Sounders Win!

The Seattle Sounders brought home another championship for Seattle. The first championship for them in the MLS; it was something Seattle fans and players had been waiting for some time. We hope this will be the beginning of some more championships coming up. Not only for the Sounders, the Huskies will be going after a NCAA championship in football, the Seattle Seahawks after another Super Bowl win and we hope that Jerry Dipoto is building a team to win the World Series for the Seattle Mariners.

2016 has been a magical year with the Chicago Cubs winning their first world series in one hundred years and now the Sounders. The win by the Sounders that were kicks after a scoring tie at the end of regulation; we have to give credit to goalie Stefan Frei who held of Toronto and not having hits toward the goal in the first half. Also a great way for Zach Scott to end his career and go out in style; another one is Brad Evans who has been on the Sounders for a lot of years. This was a good year after the Sounders fired their coach Sigi Schmid with a bad start to the season. I am sure no one expected the Sounders would make the playoffs along the championship on that day that Schmid was released. Also the Sounders had to go at without their top player in Clint Dempsey as well. So this Sunday we hail the Sounders, players, coaches, and fans for well job done. Now we see if they can repeat this next year as well. Go Sounders!

Sounders and Seahawks

I have to say that I am not a big Sounders fan however on Saturday they play the biggest game of the franchise. They are in the MLS Championship game playing against Toronto on the road.

I think it is a great thing for all the Sounder fans. They always lead the league in attendance so about time they get awarded.

The beginning of the season things did not go well for the Sounders so they fired their coach and replaced him with his assistant who turned the whole team around. Whether they win or not this is a big deal for the team and the fans. I am sure when they come home there will be a lot of fans welcoming them home.

Another team is on the road this weekend in an important game is the Seattle Seahawks. They will be playing in snow in Green Bay. The Seahawks have only won one game in Green Bay. This is a big game for the Packers to keep their hopes alive for the playoffs while the Seahawks want to continue a spot high in where they fit for home field advantage.

The weather this week in Seattle helps the Seahawks out to be prepared for the game. Last week Thomas Rawls has a good game and it is important that he continues what he is doing. The Seahawks signed fullback Marcel Reese former Oakland Raider and University Washington Huskie. He will do some blocking for Rawls at the same time could be the third down back taking catches out of the backfield along with running on short downs. I have always liked Reese and I am glad that he is now on the Seahawks. How much he has left to play with we will find out. He takes the spot of Will Tukuafu who is out because of concussion protocol.

The Seahawks signed former safety and special team’s player Jeron Johnson. He was a member of the legion of boom from 2011 thru 20014. He takes the place of Earl Thomas who will be out for the season. He adds depth to the position and is a long time of Richard Sherman. How both guys do we will see however they are both veteran presence.

The game being played in snow it will be important that the Seahawks are able to run the ball. They should have no problem stopping the Packer’s running game since they don’t have much going on right now. I am sure both teams will try passing the ball as well. Russell Wilson is looking forward to the challenge to do so. Important to rush the passer for the defense line; keep Aaron Rodgers from passing the ball the way he likes to. Again we say Go Hawks! Yes Sounders too.

Trumbo or Rumor?

On Tuesday from the Winter Meetings we heard that the Mariners are interested in bringing back Mark Trumbo although nothing has come out via general manager Jerry Dipoto. In fact he had said that they were pretty well set in the outfield and first base. So what will the Mariners do if they sign Trumbo?

Here is some speculation on my part. Since some people figure that the Mariners may trade Trumbo after signing him this is something I am throwing out there as a rumor myself. There is a conspiracy where the Boston Red Sox want to have Trumbo but they don’t want to overpay because of the Baltimore Orioles who were reported to signing him back on Monday. Since the Red Sox are in the same division as the Orioles the Mariners sign him and then trade Trumbo to the Red Sox for Chris Sale or one of the other starting pitchers or the Mariners could trade him to Tampa Bay for Chris Archer. Since we are at it may as well throw in the Yankees.

I would not be surprised on Wednesday signing Trumbo will be old news. If the Mariners for some reason did sign him and keep him than what they do at first base; I guess they could trade Daniel Vogelbach or send him to triple A for a season. Another could be interested in Vogelbach for the Mariners to get another starting pitcher. Going real wild in my thinking the Mariners could trade Vogelbach back to the Chicago Cubs for no other than Mike Montgomery or to the White Sox for a starting pitcher. Of course that could be another thing in regards to Trumbo ship him to the White Sox. Until Dipoto says anything it is all speculation. I would rather take the money that cost for Trumbo go out and get a starting pitcher. Let’s see how crazy Wednesday and the rest of the winter meetings can be. I am sure the Mariners will have someone new on the roster before Dipoto comes back to Seattle.

