May 2016
Posted by jschario on 05/31/16
Huge sporting weekend over Memorial Day weekend, Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals, European Champions League final, plus the slew of baseball games that were played around the country.
It was a big weekend for Husky Athletics as well with many wins on the field, and changes off it.
First, the women's golf team came back from Eugene, Ore. with the biggest of wins (something the Husky football team hasn't been able to do, but that's another story) brining home the NCAA Women's Golf Championship to Montlake. They gave women's golf head coach Mary Lou Mulflur the most fitting of endings to... Read More
Ronaldo clinches it on penalties
Posted by jschario on 05/29/16
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Heading into the Champions League final Saturday, all that was certain was that the trophy would be going to Madrid, it was only a matter of if it would see Plaza Cibeles or Plaza Neptuno the next day. And throughout the game no one could really say which team looked destined to pull it out, one could lean toward Atlético Madrid, but Griezmann missed from the penalty spot which would have put them equal with Real.
Luckily Yannick Carrasco bailed his teammate out, authoring a brilliant goal that seemed to give los colchoneros the momentum. However they could not convert their advantages in... Read More
Battle in the midfield
Posted by jschario on 05/28/16
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What a way to start off Memorial Day weekend, another all Madrid Champions League showdown in Milan. Two rival clubs playing at the full strength of their powers in the biggest club championship in soccer.
Yet although they come from the same city, they featurea complete contrast in organizational philosophy and playing style. For Real Madrid, their midfield is set and the opponent knows what to expect from them. Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale on the wings, spearheading the attack. Toni Kroos and Luka Modric bring the ball forward to those all world wingers, and the young Brazilian... Read More
Eomer builds a pyramid fire in Safeco
Posted by jemanji on 05/26/16
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2 Comments
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GAMEFLOW
Wed 6:48pm: ChicagoMariner A great piece of Cuban slang for Tuesday's walk off: ahi nama. Ahi-nama is Cuban slang meaning "here it is/ this is it" - with the suggestion of having reached the best or ultimate, therefore you do not need to look anywhere else. Probably originally from spanish "aqui nada mas".
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After the Tuesday gutpunch there was nothing more to be seen of the Orcs' will to win, either. Watching the game, Dr. D got a constant image of the A's playing in "throwback uniforms," playing a contest between two teams 100 years separated in evolution. I'd like a good... Read More
But does it make up for missing out on the Champions League
Posted by jschario on 05/25/16
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Barcelona may have sputtered in April, but they knew how to finish strong to bring home two trophies to the Camp Nou. It took more than the normal 90 minutes, but the azulgranas edged past Sevilla and some incredible goal keeping to bring home the Copa del Rey Sunday night at the Vicente Calderon stadium in Madrid, where they ironically lost out on their chance to compete for an unprecedented back-to-back treble season.
Sergio Rico did all he could in front of goal for Sevilla, and despite conceding two goals to lose 2-0, one could argue he was the Man of the Match. Rico fended off shots from... Read More
Keith and DaddyO force Dr. D's hand on the Konspiracy Korners
Posted by jemanji on 05/25/16
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38 Comments
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DaddyO quipped,
I asked Hillary whether Z was in over his head or just a victim of bad luck. Her response was, "At this point, what DIFFERENCE does it make?!" - See more at: http://seattlesportsinsider.com/comment/115800#comment-115800
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Inspiring Mo' Dawg to pen an Adams-Jefferson class reply:
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I asked the Donald
I asked The Donald if Z was in over his head: The Donald said he would build a wall to keep the Orcs out, sending those already here back to Isengard. Then he said he would let the good ones back in. Then he said that he didn't really mean that. Then he said he would... Read More
Dr. D = Idiot
Posted by jemanji on 05/25/16
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3 Comments
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Matty linked us to this from Lookout Landing, re King Leonydas' walk-off:
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Absolute pandemonium ensued. I've never seen anything like it before at Safeco. I've seen walk-offs of all sorts there, but I'm telling you, the sixteen-thousand still there, minus whoever made the trip from Oakland, nobody wanted to leave. We all just sort of stood there, hugging, wishing peace to one another. I think I stayed an extra half-hour. Sort of speechless, full of perfume and cologne from others I didn't know. Full of winning. Of belief and of knowing. There was no ritual, there was cacophony. Unbridled... Read More
Dr. D takes baseball just a little too seriously
Posted by jemanji on 05/25/16
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5 Comments
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Sigmund Freud said, "The energy released in laughing at a joke is the energy normally used to repress hostile and sexual feelings." The latter being his obvious goal. In all the archive of Sigmund Freud photos, there are none in which he has any expression other than the one above.
The M's TV broadcast crew doesn't share Herr Freud's philosophy. The laugh track on Martin's homer is the best part.
Well, the best part for Leonydas is actually that his OPS+ is 820. That's higher than Kyle Seager's or Seth Smith's. He's on pace for 6.1 WAR and nobody's laughing now, least of all Dr. D or... Read More
resistance is futile, Dept.
Posted by jemanji on 05/25/16
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7 Comments
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SYMMETRY
Let's see, what happens when you reduce the fractions on 27-and-18? And what is 60% of 162?
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NEW DENIZENS
Wednesday and Friday, when Dr. D will be indisposed, SSI will probably be seeing new community members in the Shout Box during the game broadcasts. If all y'all would welcome them to the best sports site on the internet, I'd be much obliged. We're in kind of an evangelism phase from an admin point of view. From our own members' point of view, new friends B kewl.
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GAMEFLOW
Cindy and I got tickets in the Club section. Read: luxury boxes for working stiffs like us. At one... Read More
F-500 Korner
Posted by jemanji on 05/24/16
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9 Comments
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There are Seattle Sports fans, not including Pete Carroll we don't suppose, who believe that a "culture of winning" is unattainable or overrated or both. That's fine. If you want to keep pushing this point of view in the comments, knock yerself out. You might very well be right, and the arguments toward that position are always interesting. Just be advised that your opinion and Dr. D's are --- > "Diametrically Opposed."
:- )
But cruisin' and playin' the Google-O with no particular place to go, Dr. D stumbled back across this 2013 Times article which, two-three years later, I was able... Read More
Posted by jschario on 05/23/16
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For the first time since 2011, the Seattle Seahawks start their organized team activities (OTA's) without Marshawn Lynch. Of course Beast Mode has all but filed his retirement paperwork, but that is not the only storyline heading into these OTA's.
Usually at this time of the offseason we are used to welcoming and needing to learn new names and faces. However this year the Seahawks have some familiarity with at least a couple of the "new" faces in town for OTA's. Coming to compete for a pass rushing spot is former former Seahawk defensive end Chris Clemons. With Bruce Irvin now making Oakland... Read More
M's 4-5, Reds 0-4. Sweeeeeep
Posted by jemanji on 05/23/16
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4 Comments
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You ever put your T-shirt on inside out and go a couple of hours until somebody tells you? Dr. D feels vaguely odd if a Mariners ballgame goes by unremarked. He has no idea how in the world he got to this place in his mindset. But if an 1882 A.D. franchise falls in the woods and nobody blogs it, did it really occur?
