June 11, 2025 • 18 mins
Legendary writer Larry Stone joins Dave Softy Mahler and Dick Fain to talk about the Mariners downfall after another sweep and what the offense has quickly become, what’s next and trade plans for the deadline, and the pains watching OKC get close to a title.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
It's time for our weekly conversation with legendary sports writer
Larry Stone, brought to you by the Ram Restaurant and Brewery, Bigger, better,
and fresher since nineteen seventy one, with eight digit sound
locations from Marysville to Lacy and everywhere in between. There's
a rim there you now with Softy and Dick. Here's
Larry Stone seven.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
O'clock tonight, Storm Links, Stormlinks trying to hand them their
first loss of the season.
Speaker 3 (00:26):
I'm gonna bet the storm big.
Speaker 4 (00:28):
I'm gonna bet the storm and if they don't pull
it off, I'm gonna send nasty messages like they're doing
to Scottie Scheffler on social media. Yeah, that's crazy, all right,
Well we got that tonight. You're going up there after
the show's over for the broadcast. Correct, you're wearing that,
by the way, you're gonna change good?
Speaker 3 (00:45):
Just checking there. It's nice shirt. But you know, I
don't know Larry Stone as well as Larry I am
talking in a while. How are you?
Speaker 1 (00:52):
Man?
Speaker 3 (00:52):
What's going on?
Speaker 5 (00:54):
I'm doing good? How are you guys to do it?
We're good?
Speaker 4 (00:56):
The Mariners suck again, though, Man, what the hell is
going on? Over there at Mariner Land. They got swept
by Arizona. They've lost five of the last six series.
They've played their one and eighth, their last nine, three
and eleven, their last fourteen. Your gut feel right now,
is this just a bump in the road or are
there much bigger issues with this baseball team than maybe
(01:20):
we realized.
Speaker 5 (01:22):
I've got to lean towards bigger issues, Dave. You know,
I think we were all kind of seduced by that
first month and the way they were hitting, and they
were that wasn't the real team. The Polanco couldn't sustain it.
Dylan Moore and Levas and the unexpected guys who were
(01:43):
playing way above their weight settled down to normalcy. And
there's just so many dead holes in this lineup, and
couple that with the pitching injury. My only source of
optimism is George Kirby's great start and Logan Lbert come back.
Maybe you could get the four. You know, you don't
(02:03):
have Bryce Miller, but you can get the four headlining
pitchers on a roll again and not need quite as
much offense because the pitching has been a problem as well.
So there is a sliver of hope with the pitching
getting healthy, but major, major problems with the lineup.
Speaker 2 (02:20):
No question, if you take a look at the whole season.
I mean, the pitching has been a bigger issue. They're
twentieth in ERA and fifteenth in OPS, so it's like
they're lower ranked in pitching through the whole.
Speaker 5 (02:29):
Now.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
I understand the offense has been bad this year or
this month, and good in the prior month. But you know, Larry,
what bothers me and SOFTI brought up the number in
the update five of forty one with runners on in
scoring position. You had a game a couple nights ago
where they had five different innings was the extra inning loss.
Speaker 3 (02:46):
They had five different innings where they got.
Speaker 2 (02:49):
The leadoff man on second base, and they scored in
none of the five innings. And not only do they
not score, Larry, there was no attempt whatsoever to get
that runner to third base and even and give up
a run, either by a butt or just hitting the
ball to the right side. Where are you in twenty
twenty five and the whole sacrificing an out to move
(03:11):
runners along because the Marriags just don't do it.
Speaker 5 (03:14):
Well. It's situationally based to me, there's times you do
it and times you don't. Certainly in extra innings. I'm
an advocate of that, particularly when you're at home and
the other team doesn't score. You got to do it.
But you know, it depends on who the batter is.
That there's one game where rose Areno was up. I
can't remember which game it was in that kind of situation,
(03:37):
and he doesn't have a sacrifice bunch in his entire
major league career. So you got to ask guys to
do what they're comfortable doing. You don't have You would
ask cal Rawley to bunt, but down at the bottom
of the order, I'm with you. But even even if
you get the guy over, they've shown that they can't
hit with runners in scoring position anyway. So it's you know,
(03:58):
you're giving up and out and they've been futile in
hitting in those situations anyway. And I mean that was
supposed to be the focus of this new regime of
rheting coaches, was doing what it takes to get them
over and get them in, and they were doing it,
and they were doing it in April, but not in
May and June. They've they've pretty much shut down the
(04:20):
running game so yeah, I think they're going to have to.
