Personally, I find this whole line of argument pointless. Whether Sexson did or didn't get to pinch hit in this or that situation, what games he sits on the bench versus what games he rides the pine.

The only thing that matters at this point is that Sexson (along with Vidro and Cairo) have no business being in a major league lineup. Seeing as the team will not contend for anything in 2008, and those guys have no future with the club, they need to be gone. Yesterday. That's the only debate that has any bearing past the pissing and moaning over single at-bats in a lost season.

Hindsight is 20-20, but your comment on a thin power hitting bench brought back fond memories of Norton....... Sorry, but I am losing the faith with the Manager and his decisions both during the game and between games.........

THANK GOD! now we're gonna win a world series.

I hope they found a way to increase his bat speed, he seems to be over matched with hard throwing pitchers.

Thanks Geoff for giving the other side. As a manager of youth baseball you want to put kids in where they can succeed, so McLaren logic makes sense especially when there is nothing to lose; or should that be win. I agree that Sexon needs to be gone but now that the Ms aren't going anywhere it may make sense to get him turned around for the trade deadline. I know that has the wild assumption Bavasi is capable of making a trade that benefits the Ms.

MAC JUSTIFIES CAIRO AT BAT

Seattle, WA (AP) Seattle Mariner manager John McLaren finally came clean on his decision to leave Miguel Cairo in to bat in the ninth inning in the M's loss Sunday to Detroit:

"Miguel only needed one more at bat to get his Letter. He doesn't have a date for the Prom yet and we thought it would help if he came to school Monday morning with a new letterman's jacket." Cairo was later spotted by other students with his new M's jacket hanging out at Shelley Witzman's locker between 4th and 5th period.

Nice to finally have that mystery solved!

Thinking back on it I really don't care Richie didn't PH yesterday. Neither him or Cairo should be on the roster right now. I don't want to hear the excuse "the M;s have no better options" because they did; Gerg Norton.

The M's set themselves up to fail.

Of all the bizarre decisions this year, releasing Norton is right at the top.

So the Big K is back in the lineup, ought we to applaud of vomit? I think it makes me gag moving toward the latter, however, it is a sickness as in sick to death of Sexson. As some one just said, neither Sexson nor Cairo have any business on this team, both are useless as worn out old coats that won't shed water any more.

The '08 season is over, time to reconstruct this roster - out with the old, bad and K making deadbeats, time to look to the farm and make some astute trades for major league ready prospects in creating a better roster for '09.

The only concern with Sexson is just how bad will he stink. You know that old saying, "there is something rotten in Seattle, and it ain't the fish." Well, take a guess as to who is one of the stinkers and add a couple of dead weight veterans whom John McLarin adores, then you will know where that smell is coming from - its got the seal of approval from the Mariners FO.

This whole thing with Sexson is just another in a long line of worthless attempts to fix something that can't be fixed. Sexson may indeed have a couple of decent years left in him if he were allowed to play in bandboxes like Philly or Cincinnati, but basically he's done. When everyone in the world can see that he has absolutely no shot at hitting a slider on the outside corner, it's over. Add on the fact that he's become a total head case in front of the home folks, and you have a guy that is begging to be released.

But everything about this team is screwy, and almost all of it should fall at the feet of Bavasi. Sexson is just the cherry on top of the giant mud pie that is this organization. There is no cohesion, no apparent plan, no sense that Bavasi has much of a radar for talent or for what it takes to build a winner. Which is why I, for the first time in my life, actually want this team to keep losing. It's really the only way I can foresee any sort of meaningful changes (i.e. firing Bavasi and McLaren) taking place.

Geoff - "Sorry, you just can't ignore something like that. You can't have a guy like Sexson struggle all season, to the point where the fan base is howling for his release, sit his bat for five days, then throw him in there against a major league closer throwing 90-plus mph."

On the other hand he is a Pro. If he had made contact he could have put a lot of BS behind him. Too bad he's so fragile.

Actually I was hoping BB would trade him to the Red Wings so my beloved Penguins would have a chance. :>(

Drinking beer, didn't the story also say that Mac tore down the class "stars" sheet. Richie didn't earn as many stars as the other children and Mac was afraid it was hurting his feelings so for now on everybody gets a little gold star each day stuck on their locker for effort, whether they swing at a bad pitch or not.

John - If I may, I wholeheartedly agreed with your post.

By the way, if Pentland can fix Sexson he deserves to take over as owner, GM, manager and bat boy. That would be a feat worthy of song.