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M's 4-0: FRANKLIN GUTIERREZ READS SSI
Many of you kiddies are too young to remember the "Sports Illustrated Cover Jinx." Back in the day, SI would put Tony Mandarich on the cover of its magazine with a loud headline "BEST NFL PROSPECT EVER" and Mandarich would shortly be... Read More
and by "King Leonydas" we mean the virtual player of Dr. D's perceptions
Posted by jemanji on 05/23/16
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4 Comments
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CENOZOIC ERA: A MASTODON APPEARS
Nov. 16, 2015, Jerry DiPoto trades for Leonys Martin. A superb centerfielder, sez JeDi. He won't hit all that much, but he can do better than he did in 2015, because he was injured in 2015.
Wishful thinking, says Dr. D. Okay, you're married to fast outfielders in Safeco, fine. You're "entitled" to a player that implements your philosophy. We fans get that, but THIS outfielder is just incapable of self-defense at the plate. Nice going on Powell, though; Martin's placeholding will last about 1-2 months.
The Mainframe's algorithm grokked:
a Carlos... Read More
Leonydas gets the final word with Dr. D
Posted by jemanji on 05/23/16
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4 Comments
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HEARD ON THE SOUNDER TRAIN, ON THE WAY TO THE BALLPARK
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Mon 10:26am: OBF Doc... here you go, smooth and effortless... yet a "marginal" ball that a lot of CF's don't get to, certainly no Mariner since Guti was a gold glover... I like how his sprints at 20 mph for the first half of the path and then down shifts into a nice job as he catches it :)http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/73955164/v723492383/seacin-martin-reaches-20-mph-on-outstanding-grab/?game_pk=447511
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Gracias amigo. You guys can link me up to StatCast any time! Hate missing Mariner plays on that thing. This was an especially good... Read More
Scotty's Wallbangers, Dept.
Posted by jemanji on 05/23/16
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3 Comments
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Leonys Martin's current projected stats would nestle comfortably onto some line or other of Stormin' Gorman Thomas' baseball card:
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Center Fielder
K
HR
AVG
OBP
SLG
Remark
Leonydas 2016
162
30
.252
.331
.462
Not pictured to your left: an SSI Best Bet
Thomas 1980
170
38
.239
.303
.471
Thomas 1985 (Seattle)
126
32
.215
.330
.450
Thomas career
151
30
.225
.324
.448
114 OPS+ (Leonydas currently 124)
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For some reason my childhood memory is of Thomas hitting .219 with 34 homers; his career line is like that but he has no real season like that (except the one with the Mariners). Thomas was... Read More
Posted by jschario on 05/22/16
In Seattle, the weather is hardly ideal for golfing day in and day out, but don't tell that to the Husky women's golf team. Heading into the third round of the NCAA Women's Golf Championship, the UW sits in second place as a team, led by senior Ling Yuo and freshman Julianne Alverez, who are tied for 19th on the leaderboard.
Senior Charlotte Thomas has also been pacing Washington, climbing 28 spots in the second round, entering the tournament's third round in 38th. In total, coach Mary Lou Mulfur has four golfers in the top 40, with freshman Sarah Rhee tied for 32nd after making par on nine... Read More
Not pictured: a team you would want to give a 3-run handicap
Posted by jemanji on 05/21/16
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5 Comments
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ALL-TIME GREAT HANDICAP MATCHES
1. Bobby Riggs playing quality tennis opponents using a 1970's cast iron skillet
2. The Great Khali vs Epico and Primo
3. Paul Morphy vs. a senior master (James Thompson) at Knight odds (about an 800-point spread)
4. 11 soccer players vs 10 (viewed as ungrotesque in some parts of the world)
5. Seattle Sports Insider against a 98-loss home team
6. Pete Gray
7. The 2016 Cincinnati Reds against the 2016 Seattle Mariners, three run head start
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The Reds' franchise encyclopedia goes back to 1882, when Will White amassed 11 WAR for the oldest team in the... Read More
Posted by jschario on 05/20/16
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We haven't even given Kam Chancellor to announce his intent to holdout of training camp yet, however with the draft over now feels about as right a time as any to start diagnosing the state of the NFC West.
There has been plenty of new throughout the division, Chip Kelly is bringing his brand of football to the Bay Area, which paired with Colin Kaepernick will either be a smashing success or train wreck. Either way, it should make for an entertaining 17 weeks.
Further south, Los Angeles has a team again with the Rams moving to town. Although the facts remain that Jeff Fisher, the king of... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 05/20/16
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2 Comments
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Sudden thought. If you're looking for blog posts that vary in style and rhythm ... at SSI you're already considered Looney Tunes. Why not just go completely round the bend and try CONCISE?! What are they going to do, type in all caps at you?
So, just for laughs:
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FRANKLIN GUTIERREZ
Unsurpassable niceness. Been a good soldier. Always doubted the consensus on his newfound ability to slug .600.
Earl warned, you gotta be fair to the other 24 players. By "fair" he meant, "give them their best chance to win the game" and he meant nothing else. I'd cut bait. Even if Guti does have six... Read More
"effortless power" and a snazzy age-arc curve
Posted by jemanji on 05/20/16
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2 Comments
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Once a week we head over to the M's minor league leaders and, lo and behold, Tyler O'Neill has amassed 83 total bases already. Last time we had a 20-year-old wrecking AA like this, didn't it turn out to be Shin-Soo Choo? Where is G-Moneyball when you need him?
Back in the Choo day, we ran some tables on very young players who'd ripped up the Southern League. Such tables include the Nick Franklins, of course -- that's why AA players are "prospects." But AA pitching is sequenced and precise, and if you've got a 21-year-old rampant there you've got a blue-chipper.
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The M's site has O'... Read More
Who can argue no?
Posted by jschario on 05/19/16
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Which country has the best league? It is a debate that is raised every year. But it is a legitimate question, which country has the best soccer league?
Obviously, the best league has to come from Europe, I mean, is there any debate?
Therefore, it is down to either England, Germany, Italy or Spain. Italy has enjoyed a decent un, getting into last years final before getting the guillotine last year with Juventus getting brushed aside by Barcelona. Germany have the most watched league in the world, but apart from Bayern Munich's roster, no other team in Germany can even remotely touch the star... Read More
M's continue to show annoying inability to win all their games
Posted by jemanji on 05/19/16
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3 Comments
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Anger management specialists warn, "There is always one poorly-chosen sentence between you and the unemployment line." That's true enough in real life, but fortunately on the internet we have evolved past this consequence-and-caution paradigm. Here, "anger management" is completely counterproductive - a short-sighted route to losing half your traffic.
The loyal SSI denizen is justifiably irritated this morning. In this particular 16-year cycle, the 90 losses x 15 should followed by 116 wins x 1. A tough loss to the Orioles' ace is, in this case, an invitation to "spirited" road rage... Read More
M's respond to attempted AL West hijacking with appropriate finesse
Posted by jemanji on 05/18/16
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In South Africa, it is 100% legal to mount flamethrowers on each side of your vehicle, operated by a fourth pedal near the accelerator. The government there has deemed this an appropriate response to their hijacking epidemic; no word on whether it is a viable response to hire Tom Hardy to drive for you. A pesky rodent Angel steps up to your window and demands you relinquish your lead, you douse him in ignited propane until he loses interest.