I think they're going to have to get back to
a little more emotion and just try something to spark
the team.
Speaker 4 (04:31):
Jerry Depoto has been the GM, or the President of
Baseball Operations the Grand poobav Baseball for fourteen and.
Speaker 3 (04:40):
Twenty three games.
Speaker 4 (04:42):
They've won two playoff games since he's been here, and
those both came against Toronto. Do you think John Stanton
has it in him to pull the plug in the
middle of the year like his predecessor did back in
the day with Bill Bavasi and name Lee pellakutis the
interim GM, remember.
Speaker 5 (04:58):
That, Do remember that it's a different circumstance. That was
a horrible, horrible team that was going nowhere, and that
many years of going nowhere, this is a team that
is to sniff the playoffs and come really close, and
in some ways that's even more frustrating. I realized that,
but I think it would have to really fall apart
(05:21):
for that to happen. But I don't think it's it's
out of the realm of possibility, because this looks like
a team that's in the the midst of having it
really fall apart. So I don't think anything will happen
before the draft. Traditionally, teams don't fire their general manager,
who's the kingpin of draft preparation, with the months to
go before the draft, when you have the number three
(05:42):
overall pick. I mean they did. They have a great
scouting director in Scott Hunter, so I guess theoretically they could.
They could do it without Toto, but usually those kinds
of decisions are made in the second half of the season.
Speaker 3 (05:57):
Is that maybe the next best scenario?
Speaker 2 (05:59):
I mean, obvious, the best scenario is getting these guys
healthy and they win ninety games and go to playoffs.
But other than that scenario, is the next best scenario
just a disaster of a season. So there is a
change and they realize that, hey, what we're doing right
now ain't working.
Speaker 5 (06:17):
I suppose you could look at it that way. I mean,
that's a tough route to go, kind of rooting for
the team to do poorly. I see what you're saying.
It's like they say in the NFL, the worst place
you could be is eight and eight, right, you know,
when there were sixteen games, And to a certain extent,
it's the same in baseball. But if if that happens,
(06:38):
then you're probably looking at a rebuild with three or
four years of the struggling. So I think the best
scenario is still to turn things around and go for
it this year, which you know, as bad as it's
been there, they're not hopelessly out of it. They're three,
three and a half one hot streak away from being
(06:59):
you know, back in the as semblance of contention. So right,
I think that's the better route to go.
Speaker 4 (07:07):
Well, I'm looking at I'm looking at Julio Rodriguez, who
had a very good day, actually had joy, had a
very good series against Arizona. He was three for four today,
two for five yesterday, two for five on Monday. I believe,
if I have my numbers correct, in the month of June,
he's hitting three seventy five now, so he's having a
really good month. And I actually threw this on Twitter
(07:28):
the other day because I saw I saw some chatter
about this. I'm just kind of curious to get the
fans reaction, just asking people to go back to the
day that Julio signed his extension, which was what August
of twenty two, Yes, is that correct? So four months
into his rookie year and whatever your expectations were for
him that day, has he fallen short of them? Has
he met them? Has he exceeded them? Where do you
(07:52):
kind of land on Julio Rodriguez since that big deal he.
Speaker 5 (07:55):
Got, Well, I'd say he's he's fallen short, but but
that's only because my expectations were sky high. But think
about it. He finished I think sixth in the MVP
voting that year. The next year he finished even higher,
fifth or fourth in the MVP voting. And this year,
I don't know if you look at I look at
(08:16):
War every day, and Julio is just creeping up. He's
number seven, tied for seventh in the major leagues in
War right now. I mean, that's hard to process when
you when you watch him every day, but he's barely
behind show heey Otani, and he's ahead of a lot
of really good players. And that was even before that's
not even factoring in today where he has three for
(08:37):
four with two doubles. So it's going to go up
and he'll probably crack the top five when when we
look tomorrow. So uh, he certainly hasn't been a disaster.
I just think the expectations for him based on the
way he came out and started his career were just
probably unrealistically. Hi, He's he's struggled a little bit, And
(08:57):
even with what I just said about the war, I
think there's there's a lot of times this year where
you know, he's got all those hits, but he only
had before he had the two doubles. He had just
two extra base hits in that stretch, so he doubled
it today to make it for he's not driving in runs.
