Name Tim Laker Hitting Coach and More on the them

The Seattle Mariners finally named their new hitting coach in place of Edgar Martinez who is taking another position in the organization. 

We had heard for at least a week that Tim Laker would be the next hitting coach of the Mariners in place of Edgar. Now it is officially he has taken the spot. I can't say whether Edgar was or not however Laker is on board when it comes to analytics like general manager Dipoto and manager Scott Servais. He feels the Mariners are one of the teams ahead of the game when it comes to analytics. He is glad that the hitters in the minor leagues are being taught that way as well. Whether it means the Mariners will have more of them come up to the major leagues or not time will tell for sure. In my mind it still comes down to talent though analytics will play a part. They are working with the pitchers on that area as well.

There is word out that the Mariners may send  Robinson Cano back to the Yankees. It could just be hear say as well though the reporters are pretty good doing their job when it comes to Mariner trades. 

What general manager Dipoto said after the trade of Paxton we should be expecting at least another trade or two. I am sure something is in the works. I wouldn't be surprised a trade will go forward this week now that Thanksgiving weekend is over. There will be an owner's meeting coming up in December so I am sure something will happen then if not before. So let's see what happens.

Seahawks Beat Panthers With Field Goal

The Seattle Seahawks won on the road important game to keep themselves still alive for the playoffs against a team competing for a playoff spot as well in the Carolina Panthers. 

Russell Wilson and the Seahawks once again came back to win this game. It was a tight game all the way with the Panthers leading 3-0 at the end of the first quarter. Each team scored a touchdown and a field goal in the second quarter with the Panthers leading 13-10. The 3rd quarter both teams scored a touchdown to make it 20-17. 

In the 4th quarter the Seahawks tied the game with a field goal then Panthers scored a touchdown. The Seahawks had to respond with a touchdown themselves near the end of the game. The Panthers got into field goal range however they missed a 52 yard field goal giving the Seahawks a chance to win with 1 minute and 40 seconds  to go. The final series leading to the win the big play was a deep pass by Russell Wilson to Tyler Lockett for 43 yards to the Panthers 10 yard line. The Seahawks took the next two snaps where Wilson went to the knee before spiking the ball since they had no timeouts left. Sebastian Janikowski kicked the field goal registered at  31 yards to win the game.

This game for the Seahawks was played primarily behind the arm of Russell Wilson. He threw the ball 31 times completing 22 for 339 yards and two touchdowns. Tyler Lockett had a big game besides the ball that setup the win he had five receptions in total for 107 yards and the touchdown in the 3rd quarter. Also David Moore had a big game catching 4 times for 103 yards including the touchdown tying the game at 27-27. The field goal at the end made the final score 30-27.

The Seahawks ran the ball 28 times in the game but ran for 75 yards the lowest total since they played in the two losses against Denver and Chicago at the beginning of the season.  Chris Carson led the Seahawks running the ball 16 times for 55 yards and the first touchdown of the game on the ground. 

Cam Newton had a good game through the air as well throwing the ball 30 times with 25 completions two touchdowns and an interception. Also he was second on the Panthers in rushing going 63 yards on eight carries.  Christian McCaffrey the Seahawks had a hard time stopping for the Panthers. He carried the ball 17 times for 125 yards and a touchdown. Also he caught the ball 11 times for 112 yards and another touchdown.

The Seahawks now have a record of 6-5 tied with the Panthers so they would make the playoffs with breaking the tie if they both win out. The Dallas Cowboys and the Washington Redskins have the same record as well. One of the two likely will win the NFC East division. The Seahawks beating the Cowboys will have the tie breaker there to if the Redskins win the division. 

The Seahawks will play division rival San Francisco 49ers next Sunday afternoon in Seattle. The 49ers are 2-9 without a win on the road so the Seahawks will be favored to win that game and it will be important for them to do so. Go Hawks!

Huskies Win Snow Bowl

Although it was supposed to be the Apple Cup between the Washington Huskies and the Washington State Cougars it turned out to be a game played in a snow storm all the way through at Martin Stadium on the Cougars campus.

The Huskies dominated the first half scoring two touchdowns by running back Myles Gaskin however the Cougars were able to muster a touchdown before the half ended to make the score 14-7. The Cougars could have tied the score though when the Huskies fumbled the ball under a minute to go in the half but they couldn't do so. Half-time score Huskies 14 Cougars 7

The second half in their first possession the Huskies scored another touchdown on a trick play when Jake Browning tossed a pass behind the line of scrimmage to Aaron Fuller who then threw it to tight end Hunter Bryant for a touchdown. The Huskies missed the extra point however the Cougars run it back for two points.