In Seattle 2016, it's a 100% viable losing-streak response to have Cano, Cruz and Seager hit missiles through the outfield wall. There was a lot of... Read More
tough when you have to plead 'mercy rule' ... against a pitching machine
Posted by jemanji on 05/18/16
Posted to blog
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BULLPEN STRATEGY
Dr. D settled into the game mostly to --- > see what proactive measures the M's would take to secure a 5-3 lead. As it turned out, their proactive measure was "Inflict a base-out RE24 matrix such that Enrique Romo will suffice to protect the lead." Dr. D approved of this strategy.
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Here is a 46-MPH eephus pitch from Clayton Kershaw last month. The reader is invited to decide for himself whether 65 MPH qualifies as an eephus, but what Kershaw's and Johnson's curves have in common are that your 14-year-old can throw them.
Why was Gauipe sent out and Steve Johnson... Read More
obviously Mo' Dawg has the M's ear
Posted by jemanji on 05/18/16
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Our 1980's campaign would have been aghast at a visiting delver who claimed to play three or four positions. And there was no such thing as a multi-class Magic-User/Cleric. The rules on this have been bent beyond all recognition, both in D&D and real life (baseball) as well as pseudo-life (politics and married vice-presidents). In American politics, the idea of a thief casting spells appears to be gaining acceptance (context of the analogy most definitely intended). But in baseball, you can be sure that the Ben Zobrist concept is proliferating.
Here's an article from Beyond the Box... Read More
K-Pax and Diaz - panic moves or no-brainers... or both?
Posted by jemanji on 05/17/16
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3 Comments
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We switch to the Sci-Fi channel, in which a bullpen can run a 0+ ERA for six weeks and then have an alien erupt out of its chest. It's a funny thing - try to come up with a Cinderella championship baseball team in which the good guys have a Bobby Ayala-, Scott Sanders-bullpen but overcome it through starting pitching and controlling the zone. There's an unwritten rule that the villains have the technology and the underdogs have the Force or the Good Wizard or the Lost Ark. The Lost Ark always being Greg Holland.
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EXCUSES, EXCUSES
If, in one offseason, you lose Aldon Smith and Patrick... Read More
pesky rodent Angels hit Dr. D with cheap shot, knock off his lab goggles
Posted by jemanji on 05/17/16
Posted to blog
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SERIESFLOW
On Friday, the Mariners were 21-and-13, up a full +8.0 games on the pesky rodent Angels, and were again winning mechanically by a lopsided 5-1 score. But Nate Karns' chest was wheezing like a blast furnace, and the Angels nicked him for a couple of soft runs. (Or, as Dr. D would prefer to put it, they nicked his RELIEVERS for a couple of soft runs. Grrrrr.)
The score was still a comfortable 6-3 going into the late innings, and the Angels were headed for a comfortable -11.0 deficit in the standings come Monday.
Joel Peralta picked exactly that moment to remember that he was... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 05/17/16
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4 Comments
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For those of you who just joined us, "RockiesJeff" is a real-life pitching coach who likes to chime in with an "aw shucks, thanks for all the insight!" comment for us 'net rats who specialize in Pokemon. Back channel, he does keep a few of us up-to-date on his son Jeremy, who is a bona fide Junior College pitching star. It is like a machete in the jungle, trying to be noticed by MLB franchises these days, but Jeremy has definitely talked to his share of scouts, including from the M's, I think. He's gotten some workouts with MLB teams, and I believe he's scheduled to attend the predraft... Read More
Posted by jschario on 05/16/16
It's the middle of May, which means college athletes are cramming for finals if they haven't taken them already. With the end of the term also means the end of the spring sports season, and thus the 2015-16 collegiate athletic year.
Several Husky spring sports programs have already started their postseason runs. The no. 23 Husky Golf squad heads into the NCAA Regionals at the Vanderbilt Legends Club in Franklin, Tenn. led by freshman Carl Yuan, who shot a bogey free first round of 7-under 5. Thanks in large part to Yuan's performance, the Huskies are tied for third after shooting a... Read More
Barcelona are champions again
Posted by jschario on 05/15/16
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3 Comments
Jornada 38 is in the books and so is the 2015-16 edition of the Spanish Primera Division competition. It produced an expected result, albeit in an unexpected fashion.
Barcelona won, as anyone not trying to sell newspapers thought certain they would. Playing on the road against Granada, a team only three points clear of the bottom three of the league table, Barcelona easily dispatched them to end the season as champions for the second consecutive year.
Luis Suarez closed out the year in spectacular fashion, scoring three goals to bring his total to 40 in league play, thus securing the Pichichi... Read More
Birds sign on Goalie Carl Stankowski
Posted by SeattleHockeyInsider on 05/15/16
1 Comments
Although the Seattle Thunderbird fans are pretty bummed out about not winning the championship this week, there was a piece of good news to pass around. According to Seattle Thunderbirds general manager Russ Farwell, the T-Birds have signed on Carl Stankowski as a goaltender for next season.
“Carl was the top goalie at the Western Canada U16 tournament last fall which allowed him to hold onto his ranking as the top goaltender in his age group. We are excited to have him commit to our team and join us for next season. He has the potential to be a top WHL goaltender before long and it will be... Read More
Discover who is playing next weekend
Posted by InsideSeattleBa... on 05/15/16
If you’ve been holding your breath to find out who will be on the final roster for the Seattle Storm, you can let it all out now. The team announced their final roster for opening night this week and it included ten returning players from last season: Sue Bird, Abby Bishop, Alysha Clark, Markeisha Gatling, Crystal Langhorne, Jewell Loyd, Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, Jenna O’Hea, Ramu Tokashiki and Monica Wright. Then there’s also Blake Dietrich and of course, Breanna Stewart, this year’s number one draft pick.
Waived team members included Lexi Eaton Rydalch, Angel Goodrich, Quanitra Hollingsworth... Read More
One of Seattle’s favorites returns to the Storm
Posted by InsideSeattleBa... on 05/14/16
Many of the women of the Seattle Storm have been playing abroad lately, so we haven’t been able to see them in the preseason festivities. One international player, Ramu Tokashiki, is back and working with the team for another great season. Last year was her rookie year with the team and she played pretty impressively, improving steadily throughout the season and quickly becoming a fan favorite not only because of her skills but also because of her fun personality and readiness to embrace the people of Seattle. It is obviously her second home.
All of that said, she is still working on her... Read More
Storm signs on new player
Posted by InsideSeattleBa... on 05/14/16
You might know her well from the Phoenix Mercury, but Tiffany Bias is now a member of the Seattle Storm. Welcome to Seattle! The third-year guard is a tenacious player who won the 2014 WNBA title with the Mercury during her rookie year, and she averages 1.4 points in 5.1 minutes per game. She stands at 5’8 and was the 17th overall draft pick by Phoenix in the 2014 WNBA Draft.
Could Bias have known that she was destined to play for Seattle when she played against the team for the preseason opener just days ago? Right after the game, the Mercury put her on waivers and Seattle signed her on. You... Read More
Seattle loses 2-0
Posted by SeattleSoccerInsider on 05/14/16
After performing so well for the past couple of weeks, the Seattle Sounders were unable to defeat FC Dallas in Frisco over the weekend. FC Dallas was able to score two goals at Toyota Stadium on Saturday, sending the Sounders off the field without much to show for their efforts. Seattle’s stats have now dropped to -5-1 on the season and 0-3-1 on the road. Stefan Frei did make some saves that were impressive to watch, and were the highlights of the game for most fans.
