SportsLink

Time to weigh in

Posted by Vince

Aug. 22, 2006 9:11 a.m. • 0 comments

After reading all the stories mentioned below about the Mariners, I feel like something of an expert. Well, I feel something.

Sick is more like it.

Sick of the Mariners falling apart. Sick of the management in the dugout and above. Sick of paying mucho bucks to an organization that seems to be floundering.

Say what you will about the A’s and moneyball, at least the franchise has a discernable organizational philosophy – and it doesn’t vary from it. That’s why every year the A’s are near the top of the A.L. West standings.

The M’s don’t seem to have an identity. Are they trying to win by developing young talent like the Twins? Will winning come from paying for big-name free agents like the Yankees and Red Sox? Do they rely on homegrown young pitchers and mid-range free agents like the A’s?

As a longtime season-ticket holder – for years I’ve been part of a 10-person group that splits M’s season tickets – I’m about through. Why throw away $400 every season, drive 300 miles, pay for a hotel room and then sit in Safeco and watch a team that doesn’t seem to care?

Seattle’s fans may not be the most rabid. They may not be the most knowledgeable. They may not be the most forgiving. But they are good fans who appreciate good baseball and good players. And they deserve better than the floundering team management has put on the field the past three years.