Denise replies to my Felix post,

I love Felix and would not be happy to see him be traded, especially to the Yankees! Plus, Montero's not a catcher. Where's he going to play and would he be considered such a good player as a full-time dh?  Let's not forget that we have Smoak at 1b.  Montero's also a righty and wouldn't alot of his power be hurt by Safeco? I also would want MAJOR league players for Felix, not prospects.  Prospects flame out all the time.  I'd want Cano, Hughes, Montero, and a prospect or two, even then I'd still be ticked we traded Felix!

I also think you are underestimating the view of the casual fan. I think they really love Felix and also know he's our best player with Ichicho getting old. Look at the M's commercials, Felix's have been the fave's for the last few years. The backlash would be very, very bad, and if there's anything this team hates, it's bad publicity!!

.

Apologies if my post implied an 'underestimation' of the casual fan on Felix.  Certainly am not doubting a casual fan's ability to appreciate Felix' greatness ... after all, his is the jersey you see at Safeco...

Not that Denise is a mom, interested in soccer, or (obviously) any less aware of who Jesus Montero is ... :- )

Still worth clarifying for its own sake ...

When we refer to 'Soccer Mom' no disrespect is implied.  My wife's a Soccer Mom baseball fan ... with respect to the 5th Avenue Theater *I* am Soccer Mom.  :- )  I'm just not as *interested* as an English Lit major or a composer, to micro-analyze what they're doing there.  If 5th Avenue wants my money, they've got to appeal to me on a different basis than the basis they use to appeal to profs from the UW English department.

It's a question of any fan's level of interest, not of their acuity as such.

...........

The Mariners certainly do their demographic studies.  We presume that in a crowd of 44,000 at Safeco, no more than 500 to 1,000 care what RC/27 is.  Best I can guess, there are no more than 10,000 fans in the Pacific Northwest area who would know where to find the Hardball Times... could be wrong...

That Jack Zduriencik (and Bill Bavasi before him) would pay as much respect / attention to the Seattle saber contingent continues to amaze...

............

That the Mariners are extremely concerned about Soccer Mom favorites, is self-evident.  Their commitment to the Dan Wilsons, Jamie Moyers and Omar Vizquels has bordered on the obsessive.  Omar, for example, they nearly paid double for, to bring back late in his career, because he was perceived by the suits as being a fave of the casual fan...

............

Justin mentioned about Felix not being a great public speaker.  The communication gap does seem to bear.  Felix is hardly in a position to charm the TV audience the way that Edgar did, much less the way that Junior did...

All that said, Denise's response probably does represent the problem that if the Mariners traded Felix, they could face a lot more backlash than I guessed they would.

.

Justin sez,

Fans think they love the longball, but it's really SP's who generate the biggest buzz. Strasburg, Red Sox era Pedro, to a certain degree Halladay.... a start by your ace SP is a big event.

Fans can roar every time there's two strikes on a hitter, the SP is the center of attention for half the game. Position players only create major excitement AFTER they've done something; there's no buildup and it's unlikely they do anything for the entire rest of the game after that one big moment.

It had never occurred to me quite that way - that with a hitting star in baseball, you can't really get up on your feet, do the wave, and then get the payoff.  The odds are always way against them.

However, with a Randy Johnson, you got to a 1-2 count, you could and did get on your feet, and then got the payoff.

This simple law of baseball spectating had never occurred...

...........

Thankfully, you can root for the ballclub during a rally, to some extent.

Even there, it's much harder:  if CC Sabathia is on the mound in the 6th inning, M's down 4-2, and we get two men on base .... you get on your feet and roar and a lot of the time, you're just going to be embarrassed for buying in...

.

SP's command the most attention and Felix is the best young SP in the game. We might not care now, but we will soon....

Which is a big chip on the scales.  To keep Felix here.

.

Good stuff,

Jeff