Prior to the match, Seattle Sounders Head Coach Sigi Schmid not only said that he was planning on making some lineup changes,... Read More
Brandon beats Seattle 8-4
Posted by SeattleHockeyInsider on 05/14/16
While the Ed Chynoweth Cup isn’t coming to Seattle this year, the Seattle Thunderbirds really gave it their all. We were able to watch the young men transform to a struggling team nearly half made from new players mid-season to a fully developed, cohesive team of hockey players worthy of the pros. While the Brandon Wheat Kings beat the Birds on Friday night with a score of 8-4, the Birds never stopped trying and really pushed to get this far in the championship.
During the first period, Brandon scored first when Quenneville made a goal assisted by Duke and McGauley. Seattle took the next... Read More
the King deigns to rule via finesse these days
Posted by jemanji on 05/14/16
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4 Comments
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STARTING PITCHER RANKINGS
I love the BJOL rankings, not in the sense that I enjoy them, but in the sense that I believe in the information. Who would you rather face - Dallas Keuchel in a slump, or Ian Kennedy on a roll? Tennis-style "rankings" give you a blend here. You can tell who is good, like an All-Star, and who is throwing great over the last few months.
Who's the toughest draw tonight? I can just check the BJOL rankings. We're sure Jhoulys Chacin can pitch, but he's #165 in the majors, theoretically not able to break a 30x5 starter pool. The game is not won, but the M's couldn... Read More
Retirements and undrafted free agents
Posted by jschario on 05/14/16
Posted to blog
The Draft has come and gone, rookie mini-camp is over, pretty much all free agents of consequence are signed, so what could there be to talk about in the NFL? For the Seahawks, there's plenty.
For Seahawks fans, the draft has sort of become ho-hum in the Schneider-Carroll era. No big time college names make there way to the Pacific Northwest - save for Russell Wilson, who wasn't projected to be much of anything in the NFL at the time - and if you tune in on the first day, you likely won't see Seattle make a pick.
Where the real excitement lies is in the undrafted free agent signings. The... Read More
we botched it. Dr's R/X: Rage Monstering
Posted by jemanji on 05/14/16
Posted to blog
2 Comments
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GRRRRRRRRR Talking Points Memo
1. The M's had come out on top in their last 7 one-run games, did the TV say? All good things must come to an end. Including a retread bullpen and a long string with zero-plus ERA's.
The M's were 0-for-their-first-9 with runners in scoring position. The Angels played okay, but SSI was left feeling we were beaten by "the game of inches" more than by the other team.
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2. Karns lacked his good fastball command, and pitched behind quite a bit. Still, the two-pitch repertoire (only 4 changeups all night) took him into the 4th with a no-hitter. It seemed like... Read More
Seattle beats Phoenix with narrow margin
Posted by InsideSeattleBa... on 05/13/16
The preseason finale is over and the Seattle Storm took bragging rights home from it. Although it was a narrow margin, they beat the Phoenix Mercury with a score of 76 to 70 at Talking Stick Resort Arena on Sunday. The big scorer of the night was Ashley Clark, who put 20 points up on the board with 8-of-11 shooting for the team, tying them with Phoenix for games won during the preseason after losing to the Mercury the week before.
If this is any indication, it looks like Seattle Storm Head Coach Jenny Boucek and her team is really fine tuning the team after spring training. They have been... Read More
Three men pose for Ville Magazine
Posted by SeattleSoccerInsider on 05/13/16
It’s not every day that you see one of the Seattle Sounders taking off his clothing for a magazine shoot. This week we saw not one but three of the men from the team pose for the cover. Tyrone Mears, Zach Scott and Nelson Valdez all posed for the Ville Magazine Health and Fitness issue. The magazine is now at newsstands across the country and you can get a copy wherever you purchase Ville Magazine.
The big difference between this photo shoot and, say, seeing any of the men without a shirt on is that they actually posed nude for the shoot, a new experience for the men. Both Scott and Valdez... Read More
Seattle hangs in the championship
Posted by SeattleHockeyInsider on 05/13/16
We finally broke through this bizarre pattern and won a game, Seattle Thunderbirds fans! After the Brandon Wheat Kings won three games in a row with the same score, all winning by one point and all taken during overtime, the Birds were able to take Game 4 of the WHL Championship with a score of 6-1. This is one of the widest margins we have seen during the entire playoffs and championship games, and you just have to wish that we could apply it to the previous three games, right?
The T-Birds were on fire when they beat the Wheat Kings on Wednesday night at the ShoWare Center. There were enough... Read More
sorry about that last game, on both our behalfs
Posted by jemanji on 05/13/16
Posted to blog
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Dr. D missed out on the chance to postgame Nate Karns' last hail of 9mm bullets into the antique shop, which left us decidedly Tackleberrish in mood this past week. But at least we can take out our frustations on the firing range silhouettes.
LH George Springer stepped in to start the Astros' "attack" last Saturday and the Karnivore chomped him in half on 4 pitches: 95-95-CHANGEUP-95. Here's the GameDay if you want to follow along. He gave up a groundball single to Marwin Gonzalez, and then fanned Carlos Correa on 3 pitches:
Belligerent 94 MPH fastball middle in, 0-1
96 ! fastball right... Read More
M's imposing some unpleasant flights home nowadays
Posted by jemanji on 05/13/16
Posted to blog
15 Comments
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GAMEFLOW
The M's took a 4-0 lead and, seeing that the Rays were losing interest in competive baseball, threw them a few runs. Once the Rays pepped up, the Mariners resumed Knight-forking Queens and Rooks ... but saw the Rays' countenance fall again. So the M's threw them another tie game at 5-5.
"Carrying" the loser might seem generous in the middle rounds. But in the 11th, Iannetta's homer must have hit the Rays about like Little Marco did after the "Linguistic Killshot" (the Washington Post's term) blew him back off the podium, showing the country the soles of his shoes.**
So, the... Read More
And it takes overtime for them to do it… again
Posted by SeattleHockeyInsider on 05/12/16
Does anyone else feel like this record might be broken? We have definitely been here before, right? They might have been at home in Seattle but the Thunderbirds were not able to beat the What Kings on Tuesday night. They lost to the Brandon team with a very narrow margin once again, 3-2. This makes them ahead in the series, 3-0. While they are winning the WHL Championship, there are still more games to go and the Birds could still manage to win this entire series if they start winning by the next game.
The Wheat Kings have won both Game 1 and Game 2 in overtime by the score of 3-2 as well, so... Read More
Do you have tickets?
Posted by InsideSeattleBa... on 05/12/16
If you are a fan of the Seattle Storm, chances are that you have May 22nd circled with bold marker. That is the date of opening night this year. The Storm will be taking on the Minnesota Lynx at 4:00 at the Key Arena. If you are thinking about asking if tickets remain available, the answer is yes! You can still buy tickets for the game but you had better get on it fast. You only have two days left!
VIP seats are available for $130 while tickets are available as cheaply as $25 in section 107. Other prices range from $27 to $60, so there are seats for every preference. While there is plenty of... Read More
is it too late to Best Bet this kid? Probly so
Posted by jemanji on 05/12/16
Posted to blog
2 Comments
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You remember what we told you about titles with question marks.
