Travis
03-28-2012, 08:40 AM
It's going to be a long day. I showed up to work 11 minutes ago and I've already been awake for 3 hours (DVR'd the game and fast forwarded through commercials thus saving two hours of sleep.) This game wasn't for the faint of heart but, in the end, it's nice to hold the best record in baseball if only for one day. Here are some scattered thoughts I had upon watching the Mariners 2012 opener.
1. I'm stoked to watch Dustin Ackley play ball here for a long, long time. He continues to prove how natural of a hitter he is. With that frame and the ability to park one 400 feet to near dead center for a long ball is so impressive. Then, with the game on the line, to turn around a low 90's fastball at his eyeballs for a screaming liner to essentially win the game, I can't say enough. 2 runs batted in and an OPS of 1.400. Keep it up, kid.
2. Felix was sharp today, but that's never a suprise. Had the change and the 2 seam fastball working beatuifully in unison. He continues to get off to slow starts, but once he settles in a game, man is he tough. I also have more confidence in him to get out of jams (twice got Seth Smith with a runner on third and less than 2 outs) than any other pitcher in baseball.
3. Dave wasn't fond of Carp's play in left, but I thought he acquitted himself nicely. It seemed like the ball was really jumping out to left and I thought he handled it well. That catch up against the fence was nice, but he was pretty awful at the plate.
4. Ichiro hasn't changed at all. And not to say that's a bad thing, but this wide stance thing where he's going to drive the ball into the gaps just isn't happening. However, hopefully it means plenty more of his slap infield singles as we saw today. I didn't know his BABIP was so low last year (.284.) That number will certainly improve this season.
5. The power bats aren't tuned in yet. And it's not crazy to see that in the first game of the year but Smoak, Montero, Carp and Olivo all had some pretty good pitches to hit and were often off-balanced and fooled by the pitch selection. We won't many games with our 4-5-6-7 guys combining to go 0-17. Blame these dudes for Felix not getting a W.
6. The bullpen was sharp and I expect it to be pretty good with Wilhemsen taking the 8th and League in the 9th.
Overall I'm please because it's a win and my two favorite players were responsible for the win (Ackley and Felix.) But the middle of the order and the inability to support Felix, once again, is always troubling. Nonetheless, we're 1-0 and I hope Vargas can go out and get 'em tomorrow morning.
1. I'm stoked to watch Dustin Ackley play ball here for a long, long time. He continues to prove how natural of a hitter he is. With that frame and the ability to park one 400 feet to near dead center for a long ball is so impressive. Then, with the game on the line, to turn around a low 90's fastball at his eyeballs for a screaming liner to essentially win the game, I can't say enough. 2 runs batted in and an OPS of 1.400. Keep it up, kid.
2. Felix was sharp today, but that's never a suprise. Had the change and the 2 seam fastball working beatuifully in unison. He continues to get off to slow starts, but once he settles in a game, man is he tough. I also have more confidence in him to get out of jams (twice got Seth Smith with a runner on third and less than 2 outs) than any other pitcher in baseball.
3. Dave wasn't fond of Carp's play in left, but I thought he acquitted himself nicely. It seemed like the ball was really jumping out to left and I thought he handled it well. That catch up against the fence was nice, but he was pretty awful at the plate.
4. Ichiro hasn't changed at all. And not to say that's a bad thing, but this wide stance thing where he's going to drive the ball into the gaps just isn't happening. However, hopefully it means plenty more of his slap infield singles as we saw today. I didn't know his BABIP was so low last year (.284.) That number will certainly improve this season.
5. The power bats aren't tuned in yet. And it's not crazy to see that in the first game of the year but Smoak, Montero, Carp and Olivo all had some pretty good pitches to hit and were often off-balanced and fooled by the pitch selection. We won't many games with our 4-5-6-7 guys combining to go 0-17. Blame these dudes for Felix not getting a W.
6. The bullpen was sharp and I expect it to be pretty good with Wilhemsen taking the 8th and League in the 9th.
Overall I'm please because it's a win and my two favorite players were responsible for the win (Ackley and Felix.) But the middle of the order and the inability to support Felix, once again, is always troubling. Nonetheless, we're 1-0 and I hope Vargas can go out and get 'em tomorrow morning.