It just seems like when he comes up in clutch situations,
(09:18):
he doesn't come through as as often as you'd like
him too. So those are the sort of things that
make me say that he'd fallen short. But I'm far
from be calling him a disaster or anything. I still
I still think it was a good contract. I still
would want him on my team. I still think there's
great things ahead for him.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
Larry, you mentioned that they've they've stopped running, they've stopped,
you know, get him over, get him in. You're exactly right.
I'm just looking at the numbers based upon your comments there.
I mean, they had thirty seven stolen bases in April,
they've had twenty eight cents their strikeout percentage. Larry was
at twenty six percent in April. It is at thirty
five percent since the end of April. Like, there's got
(09:59):
a be a why to what is going on with
this offense between the first five weeks of the season
and the second six weeks of the season.
Speaker 3 (10:07):
What is the why?
Speaker 5 (10:09):
Yeah, Dick, I don't know. I honestly don't know. Maybe
it's personnel driven, but really the only guy they've they've
lost is Israeli, and I don't think he makes that
big a difference. The only why I could come up
with is that this is the team that they've pretty
(10:32):
much always been, the style they've always been, the operation
was the month of April. This is This is more
what you'd expect. This is a team that's always struck
out a lot and has had trouble with runners in
scoring positions. So I think I think, like I said,
we got fooled by one month into thinking that things
(10:53):
have changed when maybe they haven't.
Speaker 4 (10:55):
Yeah, well, no doubt, they're playing above their heads. You
mentioned the Polanco thing, and you know, look clearly that
was never going to continue. I mean, the guy was
on an MVP pace, for God's sakes, in the first
month of the year and now he's cooled off a bit.
So how much longer does that train keep running for?
You think here in Seattle, because if they're going to
go out and get a player and trade for somebody,
(11:19):
unless they're willing to put Cole Younger Ben Williamson back
in Triple A Tacoma, they're probably going out and getting
a DH, aren't they.
Speaker 5 (11:27):
Yeah, or first basement. I guess I would certainly not
be averse to getting a third basement. I mean, I
like Ben Williamson, but you know, he's had a position
where he want power and production. He has very few
extra base hits. He does not walk on base percentages
(11:48):
under three hundred. There's definitely room for improvement there. So
but the question is, you know, there's at the pace
there going in a month and a half when the
trade deadline it's July thirty thirty first, will they even
be in position to add right? You know, will they
be mean at the trend they're going right now, maybe
(12:10):
it won't be so urgent to go to go big
because of how far back they are. You know, they
need to turn that around so that the trade deadline
means something. And there's been a lot to talk about
getting somebody now, and I think they probably should if
(12:31):
Jerry could pull it off, the sooner the better to
get somebody in there to shake things up.
Speaker 2 (12:36):
Well, Jerry or Jerry, Larry, do you think I've got
Jerry Jerry style. I've got the photo on the brain.
Sorry about that, Larry. Should the Baseball trade deadline be extended,
because then we'll have more teams, say August fifteenth or
what have.
Speaker 3 (12:53):
You, that would know whether they're in it or not.
Speaker 2 (12:55):
Because July thirty first, the way everybody's kind of gone
to the middle, you know, it's it seems like basically
everybody other than like three teams in both leagues are
still hypothetically in the playoff race at that point.
Speaker 3 (13:08):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (13:09):
The only problem with that is you're getting the player
for a much shorter period of time, so theoretically you're
going to give up less. So the teams that are
in position like the you know that, the teams that
are shedding their their players, like the White Sox and
the Rockies that need you know that, have traditionally used
the trade deadline to stock up on prospects. You're not
going to give up as high a prospect if you're
(13:30):
only getting the guy for uh, you know, six weeks
as opposed to two months. So I mean that's that's
an issue. But I agree with what you said as
well that with the three wild cards in each in
each league, now, uh there's only two or there's only
maybe three or four teams that are truly out of it,
(13:51):
and uh so that is definitely hampering the trade deadline.
And there's fewer and fewer players available every year.
Speaker 4 (13:59):
I think, yeah, no, I've been saying that for years.
I think you got to extend the deadline. There's just
too many teams in the race. I mean, good luck
making a deal now, for God's sake. So the only
deal the MS could make is grabbed a guy the
Rangers fired into Varas and now he's gone because he's
stunk here. But Larry Stone is with us, and Larry
got a couple minutes left. I mean, we've all been
a part of some painful moments here in Seattle. Where
(14:22):
would the Thunder winning the NBA title sits on your
most painful Seattle sports moment? Listen?