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AGE-ARC
Mellow greetings, fellow citizen. What seems to be your boggle? In Sept. 2015, Dr. D's was --- > how a 21-year-old Ketel Marte could line up 96 fastballs and 75 curves in the same game. In the "HOF'ers Template" article, he ran the following mini-table of 21-year-olds with Marte's swing:
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Hitter
AVG
OBP
SLG
OPS+
Ketel Marte
.298
.365
.410
120
Rod Carew
.292
.341
.409
113 (and 95 the next year. Became "Carew" at age 23)
Tony Gwynn
In
Minor
Leagues
Hit 107 and 105 at ages 22, 23. Became "Gwynn" at age 24
Ichiro... Read More
looking a lot prettier than the Michelin Man at this point
Posted by jemanji on 05/12/16
Posted to blog
4 Comments
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Six weeks in, we've been able to triangulate Dae-Ho Lee a little bit, as far as his hitting template goes. Here is a look at his plate discipline numbers, and the direct link if you can't read the below:
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Can't beat Fangraphs for this kinda stuff
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It reminds you of those "averaged" faces that represent not average appearance, but ideal human beauty. Lee has a perfectly average swing-miss rate. He has an average "fish" rate. He has an average swing rate. He has an average contact rate. He's got an average BB rate and average K rate. If you put together a computer sim of all MLB(TM)... Read More
Comes down to the country's two biggest teams
Posted by jschario on 05/12/16
Posted to blog
It was not supposed to end this way for either Barcelona or Real Madrid. Not back in March, when Barcelona was in the middle of a 36-match unbeaten streak while their bitter rivals Real Madrid sat in third-place, 13 points behind the blaugranas.
Fast forward through the spring and Barcelona maintains the top spot in La Liga, although it's Real Madrid that have all the momentum, winning 15 of their last 16 matches in all competitions and now just one point behind the Catalans. Madrid has not lost since their cross-city rivals Atlético Madrid beat them in their last derby.
Due to Atleti's slip... Read More
no, we're not referring to SSI guests
Posted by jemanji on 05/12/16
Posted to blog
1 Comments
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LINKABLE
Jason Churchill has a very fine monthly report up.
Prospect Insider was always a good read, but used to be it would assert 10 things and I'd be inclined to take the other side of 5 of them. That doesn't happen any more. With JFromSeattle and Spectator and G-Moneyball not writing much any more, P-I is becoming required reading on the "Who's Next?" front.
Particularly, they sign off on Edwin Diaz as a Safeco reliever THIS season. This shouldn't be stunning; there is nothing prohibitive about a pitcher jumping from AA to the majors. Here is another link you will thoroughly enjoy... Read More
Per Matt's Request ...
Posted by Spectator on 05/12/16
6 Comments
Is there a job of collecting interestingly-sorted tables from the sports-reference.com family of sites? Like people putting together playlists on Spotify?
Like 1921 MLB hitters sorted by ISO:
Rk
Name
Age
Tm
PA
BA
OBP
SLG
OPS
OPS+
ISO ▾
1
Babe Ruth*
26
NYY
693
.378
.512
.846
1.359
238
.469
2
Rogers Hornsby
25
STL
674
.397
.458
.639
1.097
191
.242
3
Bob Meusel
24
NYY
647
.318
.356
.559
.915
128
.241
4
High Pockets Kelly
25
NYG
647
.308
.356
.528
.884
130
.220
5
Elmer Smith*
28
CLE
504
.290
.374
.508
.882
121
.218
6
Ken Williams*
31
SLB
651
.347
.429
.561
.990
145
.214
7
Harry Heilmann
26
DET... Read More
Sigi Schmid gets special crutches
Posted by SeattleSoccerInsider on 05/11/16
You might wish it to someone as an expression, but a broken leg is never something to take lightly. It’s even worse as you get older, so while a rookie might recover from it pretty quickly, someone like Sigi Schmid may take longer to heal. And that is exactly what has happened to the Seattle Sounders head coach, but luckily he had some help from his friends in the MLS world.
We have been seeing Schmid favoring his broken fibula for weeks now and while he still looks strong and capable, he sure as heck didn’t look very comfortable. So his buddy Jurgen Klinsmann, head coach of the U.S. National... Read More
no fruit cup for Drew. The M's are too strict
Posted by jemanji on 05/10/16
Posted to blog
5 Comments
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GAMEFLOW - 6:59 PM
TJM can tell you that if any news story headlines with a question mark, it's a story so questionable that the paper itself had to mark it as such. Seasoned political fans get a smile out of every ? in a title. "Obama born in Uzbekhistan?" or "Seattle Sports Insider read by Mariners brass?" or "Earth-like Exoplanet Found?" The guy who WROTE it doesn't believe it. Imagine what he thinks of you, if you DO.
Jeff Sullivan needed no question mark on this one: "Is Drew Smyly a Strikeout Machine?" Because just a couple of weeks ago he'd proven, to any rational person's... Read More
Rays-Mariners games ain't for the faint of heart this year
Posted by jemanji on 05/10/16
Posted to blog
37 Comments
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While the M's were spearfishing Drew Smyly and the home plate ump was spearfishing Evan Longoria, what happened to our AL West "rivals"? (Dr. D learned on the BJOL chat boards that you use quotation marks to show contempt for mainstream ideas. He's picked it up like Charly picking up the comma in the second chapter of Flowers for Algernon.)
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ANAHEIM ANGELS
Curb-stomped 8-1 by Mike Leake's 5.10 ERA. The Cardinals piled up 14 hits and 4 homers, while the Angels suffered through innings 6-9 with less than a 1% chance of victory. This dropped them to -6.5 behind the colossus in Seattle. ... Read More
everything you always wanted to know about transition timelines but were afraid to ax
Posted by jemanji on 05/10/16
Posted to blog
13 Comments
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If you just joined us, Geoff Baker is one of Dr. D's favorite sportswriters ever. He would be --- > sportswriting's equivalent of a giant treblehook in Howard Lincoln's posterior. To say that Baker is skeptical of M's brass' intentions is like saying Scottie Pippen is skeptical of the Warriors' 73-9 record. So you'll be interested in this op-ed, New Mariners ownership fed up with mediocrity, being the butt of community's jokes.
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EXEC SUM
1. Seattle's perception of the M's is that they've lost for 15 straight years, they hypocritically blocked a SoDo arena and the NBA, and that they'... Read More
Just Real Madrid and Barcelona now
Posted by jschario on 05/08/16
Posted to blog
Now for Atlético Madrid, all their eggs are the Champions League title basket. Their loss to lowly Levante saw them fall three points behind leaders Barcelona and two points behind city rivals and Champions League final opponents Real Madrid.
Traveling on the road, Atleti seemingly fell victim to overconfidence, something very uncharacteristic of a Diego Simeone coached team. Levante are sure to be relegated after the season, as they sit at the bottom of the table, even after their 3-2 win over los rojiblancos.
The American-born Italian international Guiseppe Rossi scored the game winner for... Read More
Vote for your favorite
Posted by SeattleSoccerInsider on 05/08/16
Are you a big fan of the CenturyLink scarf? Choosing its design is always a highlight of the season and most fans really enjoy wearing their scarves to games as well as other fun events for the rest of the year. Did you know that you can get a FREE match day scarf during the July 13 match if you are in attendance? How cool is that? Before that happens, though, you need to vote on which design should win this year.
