Opening Day is a mere 11 days away, and Eric Wedge appears to have taken a page from Jack Zduriencik’s playbook. In other words, very little regarding definitive roster decisions has slipped from the skipper’s lips these days. Here’s the roster speculation floating around the blogosphere at the moment:

• The battle for rotation spots #3-5 is heating up, with Erasmo Ramirez, Blake Beavan, Brandon Maurer, Jeremy Bonderman, and Jon Garland in the mix. Although no names have been selected so far, Shannon Drayer believes Maurer is making a convincing case for his time in the sun. Following Tuesday’s win over the defending San Francisco Giants, she quoted Eric Wedge: “We feel strongly he is going to be able to get major league outs […] It’s just a matter as we prep everything out decisions we have to make and we have to take everything into consideration. The experience level, what the other guys have done and match that up to what he he done.”
• Seattle Times’ Geoff Baker seems to have other thoughts. In a nutshell, his opinions leave Maurer out in the cold: “If Garland makes it, Maurer has no chance. The team would give the final spot to either Blake Beavan or Erasmo Ramirez. In fact, even if Garland doesn’t make it, I think the team would give the final two remaining spots to Beavan and Ramirez. Not to Maurer.”
• On Tuesday, Dustin Ackley batted eighth. Is this a sign of things to come? According to Greg Johns and Eric Wedge, it very well might be. “Wedge said afterward that Ackley could well wind up down in that area during the regular season given the addition of the middle-of-the-order veterans and improvement of some of the young core players,” Johns writes. He added that Franklin Gutierrez is likely for the leadoff spot, while Kyle Seager could take his place if Guti fails to stay healthy.
• The Mariners roster has been pruned to 37 after another round of cuts.

Players reassigned to minor league camp:
Logan Bawcom
Andrew Carraway
John Hicks
Jhonny Nunez
Ronny Paulino
James Paxton
Stefen Romero
Taijuan Walker
Mike Zunino

Players sent to Triple-A:
Vinnie Catricala
Bobby LaFromboise
Alex Liddi
Danny Hultzen
Yoervis Medina
Hector Noesi
Eric Thames
Carlos Triunfel

Players optioned to Double-A:
Francisco Martinez
Julio Morban

Next game: @ Rockies | March 16 | 1:10pm

No home run hoarders here: To date, 21 different Mariners have rung up a home run in Cactus League play. Of those 21, 12 players have logged multiple homers, with Michael Morse (5), Franklin Gutierrez (3), Carlos Peguero (3), and Justin Smoak (3) leading the pack.

Guti back under scrutiny: Franklin Gutierrez has been sidelined for six days of Cactus League games with tightness in his legs. According to Greg Johns’ report, the center fielder appears unconcerned, and believes he will be back on the field soon.

Opening (Day) acts: When April 8th rolls around, here’s one Safeco Field debut you can count on—that of Pickwick, a Seattle-bred folk band. Their first self-released record, Can’t Talk Medicine, can be heard on iTunes or at the band’s official website.

If you need even more incentive to attend the Opening Day festivities, single-game tickets will be available for purchase through Mariners.com beginning at 10am tomorrow morning.

40-man roster gets trimmed again: Four more cuts were made from Seattle’s major league camp this afternoon. Here’s the current list of players who have been sent down or reassigned so far:

Reassigned to minor league camp:

• John Hicks
• Jhonny Nunez
• Ronny Paulino
• James Paxton
• Stefen Romero
• Taijuan Walker

Sent to Triple-A:

• Alex Liddi
• Danny Hultzen
• Hector Noesi

Currently, the roster stands at 47 players.

Two weeks into spring training, expectations are running high. Vinnie Catricala is cautiously hoping for a successful season, Anthony Vasquez is making a miraculous return to baseball, and Jesus Montero thinks he’s grasped the concept of running.

Mariners’ Vasquez just happy to be here after surviving life-threatening brain issue — Geoff Baker chronicles the extraordinary struggles of LHP Anthony Vasquez, who reached the brink of death while preparing for the 2013 season.

Jesus Montero Almost Knows How To Run — This is, sadly, exactly what it sounds like.

Corner Men — While prospects and journeymen battle for a spot on the Mariners’ 25-man roster, Mike Curto examines the likely candidates for the Tacoma Rainiers’ 2013 lineup. This time, he sheds some light on potential corner infielders, including Mike Jacobs, Alex Liddi, Vinnie Catricala, Rich Poythress, Nate Tenbrink, and Stefen Romero.