Speaker 5 (14:31):
I mean, I don't think it would be as bad
as them, you know, anywhere close as bad as the
Sonics leaving. I mean, I think it's just something you
got to deal with that it's so far removed from
when they left. I think the pain for a lot
(14:52):
of people has lessened a little bit. Maybe it's not
you guys from listening to you, but I mean, I
understand rooting hard against them, but I think I think
they Number one moment Kane was the Sonics leaving number close.
Number two with the Seahawks losing that Super Bowl game,
I think, Yeah, what's number three?
Speaker 4 (15:13):
I'm curious, by the way, what's number three on your
list of all time suck moments in Seattle?
Speaker 5 (15:20):
I'd have to I'd have to think about that.
Speaker 4 (15:22):
Hell of an idea for a column. What are your
right one? For Larrystone dot com? See if we can
we can get a few.
Speaker 3 (15:28):
I'll tell you for me, it's it's Ma Tumbo. That's
that's me is number number three.
Speaker 2 (15:32):
But where are you overall on the league, the n
B a vis a vis this town and the appetite
this city has for it right now?
Speaker 1 (15:43):
Uh?
Speaker 5 (15:44):
In what sense you mean? Do I think they have
an appetite? I don't know. You keep bringing that up.
Speaker 2 (15:48):
By the way, I think it's huge don't you. Yeah, right,
but how I guess let me rephrase. How big is
that vocal minority that's just to screw the NBA crowd?
Speaker 3 (15:59):
How big is that? In your mind?
Speaker 5 (16:02):
I think it's it's not that big. And I think
that once the team is announced, and I fully expect
that to happen, I think that they'll shed that and
come aboard. Uh, you know, it's it's it's something you
can say when they don't have a team. But if
you're a basketball fan and the team comes, why would
(16:24):
you not get back on board? Because that was the
whole point of your your your anger was the loss
of the team. So it seems counterproductive and sort of
petulant to to hold on to that out of spite,
you know, when when that finally is rectified. Yeah, and
I'm with you.
Speaker 4 (16:43):
There's a there's a reason why they call it a
silent majority in the Volkal minority, all right, because they're
the majority and they're silent.
Speaker 3 (16:49):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (16:50):
I mean, it's it's very small, and I think there's
a gigantic You saw thirty two thousand depositors for the
cracking team, and maybe they'll get thirty four thousand depositors
when the NBA comes back.
Speaker 3 (17:00):
All right, Larry, Well, we'll see this time in a
week from now. We'll see what the team will do.
Speaker 5 (17:05):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (17:05):
The Mariners, they got a little bit of a of
a tough stretch against some pretty good clubs, starting with
the Guardians this weekend in Seattle, Boston. The Cubs are
very good. Minnesota is not half bad. So we'll check
in next week. All right, we'll talk in a week.
Speaker 3 (17:19):
Thanks man.
Speaker 5 (17:21):
All right, all right, Larry Stone with us.
Speaker 4 (17:23):
Yeah, I think I think the appetite is huge for
the NBA in town. I think we're just hearing from
people that are pissed and they're they're sore, and they're sour,
and they don't have any other recourse to fight back
but to bitch and moan and yell and scream and
say how much they hate. I mean, what else can
they do? Right, there's nothing else. Thinking there's no other
(17:44):
no other fight they can get involved in.
Speaker 2 (17:47):
They just.
Speaker 3 (17:48):
Well, yeah they can just they can just accept what
happened eighteen years ago.
Speaker 4 (17:52):
No, never accept what happened ever, ever, never never get
over what happened eighteen years ago. Never, Because Howard Schultz
is a rat bastard, who screwed us six ways till Sunday,
and Bill Simmons explained it, by the way on his
podcast today, We're don't play that tomorrow. I'm fun with audio.
And you know what I've I've said this before and
I'll say it again. I am shocked that a father
(18:14):
like you, who's got a basketball loving son the way
you do. If there's anybody who should be more pissed
off at Howard Schultz than I am, it's you.
Speaker 5 (18:23):
Well you.
Speaker 3 (18:23):
I mean, I'm pissed off, but I'm not.
Speaker 2 (18:25):
I'm by nature not spiteful, So I mean, yeah, I understand,
you know, And it's Bob.
Speaker 3 (18:32):
I just think that, like.
Speaker 2 (18:34):
Larry said, Like Larry said, over the years, the anger
starts to dissipate, especially as we get closer to the
new era of so and then it.
Speaker 4 (18:44):
Comes back when the Thunder win the NBA title, We'll
get a break. Randy Johnson has spoken, Do we believe him?
