Blame M’s woes on Bavasi

The early-season struggles of the Seattle Mariners are directly reflective of a front office that is satisfied with contending instead of winning. General manager Bill Bavasi can be pointed to as the main culprit in this complacency, as evidenced by his comments at the end of last season.

After an 88-win, 74-loss campaign that saw the Mariners collapse in August and September due to an overworked bullpen, poor hitting, and a lack of depth in the starting rotation, Bavasi told reporters what a successful season the team had just completed and how the city of Seattle should be very proud of its team. His comments leave this fan wondering if Bavasi watched the same team I watched over the last two months of his season.

Bavasi also has a penchant for throwing money at players the Mariners seem to have no interest in keeping for any length of time, as seen by the recent cut of right fielder Brad Wilkerson. A one-year contract of $3 million for a player the Mariners cut after he played in 19 games? Did Bavasi have no foresight as to the long-term plans of the team? Is it any wonder then why Bavasi was fired by the Anaheim Angels in 1999 for these same kinds of bonehead moves?

Until the front-office brass in Seattle learns that talent, not money, wins baseball games, the mediocrity of the Mariners is sure to continue.

Matthew Del Riccio

Spokane