SEA Mariners Infield: Depth Chart Discussions — The team at FanGraphs is doing a phenomenal job of making early depth projections for the 2013 Mariners. Most recently, J.P. Breen tackled the M’s infield, but you can find discussions of the outfield, rotation, and bullpen here as well.

Vinnie Catricala tries to get back on fast track — After a lousy 2012, Vinnie Catricala is out to prove that he is, in fact, a better defender than a small cup of milk. Larry Stone gives us the full scoop on Vinnie’s return, with some heartfelt quotes to boot.

What have you read this week? Share it with us on Twitter or in the comments below!

Final score: Orioles 4, Mariners 2

When the Mariners began this game, I was still 21.

Nine hours ago, I arrived at Safeco for batting practice, eager to soak up the last little bit of baseball the Mariners have to offer this season. If only I had had an inkling of what was to come.

Through the first eight innings—the first game of the night, really—Erasmo Ramirez shut out the Orioles on two hits and six strikeouts. He returned in the ninth to a standing ovation, then surrendered back-to-back singles to Ryan Flaherty and Nate McLouth. Tom Wilhelmsen blew his fourth save of the year on the third single of the inning, an RBI from Chris Davis that tied the game.

I’m not going to lie: there’s little that excites me more than the prospect of extra innings. In 38 games this year, I had yet to see bonus baseball. So, although I probably should’ve been as sad as Steven was when Wilhelmsen allowed the tying run to score, I was practically bouncing up and down in my seat instead.

I still didn’t know what I was in for.

Over the final nine innings of the game, the crowd of 12,608 dwindled to a few hundred (pictured in the above photo). Eric Wedge brought in John Jaso. Buck Showalter countered with lefty reliever Brian Matusz. Wedge then changed his mind, forfeiting the chance to use his best offensive player, and opted for Alex Liddi.

The 14th stretch came and went. By the 15th inning, even the flocks of seagulls had vanished from the outfield. The field became so quiet that, aside from a few raucous cheers by the seven remaining Orioles fans, you could hear the game broadcast echoing on the main concourse.

It finally ended in the 18th. Lucas Luetge opened the inning with a walk, followed by a pair of base hits and an RBI groundout to give the Orioles a two-run lead. The bottom half of the inning went quickly, without so much as a baserunner for the Mariners.

When this game finally, mercifully finished, I was no longer 21. And although a walk-off would’ve made for an even sweeter story, I couldn’t be happier spending the first part of my birthday at the ballpark. See you tonight, Mariners fans.

Next game: vs. Orioles | September 19 | 7:10pm

Final score: Athletics 6, Mariners 1

Remember how, in the series preview, I told you to expect some regression from Felix Hernandez? Remember how I told you the Oakland A’s would be poised for a bit of revenge on the A.L. West after being swept at the hands of the Angels? Remember how I told you that there would be an outburst of scoring in Safeco Field this weekend, starting tonight?

Oops.

This was a bad one. Felix Hernandez was bad, giving up 11 hits over 4.2 innings and not doing anything to help his Cy Young chances down the stretch. The offense was bad, mustering only seven hits and one run. Even the defense was bad, with Eric Thames misplaying a pop fly, allowing Seth Smith to score from first.

Carlos Triunfel made his long-awaited Major League debut in the ninth inning… and struck out on three pitches. Alex Liddi made his less-awaited return to the Majors… and struck out to end the game. Hector Noesi made the least-awaited return to the Majors in the history of the Majors… and somehow escaped unscathed after walking the first batter he faced and giving up a double.

Luis Jimenez got the first hit of his Major League career, which was fun. Just about the only fun anybody in Seattle had during the game.

Next game: vs. Athletics | September 8 | 6:10 pm

Not Anymore!

This farewell was a lot easier to write than my last one.

In case you have been bored by the Mariners today, they sprung another transaction on us tonight, albeit a less unexpected one than the trade of Ichiro – Justin Smoak has been sent down to AAA Tacoma.