Speaker 5 (18:52):
Next?
Speaker 4 (18:52):
On ninety three to three kJ RFM.
It's time for our weekly conversation with legendary sports writer
Larry Stone, brought to you by the Ram Restaurant and Brewery, Bigger, better,
and fresher since nineteen seventy one, with eight digit sound
locations from Marysville to Lacy and everywhere in between. There's
a rim there you now with Softy and Dick. Here's
Larry Stone seven.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
O'clock tonight, Storm Links, Stormlinks trying to hand them their
first loss of the season.
Speaker 3 (00:26):
I'm gonna bet the storm big.
Speaker 4 (00:28):
I'm gonna bet the storm and if they don't pull
it off, I'm gonna send nasty messages like they're doing
to Scottie Scheffler on social media. Yeah, that's crazy, all right,
Well we got that tonight. You're going up there after
the show's over for the broadcast. Correct, you're wearing that,
by the way, you're gonna change good?
Speaker 3 (00:45):
Just checking there. It's nice shirt. But you know, I
don't know Larry Stone as well as Larry I am
talking in a while. How are you?
Speaker 1 (00:52):
Man?
Speaker 3 (00:52):
What's going on?
Speaker 5 (00:54):
I'm doing good? How are you guys to do it?
We're good?
Speaker 4 (00:56):
The Mariners suck again, though, Man, what the hell is
going on? Over there at Mariner Land. They got swept
by Arizona. They've lost five of the last six series.
They've played their one and eighth, their last nine, three
and eleven, their last fourteen. Your gut feel right now,
is this just a bump in the road or are
there much bigger issues with this baseball team than maybe
(01:20):
we realized.
Speaker 5 (01:22):
I've got to lean towards bigger issues, Dave. You know,
I think we were all kind of seduced by that
first month and the way they were hitting, and they
were that wasn't the real team. The Polanco couldn't sustain it.
Dylan Moore and Levas and the unexpected guys who were
(01:43):
playing way above their weight settled down to normalcy. And
there's just so many dead holes in this lineup, and
couple that with the pitching injury. My only source of
optimism is George Kirby's great start and Logan Lbert come back.
Maybe you could get the four. You know, you don't
(02:03):
have Bryce Miller, but you can get the four headlining
pitchers on a roll again and not need quite as
much offense because the pitching has been a problem as well.
So there is a sliver of hope with the pitching
getting healthy, but major, major problems with the lineup.
Speaker 2 (02:20):
No question, if you take a look at the whole season.
I mean, the pitching has been a bigger issue. They're
twentieth in ERA and fifteenth in OPS, so it's like
they're lower ranked in pitching through the whole.
Speaker 5 (02:29):
Now.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
I understand the offense has been bad this year or
this month, and good in the prior month. But you know, Larry,
what bothers me and SOFTI brought up the number in
the update five of forty one with runners on in
scoring position. You had a game a couple nights ago
where they had five different innings was the extra inning loss.
Speaker 3 (02:46):
They had five different innings where they got.
Speaker 2 (02:49):
The leadoff man on second base, and they scored in
none of the five innings. And not only do they
not score, Larry, there was no attempt whatsoever to get
that runner to third base and even and give up
a run, either by a butt or just hitting the
ball to the right side. Where are you in twenty
twenty five and the whole sacrificing an out to move
(03:11):
runners along because the Marriags just don't do it.
Speaker 5 (03:14):
Well. It's situationally based to me, there's times you do
it and times you don't. Certainly in extra innings. I'm
an advocate of that, particularly when you're at home and
the other team doesn't score. You got to do it.
But you know, it depends on who the batter is.
That there's one game where rose Areno was up. I
can't remember which game it was in that kind of situation,
(03:37):
and he doesn't have a sacrifice bunch in his entire
major league career. So you got to ask guys to
do what they're comfortable doing. You don't have You would
ask cal Rawley to bunt, but down at the bottom
of the order, I'm with you. But even even if
you get the guy over, they've shown that they can't
hit with runners in scoring position anyway. So it's you know,
(03:58):
you're giving up and out and they've been futile in
hitting in those situations anyway. And I mean that was
supposed to be the focus of this new regime of
rheting coaches, was doing what it takes to get them
over and get them in, and they were doing it,
and they were doing it in April, but not in
May and June. They've they've pretty much shut down the
(04:20):
running game so yeah, I think they're going to have to.
I think they're going to have to get back to
a little more emotion and just try something to spark
the team.
