A Grip on Sports: Will this be one of those years when we hurt ourselves slapping hands over a Mariners’ playoff win? Could be

A GRIP ON SPORTS • Weekends, if done right, leave one sore on Monday morning. Muscle aches. Maybe a sore joint or two, depending on age and activity levels. And hands. Can’t forget the hands. Too aggressive high-fives with fellow M’s fans can lead to a swollen palm that is hard to explain to your work buddies.

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• Been there done that. Thirty years ago, to be less-than-precise – but easy to understand. And then again in 2001, for much of the season. Maybe in 2022, but that season was kind of blur. The first, last and most-anticipated times the Mariners were in the postseason.

Where will 2025 land on that “why-is-my-hand-so-sore” pantheon?

It’s tough to determine on the most-important day of August – at least personally. The Mariners are playing well, sure, having won seven (fixed from earlier) in a row and 9 of 10 since the trade deadline acquisitions of Eugenio Suárez and Josh Naylor. But part of that can be attributed to schedule, 10 home games against the Rangers, White Sox and Rays. That’s not Murderers’ Row. The Orioles, Seattle’s host starting Tuesday, are not schedule killers either but the next two opponents on the M’s nine-game East Coast swing – the Mets and Phillies – are.

Meanwhile, the hated, cheatin’ Astros are home for six, facing decently hot Boston and then Baltimore. While the M’s face the Phillies, Houston is in Detroit.

In other words, when Cal Raleigh et al return to T-Mobile Aug. 22 vs. the A’s, the schedule shouldn’t have made much difference in how the A.L. West’s best teams fared.

What should? How about health? ESPN looked at each contending teams’ injured players recently and which teams might get the biggest boosts from their return.

The Astros are without Yordan Álvarez, not only one of the best left-handed hitters in the league but also a thorn in Seattle’s psyche. His misdiagnosed hand injury has kept him out since May but he’s expected back soon. That will give them a boost.

As much of a boost as the return of Bryce Miller and Victor Robles? Probably not. Robles adds more speed, energy and emotion to the lineup. Plus another right-handed hitting outfielder. And Miller should either replace Logan Evans in the rotation or, if needed, be added to it, allowing more rest down the stretch without having a drop-off in performance. Both should be back before the month ends.

As long as they don’t high-five their teammates too hard.

• I’m not doing much high-fiving when it comes to college football these days, for a variety of reasons. But I have noticed something interesting about my Cougar friends. They are.

Look, Cougs are a pretty optimistic bunch anyway. They have to be, as the school’s long athletic history has been one of perpetual underdog status. The school’s football team rarely enters any season among the betting favorites nationally – or even in a majority of their scheduled games.

Fine by their fans. A 4.5-point dog to the hated Huskies, as was the case last season? That’s great. And then they gloat all the way to the cashier’s window after their beloved Cougs win.

Even losses, hard-to-swallow losses – you know the term – don’t kill their optimism. They are the kid in Ronald Reagan’s story about a room full of horse manure come to life.

But that doesn’t mean their optimism this season is not warranted – despite a schedule put together by the Marquis de Sade.

Back when Washington hired Kalen DeBoer, the one thing that stood out to me was his won/loss record. I didn’t care if the guy had coached at Wossamotta U. A 79-9 record showed the guy knew how to win. And it showed in Montlake, as he was just as good, going 25-3 in his two season.

Washington State’s first-year coach, Jimmy Rogers, has a similar, if less extensive, resume. He was 27-3 in his two seasons in charge at South Dakota State, finishing first and top-four in the FCS. And, thanks to the portal, he was able to bring along many of his top players. The optimism, in this case, seems justified.

Unless having to play 12 games in four different time zones – including three in the East – and having only three home games after Sept. 20, does them in.

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WSU: Around the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, the A.P. preseason poll will be out today (right after our deadline). And, no, it won’t decide who is in the CFP. … We linked this story about Washington’s first half of preseason camp when it ran in the Times. It is on the S-R website this morning. … Dan Lanning had something to say about one of his players waiting to go to trial. … Though he’s not expected to become the starting quarterback, Colorado’s Ryan Staub is still a team leader. … A year at the position has given a Utah safety confidence. … The same can be said about an Arizona receiver.

EWU and Idaho: Around the (current and future) Big Sky, Idaho State announced Jordan Cooke will start at quarterback. … UC Davis held a scrimmage over the weekend. No word on how many high-fives.

Indians: Spokane picked up a road win against Eugene on Sunday – Dave Nichols has the story – in extra innings. But the story we want to direct you to is Dave’s piece on the declining number of Black players in MLB, and how the Indians’ roster doesn’t reflect that decline.

Mariners: No. 45. That’s what you wanted to know, right? Did Raleigh hit a home run. Yes, he did. In the first inning. It helped propel the M’s to a 6-3 win that was tighter than the score might indicate. … Ichiro should start a new career as a motivational speaker. … Colt Emerson is adjusting nicely to Double-A.

Seahawks: Project a 53-man roster? Now? Bob Condotta does it. … Sam Darnold and Geno Smith are pretty even in Mike Sando’s quarterback tiers. … Darnold may play this week. … Shaquill Griffin is back. He is happy about it. … The Athletic ran an excerpt from Michael-Shawn Duggar’s book on the Legion of Boom. … Pete Carroll defending Smith and his double-birds? Sure he did. Carroll isn’t going to abandon his quarterback.

Storm: Brittney Sykes did her job, scoring 27 points. But even with that effort from their newest guard, the Storm fell 94-91 to the Los Angeles Sparks, Seattle’s fifth consecutive defeat.

Sounders: The MLS team in Seattle is streaking too. The other way. The Sounders had no trouble with the up-and-down L.A. Galaxy, winning 4-0 for their 10th consecutive match without a loss.

Reign: Portland scored four times and had little trouble with their neighbors from up I-5.

Golf: Scottie Scheffler was in contention yesterday in Memphis. He didn’t win, coming up a stroke short of the playoff between eventual winner Justin Rose and U.S. Open champ J.J. Spaun. But the heartbreak story of the weekend? Fairway Jesus, AKA Tommy Fleetwood, choked again in a PGA Tour event. … Jordan Spieth will not be moving on but Rickie Fowler is. … The Stanford senior-to-be Megha Ganne won the U.S. Women’s Amateur title at Bandon Dunes in a relatively drama-free 36 holes.

UFC: Big news for the sport. It is leaving ESPN and the pay-per-view world for Paramount+, CBS and streaming. Expect to see fewer UFC highlights on ESPN and less hype on the WorldWide Leader.

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• My Monday morning soreness has nothing to do with weekending. Every day is one for me. But it does have to do with mowing the lawn, taking the dog on two long walks and spending two-plus hours cleaning the house and garage. I put in 22,000 steps yesterday and have 22,000 parts of my body complaining about it. By the way, though she does not read this column, I want to wish my best friend and lovely bride Kim a happy 46th wedding anniversary. I have made one great decision in my life. Only one. But it has washed away about 22,000 bad ones. Until later …