Category Archives: Mike Zunino

Quick hits: Robbins/Jonson, Vettleson, Pumas, Montero/Zunino, QB Wilson

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Conner Robbins, former University of Washington golfer and a Central Kitsap grad, tied for second and Bainbridge’s Carl Jonson, who just turned pro after playing four years at UNLV, tied for fourth at the 52nd Lilac City Invitational in Spokane earlier this month. Here’s the story from The Spokesman Review.

The long-hitting Robbins gave the mini-tour grind a while a few years back, took some time off and has played well in the tournaments he’s entered. He’s now playing out of the Tacoma Country Club.

Jonson is playing in this week’s Colorado Open at Green Valley Ranch Golf Club in Denver.

Drew Vettleson update: Drew, another Central Kitsap grad, turned 24 on Sunday. The former first-round (42nd overall pick in 2010) of the Tampa Rays, is with the Washington Nationals’ Double-A club in Harrisburg, PA. Vettleson, an outfielder, went on the DL early last season and it took him some time to find his swing. Once again, he found himself on the DL this year after breaking his hamate bone. He is hitting .211 after going 2-for-5 on Saturday. He got off to a slow start, but has had five multi-hit games in his last nine going into Monday.

Harrisburg hitting coach Mark Harris had this to say about Vettleson at the league’s All-Star break:

“Drew missed a lot of time last year as far as experience in this league. … In Drew’s case, I think he’s adjusting to getting pitched a certain way. He’s learning the value of doing something with your pitch to hit when you get it, so you’re not always down in the count all of the time. … With him, I think he just needs to get at-bats.”

Pumas stand for defense: The Kitsap Pumas start their USL Premier Development League postseason journey on Friday in Tucson, Arizona, where they will play host FC Tucson in a Western Conference semifinal at 8 p.m.. The Pumas (10-0-2) are one of two PDL teams in the 63-team league to finish the season without a loss.

Kitsap surrendered a league-low four goals in its 12 PDL games.

Pumas assistant coach Shaun Scobie praised the defense on the team’s website after its 1-0 win over the Sounders 23 last week:

“To have the best defensive record in the entire league is not a fluke. The boys work hard every day trying to be better than they were the day before and it’s that mentality that’s got us to this point.”

If the Pumas win, they will face the Sounders FC U23-Burlingame (Calif.) Dragons winner on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.. The champion moves on to the PDL’s Final Four. Kitsap won the tournament in 2011 when the Pumas hosted at Memorial Stadium and they were second a year ago to the Michigan Bucks.

On another Pumas’ note, The Sun’s Jeff Graham had an interesting take on owner Robin Waite’s interest in taking the team from the fourth-tier PDL to the third-tier USL.

More Montero, less Zunino: Jim Moore, who writes a weekly column for The Sun, also writes for 710 ESPN Seattle, where he co-hosts an afternoon radio show. Moore’s latest column for ESPN centered on why the Mariners didn’t keep Jesus Montero around. They sent Montero back to Triple-A Tacoma Monday. I’m thinking the same as Moore on this move. Why not send Jesus Sucre to Tacoma and make Montero the backup catcher? Yeah, yeah, he wasn’t much of a defensive catcher in the past, but he’s slimmed down, and according to what everybody is saying, he’s a more dedicated player than in the past. His bat just might be worth any defensive deficiencies he might have. ‘K’unino entered Monday’s game with a .158 batting average and was striking out almost 36 percent of the time. He’s the worst hitter in major league baseball. What do the M’s have to lose by letting Montero catch 2-3 games a week?

Wilson links: The quarterback’s contract-extension negotiations with the Seattle Seahawks has taken on a life of its own. Here are a few recent stories about it:

Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk says the time to do a new contract it is now.

During an interview at the ESPYs Wilson said once again that his contract situation “will work out.”

Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times wrote about Wilson’s agent, Mark Rodgers, and the relationship he has with Seattle’s young star.

Here’s what Pete Carroll had to say about the contract talks between the Seahawks and Wilson. “He’s crucial, as all of our guys are,” Carroll told the media in Los Angeles while accepting an award from ESPN for his humanitarian work. “We love Russell and we want him back playing for us forever. There’s a lot of work being done. It’s underway right now and maybe it happens, I don’t know. We’re hoping for it.”

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Mariners come home in last place; is it time to panic?