 

Seahawks Rebound Against Carolina

We should have known the Seahawks would win Sunday night after having a terrible game against Tampa Bay. The final score was 40-7. It could have been worse if the Seahawks had touchdowns instead of field goals in several occasions.

The Seahawks seem to do real well on Sunday Night Football. Actually any national game they do well. They always want to prove themselves in front of the nation. Also they do well after losing a game too. They are something like 17-4 after a loss.

It was really good to see Thomas Rawls make some good runs that got him over hundred yards for the game mostly in the first half. It was good to see Tyler Lockett have a good game as well running for a long touchdown at the beginning of the second half. We hope that is better things to come by both Rawls and Lockett.

There was bad news though the Seahawks lost Earl Thomas in the second quarter for the rest of the season. He broke one of his legs. It will be interesting to see how the defense works without him. Steve Terrell is a good replacement however he is not Thomas for sure. Terrell and Kam Chancellor will have to communicate so no long passes for touchdowns will occur too often. Usually the defense is able to bounce back after a big play happens to them.

Russell Wilson had an OK game. It was nice to see Boykin come into the game to get some live action; also nice to know that Wilson is healthy now as well.

It is something unusual I think that we so much of Carolina in the regular season when they are not in our division. I think it is because the Seahawks and Carolina have close records every year. Of course some years they play the whole division that Carolina is in. This year though they are not doing so well. They have a record of 4-8 and they will miss the playoffs. Even if they win all their remaining games they will still end at 8-8 so the Seahawks won’t play them next year in the regular season unless they play their whole division. It would be nice to see some other teams outside their own division.

Anyway next Sunday which is an afternoon game for us the Seahawks will be playing in Green Bay against the Packers. The Seahawks should be favored however they are on the road and the Packers will need the win if they want to make the playoffs themselves. The Packers haven’t had much of a running game this year so the legion of boom should be very busy. I am sure they will be looking toward Terrell’s direction however I am sure the Seahawks will be prepared because I am sure they are thinking the same thing.

What will be the key for the Seahawks will be for the running game to be in top condition since it is forecasted to have snow in Green Bay and to keep the ball out of the hands of Aaron Rodgers so that means the defensive line will need to put on a good rush Sunday. A  few blitzes by Bobby Wagner would not be a bad idea either. Anyway I expect it to be an exciting game on Sunday. Since the Huskies and Cougars won’t be playing for a few weeks the Seahawks is it for us Washington fans or better known as the 12^th man.

The rest of the NFL West lost again this week. Pretty sad division this year outside of the Seahawks; they have the division already sewn up. The key is where they want to be in their record for the playoffs. At this point they are second behind the Dallas Cowboys. Whatever the case I expect a lot of exciting action since the Seahawks always do better the second of the season. Go Hawks!

Dipoto Goes To Washington

This week the winter meetings are happening in the Washington D.C. area. Mariner’s general manager Jerry Dipoto is expected to come home with a starting pitcher at the very least. Who that will be is anyone’s guess.

So far this off-season Dipoto has made six trades and has changed seventeen players. We expected that the Mariners would go after getting a shortstop to replace Marte. I don’t think that many of us would have thought that Marte would be gone himself instead of going to the minor leagues however it did make sense when the Mariners made the trade. The trade wasn’t the first made by the Mariners however it was the biggest up to this date this off-season. The Mariners sent Marte along with starting pitcher TaiJuan Walker to the Arizona Diamondbacks for shortstop Jean Segura, outfielder Mitch Haniger and left handed reliever Zac Curtis. Segura who had a really good season last season with the Diamondbacks will be the Mariners shortstop after playing second base for the backs.  Haniger may be the right handed bat platooning with Seth Smith in right field if he makes the team. In the long run he could be the key to the trade for the Mariners. At the very least Segura is another solid player in the Mariners infield. He helps them up the middle along with Mike Zunino at catcher and Leonys Martin in center field. Haniger being the right handed bat is not a sure thing he could start the season at triple A but he is expected to be a really good player and he is another athletic outfielder the Mariners have been looking for.

The Mariners may have Ben Gamel and Heredia who they acquired this season to platoon in left field unless another outfielder is acquired before spring training happens. It looks though the Mariners have improved in the outfield and at shortstop.

First base is another story whether they have improved over Adam Lind and Dae-Ho Lee who are both free agents and won’t be returning next season.  The Mariners traded for Daniel Vogelbach in July from the Chicago Cubs for left handed pitcher Mike Montgomery and the off-season in one of their first trades getting Danny Valencia from the Oakland Athletics. Though he will be platooning at first base with the right handed bat Valencia may play some outfield and third base when needed.  How much he plays first base and the outfield will depend on the young players.