I’ll probably get skewered for this but what the hey, I have thick skin. So here goes:
Given the way McLaren managed last night’s game, and his attitude when questioned, and the publicly announced satisfaction with his performance by Bavasi, and the satisfaction of Armstrong and Lincoln with Bavasi’ and McLaren’s performance, it suddenly hit me where this team stands. If I’m wrong, I hope someone who can prove and it will do so. But the facts as they appear are, the season is lost, management has made clear they have no interest in developing young players at the major league level, so there is precisely zero to be gained by winning games this year. Nothing. And no, the wishes of the fans do not count with this management as long as people are paying to sit in the stands and be embarrassed by the team’s performance. We the fans represent only dollar signs, period, and as long as we are playing our part and supplying the dollars, we don’t matter otherwise. Our wishes do not create an incentive for the team to win.
For ownership and management, it doesn’t seem to matter if the team doesn’t win another single game. Thus you get situations like last night in which McLaren simply doesn’t care if he makes a move that might help win or not. And you get these nonsense answers, "I just think that Cairo has been swinging the bat pretty good and so forth and so on.” I’ve never heard an answer so weak. What in the hell does “so forth and so on” mean? Either he’s hitting or he isn’t. What else is implied by “so forth and so on?” What other factors is he considering, what other factors do “so forth and so on” stand for?
First, what am I missing, where is it Cairo is swinging a “pretty good bat?” In which dimension is that happening, the fifth, the dimension the rest of us can’t see that McLaren apparently can?
No, McLaren, on top of giving up winning, seems to have given up trying to explain his (non)decisions. So he can throw out a “so forth and so on,” and pretend he answered the question. But really, why does he need to explain? He’s got the job, apparently no matter how he botches it. So clearly, in Bavasi’s mind, winning and losing doesn’t matter any more, either. Bavasi doesn’t care, Bavasi thinks McLaren’s doing a great job without winning, so why does McLaren have to strain himself deciding whether to pinch hit somebody with any power for Cairo?
And Bavasi is content to have provided the team with zero power off the bench, and why should he? Why strain himself, Armstrong thinks he’s doing a great job? And McLaren doesn’t have to strain himself whether to pull Morrow who is shutting down the Tigers, because he’s already made the decision in previous games that Morrow will pitch an inning and Putz will come in. Why think? Make the decision once and from then on, put it all on automatic. Why bother reasoning that the game is fine in Morrow’s hands? So what if Putz blows it and Cairo ends the game in a fizzle? What’s a win or loss now, the season’s over.
The point is, McLaren and Bavasi have nothing to accomplish. Winning or losing simply doesn’t matter when you’ve been guaranteed job security no matter how awfully you do your job. They aren’t developing talent, or they’d play Balentien every day, and bring up Clement. They don’t have to figure out how to use Clement, they already have him playing so they don’t need to strain themselves thinking about it at the major league level. They don’t have to decide who’s the catcher, they already gave Jojima his long term contract. They can’t even strain themselves enough to get rid of Sexson, so they let him sit, not even using him against a pitcher he has a chance against, and then the next day, on some whim, decide to go ahead and play him.
Bavasi has made his own job easy by just stating that there are no moves to be made to improve the team, so he doesn’t have to strain himself trying.
How many times has McLaren shrugged and said, during the worst stretches, that there’s no more he can do. So his job is easy, throw together whatever lineup pleases him at the moment, announce that he thinks the players are hitting whether they are or not, and then he can sit back and watch the game, win or lose, no worries.
That’s my take. Where am I wrong? Please show me this isn’t true, but don’t do it by saying of course McLaren and Bavasi care if they win or not. Prove it if it’s true. Show me that he and Bavasi and Armstrong at this stage have any incentive and really do care whether the team wins or not. And then show me what they’re doing to make it happen.
(by the way, this captcha thing is really f'd up.)

Sexson's first at bat tonight = K. second at bat = K, Third = K, need I go on, they should designate him as an out so that he does not waste our time and emotional investment, then let someone else bat who can at least make contact. The Big K had no chance or reason to hit for anyone and his past numbers mean nothing. Get rid of the bum!

Anyone else remember when the Detroit Tigers claimed Richie off of waivers last August, but the Mariners pulled him back?

Geoff knows all! I just look grrrrreat!

Even if Sexson did ph for Cairo, 75% of the bloggers woulda complained about the move anyway...

Hey No Wins...
I hope you do get some challenging response. Sorry, I can't help you. I agree with everything you wrote.

I would just add that akin to your statement that Mac and Bavasi don't have to explain anything as long as the bucks roll in and they have job security, likewise Geoff doesn't have to be honest and answer any questions either as long as the traffic keeps on growing on this blog and his job is secure. Like Geoff told everyone, Anyone out there who wants to stop posting, nobody is forcing you to stay. There are dozens of others who can take your place on a daily basis. Boy, sure sounds a lot like the message the Ms management is telling folks who are thinking about not attending Safeco anymore.

No Wins - The upshot of your remarks is that Lincoln, Armstrong, Bavasi, McLaren, together with stinkers like Dickless Sexson have created and atmosphere of losing and they just don't care as long as the paycheck is signed. It reminds me of the Chicago Cubs of old, pre Lou, days - no is accountable for winning or losing. So the team has become a culture of losers.