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They were supposed to challenge for first place this season.

Twenty-eight games into the season, the Seattle Mariners are in last place, seven games out of first in the AL West. They’ve lost six of their last seven.

What’s up?

“I think the baseball gods are testing us a little bit,” said manager Lloyd McClendon following a second straight walk off loss to the Anaheim Angeles on Wednesday.

I wonder if McClendon believes in the Church of Baseball? You know, the one Annie Savoy (Susan Sarandon) talked about in the movie “Bull Durham.”

Annie’s philosophy:

I believe in the Church of Baseball. I’ve tried all the major religions, and most of the minor ones. I’ve worshipped Buddha, Allah, Brahma, Vishnu, Siva, trees, mushrooms, and Isadora Duncan. I know things. For instance, there are 108 beads in a Catholic rosary and there are 108 stitches in a baseball. When I heard that, I gave Jesus a chance. But it just didn’t work out between us. The Lord laid too much guilt on me. I prefer metaphysics to theology. You see, there’s no guilt in baseball, and it’s never boring… which makes it like sex. There’s never been a ballplayer slept with me who didn’t have the best year of his career. Making love is like hitting a baseball: you just gotta relax and concentrate. Besides, I’d never sleep with a player hitting under .250… not unless he had a lot of RBIs and was a great glove man up the middle. You see, there’s a certain amount of life wisdom I give these boys. I can expand their minds. Sometimes when I’ve got a ballplayer alone, I’ll just read Emily Dickinson or Walt Whitman to him, and the guys are so sweet, they always stay and listen. ‘Course, a guy’ll listen to anything if he thinks it’s foreplay. I make them feel confident, and they make me feel safe, and pretty. ‘Course, what I give them lasts a lifetime; what they give me lasts 142 games. Sometimes it seems like a bad trade. But bad trades are part of baseball – now who can forget Frank Robinson for Milt Pappas, for God’s sake? It’s a long season and you gotta trust it. I’ve tried ’em all, I really have, and the only church that truly feeds the soul, day in, day out, is the Church of Baseball.

Baseball gods or no baseball gods, other than Nelson Cruz (,333, 14 HRs, 26 RBI) and Felix Hernandez (5-0, 1.73 ERA ), there’s not a lot to get excited about right now when it comes to the Mariners.

Annie Savoy wouldn’t have a lot of choices when it comes to finding a hitter to sleep with. Other than Cruz, Robinson Cano (.263), Kyle Seager (.255) and Seth Smith (.250) are the only players hitting above .250.

This is a bad baseball team right now. Fernando Rodney has eight saves, but a 5.56 ERA. Hishaski Iwakuma is on the DL, Taijuan Walker (1-3, 8.74 ERA) and James Paxton (0-2, 5.08 ERA) were thought to be can’t-miss prospects, and now you know why they play the games.

It’s frustrating for the fans because the franchise had such lofty expectation coming into this season. The Mariners were considered, by just about everybody, a pretty good bet to advance to the postseason for the first time since 2001.

Seattle opened the season as 12-1 favorites to win the World Series, one of the four favorites in MLB according to the sports book Bovada. The odds have dropped to 33-1 and the Mariners now own the fourth-worst record in baseball.

Is it time to panic?

The Brewers (9-19, .321), Phillies (10-19, .345) and Indians (10-16, .385) are the only MLB teams with worst records than Seattle (11-17, .393).

Catcher Mike Zunino is hitting .177 and the strikeouts (31) keep coming.

Dustin Ackley is off to another slow start, hitting .182.

The team is hitting .236 with an American League-worst .289 on-base percentage. Only San Francisco (63) has scored fewer runs than Seattle (65). That’s an important statistic, right? Scoring runs is the name of the game.

Only Toronto (109) and Boston (95) have walked more hitters than Seattle (90) pitchers. Opponents are hitting .256 against the Mariners; the league average is .251.

Seattle’s also not getting it done on defense. The Mariners are tied for 10th in fielding percentage (.982) and have made 19 errors in 28 games.

I repeat: Is it time to panic?

Will Zunino figure it out at the plate?

Will Cano find a semblance of a power stroke? He’s on pace to hit 6 home runs.

Will Smith, Seth Ruggiano and the Rickie Weeks — three off-season acquisitions — come to life. So far, only Smith has produced and his numbers are marginal at best.