To say Smoak’s demotion is long overdue is an understatement. Previously one of the top hitting prospects in baseball, Smoak broke into the big leagues with the Rangers in 2010… and hit .209/.316/.353 before being sent back to AAA. After he was traded to the Mariners for Cliff Lee he was promoted directly to Seattle… where he hit .239/.287/.407. He didn’t do much better in 2011 – on May 22 he was hitting .271/.376/.486, but the rest of the year that dropped to .216/.296/.352.

2012 has been even worse for the once highly touted prospect. His batting average is .191. His OPS is .578 and his OPS+ is 64. Brendan Ryan’s OPS+ is 64. Justin Smoak just looks clueless at the plate right now, and sending him out to rack up three strikeouts each game isn’t good for anybody.

Mike Carp will be up tomorrow to take Smoak’s place on the team, but there is yet another move that needs to be made. Ichiro’s trade opened up another spot on the 25-man roster (and the 40-man), which means that the Mariners can pick from any of their up-and-coming players to give the big leagues a go. Will it be Alex Liddi, who’s promotions and demotions only rival those of Steve Delabar? How about Luis Jimenez, who represented Tacoma in the PCL All-Star game as DH and has an OBP of .392? Maybe Darren Ford, who could emulate Ichiro with his speed on the basepaths and in the outfield (17 stolen bases in 31 games, which is a pace of 89 over a 162 game season)?

I’ll take anything at this point.

After a four-game reprieve from the Rangers, the Mariners are heading to Texas to take on the AL West champs once again.

Tonight, Kevin Millwood takes on LHP Matt Harrison. Tomorrow, Jason Vargas and RHP Scott Feldman go head-to-head, while Wednesday sees a Blake Beavan matchup with LHP Derek Holland.

Current record: 30-18

Last game: vs. Blue Jays. While the Mariners struggled against the Angels, the Rangers kicked off their homestand with a triumphant sweep in Toronto. Not only did they take each game of the three, but finished with 34 runs, 44 hits, and 10 homers—including a grand slam by Nelson Cruz.

On the flip side, the Jays managed 16 runs, 32 hits, and struck out 26 times against Derek Holland, Colby Lewis, and Yu Darvish. On Friday and Sunday, the Rangers collected over 5 runs in a single inning (6 in the 1st, 7 in the 2nd). During Saturday’s game, the Rangers took the Jays into extra innings, finishing the game off in the 13th with a 2-run rally by Toronto and a 3-run rally by Texas.

Last series against Seattle: May 21 – 23, 2012. Seattle took this series 2-1, with a one-run showing by Felix Hernandez and a 5-3 win on Alex Liddi’s grand slam off Scott Feldman. In their one loss, the Mariners put up 7 hits to the Rangers’ 4, but went just 2-for-9 with runners in scoring position.

Toughest player: Josh Hamilton. Since we last crowned him the hottest Ranger, Hamilton has raised his home run count to 20, batting .368/.422/.753 in 199 PA and 45 games.

This season, he’s gone 8-for-29 against Seattle, striking out 8 times and picking up 3 doubles, 2 RBI, and a single home run against Erasmo Ramirez.

Weakest link: Mike Napoli. He carries the lowest slash line (.239/.331/.457) and third-lowest BB/K rate (.31) amongst Rangers with at least 100 PA, and recently broke a hitless streak of 4 games with a 2-run homer off Jesse Chavez.

In 7 appearances against the Mariners, Napoli is 0-for-18 with 4 walks and 6 strikeouts.

Expected results: As if to prove they were not embarrassed by a weak showing against Seattle, the Rangers looked every bit the powerhouse team they are this weekend. To sum up: I’m scared.

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For more on the Rangers, check out Big Game Claws.

Things that happened in today’s game that I can believe:

• The yellow hydro won.
• Josh Hamilton hit another RBI double.
• Adrian Beltre started another home run streak for the Rangers with a 2-RBI shot off Tom Wilhelmsen.

Things that happened in today’s game that I can’t believe:

• The Mariners won. For the first time since May 5, 2011, Seattle took a series from Texas.
• Alex Liddi hit his first grand slam.
• Kevin Millwood was not awful for his third start in a row, holding the Rangers scoreless through 6 innings on 3 hits, 2 walks, and 2 strikeouts.
• Brandon League earned his ninth save with 9 strikes in 11 pitches and no baserunners allowed.

Did I mention that the Mariners won?