Close to the end of the third quarter James Williams ran in for a touchdown to make it Huskies 20 Cougars 15. 

Early on in the fourth quarter Myles Gaskin got his third touchdown of the game by running for 80 points. The Cougars were unable to come back and had to punt to the Huskies. Gaskins pretty ran the ball the rest of the game. He had a total of 170 yards.

Now the Huskies will go to the Pac-12 tournament next Friday night against the  Utah Utes at Levi Stadium. The Cougars hopes for a chance at the national championship is over however they can play in a major bowl still.

A great way for seniors especially Jake Browning and Myles Gaskins to win all the Apple Cup's they played in.  See you Huskies next Friday night and we hope you take care of the Utes mightily. I expect there will be no snow. 

The Apple Cup

The Washington Huskies go to Pullman Washington to take on the Washington State Cougars in the Apple Cup tonight(Friday). The Cougars are ranked #7 in the country so this means a lot to them.  

The Huskies are not only want to knock them off it is the last Apple Cup for seniors including quarterback Jake Browning and running back Myles Gaskin. Along with Coach Chris Peterson they help turn around a football program that had gone the wrong direction. They put the Huskies back in the national scene as well. Of course the Cougars are in the national scene as well. 

The winner of this game will go to the Pac-12 Championship to face Utah the southern division winner. For the Huskies winning both games  means they will probably play in the Rose Bowl while the Cougars could end up in the National Championship series depending how the other teams above them do.  

So a lot is on the line for both the Huskies and the Cougars. I feel the Huskies the favorite though the Cougars are favored to win. Browning and Gaskin want to go out on top along with the fact they have an outstanding core of defensive backs. On the other hand this could be the greatest game in this series and all-time for the Cougars to win this game. Whatever the outcome is it will be fantastic for sure. Let the best team win. Yeah!

Paxton Goes to New York

Ever since Mike Zunino was traded we heard stories that James Paxton likely would be the next one of the Seattle Mariners to be traded and it happened on Monday when they traded him to the Yankees.

There were reports the Mariners might be traded Paxton to the Dodgers or the Astros however it came down to the Yankees having the best offer. According to general manager Jerry Dipoto he talked to 2/3 of the teams in the major leagues about Paxton. He wanted to get the highest maximum trade for Paxton so it looks this was the best deal Dipoto could get. I am sure there were other teams he spoke to that may have had players better than the one they received back from the Yankees but they were not willing to do so. 

Paxton was eligible for arbitration and the words around the league he was probably going to cost the Mariners $9 million to retain him for one season. It wasn't the only reason to trade him but a good one anyway. Dipoto feels the Mariners ended up in the upper end of the major leagues but to compete for the playoffs and make the World Series he had to make changes. This is true just within their own division. The Mariners finished third in 2018 in the American League West behind the Houston Astros who won 103 and the Oakland A's 97. Although the Mariners had a good season overall with 89 wins they were three games below five hundred after the all-star game with a record of 31-34. Before the all-star break they had a record of 58-39. During the first half period they scored two less runs than they gave up. They played in a lot of one run games with a record of 36-21 in those games. The Mariners could have lost some of those they won if it weren't for closer Edwin Diaz. 

Speaking of Diaz there are those who feel the Mariners should trade Diaz as well since they don't think the Mariners no longer need a closer. I don't agree with those thoughts at all. Although the Mariners may not look like a better team going into next season I don't give up hope they will win more games than they lose. It doesn't mean I think they will 89 games this coming season but they could win 84 or 85 games. Although Paxton was considered the ace of the Mariners he only won 11 games last season for them and his highest total was 12 in 2017. Marco Gonzales had more wins than Paxton with 13. Of course Paxton has the capability to win more games like 16 to 18 games but has never been able to pitch in 32 games which he would have been able to do so if he didn't get hurt for a short period of time over his years with the Mariners. Of course I would like to keep Paxton around but it doesn't mean we could get more out of other pitchers.

The Mariners picked up two pitchers and an outfielder for Paxton without giving up another player as well. In the Zunino trade they sent Guillermo Heredia packing as well. This seems better to me far as value goes thought the Mariners did get two outfielders for Zunino and Heredia. The Mariners received Mallex Smith now the Mariners starting center fielder along with minor league outfielder Jake Fraley  who was a 2nd round draft pick by the Tampa Bay Rays 

Back to the Yankee trade the Mariners picked up the Yankees number one prospect in left handed pitcher Justus Sheffield along with right handed pitcher Erik Swanson considered the Yankees #22 prospect however could be ready sometime during the 2019. I am sure they will be given every chance to make the rotation during spring training.  I could see a rotation of Marco Gonzales. Mike Leake, Wade Leblanc , Felix Hernandez? and  Sheffield. 