Austin Jackson’s on the DL with an ankle injury, but the center fielder wasn’t getting the job done anyway.

The M’s have already started making moves. Chris Taylor was recalled from Triple-A Tacoma and is now starting at shortstop. Brad Miller is reportedly not happy about being turned into a super utility player. And if Miller is the super utility guy, where does that leave Willie Bloomquist? Can a team afford to carry two super utility guys?

What happens to the offense if Cruz goes into a slump, and you know it’ll happen at some point. What happens if Hernandez hit the wall at some point? Will others step up?

Is it time to panic?

As bad as the results have been thus far, I think it’s too early to throw in the towel. Check back after the upcoming home stand. The Marineros play Oakland three times, the Padres visit for two and Boston invades Safeco for a four-game series.

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Thursday musings: NFL Draft, Mayweather-Pacquiao, M’s …

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Just the numbers, with a little commentary sprinkled in as we head to a big weekend for sports fans:

NFL Draft/Seahawks

9: That’s how many ex-Oregon Ducks are on the Philadelphia Eagles’ roster. Somehow, I think head coach Chip Kelly is going to make it No. 10 when the Eagles figure out a way to trade up for the No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft. Latest rumors have Cleveland dealing a pair of first-round picks to Tennessee for the No. 2 pick. The Eagles would then package QB Sam Bradford to the Browns and Kelly gets the Duck he really wants. Mariota could be the next Russell Wilson, but he won’t have the same level of talent around him if he winds up in Philly.

11: The number of picks the Seahawks have in this week’s draft. With Seattle reportedly not picking up the option on Bruce Irvin’s contract and rumors of a possible trade with Atlanta, the Hawks might have a serious need for an outsider linebacker. How about former Washington star Shaq Thompson, who could also project as a safety or running back?

Mayweather-Pacquiao

$40,955.25: Someone paid that much for a ticket to Saturday’s fight at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, according to StubHub.

$6,820: Via StrubHub, the average price for a ticket to a fight that has brought boxing out of the dark ages.

I’m not predicting a winner, but I am predicting a rematch. The fighters are expected to split $300 million this time around, why not do it again?

Mariners

.328/.316: Batting averages of prospects Chris Taylor and Jesus Montero at Triple-A Tacoma.

.229/.205/.194/.192/.121: Batting averages of Austin Jackson, Rickie Weeks, Logan Morrison, Dustin Ackley and Mike Zunino.

It’s still early, but if things don’t change by the middle of May, I’m going to figure out a way to get Taylor and Montero in the lineup. Taylor’s a better defensive shortstop than Brad Miller, who should be able to play the outfield or even first base. Montero can be the fulltime DH if you keep Nelson Cruz in RF, or split time at first with Morrison. Release Weeks, try to trade Ackley and hope Jackson and Zunino, both stellar defenders, can figure it out at the plate.

4-0: That’s Felix Hernandez’s record. This is his 10^th fulltime season as a starter, and it’s crazy he’s never won 20 games, but that’s because he was part of a lot of bad Seattle teams. He was 19-5 in 2009 when he was second in the Cy Young balloting. He was 13-12 in 2010 when he won the Cy Young and 15-6 a year ago when he should have won the award, but finished second to Cleveland’s Corey Kluber. Prediction: Felix gets to the magical 20-victory mark this season and wins another Cy Young.

10: Numbers of home runs Nelson Cruz has hit thus far. That puts him on pace to hit 77. Here’s a look at his latest blast, measured at 483-feet.

MLB predictions

The Nationals, Mariners, and Indians were among the trendy preseason picks to make a big splash this season. The Nats (9-13) just crawled out of the NL East cellar; the M’s (10-11) are third in the AL West and Cleveland (7-13) is last in the AL Central.

The Astros (14-7) and Yankees (13-9), picked for last-place finishes, are first in the AL West and AL East. Not many of the experts gave the Royals much love after reaching the World Series, but KC (14-7) is proving everybody wrong.

The Dodgers (13-8), Cardinals (14-6) and Tigers (14-7) are among the predicted favorites off to solid starts.

Chambers Bay/U.S. Open

$249: That’s what it’ll cost a Kitsap County resident to play Chambers Bay from May 1-July 12, providing you can get a tee time. Here’s my column after playing Chambers Bay this week.

