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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

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Yes, the M’s move yesterday is a sign they are now building for the future

Mike Montgomery got a rare start for Seattle and showed the Mariners and Kanas City Royals what he could do in an 8-5 win.delivers to a Kansas City Royals batter during the first inning of a baseball game at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Mo., Sunday, July 10, 2016. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner) ORG XMIT: MOOW103 (Orlin Wagner / Associated Press)
Mike Montgomery got a rare start for Seattle and showed the Mariners and Kanas City Royals what he could do in an 8-5 win.delivers to a Kansas City Royals batter during the first inning of a baseball game at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Mo., Sunday, July 10, 2016. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner) ORG XMIT: MOOW103 (Orlin Wagner / Associated Press)

A GRIP ON SPORTS • In another day of excitement, the Mariners did something that may have signaled the end of their 2016 hopes. Even if they deny it. Read on.

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• What's the most important aspect of baseball? Pitching. Winning and great pitching go together like chocolate, marshmallows, graham crackers and a hot fire. You can't have one without the other. Especially these days when no one, and by that I mean no one, pitches all that long anymore. Starters look to the dugout as they near 100 pitches. Relievers come in, throw mid-90s and up and get one, two or three outs. Pitching depth is crucial. Want to win, have a strong bullpen. Yesterday, the Mariners traded away their best left-handed reliever. No one else has come close to what Mike Montgomery has done for them this season. How about an ERA of 2.15 in his relief appearances. Is that good enough? Recently, as the starting rotation has faltered, Montgomery even came out of the pen to make the last pre-All-Stare-Game start and did well. Yesterday, the M's traded him to the Chicago Cubs. Now, this isn't an indictment of the trade. The Mariners threw in another minor league arm and received first baseman Dan Vogelbach (pictured) and minor league pitcher Blackburn in return. Vogelbach was the key, a left-handed power hitter stuck in the minors because the Cubs have Anthony Rizzo, one of the best young first basemen in the game. In the long run, Vogelbach may be a perfect fit for the M's, a team in need of power with a home field that is just fine for left-handed hitters who can pull the ball. But for the now, the move means the M's are headed into a stretch run gunfight with one fewer bullet. Montgomery isn't the most crucial pitcher on the roster, sure, but he's the canary in the coal mine for the M's right now. His trade is a signal for the future. The bullpen needs all the power arms it can get, especially from the left side. Montgomery, while not a guy who throws 100 miles per hour, proved to have enough of a heater to get outs consistently. And his likely replacement, the returning-from-injury Charlie Furbush, hasn't. At least not for the past year. Who knows what Furbush will bring. He was solid once. But now? It's a roll of the dice. If it comes up sevens, then fine. But if not? The M's, who sit 5.5 games out of the final wild-card spot, have crapped out. This year. That's fine, but don't believe general manager Jerry Dipoto when he says the Montgomery trade won't affect the rest of the season. It will. 

• Speaking of Seattle professional franchises that haven't been successful this season (cue rim shot). Yep, the Sounders have become something a joke in the MLS this year. Last night, with a chance to salvage some semblance of respectability, they laid a second-half egg in the U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals. Leading 2-1, Seattle gave up three late goals and lost 4-2 to the L.A. Galaxy. It was meltdown of cry-in-your-beer proportions. This is a franchise that has been successful since its inception, pairing great ownership with solid coaching and star players to compete for the MLS title every season. Except this one. The Sounders are in last place and don't look as if they are going to turn their season around. When Obafemi Martins, one of their three designated players, bolted for China and big bucks, Sounders' fans knew it would be OK. The organization would find a capable replacement when the transfer window opened. And until then there was more than enough talent to hold on. Except neither has happened. A year after their rivals to the south, the Portland Timbers, rode a hot second half to an MLS Cup, the Sounders have floundered. And now they are in danger of ceding the Northwest to the team from Oregon. What's next? A sale and a move to Oklahoma City? That's about the only thing that could be worse than this season.

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• WSU: The Pac-12 quarterback situation is in a state of flux for just about everyone except Washington State and Washington. ... Another school with an entrenched starter at the position is UCLA, which is why the Bruins are a South favorite. ... Mike Leach makes less money in base pay than six other Pac-12 coaches. His team was 4-1 against the group last season. ... Drew Bledsoe's son has committed to playing quarterback for Northern Arizona.

• Gonzaga: The Few Good Men are in the Sweet 16 of a multi-million dollar basketball tournament. Jim Meehan explains how that's happened in this story. ... BYU's Kyle Collinsworth has signed with Dallas. ... The Cougars are still one of the Big 12's best expansion options.

• Indians: Spokane had enough hitting and pitching to earn a 7-2 series-ending win over Vancouver last night at Avista. Josh Horton has the story. ... Eugene clinched the South's first-half title. ... Everett, playing without its best player, lost to Tri-City.

• Mariners: It was jam-packed day for the M's. There was Felix Hernandez return to the starting rotation for the first time in more than a month. There was the Montgomery trade. There was the news first-round draft pick Kyle Lewis is out for the year with a major knee injury. There were three call-ups from the minors and three corresponding players sent down. And then there was another game-winning home run, this one by Leonys Martin. The last happened in the 11th inning and gave Seattle a 6-5 decision over the White Sox. ... The Ken Griffey Jr. biographical series continues, as do the accolades.

• Seahawks: Jeremy Lane got paid this offseason. How will he respond?

• Sounders: As we said, the 4-2 loss to the Galaxy is just another disappointment in a disappointing season.

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• I am in Las Vegas for a basketball tournament. When I got in the rental van yesterday, the thermometer read 124 degrees. Now I know it wasn't that hot, but really? Why couldn't my fellow Sicilians have located Sin City on, I don't know, the California coast or something? Until later ...



Vince Grippi
Vince Grippi is a freelance local sports blogger for spokesman.com. He also contributes to the SportsLink Blog.

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