Speaker 4 (04:31):
Jerry Depoto has been the GM, or the President of
Baseball Operations the Grand poobav Baseball for fourteen and.
Speaker 3 (04:40):
Twenty three games.
Speaker 4 (04:42):
They've won two playoff games since he's been here, and
those both came against Toronto. Do you think John Stanton
has it in him to pull the plug in the
middle of the year like his predecessor did back in
the day with Bill Bavasi and name Lee pellakutis the
interim GM, remember.
Speaker 5 (04:58):
That, Do remember that it's a different circumstance. That was
a horrible, horrible team that was going nowhere, and that
many years of going nowhere, this is a team that
is to sniff the playoffs and come really close, and
in some ways that's even more frustrating. I realized that,
but I think it would have to really fall apart
(05:21):
for that to happen. But I don't think it's it's
out of the realm of possibility, because this looks like
a team that's in the the midst of having it
really fall apart. So I don't think anything will happen
before the draft. Traditionally, teams don't fire their general manager,
who's the kingpin of draft preparation, with the months to
go before the draft, when you have the number three
(05:42):
overall pick. I mean they did. They have a great
scouting director in Scott Hunter, so I guess theoretically they could.
They could do it without Toto, but usually those kinds
of decisions are made in the second half of the season.
Speaker 3 (05:57):
Is that maybe the next best scenario?
Speaker 2 (05:59):
I mean, obvious, the best scenario is getting these guys
healthy and they win ninety games and go to playoffs.
But other than that scenario, is the next best scenario
just a disaster of a season. So there is a
change and they realize that, hey, what we're doing right
now ain't working.
Speaker 5 (06:17):
I suppose you could look at it that way. I mean,
that's a tough route to go, kind of rooting for
the team to do poorly. I see what you're saying.
It's like they say in the NFL, the worst place
you could be is eight and eight, right, you know,
when there were sixteen games, And to a certain extent,
it's the same in baseball. But if if that happens,
(06:38):
then you're probably looking at a rebuild with three or
four years of the struggling. So I think the best
scenario is still to turn things around and go for
it this year, which you know, as bad as it's
been there, they're not hopelessly out of it. They're three,
three and a half one hot streak away from being
(06:59):
you know, back in the as semblance of contention. So right,
I think that's the better route to go.
Speaker 4 (07:07):
Well, I'm looking at I'm looking at Julio Rodriguez, who
had a very good day, actually had joy, had a
very good series against Arizona. He was three for four today,
two for five yesterday, two for five on Monday. I believe,
if I have my numbers correct, in the month of June,
he's hitting three seventy five now, so he's having a
really good month. And I actually threw this on Twitter
(07:28):
the other day because I saw I saw some chatter
about this. I'm just kind of curious to get the
fans reaction, just asking people to go back to the
day that Julio signed his extension, which was what August
of twenty two, Yes, is that correct? So four months
into his rookie year and whatever your expectations were for
him that day, has he fallen short of them? Has
he met them? Has he exceeded them? Where do you
(07:52):
kind of land on Julio Rodriguez since that big deal he.
Speaker 5 (07:55):
Got, Well, I'd say he's he's fallen short, but but
that's only because my expectations were sky high. But think
about it. He finished I think sixth in the MVP
voting that year. The next year he finished even higher,
fifth or fourth in the MVP voting. And this year,
I don't know if you look at I look at
(08:16):
War every day, and Julio is just creeping up. He's
number seven, tied for seventh in the major leagues in
War right now. I mean, that's hard to process when
you when you watch him every day, but he's barely
behind show heey Otani, and he's ahead of a lot
of really good players. And that was even before that's
not even factoring in today where he has three for
(08:37):
four with two doubles. So it's going to go up
and he'll probably crack the top five when when we
look tomorrow. So uh, he certainly hasn't been a disaster.
I just think the expectations for him based on the
way he came out and started his career were just
probably unrealistically. Hi, He's he's struggled a little bit, And
(08:57):
even with what I just said about the war, I
think there's there's a lot of times this year where
you know, he's got all those hits, but he only
had before he had the two doubles. He had just
two extra base hits in that stretch, so he doubled
it today to make it for he's not driving in runs.
It just seems like when he comes up in clutch situations,
(09:18):
he doesn't come through as as often as you'd like
him too. So those are the sort of things that
make me say that he'd fallen short. But I'm far
from be calling him a disaster or anything. I still
I still think it was a good contract. I still
would want him on my team. I still think there's
great things ahead for him.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
Larry, you mentioned that they've they've stopped running, they've stopped,
you know, get him over, get him in. You're exactly right.