Click here to check out the three scarves that are up for consideration right now. Remember that these will be limited edition songs for this season. You can vote all month up until... Read More
Check out their video
Posted by SeattleSoccerInsider on 05/08/16
Did you get your mother some Seattle Sounders gear to wear this year? Some members of the team say that their moms love wearing their jerseys so much that they plan on giving their moms some Rave Green merch for the holiday this year! The team made a fun video to wish all moms who are Sounders fans a very happy Mother’s Day this year. Have you taken a look at it? If your mom is a fan, you might want to pass it along for her to see today.
Some Sounders made the point that they are far from home and they are really thinking of their mothers today, and some shared some of the best lessons they... Read More
At least they needed overtime to do it again
Posted by SeattleHockeyInsider on 05/08/16
It would seem that the Brandon Wheat Kings are bound and determined to beat the Seattle Thunderbirds, but perhaps they can only do it if the games are sure to go into overtime. On Saturday at Westman Place in Game 2 of the WHL Championship, the Wheat Kings beat the Birds once again with a score of 3-2… again.
During the first period, there was no scoring. Penalties were had on Hawryluk and Brn for goaltender interference and between Hauf and Sea for slashing. During the second period, Donovan Neuls made the first goal of the night with assist from Scott Eansor and Ryan Gropp. Brandon scored... Read More
Daughters meeting new heroes
Posted by InsideSeattleBa... on 05/08/16
Recently Ellen Hagan of ESPNW wrote a beautiful essay about how she introduces her daughters to the women of the WNBA. She discussed how her daughters were not born to a particularly athletic family and that she wanted to make sure they had powerful, athletic heroes to look up to as they grow.
“It makes me want to search role models for them, makes me hungry to see how other women demonstrate their power and skill to the world. We talk about what it means to have a healthy body, what it means to feed ourselves and be active. We study what it means to be an athlete and realize we all want to... Read More
Final score 2-0
Posted by SeattleSoccerInsider on 05/08/16
The Seattle Sounders are on a roll. Last week, we saw a victory against the Columbus Crew with a 1-0 victory. This week the Sounders beat the San Jose Earthquakes with an even wider margin of victory with a score of 2-0. It was Clint Dempsey’s second goal of the season, but it was Jordan Morris’s fourth in as many games, impressing his fans in Seattle even more than last week’s victory. Morris, too, is on a roll.
Dempsey made the first goal during the 26’ with assists from Erik Friberg and Jordan Morris. Morris sent the ball into the penalty area and Friberg sent it to Dempsey for the shot,... Read More
Did you catch it?
Posted by InsideSeattleBa... on 05/07/16
On May 1, one of Seattle’s newest and coolest athletes headed to the Seattle Mariners’ game to throw the first pitch of the game. Breanna Stewart, AKA Stewie, threw the first pitch for the game as Seattle welcomed her with open arms. Stewie is the latest Seattle Storm member, the number one pick for the 2016 draft and the player that everyone wanted this year. Stewie is 6’5 and known for taking her college to the championship to win big every year, and now she is one of Seattle’s own.
The Storm has a bunch of excellent photos of the Wade trophy winner at the big event that you need to check... Read More
Wheat Kings win game 1
Posted by SeattleHockeyInsider on 05/07/16
During Game 1 of the WHL Championship at Westman Place in Brandon, Manitoba this weekend, the Brandon Wheat Kings beat the Seattle Thunderbirds, but they had to go into overtime to get their 3-2 score. Seattle either tied or led for most of the game from the second period on, but the Wheat Kings were able to squeeze in a final goal during overtime to secure the game.
Brandon made the first goal of the night when Duke scored. McGauley made the assist. During the first period, penalties were on Thomson and Brn for slashing and Ottenbreit and Sea for interference. Seattle got on the board during... Read More
The whole team will turn out Saturday
Posted by SeattleSoccerInsider on 05/07/16
Great news from the Emerald City: the entire Seattle Sounders team is healthy, well and ready to play this Saturday against the San Jose Earthquakes. Although we don’t know if he will return to the field or not, Andreas Ivanschitz is finally back from his thigh strain recovery that prevented him from playing in the last match against the Columbus Crew SC as well as celebrating the victory that occurred during the match. Ivanschitz was certainly bummed out about missing that golden opportunity, but he is now healthy and ready to play again.
Will he be on the field Saturday? While that remains... Read More
After the game, we should have more of an idea
Posted by InsideSeattleBa... on 05/07/16
The preseason opener against the Phoenix Mercury may not have been a win for Seattle, but it had no bearing on the team’s record for the season. Neither team had all of its players present with many still playing out of country before the official season begins. Even so, the person it really helped was Seattle Storm Head Coach Jenny Boucek, and it helped her by providing the team with an opportunity to show its true mettle. Training is one thing, but when your team can demonstrate its abilities on the field against an actual other team, it’s quite another.
Were you able to see the preseason... Read More
all this and Nate Karns, too
Posted by jemanji on 05/07/16
Posted to blog
2 Comments
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TEXAS RANGERS
Dallas-area newspapers have left Derek Holland for dead. Here's an example and here's another. True, the Rangers have a legit Opening Day starter in Cole Hamels, and Yu Darvish is doing well in rehab games. But Holland has a 5.1 strikeout rate, Martin Perez has a 4.6 to 4.6 strikeout to walk rate (!!), and Colby Lewis has a 1.9 gopher rate with a ludicrous 5.34 FIP.
For those amigos who feel uppity about the Rangers making the playoffs four times the last six years, go ahead and project them to another 88 wins this year. Dr. D isn't feeding your "No Cheering In the M's... Read More
Posted by jschario on 05/07/16
Looks like success on the diamonds of Montlake are contagious, with the softball program ranked no. 11 in the country and the baseball program ranked as high as no. 14 in national polls.
Lindsey Meggs' men are ranked inthe top 25 of three national polls, with Collegiate News ranking them number 14. They're now tied with Utah for first in the Pac-12 with an 11-7 record in conference play and 25-15 overall. The Diamoand Dawgs are heating up at just the right time, just like last season when they made an appearance in the NCAA regionals for the first time in years.
They have managed to climb... Read More
T-Birds choose Fawkes during second round
Posted by SeattleHockeyInsider on 05/06/16
1 Comments
We have seen a few new young men join the Seattle Thunderbirds this week for the 2016 Bantam Draft. One of these young men, Eric Fawkes, was chosen during the second round of draft selections. Fawkes was the 40th selection overall from the Draft. Fawkes hails from Winnipeg, Manitoba. He stands at 6’1 and weighs 181 pounds. He is a forward who played for the Winnipeg Monarchs this past season. His stats so far include 31 goals and 37 assists for 68 points in 34 games.
If his name is any indication, he will be an excellent addition to the team. As any Harry Potter fan knows, the powerful... Read More
What are your favorites?
Posted by SeattleSoccerInsider on 05/06/16
If you are a fan of the Seattle Sounders and Spotify, you will enjoy this cool news. Mitchell & Ness, the athletic company from Philadelphia, is making a bunch of playlists for some of the coolest MLS stars in the franchise. Guess who they picked from the Sounders team? You guessed it—Stefan Frei. Not only is Frei one of the coolest players in MLS, he is also known for wearing Mitchell & Ness. In fact, he was photographed wearing the brand last year right before the playoffs, looking pretty awesome.