Chambers Bay is already creating quite a buzz for the uniqueness that it offers. Ryan Palmer said it wasn’t a championship course.

Kentucky Derby

149: This is the 149th edition of the Kentucky Derby. Horse racing is just a blip on the sports radar anymore and the Derby will take a backseat to the fight in Vegas, the NFL Draft and NBA and NHL playoffs. For those of you interested, American Pharaoh is the 5-2 favorite and it’ll break from the No. 18 post position on Saturday. Here’s the derby odds.

20: This is the 20th season of horse racing at Emerald Downs, which opened April 18. There will be racing Friday, Saturday and Sunday this weekend at the Auburn track.

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Marshawn link; Mariners lineup; Kitsap’s Umpqua connection rolling

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A Marshawn Kind of Way: This is an intriguing profile of Beast Mode. Lynch didn’t agree to an interview following the Seattle Seahawks win over the Eagles on Sunday, but MMQB writer Robert Klemko does a pretty good job of telling Marshawn’s story from people who know him and understand him. .

“He’s an introvert, but he doesn’t want to conform,” says former Seattle quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. “What made Seattle perfect, and allowed him to flourish, was the fact that Pete Carroll never made him conform. Pete never gave him a dress code. Him talking to the media was not treated like part of the main thing. It’s a set of rules somebody at Park Avenue came up with, and they mean nothing to him.”

“The best teammate I’ve ever had,” said Seattle linebacker Malcomb Smith.

“There are days when I don’t feel like dealing with media,” says Ravens wide receiver Steve Smith, a friend of Lynch’s. “People think he’s hiding something because he doesn’t want to talk. He does his job and does it well, and he’s not interested in other things. There are people who use the media to give false perceptions of who they are. He’s not interested in any of that. He just wants to ball.”

Mariners Lineup

Would you be happy if the Seattle Mariners 2015 Opening Day lineup looked something like this?

1. Austin Jackson, CF

2. Melky Cabrera or Alex Rios, RF

3. Robinson Cano, 2B

4. Nelson Cruz, DH

5. Kyle Seager, 3B

6. Logan Morrison, 1B

7. Dustin Ackley, LF

8. Mike Zunino, C

9. Chris Taylor or Brad Miller, SS

Felix Hernandez, P

Everything’s in place except for the No. 2 spot in the batting order. The Mariners are believed to be the front-runners to sign Cabrera, who is coming off a year in which he hit .301 with 16 home runs and an .808 OPS for Toronto. The switch-hitter seems like an ideal fit. The M’s are also believed to have targeted Alex Rios, who hit .280 with a .709 OPS for Texas last year. Either would be a significant upgrade, although I’m still intrigued about the upside of James Jones. He stole 27 bases in 108 games a year ago and we saw the excitement he brings to the game when he’s putting the ball in play.

Maybe the M’s will pull the trigger on a blockbuster trade and wind up with Matt Kemp or Justin Upton? Lookout Landing takes a look at which player would provide you with the best value going forward.

Lighting it up for Umpqua

Umpqua Community College’s Ashli Payne (so., Olympic High) had 35 points and 10 rebounds, and Sawyer Kluge (fr., Bremerton) added 16 points and seven rebounds in a 69-63 win over Lane in the championship game of the Bellevue College Bulldog Classic this weekend. Kluge had 31 points and eight rebounds against Big Bend; Payne went for 22 points, nine rebounds and six assists in that game. Umpqua, second at the NWAC Championships a year ago, is off to a 6-0 start. Payne’s averaging 19.2 points and 8.3 rebounds; Kluge 16.3 and 5.3.

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Yes, it’s Miller Time

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Shortstop Brad Miller should be in the starting lineup when the Seattle Mariners take on the Chicago Cubs on Friday at Safeco Field.

The minor-league sensation found out after Thursday’s Triple-A game in Tacoma that he was being called up to the big leagues. Looks like Brendan Ryan is a the M’s new utility man.

Here’s a report from Ryan Divish of the Tacoma News Tribune.

Miller, Ryan Franklin, Mike Zunino and Kyle Seager. Now, if only Justin Smoak and Dustin Ackley can put it together. That’s not a bad nucleus going forward. I think the first three are the real deal, and there’s still hope for Smoak and Ackley, isn’t there? And Jesus Montero could be a pretty good DH, right?

Hey, be positive.

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