I'm just looking at the numbers based upon your comments there.
I mean, they had thirty seven stolen bases in April,
they've had twenty eight cents their strikeout percentage. Larry was
at twenty six percent in April. It is at thirty
five percent since the end of April. Like, there's got
(09:59):
a be a why to what is going on with
this offense between the first five weeks of the season
and the second six weeks of the season.
Speaker 3 (10:07):
What is the why?
Speaker 5 (10:09):
Yeah, Dick, I don't know. I honestly don't know. Maybe
it's personnel driven, but really the only guy they've they've
lost is Israeli, and I don't think he makes that
big a difference. The only why I could come up
with is that this is the team that they've pretty
(10:32):
much always been, the style they've always been, the operation
was the month of April. This is This is more
what you'd expect. This is a team that's always struck
out a lot and has had trouble with runners in
scoring positions. So I think I think, like I said,
we got fooled by one month into thinking that things
(10:53):
have changed when maybe they haven't.
Speaker 4 (10:55):
Yeah, well, no doubt, they're playing above their heads. You
mentioned the Polanco thing, and you know, look clearly that
was never going to continue. I mean, the guy was
on an MVP pace, for God's sakes, in the first
month of the year and now he's cooled off a bit.
So how much longer does that train keep running for?
You think here in Seattle, because if they're going to
go out and get a player and trade for somebody,
(11:19):
unless they're willing to put Cole Younger Ben Williamson back
in Triple A Tacoma, they're probably going out and getting
a DH, aren't they.
Speaker 5 (11:27):
Yeah, or first basement. I guess I would certainly not
be averse to getting a third basement. I mean, I
like Ben Williamson, but you know, he's had a position
where he want power and production. He has very few
extra base hits. He does not walk on base percentages
(11:48):
under three hundred. There's definitely room for improvement there. So
but the question is, you know, there's at the pace
there going in a month and a half when the
trade deadline it's July thirty thirty first, will they even
be in position to add right? You know, will they
be mean at the trend they're going right now, maybe
(12:10):
it won't be so urgent to go to go big
because of how far back they are. You know, they
need to turn that around so that the trade deadline
means something. And there's been a lot to talk about
getting somebody now, and I think they probably should if
(12:31):
Jerry could pull it off, the sooner the better to
get somebody in there to shake things up.
Speaker 2 (12:36):
Well, Jerry or Jerry, Larry, do you think I've got
Jerry Jerry style. I've got the photo on the brain.
Sorry about that, Larry. Should the Baseball trade deadline be extended,
because then we'll have more teams, say August fifteenth or
what have.
Speaker 3 (12:53):
You, that would know whether they're in it or not.
Speaker 2 (12:55):
Because July thirty first, the way everybody's kind of gone
to the middle, you know, it's it seems like basically
everybody other than like three teams in both leagues are
still hypothetically in the playoff race at that point.
Speaker 3 (13:08):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (13:09):
The only problem with that is you're getting the player
for a much shorter period of time, so theoretically you're
going to give up less. So the teams that are
in position like the you know that, the teams that
are shedding their their players, like the White Sox and
the Rockies that need you know that, have traditionally used
the trade deadline to stock up on prospects. You're not
going to give up as high a prospect if you're
(13:30):
only getting the guy for uh, you know, six weeks
as opposed to two months. So I mean that's that's
an issue. But I agree with what you said as
well that with the three wild cards in each in
each league, now, uh there's only two or there's only
maybe three or four teams that are truly out of it,
(13:51):
and uh so that is definitely hampering the trade deadline.
And there's fewer and fewer players available every year.
Speaker 4 (13:59):
I think, yeah, no, I've been saying that for years.
I think you got to extend the deadline. There's just
too many teams in the race. I mean, good luck
making a deal now, for God's sake. So the only
deal the MS could make is grabbed a guy the
Rangers fired into Varas and now he's gone because he's
stunk here. But Larry Stone is with us, and Larry
got a couple minutes left. I mean, we've all been
a part of some painful moments here in Seattle. Where
(14:22):
would the Thunder winning the NBA title sits on your
most painful Seattle sports moment? Listen?
Speaker 5 (14:31):
I mean, I don't think it would be as bad
as them, you know, anywhere close as bad as the
Sonics leaving. I mean, I think it's just something you
got to deal with that it's so far removed from
when they left. I think the pain for a lot
(14:52):
of people has lessened a little bit. Maybe it's not
you guys from listening to you, but I mean, I
understand rooting hard against them, but I think I think
they Number one moment Kane was the Sonics leaving number close.
