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All right, so this is the baseball team you wanted to see, Jerry.  Just a leeeeeetle bit late, huh.  Let's hope not tooooo late.

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WILD CARD

So the M's season is coming down to one question:  can the Twinkies find it in themselves to lose 3 in a row?  Or, preferably, 5-of-6 or somesuch?  

They're playing well right now, so good on them.  Then again, the Mainframe would be a lot more shrill about a 3-game deficit if there were six or seven games left - or if it were the Yankee$ we were chasing.  Three games back, 17 left, chasing a weak team, that's not too tragic.  (It's not that Dr. D couldn't write Eeyore shtick if he wanted to; baseball is for fun, so he tends to select those real parts of it that he enjoys.  Lucky you.)

Let's see, how many times has this 2017 Twins team lost 3-4 in a row ... , 

• x4 from April 16-20
• x3 from May 14-18
• x4 from May 28-31
• x4 from June 16-18
• x3 from June 29 - July 1
• x3 from July 8-14
• x4 from July 23-26
• x3 from July 29 - Aug 1
• x3 from Sept 3-5

So, nine times this year but only once the last month-and-a-half.  Oookkaaayyyy!  They're due!

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The Mariners have beaten their Wild Card rivals Texas by consecutive scores of 8-1, 10-3 and 10-4 which we can safely assume to be the first time this year they've strung a set of +6 run margins.  Their offense is hot up-and-down the lineup.  The three-game win streak has gained them excellent turf against everybody BUT Minnesota:

• Minny +8
• Sea +1
• LAA +2
• KC -2
• Tex -2
• Bal -3
• Rays -3

And what recourse do you have against me for ordering them that way?  Absolutely none.  The M's will win the final series of the season, so they're up half a game.   DO! SOMETHIN'     DIDN' THINK SO

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THAT'S KING FELIX TO YOU, GUMBY

Kroogs came on and said this was the 2014-15 Felix.

Finishing all his pitches with great snap and extension.  Getting the late movement bite on the fastball.  Getting bite on everything.  Commanding.  Doing anything he wanted with the ball.  From my seat I did not at all disagree.  But whether or not Felix was a Cy Young pitcher?  The fact remains that [the guy on the mound last night] >>> [Sonny Gray].

Have often wondered if Felix' career path would track with Verlander's:  a mushy spot in the middle where the mileage caught up, followed by a flubber type rebound once he got a little rest via the DL.  Also, to a certain extent Clemens had this at age 30-32 at the 2,000 IP mark, a few seasons of 140-190 innings with a few 105 ERA's.  I'll bet you that most power pitchers who throw 4,000 innings have a little down period like Felix and Verlander had.

If Felix were a top-10 pitcher in 2018 and 2019 it shouldn't shock you.  Thursday, he looked like that again.  Not just a good night, but he looked real tough again and like he belonged there.

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Leaving us at King Felix-Zeus-Mike Leake(TM), and then we have Erasmo "Cut Fastball" Ramirez with 6 QS runnin', and Andrew Moore is throwing BB's.  

That Ariel Miranda guy lost his spot on the bus, if you didn't hear, as did Marc-O.  Andrew Albers cannot miss the catcher's mitt if he tries, and that makes him a long man on this staff.  Too bad this team didn't jell three weeks ago, neh?

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LINEUP

Couple-three weeks ago you looked, and it seemed like it was Nelson Cruz with ten 100 hitters.  Now it's Nelson Cruz and ten 100 hitters, six of which are 105-120 hitters.   ... bwahahaha Mike Zunino has hit 120; do you be LEEVE this shtick?

Yonder Alonso came up with the bases loaded in a 2-1 game was it at the time?  And just rrriiiiiiiifled a ball into the corner like off a pitching coach.  Cleaned 'em off.  That guy's OPS+ is 130 on the year, and if the Twinkies fade any, it's going to wind up a trade-deadline coup.

Mitch Haniger is the MVP candidate from April.  Jean "Sudden" Segura is taking that arm swing and smoking low liners up the middle and down the 3B line.  Robinson Cano has suddenly gotten Yankee-playoff intense.  Jarrod Dyson, our only glove-first player, is done for the year.  Kyle Seager is the actual Kyle Seager, and then some.  This crew is ballin' out.  Oh for a chance to see Boomstick in a playoff series!

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SAID ALL THAT TO SAY THIS

So let's just see how they do against Houston.  No excuses this time, boys; this is the Seattle Mariner ballclub that you wished you could take into a playoff series.  Well then, let's see you play the Astros base-for-base.

Win two and lose one or the other way around, fine; that's baseball.  Bu I want to see three games and I want to see the Mariners trade bases even steven.

Go get 'em,

Dr D