Footprints in the Snow is FanHouse's look at the paths to be forged by MLB teams this winter as they look ahead to 2010.
After a disastrous 2008 season that claimed two managers (one interim) and a general manager, the Mariners returned to respectability in 2009. General manager Jack Zduriencik placed an emphasis on bargain players -- Franklin Gutierrez, Russell Branyan, David Aardsma -- while manager don Wakamatsu stressed fundamentals. The result was the Mariners finding a way to 85 wins despite being outscored by 52 runs over the course of the season.
A major factor was how good the defense made the pitching look. Despite injury woes for Erik Bedard and the loss of Jarrod Washburn in a trade at the deadline, the Mariners had an AL-best 3.87 ERA (and it wasn't close, as the White Sox checked in at second with a 4.14). According to most advanced metrics, Seattle had the best defense in baseball thanks to Gutierrez, Ichiro, Jose Lopez and company. Of course, they'll be looking for some firepower as they move to 2010. Last season, only the Padres and Pirates crossed home plate fewer times than Seattle.
Our weekly fantasy baseball podcast topic on Tuesday night was gaining ground in a rotisserie league. It was a good listen, as most Cram Sessions are, but a topic that I wanted to expand upon today is streaming hitters into your lineup on Mondays and Thursdays.
We've all heard of streaming pitchers, in fact if you've listened to R.J. White in his Stream Team column every day since the All-Star break you now have an extra 17 wins on your fantasy team. R.J. has streaming pitchers down to a science. It's really no different to stream in hitters. You just only need to do it two days a week.
SEATTLE -- Given that the Mariners have struggled mightily offensively, the signing of No. 2 pick Dustin Ackley serves as a serious momentum boost for an organization looking to escape a series of shaky moves under the Bill Bavasi tenure.
For example, Bavasi traded Adam Jones and George Sherill for Erik Bedard, and he selected Cal's Brandon Morrow over the University of Washington's Tim Lincecum in the 2006 draft. Morrow is in the minors while Lincecum is one of the top starting pitchers in the major leagues.
So the Mariners needed this. They needed to sign the best hitter in college baseball. Ackley hit .422 with 22 home runs and 73 RBI in 66 games for the University of North Carolina. Signing him went down to the final minutes, with general manager Jack Zduriencik revealing that the deal was agreed upon at 8:45 PM PT, about 15 minutes before the deadline.
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.
Prospects' careers don't always progress the way we hoped they would. While players like Rick Porcello and Clayton Kershaw became fantasy-relevant before their 22nd birthdays, Nolan Reimold had to wait until he was 25 to get a legitimate shot. Travis Hafner wasn't a true force until he was 27, etc.. In any case, like the curious one of scorching outfielder Garrett Jones, it's important to keep that perspective in mind.
So what exactly do we know about "The Robber Baron"? (Other than the fact that he's drilled nine homers in his first 17 games with Pittsburgh)
Every Sunday, MLB FanHouse empties out its notebook in Baseball Brunch.
"This concludes our test of the emergency attendance enhancement system. We now return to the regularly scheduled season."
Yes, the 13th season of interleague play wraps up Sunday, except for a Cubs-White Sox makeup game. We have survived six San Diego-Seattle games (that's more zeroes than an A-Rod paycheck).
We didn't learn much we didn't already know: the system has inherent flaws and the American League rules.
For the sixth straight year, the AL has had** the better record in interleague play – 129-108 going into today.
Take out Cleveland and Oakland, and the AL is 119-84.
"It probably is" as big a gap between leagues as in past years, one AL team official said, "until you get to the World Series. Then it doesn't matter."
As you might have heard, defense is the new big thing. It's not a revolutionary idea to suggest that having good defense can help you win baseball games, but the improvement the Rays made from 2007 to 2008 was quite a wake-up call around the majors. They had essentially the same pitchers, and they actually scored fewer runs, but they won 31 more games with good defense.
Which brings us to the Seattle Mariners.
The Mariners were a train-wreck of a team last year, despite what we all thought was supposed to be pretty good pitching. Now, the Mariners are riding high in the AL West, with the best ERA in the league. Most of their pitchers are the same (granted, Erik Bedard has been healthy).
In 2008 the Seattle Mariners, projected by many to contend with the Angels for the AL West title, suffered through a miserable season, finishing the year 61-101. Because of that disappointment -- they ended the season 39 games behind first place L.A. -- people were generally down on their prospects in '09. So when they started hot out of the gate, 9-6 and 2 1/2 games clear of the rest of the division, it took many by surprise.
For a variety of reasons, though, it's really not all that shocking. First and foremost, it's only 15 games; I mean, come on, even the Pirates are 9-6. But there were also a number of reasons to think that Seattle would be significantly improved entering the season.
FanHouse continues its 2009 MLB Preview with a look at the Seattle Mariners.
The Mariners of 2008 provided a case study in why overachieving isn't always a good thing. The team won 88 games in 2007, which could be looked at in one of two ways. You could say the team was close to contending and should go all in for a run at the postseason, or you could look at their expected record and say that the team outperformed expectations and shouldn't do anything drastic.
Fantasy baseball draft season is coming, so you best be prepared by delving through every major player on each team. Fantasy FanHouse is here to help with a quick once-over.
Meet the... Team who someone predicted would win the World Series last year. Seriously. When you stop laughing, you can check out the link (he's the top one listed -- though when you see his other atrocious picks you won't be surprised). Was I any better? Glad you asked. I actually took Mr. Downey to task before Opening Day. You can check the rest of my stuff if you wish, as there were some misses in there.
Anyway, it's safe to say expectations are a slight bit lower heading into '08.
FanHouse continues its 2009 MLB Preview with a look at the Cleveland Indians.
Coming off a 96-win season in 2007, the Indians were expected to be one of the stronger teams in the AL last year. Cleveland looked like it was going to compete with the Tigers all year for the division crown. They had Victor Martinez, one of the best catchers in the league, along with a 1-2 punch of CC Sabathia and Fausto Carmona atop the rotation. As always, there were some concerns, including fifth starter Cliff Lee, whose 2007 ERA was 6.29. But on the whole, it looked like it was going to be a pretty good year.
Footprints in the Snow is FanHouse's look at the paths to be forged by MLB teams this winter as they look ahead to 2010.
Our weekly 
SEATTLE -- Given that the Mariners have struggled mightily offensively, the signing of No. 2 pick 
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the 
Every Sunday, MLB FanHouse empties out its notebook in 
As you might have heard, defense is the new big thing. It's not a revolutionary idea to suggest that having good defense can help you win baseball games, but the improvement the Rays made from 2007 to 2008 was quite a wake-up call around the majors. They had essentially the same pitchers, and they actually scored fewer runs, but they won 31 more games with good defense.
Fantasy baseball draft season is coming, so you best be prepared by delving through 
