What’s left to follow in Mariners’ lost season?

By Jerry Brewer | Seattle Times • Published July 17, 2008

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And the weird thing is, there are still 67 games left.

In their first 95 games, the Mariners fired a general manager, a field manager and a first baseman. They watched a major acquisition devolve into a mistake with a pitch count. They even turned a lesbian kiss into an uproar.

Sure would’ve been nice if the Mariners had paced themselves. Barring major trade-deadline theatrics, we’re in for a slow evaporation of this mercurial season. Even if the Mariners detonate the roster before July 31, two meandering months will still remain.

So this post-All-Star break quandary is more like a case study: How To Navigate Irrelevance.

(Sub-quandary No. 1: How To Create A Mercy Rule For Lost Seasons. Sub-quandary No. 2: How To Acquire Howard Lincoln-like Job Security.)

It will be a long journey to an empty October. Again.

It makes you miss the previous three seasons, when the Mariners were kinda-sorta in it until falling down a summer slide. Back in May, the thought was that nothing is tougher than following a team out of the race in May. The next month, the same was said for June.

Now the rest of July, August and September looms. It almost makes you miss Richie Sexson, if only for the punching-bag pleasure he provided. OK, maybe not. Nevertheless, these are cumbersome times.

What to do? I’ve already expressed my preference for the Mariners to make merely moderate change at the trade deadline. If that happens, then Dave Niehaus’ Hall of Fame induction will be both the feel-good story of the summer and the precursor to nothingness.

Sure, the baseball team has plenty to do. Interim general manager Lee Pelekoudas is trying to prove himself. Interim manager Jim Riggleman is trying to prove himself. President Chuck Armstrong is trying to rustle up other candidates for both jobs. There are young players to be developed, and old players to be scrutinized. But as the focus shifts even more toward the future, the present may become even less enjoyable.

You probably think that the year couldn’t be more joyless, but it can be. Unless the Mariners figure out how to nurture and win at the same time, it must be that way. When a team is fighting to stay out of last place nearly two-thirds into the season, it’s foolish to eschew evaluation in favor of winning a couple more games.