Still, as avid Yankees fan Marvin Lee Aday – better known by his stage name of Meat Loaf – once put it: two out of three ain’t bad.
But Eric Wedge wasn’t gloating after the 7-1 defeat, nor should he have been. When a crowd of 37,200 shows up and watches his team take a 6-0 deficit into the bottom third inning, it’s difficult for the manager to put on a happy face.
“We’ve got to be aware of what the team is doing, but we’ve also got to push to get better,” Wedge said. “You can’t stand pat. You’ve got to be aware of what’s around the corner, and you’ve got to continue to get better. Because you either get better or worse. There’s no in between.”
The Mariners are a paradox: As a club, they’re overachieving, even though several position players are underachieving. Ichiro Suzuki, for instance, is no longer a cinch to hit over .300. The leadoff man began the afternoon at .277, then went 0-for-4, with a bases-loaded double play, to fall to .272.
Third baseman Chone Figgins, who follows Ichiro in the batting order, would be thrilled to hit .272. He’d settle for .250, but first he must reach the rarefied air of .200. Another 0-for-4 afternoon against the Yankees left Figgins in an 0-for-19 slump that’s dropped his batting average to .193.
And then there’s Michael Saunders, who had the unenviable chore of batting from the left side against the left-handed Sabathia.
Briefly buoyed by the sense his retooled batting stance had produced improved at-bats toward the end of spring training, Saunders appears lost. He typically gets a first-pitch fastball to hit, and he typically takes it for strike one.
Once the count is 0-1 on Saunders, the rest of the at-bat devolves into a struggle to avoid humiliation. There wasn’t much avoidance Sunday, when his last out of the game dropped his batting average to a team-low .168.
“He’s been a concern offensively for us for a while,” Wedge said. “He’s had trouble getting over that hump. Some of it’s mechanical in regards to his approach, and some of it’s mental.
“You’ve got to take some risks up there from time to time, and you can’t be afraid of changes. Not just adjustments, but changes, to see what’s on the other side.”
Wedge was referring to Saunders’ disinclination to grip it and rip it early in the count, but the manager also could have been talking about the Mariners in general.
Take some risks. See what’s on the other side. Don’t be afraid to make changes.
Three suggestions for change that immediately make the Mariners a better team.
• Replace Figgins at third base with utility infielder Luis Rodriguez.
I know, Rodriguez also is hitting below .200, but at least he has the excuse of limited playing time (61 at-bats parsed over two months.)
Figgins, on the other hand, has started 47 out of 51 games, and we’re still waiting for him to show some kind of sign that a turnaround is imminent.
Figgins used to be a patient hitter adept at coaxing walks and then using his speed on the basepaths. But he’s walked only 11 times in 51 games, or two more walks than Rodriguez has drawn in limited action in 24 games.
It’s almost certain Figgins would complain about a diminished role – he sulked last season when he was moved down to No. 9 in the batting order for a few days – and Wedge doesn’t want to compromise team harmony. But a manager’s moves shouldn’t be dictated by a reluctance to anger a player; a manager’s moves should be dictated by a desire to win.
Rodriguez replacing Figgins at third base on an everyday basis gives the Mariners a better chance to win.
• Move Brendan Ryan into Figgins’ former spot in the batting order.
Ryan is hot – he extended his hitting streak to nine games Sunday – and has shown the versatility required of a No. 2 batter. He works counts for walks, puts the ball in play, always hustles out of the box.
Ryan reached base three times against Sabathia, but with Jack Wilson, Saunders and Chris Gimenez combining to go a collective 1-for-10 behind him, Ryan was unable to score.
• Make the tough decision to return Saunders to Tacoma, replacing his spot on the major-league team with Ryan Langerhans. (This would entail some clerical work involving the 40-man roster – Langerhans isn’t on it anymore – but trims can be made to the minor-league system.)
What’s important is to give Saunders an opportunity to clear his head and, basically, start from scratch. Although he was happy with his new-stance adjustment out of spring training, the last week in March is not the best time to be experimenting with mechanics.
The Mariners aren’t doing Saunders any favors by playing him as an occasional starter and late-inning defensive replacement. He’d be better off in Tacoma, where he can work on swinging the bat early in the count.
As for the weekend that was against the Yankees, two out of three ain’t bad. Nor is a .500 record.
But don’t be afraid to make changes and take some risks. Don’t be afraid to see what’s on the other side.
john.mcgrath@thenewstribune.com