The Mariners just signed left handed relief specialist Marc Rzepczynski and right handed reliever Casey Fien as free agents. Marc as I will call him be pitching primarily against left handed hitters late in the games while Fien could start the season in triple A if he doesn’t make the team in the bullpen.

The Mariners at the end of November traded former first round pick Alex Jackson to the Atlanta Braves for two starting pitchers Robert Whalen who may start the season in Seattle or triple A and Max Povse who may start in double A. Actually Povse could be the key to that trade. He was one of the top pitchers in the Atlanta Braves system.

The Mariners have made other trades as well that we will see happens going into spring training. Who the Mariners get this week in the winter meetings will be interesting. One of the players that the Mariners got during the off-season or last year could be moved along. It will be interesting to see what Dipoto has cooking this week. Go M’s.  

Huskies Waiting To Hear

 After their big win on Friday night over Colorado 41-10 in the Pac-12 conference championship game the Huskies are waiting to see where they go next. The Huskies are expected to be in the NCAA playoffs for the national championship for the very first time.

The Huskies are supposed to be named the fourth team out of four teams to play. Alabama is expected to be number one followed by Ohio State, Clemson and Washington. If it actually comes out this way the Huskies will play Alabama in the first round.

The game won’t play until January so the Huskies have plenty of time to prepare for however they play. The thing about Coach Chris Peterson is that he is like another Husky coach by the name of Don James. Being given plenty of time to prepare for a team especially being an underdog which the Huskies will be Peterson gives them a great chance to go in and upset Alabama.

The thing about the Huskies is that they play well both on offense and defense. The other teams are good on one side or the other but not necessarily both. I expect that Jake Browning who did not throw that well against Colorado will be ready to go in the first game. Chris Peterson is a former quarterback himself so he will have Browning all ready to go. He will let his assistant coaches to prepare the rest of the players. The Huskies ran the ball very well against Colorado with their two top running backs Myles Gaskin and Lavon Coleman both running for more than one hundred yards. Also their top receive John Ross will be set to score a few touchdowns himself. The question cans Alabama or any other team defensive backs keep up with Ross.

On the defensive side the Huskies have really good defensive backs in Bubba Baker, Kevin King and freshman Taylor Rapp who intercepted two passes against Colorado. He was named the most valuable player of the game. Can you imagine the Huskies will have Rapp for at least two more years. He likely will go into the NFL after his junior year if he continues playing the way he has as a true freshman.

Whatever the Huskies do in this playoff coming up the future is bright for them. We may be seeing them play for the championship for many years ahead. The Huskies are making sure that Coach Peterson will stay around for some time.

I hope that the Washington State Cougars have a great bowl game as well wherever they end up. It would be nice to see them continue good as well that way the Apple Cup can be the primary game of the season going into the Pac-12 championship.

For the next month if we are Husky or Cougar fans along with Gonzaga we have to watch some basketball. I am not sure where the Huskies and Cougars will end up however Gonzaga is expected to have another real good team. Whatever the case we will have a good holiday season when it comes to college sports here in Washington State.

Until next time enjoy the Seahawks playing Carolina tonight on Sunday night football. We hope for another good victory. So we can say Go Seahawks along with the Huskies and Cougars. Great football from some good football teams.

Huskies Ranked #4

The University of Washington Huskies is going into the Pac-12 Championship game ranked #4. If they beat Colorado on Friday they will play in the NCAA playoff series it looks like. Most likely they will play #1 Alabama in the first round. This will be the first time that the Huskies will be in the Pac-12 Championship game well as the NCAA playoff if they win on Friday.

The Huskies have a young team with few seniors on the roster. They could lose at least a couple juniors to the NFL in the next college draft. Receiver John Ross and safety Budda Baker are two the guys that could go. They were among nine Huskies who were named to the Pac-12 1^st team. Quarterback Jake Browning was named the offensive player of the year in the Pac-12. He is a sophomore so he will be back for at least another year. If he decides to forgo his senior year it will depend whether he is considered a first round pick or not after next season. He likely will come out if he is a first round pick.

Ross and Baker likely will be gone because they are both considered first rounders’ in the upcoming draft. Another defensive back Kevin King who is a senior is expected to be a high draft pick as well.

Though the Huskies may lose several players going into next season they still should be the team to beat in the Pac-12 north division.  The Huskies had 41 freshmen and redshirt freshmen to go along with 28 sophomores so the team is still in pretty good position to repeat and make another run at the national championship. This will not include any new freshmen and redshirt freshmen on next year’s team. We should figure that Jake Browning will be even a better quarterback next season and the offense opened even further. So Huskie football will be on the rise for the next several years and Head Coach Chris Peterson should be around for many years to come as well.