Number two with the Seahawks losing that Super Bowl game,
I think, Yeah, what's number three?
Speaker 4 (15:13):
I'm curious, by the way, what's number three on your
list of all time suck moments in Seattle?
Speaker 5 (15:20):
I'd have to I'd have to think about that.
Speaker 4 (15:22):
Hell of an idea for a column. What are your
right one? For Larrystone dot com? See if we can
we can get a few.
Speaker 3 (15:28):
I'll tell you for me, it's it's Ma Tumbo. That's
that's me is number number three.
Speaker 2 (15:32):
But where are you overall on the league, the n
B a vis a vis this town and the appetite
this city has for it right now?
Speaker 1 (15:43):
Uh?
Speaker 5 (15:44):
In what sense you mean? Do I think they have
an appetite? I don't know. You keep bringing that up.
Speaker 2 (15:48):
By the way, I think it's huge don't you. Yeah, right,
but how I guess let me rephrase. How big is
that vocal minority that's just to screw the NBA crowd?
Speaker 3 (15:59):
How big is that? In your mind?
Speaker 5 (16:02):
I think it's it's not that big. And I think
that once the team is announced, and I fully expect
that to happen, I think that they'll shed that and
come aboard. Uh, you know, it's it's it's something you
can say when they don't have a team. But if
you're a basketball fan and the team comes, why would
(16:24):
you not get back on board? Because that was the
whole point of your your your anger was the loss
of the team. So it seems counterproductive and sort of
petulant to to hold on to that out of spite,
you know, when when that finally is rectified. Yeah, and
I'm with you.
Speaker 4 (16:43):
There's a there's a reason why they call it a
silent majority in the Volkal minority, all right, because they're
the majority and they're silent.
Speaker 3 (16:49):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (16:50):
I mean, it's it's very small, and I think there's
a gigantic You saw thirty two thousand depositors for the
cracking team, and maybe they'll get thirty four thousand depositors
when the NBA comes back.
Speaker 3 (17:00):
All right, Larry, Well, we'll see this time in a
week from now. We'll see what the team will do.
Speaker 5 (17:05):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (17:05):
The Mariners, they got a little bit of a of
a tough stretch against some pretty good clubs, starting with
the Guardians this weekend in Seattle, Boston. The Cubs are
very good. Minnesota is not half bad. So we'll check
in next week. All right, we'll talk in a week.
Speaker 3 (17:19):
Thanks man.
Speaker 5 (17:21):
All right, all right, Larry Stone with us.
Speaker 4 (17:23):
Yeah, I think I think the appetite is huge for
the NBA in town. I think we're just hearing from
people that are pissed and they're they're sore, and they're sour,
and they don't have any other recourse to fight back
but to bitch and moan and yell and scream and
say how much they hate. I mean, what else can
they do? Right, there's nothing else. Thinking there's no other
(17:44):
no other fight they can get involved in.
Speaker 2 (17:47):
They just.
Speaker 3 (17:48):
Well, yeah they can just they can just accept what
happened eighteen years ago.
Speaker 4 (17:52):
No, never accept what happened ever, ever, never never get
over what happened eighteen years ago. Never, Because Howard Schultz
is a rat bastard, who screwed us six ways till Sunday,
and Bill Simmons explained it, by the way on his
podcast today, We're don't play that tomorrow. I'm fun with audio.
And you know what I've I've said this before and
I'll say it again. I am shocked that a father
(18:14):
like you, who's got a basketball loving son the way
you do. If there's anybody who should be more pissed
off at Howard Schultz than I am, it's you.
Speaker 5 (18:23):
Well you.
Speaker 3 (18:23):
I mean, I'm pissed off, but I'm not.
Speaker 2 (18:25):
I'm by nature not spiteful, So I mean, yeah, I understand,
you know, And it's Bob.
Speaker 3 (18:32):
I just think that, like.
Speaker 2 (18:34):
Larry said, Like Larry said, over the years, the anger
starts to dissipate, especially as we get closer to the
new era of so and then it.
Speaker 4 (18:44):
Comes back when the Thunder win the NBA title, We'll
get a break. Randy Johnson has spoken, Do we believe him?
Speaker 5 (18:52):
Next?
Speaker 4 (18:52):
On ninety three to three kJ RFM.
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