Let's just hope Jarrod Washedup gives us a chance tonight. 3 runs 9 guys over six innings... I'd take that.

Mangos - Yours have just become pulp, if you think WashBUM will give this team a quality start, he is the pitching equivalent of a hitting Dickless Sexson. But I suppose we can cheer the bigger loses as someone once said - "It's games like these that get managers and we hope GM's fired.

Regarding the previous blog, "The Sexson Quandary," the only quandary involving Sexson is when will he be released? Time's awastin'.

"Guess who's back...?"

Strikeout in the past, present and future - Richie "Big K" Sexson.

I had no idea that Greg Norton had so many family members in Seattle. Family members with computers, at that.

Richie Sexson was not claimed off waivers by anyone last year. It's one of those urban myths that just won't go away.

Unless your the lead dog, the view never changes

There is no lead dog on this team. There are no leaders, just a bunch of mindless buttsniffers.

Mr. X - Why I thought you were just one of those urban myths that just won't go away. Go bye - bye and say so long loser that you are, life awaits you.

Geoff,

Love the blog, love the fact that you put folks in place and call them on their week to week switcheroo's on personnel and blamees. Keep it up, your task is unenviable at best trying to be the voice of reason in a region gone mad with terrible baseball and even more inept management.

Try and read between the lines in the Sexson move. This is the last gasp attempt to somehow gain some trade value for him. They sit him in an attempt to "re-tool" his swing. He's now got 2 or 3 weeks at the most to show he's still got something in the tank. If he continues to battle with the Mendoza line, he'll be DFA'd by mid-June, just like I've said all along. If he actually pulls a miracle and finds his swing, he'll be traded. Either way, he'll be gone by the All Star break.

Number of hits for Richie tonight-over/under 1; number of strikeouts-over/under 3.

Actually, hits o/u 1/2; SO o/u 2 1/2?

Every time Rex Hudler opens his mouth, i want to bash him in the face with a maple bat.......for reals, I've never heard a more obnoxious, or dumber announcer than the "Hud Dog".

He just got done saying the M's problems are that the manager was too hard on them in Spring Training, saying they had to win games and such......he then followed that up saying that the M's have a stellar defense.

"Even if Sexson did ph for Cairo, 75% of the bloggers woulda complained about the move anyway..."

Idiotic, sellout statement. In that situation, you are looking for a power option......we both know Cairo had no chance of hitting the ball out of the park.

Well, at least if/when Washburn tanks tonight Dickey will come in to pitch. He's always fun to watch and something to look forward to.

Actually, I keep thinking the odds are that Santana will tank one of these times. I'd sure like to see Mariner hitters wallop him hard and knock him out of the game early. He's such a smug little bugger.

Hmmm, Washburn may do okay afterall...

I am just realizing why Hargrove left last year - perhaps why Lou left earlier - the GM wouldn't get him any reinforcements. And in Bavasi's case, he may be calling the daily decisions.

Re: McLaren's decision to put Richie back in: I think McLaren was just born without a common sense gene.

Is McLaren seriously delusional when he says I understand, some people have told me there's been a lot of talk about why we didn't use him (Sexson) yesterday. I'm kind of glad. Maybe we're rallying around this guy a little bit. He needs that?

I for one am excited as all heck to see the new and improved Ritchie Sexson.

Ah who am i kiddin I'll be watching the Cubbies and our Hall of Fame manager Lou!

Double Play. 'nuff said.

My guess is Sexson plays for a couple of weeks to see if he can go on a home run surge. Some team who thinks they are a contender agrees to give us an A level pitcher for him and we pay the rest of his contract. He won't go on a surge and will be released shortly after the trade deadline a la Olerud a few years back.

Please sit Vidro down, put Raul at DH, and play Reed in LF and Wlad in RF..look to the future. The present isn't working. Anybody with me?

It's June. For the second year in a row, our lead power hitter is hitting .200. And playing. What's wrong with the Mariners? That should tell you something. And we still aren't moving guys over, getting guys in. McLaren is way too passive for me. Are the guys working on bunting drills and base running drills and "take the ball to the opposite field" drills to get through this???? No. We are just doing the same things over and over, expecting something different to happen. Ugly. Boring.

Any discussion regarding Sexon and or Cairo is a vast waste of vital O2 and brain cells. Both players should have been DFAed 2 weeks ago. It is absolutely pointless for either player to be on the 40 man roster at this point in the season. The front office of the Ms is continuing it's long tradition of vying for worst in MLB.

I have so manr WHY'S I can't name them all but here are a few: Why was Morrow taken out when we were tied and J.J. screwed it up AGAIN. Why Sexson for Cairo? Cairo is a much better first baseman than Sexson and gets more hits. I am puzzeled with the machanics of this manageing.