If you are interested in the playlist that was made for Frei, you can listen to it... Read More
Something must be in the water
Posted by jschario on 05/06/16
Posted to blog
Another year, yet another Champions League final featuring a Spanish team. Although this year we have two Spanish teams, and both from the same city to boot.
But wait, haven't we seen this story before? Atlético Madrid and Real Madrid facing each other in a Southern European country. Yes we have, in 2014 we saw the Madrid derby played in Lisbon, now we get to see them in Milan, Italy for the 2016 Champions League title.
Gareth Bale continued his fantastic run of form, scoring the game's only goal. Cristiano Ronaldo came back from injury to provide a boost, almost scoring a goal in the process... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 05/06/16
Posted to blog
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JUGGERNAUT
jug*ger*naut
Something (such as a force, weapon, campaign, or movement) that is extremely large and powerful and cannot be stopped
Now everybody is above 90 OPS+ except Lind, and there are four guys with 150+. Gotta find a way to get Dae-Ho Lee more AB's, wouldn't you say? He can spell Aoki or Martin against RHP's, or of course Lind or Smith vs LHP.
The M's ERA+ / OPS+ has sailed up to 121:113. Taijuan tonight against Fister. We'll be watching for splitters and sliders that start just inside the zone to break outside it.
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K-PAX SEISMOS INITIATE EVACUATION PROTOCOLS UP AND... Read More
T-Birds draft Jake Lee
Posted by SeattleHockeyInsider on 05/05/16
During the 2016 Bantam Draft this morning in Calgary, Canada, the Seattle Thunderbirds selected defenseman Jake Lee as a new team member. Lee was the 18th pick during the first round of draft selections. Lee stands at 6’1 and weighs 175 pounds. He comes from the Sherwood Park Flyers Bantam AAA team, where his stats included 11 goals and 16 assists for 27 points in 32 regular season games. During the 10 playoff games the defenseman played, he made 2 goals and 8 assists. To catch the video of the draft, click here.
T-Birds Director of Player Personnel Cal Filson said that Lee will be a big... Read More
A comprehensive agreement has been made
Posted by SeattleSoccerInsider on 05/05/16
If you have anything to say about Seattle aside from how beautiful the city is, how kind its people are and how delicious the food is, it’s bound to be how much the city loves its sports teams. From the Seattle Sounders to the Mariners, the Storm to the Seahawks, there is a sport here for everyone who ever picked up a bat or ball. We may not have an NHL team, but our Thunderbirds fans are pretty serious, too. Our fans take their sports seriously, so when you hear about scheduling issues you might start to worry.
It’s actually good news, though, that the Sounders, Seahawks and Mariners have... Read More
Check them out on social media
Posted by InsideSeattleBa... on 05/05/16
It was a bummer to see the Seattle Storm lose the preseason game against Phoenix, for sure, but there were also some amazing photos and video footage taken of the game. Fans and the Storm itself are sharing both all over the website and social media, some of them with the hashtag #watchmework. Here are some of the photos and highlights that are not to be missed, especially if you missed the game in the first place!
You can see lots of pics of the game here at the Storm website. From Jewell Loyd to Breanna Stewart to Sue Bird and the rest of the team, you can see each Storm woman hard at work... Read More
Billyball less effective when facing 446-foot missiles to the CF tower
Posted by jemanji on 05/05/16
Posted to blog
3 Comments
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BY DA NUMBAS
The M's are in first place this morning and will be in first place tomorrow morning, whatever the outcome of today's games. House money baby.
Their Pythag record is 17-10 and their 122:93 run differential would project to 102 wins. However, the M's have one of the greatest bullpens in baseball or basketball history, so you can safely bank at least 110-52 this season. How do you think we match up against the Cubs? May need K-Pax to split the Arietta series...
They're on pace to out-homer their rivals by 228 to 150, which is comparable to Toronto last year, 232 to 173 and to... Read More
Final score is 81-73
Posted by InsideSeattleBa... on 05/04/16
It was a close one with some intense moments that almost went to the Seattle Storm, but the 2016 preseason opener against Phoenix was lost on Wednesday. Even though the #1 draft pick of the year Breanna Stewart not only scored 11 points during the game and put 8 rebounds on her record, creating a new rebound high in the history of the Storm, her 29 minutes on the court were not enough to save the game.
At halftime, the teams were tied, but the Mercury came back rejuvenated and ready to win, pulling out all the stops and running 15-1 during both the third and fourth quarter, climbing on top... Read More
Fortunately, I Am Mighty dept.
Posted by jemanji on 05/04/16
Posted to blog
8 Comments
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FIRST NOMINATION
I liked Loenydas' first sac bunt. Squared around, punting the selfish mad rush to 1B before he caught the ball on his bat. Textbook roll out to the left side. Hapless batter finds a great way to be useful with 2 on, 0 out. (The rally faded, but the geekage stayed.)
Then he bunted his way on later, right?
... revel away amigos. Every bum has got to throw a potato in the pot, if'n he wants to ladle anything back out of it.
Will you be there?
Posted by SeattleHockeyInsider on 05/04/16
Are you ready to see a match against the Seattle Thunderbirds and the Brandon Wheat Kings in Seattle? On May 10, the puck will drop at 7:05. It will be game 3 of the series at the ShoWare Center. Tickets are on sale now on the web as well as at the box office. The box office is open from 10 to 5 Monday through Friday. As a bonus, the game is a 2 for Tuesday special, so you can get your tickets for the price of one. Tickets will appear half-priced when you add them to your basket online. If you are purchasing tickets for game 4, keep in mind that they will be full-priced tickets ranging from... Read More
Next game is May 7
Posted by SeattleSoccerInsider on 05/04/16
If you don’t already have your tickets yet for the Sounders game against the San Jose Earthquakes, you had better nab them now because the next game is rapidly approaching. On May 7th the two teams will be at the Century Link Field at 7:00 PM. If you cannot make the match, you can always tune in with several options: Watch on Q13 Fox, Univision Seattle, or listen via KIRO 97.3 FM and El Rey 1630 AM.
It’s a Western Conference matchup that is not to be missed. The standings right now include Sounders (3-4-1, 10 pts., 9th in Western Conference), Quakes (4-2-3, 15 pts., 5th in Western Conference... Read More
Why can't we have just a mouthful?
Posted by jemanji on 05/04/16
Posted to blog
1 Comments
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You'll enjoy this John Hickey report a lot more than you'll enjoy SSI this morning. Excerpts:
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It says something that Sonny Gray gave up seven earned runs in seven-plus innings Tuesday and said afterward “this was the best I felt this year.’’
“I thought I threw the ball well. That’s definitely the best I’ve felt all year. It was really unfortunate the way it turned out.’’
“You pitch into the eighth inning and you come out with a bad start,’’ Gray said. “It’s a really weird game tonight."
In my other starts, I was a little sporadic with location and I was not throwing strikes. Tonight I... Read More
What does Real Madrid need to do to get in themselves?
Posted by jschario on 05/03/16
Posted to blog
1 Comments
Atlético Madrid ended the Champions League hopes of yet another Barcelona man Tuesday, dispatching former Barça player and manager Pep Guardiola and Bayern Munich based on aggregate total. Bayern won the second leg 2-1, but with the aggregate ending at 2-2, Atleti goes home the victor thanks to scoring a crucial away goal forcing the tiebreaker.
