6 minutes ago, eligrba said:

I am told it is too early to make any conclusions about teams and players.

 

Way too early.

unless we're playing like crap 

[zenmaster]

I predict 116 wins and a first round bounce from the playoffs.

[Chuck]

What does @GOPSnowflakesHateCezero think though?