Next game: vs. Angels | May 24 | 7:10pm

Yesterday was a mostly beautiful, sunny day in Seattle and an overcast day in Colorado. This didn’t hinder the Mariners’ chances as the team demolished the Rockies to take a 2-0 lead in the series. After the drubbings the Mariners had taken on the road trip, I’m sure the team would have been thrilled to take the series 2-1.

Today was a reversal of sorts. The rain that is ever-so-fitting with a ballclub from Seattle left Colorado and instead dumped on Western Washington, leaving a beautiful clear day at Coors Field. Fortunately for the Mariners, this change in weather did not affect their play and they continued their impressive resurgence, sweeping the suddenly reeling Rockies by a final score of 6-4.

Today’s wasn’t as clear-cut a win as the previous two. Blake Beavan didn’t throw a two-hit shutout and the offense didn’t score 9 runs, but another complete team effort led the Mariners to their second road sweep of the year.

After having a couple of slow weeks, Dustin Ackley is steadily increasing his batting average, which now sits at .256. Jesus Montero, after having a few days off, has had an impressive showing against Colorado, culminating in his third-inning homer off of Colorado starter Jeremy Guthrie. Justin Smoak immediately followed with a home run of his own and Mike Carp almost made it back-to-back-to-back, but the ball ended up being caught at the wall (Ken Levine called it a home run on the radio before Rick Rizzs corrected him 10 seconds later).

Blake Beavan earned his second win of the year after gong five innings and only giving up two runs. He managed to strike out an impressive seven Rockies. Kelley, Furbush, Wilhelmsen and League combined for six more Ks, giving Mariners pitchers 13 on the night.

On a less-than-happy note, Brandon League gave up a two run homer in the ninth. Yeah, small sample size and all of that, but I’m even more nervous when Brandon League comes in than I’ve ever been… which I didn’t think was possible. In 19 outings this year, he has only pitched in four games in which he hasn’t given up at least one hit or walk.

Alex Liddi, on the other hand, made up for his rough day at the plate yesterday. Coming in as a pinch-hitter in the ninth, Liddi hit the first triple of his career.

It feels like this team has been on the road for months. Thankfully they’re probably en route back to Seattle right now as they face the Texas Rangers tomorrow night in Safeco. Felix Hernandez gets the start against Yu Darvish in what should be a pretty exciting game.

Next game: vs. Rangers| May 21 | 7:10pm

There was a chance this game wasn’t going to be played today. There were reports of ominous clouds in Denver and there was a very real chance that the game would be delayed or even postponed. Thankfully, for Mariners fans, this wasn’t the case.

Two days ago I was more down about the team than I’ve been in a while. Sure, the logical side of me was pretty sure that this wouldn’t be the season we overtook the Rangers as A.L. West champions, but the to say losing streak (especially the way the Mariners lost some of those games) left a bad taste in my mouth would be an understatement.

And then last night happened.

I’m glad I’m not a Colorado Rockies fan last night. Last night the Rockies only mustered two hits against Kevin Millwood… which would have been a slightly more acceptable outcome 10 years ago. This is the Kevin Millwood that played for the Rockies last year and was bad. This is the Kevin Millwood that, aside from his last couple starts, has still looked bad.

The Rockies lost 5-0 against the Mariners, who had been on a heartbreaking losing streak.

Last night was an anomaly, I thought. The Mariners had a good game in a bad season – any team can win on any given night. They were sure to get rocked today by a Colorado lineup anchored by Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez.

And then today happened.

Today, the Rockies looked to even the series against Jason Vargas, who hasn’t quite been lights-out this year. In Vargas’ last start he gave up five runs (two homers) against the Red Sox and in Coors Field, there was sure to be an offensive explosion this afternoon.

That there was. Unfortunately for the Rockies, the vast majority of the offense was provided by the suddenly rejuvenated Seattle Mariners. Every Mariner except for Alex Liddi got a hit. Every Mariner except for Alex Liddi got a run.  The team went .600 with runners in scoring position. Alex Liddi left 7 runners on base and struck out twice, but this is not an anti-Liddi post. He was the only person to have a bad day. When 10 of the 11 players on a team have a stellar day, that team is likely to do great things. This team scored nine runs en route to a 9-3 drubbing.

Three days ago the Mariners were pretty low on my priority list. With these past couple games, I’m once again ready to see what these young Mariners can do and I’m excited for the future. Baseball is a funny game, and I love it.

Next game: @ Rockies | May 20 | 12:10pm