What-if?

I’m enjoying the baseball season this year.  The Mariners are fun to watch.  They are a team that is better as a whole than the sum of its parts.  This year’s M’s are a team that I can appreciate for their play on the field and for results that have them within spitting distance of 1^st place.

They have far exceeded anything we expected.  Behind it is a GM – Jack Zduriencik (a.k.a. Dr. Z, a.k.a.  JZ) – that has established a strategy and has executed transactions that align with the set strategy.

Unfortunately, prior to JZ, Seattle suffered 5 years under a GM that had no set strategy; who made transactions that seemed as random as this years Dow Jones Average.

So as we head into the 2^nd half of the season, I provide this year’s what-if . . . Seattle never had to suffer the ridiculous and much too painful to be considered comical Bavasi regime.

Bavasi never existed Line-up (players in bold are players traded by Bavasi):
RF Ichiro Suzuki . . . . . . .362   6hr   24 rbi
SS Asdrubal Cabrera .300  2hr  34 rbi & filthy fielding (see double play v M’s)
LF Adam Jones . . . . . .303  12hr  47 rbi
1B Russell Branyan . . . . . .280  22hr  49 rbi
CF Franklin Gutierrez . . . .295  10hr   37 rbi
DH Shin-Soo Choo . . . .292  13hr   54 rbi
3B Carlos Guillen . . . . .286  10hr   54 rbi (last year’s stats, injured this year)
C Rob Johnson . . . . . . . . . .203    1hr    19 rbi
2B Jose Lopez . . . . . . . . . . .256  12hr    51 rbi
Kangaroo Court Judge, Clubhouse Jester, Hall of Famer In-waiting
Ken Griffey Jr. . . . . . . . . . . .219   10hr   26 rbi (he may not have a position on this team, but we’ll keep him . . . he tickles Ichiro for chrissakes).

Bavasi never existed Pitching Staff:
Tim Lincecum . . . 10 – 2   2.33 era
(Note: Bavasi was an idiot.  Zduriencik is not.  In my mind, Dr. Z would have taken local boy Lincecum, and I’m sticking with that assumption for this theoretical reality I have created)
Felix Hernandez . . . 9 – 3   2.53 era
Jason Vargas . . . . . . 3 – 3   3.82 era
Chris Tillman . . . 7 – 5   2.50 era (Triple-A stats)
Garrett Olson . . . . . . 3 – 2   4.42 era

Bavasi never existed Bullpen:
David Aardsma . . . . . 2 – 3   1.96 era 20 sv 6 hld
Rafael Soriano . . . . 1 – 1   1.48 era 12 sv 6 hld
George Sherrill . . . . 0 – 1   2.41 era 20 sv
Mark Lowe . . . . . . . . . . 1 – 4   3.24 era 1 sv 13 hld
Matt Thornton . . . . . 4 – 2   2.48 era 13 hld
Dude #1 to do mop-up/ long relief
Dude #2 to do mop-up/ long relief
(Note: I don’t blame Bavasi for getting rid of Ryan Franklin. He was suspended for taking steroids and was not producing.  Most GM’s would’ve sent him packing).

I know it’s unfair to speculate on what the specific roster would be today.  JZ would undoubtedly have made different moves if he inherited a more robust roster, thus some of this year’s additions would most likely not be on the team.  Nonetheless, the roster listed above, with the names and stats of players producing for other teams around the League, is a primary indicator of just how bad Bavasi actually was.  He completely depleted the M’s farm system and received nothing in return.

Of the players on the current roster, Bavasi was responsible for acquiring only five of them: Adrian Beltre, Erik Bedard, Jarrod Washburn, Miguel Batista, and Sean White.  That’s five players in five years.

In return, Bavasi filled rosters throughout the Major Leagues with good, if not outstanding, players.  There are 16 players on current MLB rosters that were in the M’s system before Bavasi joined the franchise that he generously gifted away.  Of the 16 players only Adam Jones, George Sherrill, and Chris Tillman were exchanged for a player on the M’s current roster.  All 3 were used to get Erik Bedard.  I would much prefer to have the combined production of the three former M’s than the output from a pitcher who can’t get out of the 6^th inning and spends half his time on the DL.

Additionally, only Chris Tillman was below Triple-A at the time of trade.  So the excuse that teams always trade low-level prospects (see David Ortiz) does not apply.

So, let’s celebrate a great 1^st half of a season and a new direction for a team in need of one.  Let’s celebrate the genius of Zduriencik.  And, most importantly as the trade deadline approaches, let’s celebrate that Bill Bavasi is far, far away from Seattle and from doing any further damage to the future success of our beloved Mariners.