Sheffield pitched in 20 games for the Yankees AAA team after starting the season with five games at double A. At triple A he had a record of 6-4 with an era of 2.56 throwing 88 innings. He had 36 walks which is a bit higher than we would like however did strike out 84 batters. At age 22 I am sure this would not be very unexpected and he does have a good upside.

Eric Swanson started the season at double A as well in the Yankee organization last season where he pitched in eight games before being promoted to triple A where he pitched in 14 games. He had an era of 3.86 with 14 walks and 78 strike outs in 72. So he had a better control than Sheffield though a higher era however he is three years older as well at 25. I am sure he won't be the pitcher Sheffield will be however he could still be valuable to the Mariners. 

The third player the Mariners received in the trade is Dom Thompson-Williams a 23 year old outfielder the Yankees drafted in the fifth-round in 2016. He spent most of the season in high single A Tampa for the Yankees where he batted .290 with 17 home runs and 65 runs batted in. I am sure we won't see him in Seattle for at least three years if at all at least they have another outfielder with potential. He is listed right now as the Mariners #14 prospect. 

Next will be see who will go next and who will come next as well. I wonder what catcher they are eyeing? 

Look at Mariners Hot Stove

When it comes to the Mariners since they traded Mike Zunino and Guillermo Heredia to the Tampa Bay Rays for center fielder Mallex Smith the biggest story was off the field when Dr. Lorena Martin who was released out of her contract as the Director of Performance by Jerry Dipoto in October came out on social media accusing Jerry Dipoto, manager Scott Servais and Director Player Development Andy McKay of racism and sexism. Major league baseball is now looking into the allocations. If there is any truth to the allegations than turnover of Mariner management would happen. Bench coach Manny Acta says he doesn't believe the allegations at all.

The Mariners hired their hitting coach this week Tim Laker  previously assistant hitting coach with the Arizona Diamondbacks. He takes over for Edgar Martinez who will go into a new role so he can spend more time with his family.

The Mariners added outfielder Braden Bishop out of University of Washington playing for AA Arkansas when he was hurt and was out for the season because of his forearm. The Mariners didn't want to lose him in the rule 5 draft so he was added to the 40-man roster which now stands at 33. This means to that he will be invited to major league camp however will start the season either at Arkansas again or with triple A Tacoma long as he is healthy.

The Mariners also signed three minor league players who are being assigned to Tacoma.  We will have to see what other moves and news the Mariners will come this week. Thanksgiving coming up this Thursday the moves will likely take place by Wednesday. We will have to see whether Jerry Dipoto will come up with another major trade or not. Stay tuned!

Seahawks defeat Packers after poor start

Seattle Seahawks had to come from behind to win Thursday nights game at home against the Green Bay Packers 27-24. The game started out poorly with Chris Carson fumbling the ball on the first play of the game then the Packers scored really quickly after that.

The Packers scored two touchdowns in the first quarter while the Seahawks kicked a field goal trying to get their offense going. At that point the Seahawks defense wasn't doing that much better either.

In the second quarter Doug Baldwin caught his first touchdown of the season though Russell Wilson over threw him at least once before hand. Chris Carson redeemed himself with a touchdown as well. So the halftime score was Green Bay 21 Seahawks 17.

The third quarter wasn't exciting at all since neither team scored a point. I have to say not a lot of fans were happy with Russell Wilson at that point. Of course he changed things in the 4th quarter.  The Seahawks did kick a field goal to make it a close game 21-20 before the Packers kicked one themselves to put the lead up to 24-20. Finally Russell Wilson directed a series where the  Seahawks scored a touchdown with just over five minutes remaining connecting to tight end Ed Dickson for the final score of 27-24. 

You compare Russell Wilson with the Seattle Mariners. He looks like he is starting out pitching like Felix Hernandez did this last season then in the fourth quarter he pitches like closer Edwin Diaz. Wouldn't it be nice if he could be going the whole game long however long as the Seahawks win that is what counts. The Seahawks now are 5-5 and they take on the Panthers in Carolina on November 25. They are able to rest over the weekend before getting back to practice next week. The Seahawks really need to win at least 4 out of the remaining 6 games to have any chance to get to the playoffs. It wouldn't be easy though they do play the 49ers twice along with Arizona Cardinals however they do go against the Minnesota Vikings and Kansas City Chief well as the Panthers in games outside the division. We must think positive though. Go Hawks.