Them getting through makes it Atlético's second Champions League final in three years, an unprecedented run of success that includes a La Liga championship as well. Diego Simeone has had los rojiblancos competing for trophies ever since he arrived,... Read More
pesky rodent AL West rivals getting ear of a new Orkin man in town
Posted by jemanji on 05/03/16
Posted to blog
3 Comments
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Mojo had alerted us to the concept of Shock Therapy for rodents and orcs. Got to put the fear of ORKin into the Orcs first, counsels he. Then the battle goes much more smoothly.
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WHIPSAW
First batter up Monday, the KKKKKarnivore "established" his curve :- ) by using it 4 of the 5 pitches to Billy Burns. Hey! Mail in and let us know the next time you see that. Nate Karns is a pitcher you are not used to seeing. And by "you" we are talking to the good amigos in the broadcast booth and newspaper columns ...
Karns is throwing 45% fastballs, 40% curves and 15% changeups this year. As... Read More
happy totals, Dept.
Posted by jemanji on 05/03/16
Posted to blog
6 Comments
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KETEL MARTE
Had three separate "Plus Shortstop" plays in the opening Coin Flip game. He darted quickly to his left to snare a line drive up the middle, starting an early double play. He scurried 4 quick steps to his right and jump-threw the lead runner out. I forget what the third one was, but it was a marginal play too, a 60% er that Marte converted.
Early on, we complained that Marte looked stiff, mechanical, and nervous. He seems to be finding his rhythm with the glove. UZR stats aren't up yet, but Dewan has him for +5 plays above average already, all +5 to his right, which are the... Read More
M's bullpen replaced with near-exact replicas from an alternate universe
Posted by jemanji on 05/03/16
Posted to blog
5 Comments
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First a' three today. Probably. Be there or be square.
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GAMEFLOW - EARLY INNINGS, 1-3
To start the festivities, Kendall Graveman threw 27 horse-hockey(TM) pitches. Every ball a foot outside or right down the middle, usually the former. The M's dutifully punished him with two walks and then Adam Lind(TM) roped a 105-MPH* three iron off the deep right center wall. Weirdly, an Orc apparation then materialized at the base of the wall, backhanding a ball that I'll guarantee you Ichiro! would not have gotten to. Either Josh Reddick is a much better outfielder than I realized, or he was... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 05/02/16
Posted to blog
14 Comments
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Hokey Doke, let's try this again. Since the Lost Weekend in Mordor the Seattle Mariners have found their walks, their ERA+, and their 99 win pace. Nate KKKarns has found that Strike One is a joyful place to be. And Rich Hill has found three days off for himself and his cursed 11.5 strikeout rate.
Kendall Graveman is a young sinker-slider righty who has been over-challenging a bit. The idea of Shandler Quality Starts (PQS) is based on an 0-5 scale rather than just 6 IP, 3 ER. It's designed to let you the roto owner know how a given SP has been throwing if you're trading for him on July... Read More
M's with two coin flip games against KC
Posted by jemanji on 05/02/16
Posted to blog
1 Comments
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It looked like M's fans had the game triangulated already. Kennedy was snicking the gnats off a rhino's hide without disturbing the herd-graze. Taijuan seems to no longer have an A game and a B game, but only an A game and an A+ game. The Royals had five base hits off the handles of their bats, nestling softly onto the grass right before three Mariners collided headlong onto the pile.
And the Mariners continued their dreary chemical immolation of the American League using "Triad" strategy: Coinflip Game -- Detonation Game -- Coinflip Game. One of these days we'll get both coinflips... Read More
the fun is in the tempo, Jase
Posted by jemanji on 05/02/16
Posted to blog
3 Comments
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GAMEFLOW - EARL ON STRATEGY
Earl Weaver once wrote a book in which he argued that 3- run homers were important. Nobody bought in to this drivel, and obviously these days we realize that he was even more wrong than anybody ever understood. Earl snorted, wandered off and, for other reasons obviously, won .596 percent of his games lifetime.
He was proud of saying, "They say managers are hired to be fired, but I was never fired at any level." His teams shrugged off their undue focus on three-run homers, and Earl's job stayed on his own terms.
Saturday's M's game featured convincing homers... Read More
Guard will start first season with the Storm
Posted by InsideSeattleBa... on 05/01/16
Former Minnesota Lynx favorite Monica Wright will finally get to start her first season with the Seattle Storm now that she is well. Between knee surgeries to other injuries, Wright has not been able to play a single with the team since she was acquired mid-season last year during a trade. She has missed a total of 37 games due to injuries, but Wright is excited to be back and ready to play. In fact, reports of Wright’s fierce attitude and ability to set the pace during training are pouring in, highlighting the fact that the woman is indeed a WNBA veteran and knows her job very well.
Wright... Read More
Ethan Bear says that family support is important
Posted by SeattleHockeyInsider on 05/01/16
When asked about how much support you need at home to play hockey in the junior leagues, Ethan Bear made it clear that it was a very important part of his career. “It’s huge. It makes you feel special and I like it, I enjoy it. But at the same time I don’t let it be a distraction. The main thing for me is limiting outside distractions. My family really supports me well,” he says.
And that they do. The Bear family is always at a T-Birds game, no matter the distance, and you can spot them wearing the family jersey with Bear’s number on it, 25. He says that his family always made sure he had... Read More
Is he ready to take over for Cristiano Ronaldo?
Posted by jschario on 05/01/16
Posted to blog
When Real Madrid paid over 100 million euros to bring Welshman Gareth Bale from Tottenham to the Spanish capital, I have to admit I was skeptical. Bale never exhibited the same dominance in the Premier League for a sustained period of time on a top club like Manchester United. Unlike the world's previous most expensive player, Cristiano Ronaldo.
Since his arrival at the Santiago Bernabeu in 2013 he has racked up goals, but has not had the same impact that Ronaldo did when he completed his dream move in 2009. However he has had his moments, such as the goal he scored to win the Copa del Rey... Read More
Morris scores only match goal on Saturday
Posted by SeattleSoccerInsider on 05/01/16
During Saturday’s Seattle Sounders match against the Columbus Crew SC, fans cheered hard as Jordan Morris made his third goal in as many games, winning the match with a final score of 1-0. It was a late match goal after a long period of no goals from either team, and the tension felt by the crowd was palpable once it was finally scored. Fans also went wild over the goal on social media. Be sure to check the Sounders website for a full recap of the highlights of the match, featuring comments from Sigi Schmid, Jordan Morris, Steve Zakuani and Marcus Hahnemann. Analysts are saying that it is... Read More
Addressed their needs well
Posted by jschario on 05/01/16
Posted to blog
We arrived at Sunday, a new week ahead and yet another draft in the books after the three day extravaganza (doesn't three days seem a little excessive?). Which means we can fully commit to scrutinizing or praising our teams' draft classes.
Our Seattle Seahawks more or less stayed true to form, making a curious selection with their first round pick. Germain Ifedi is widely regarded as a player that isn't the most NFL-ready, even among the offensive lineman that we left on the board at 31. The Hawks supposedly like his strength, and ability to impose it at times. However he needs to work hard... Read More