Justus Sheffield gets the start Friday!

[bpj]

I was speaking to a lack of pitching, a cursory look has, Tampa Bay, Cleveland, and Houston at the top, though the Yanks are sixth. I thought they were more like 15th the last time I looked.

If you think my model is lack of pitching you're mistaken.

I would be all stars and scrubs.

90% of my payroll would be into 4-5 great players, including pitchers like Gerritt Cole.

$0 into mid-level free agents like Mike Leake.

The remainder of my roster would be guys like Gonzales, Santana, Haniger, Vogelbach, etc.

Guys like Leblanc, Dee Gordon, Leake, Adam Lind, etc. would never be on my team. The #5SP spot wouldn't go to a guy like Felix or Leblanc, that's where I'd be auditioning my AAA guys.

[Donn Beach]

what you are describing sounds more like all stars and guys under team control, the players you listed are all under team control. Nothing wrong with that if you can pull it off

[Donn Beach]

Wow I had no idea what a great season the Dodgers Korean starter's having. 1.64 era. Unreal.

Ryu has a 3.12 ERA with runners in scoring position. Second-best is Max Scherzer — 6.46.

[Donn Beach]

more on Ryu...I understand he is the most unpredictable pitcher in baseball, commands all his pitches equally effectively so he is willing to throw any pitch in any count or situation, downside, he is turning 33 years old

Ryu, who will turn 33 on March 25, will be a free agent for the second straight year -- but unlike 2018, he can’t be extended a qualifying offer for the '20 season, so he’ll be a true free agent in every sense of the word. Ryu didn’t just receive a qualifying offer last November, he accepted it, returning to the Dodgers on a one-year, $17.9 million pact for '19.

Now Ryu is set to hit the market again, this time without Draft-pick compensation attached to him. So why are Gerrit Cole and Madison Bumgarner getting all the hype? For that matter, it seems as though more people are talking about impending free agents Dallas Keuchel and Zack Wheeler than Ryu, who has outperformed every one of the aforementioned pitchers other than Cole, the consensus No. 1 starter on the upcoming market.

“He’s almost a throwback at this point in time,” one NL executive explained. “Dominates without needing to bunch together strikeouts, and doesn’t need to throw 100 mph. He can really pitch; any pitch, any time. He has dominated our guys. I’ve heard people internally state that part of his effectiveness is that he does things differently than most guys these days; different is usually good in baseball. He commands the baseball, doesn’t allow many free bases and really does a tremendous job of throwing off a hitter’s timing. I love watching him pitch because it’s so precise and so unique.”

[bpj]

what you are describing sounds more like all stars and guys under team control, the players you listed are all under team control. Nothing wrong with that if you can pull it off

That's about it.

Dont waste money buying the first 2 WAR from free agents.

IF YOU HAVE A CAPABLE MINOR LEAGUE SYSTEM, you should be able to plug one or two positions per season with a player from the minor leagues capable of putting up the same WAR as the expensive guy they would replace.

Aaron Nola would make my roster at 2B instead of going after a Dee Gordon, for example.

Any normal season we should have AAA guys that make Wade Leblanc and Mike Leakes irrelevant. Going into next year, Sheffield and Dunn over Leblanc and Leake + the $20 million you're not spending on those two wastes of space still to spend on your #1 and #2 in the rotation.

There's zero reason the Mariners couldn't drop $100M per year on free agents when the time is right. 4 good free agents or trades for 2020 and we'd be contenders.

Not all that far off with the resources they have available.

[Hy Feiber]

Just turned it on, gagged at these Goofy uniforms, had to turn it off!

Who the hell is Grotz?

[bpj]

Ryu+Cole atop our rotation would make this team a contender if you also get a DH and get Haniger/Santana back in the outfield alongside Fraley.

[Bil522]

Just turned it on, gagged at these Goofy uniforms, had to turn it off!

Who the hell is Grotz?

Watch it on a black and white TV...an UHD Black and white TV

[Hy Feiber]

Make Tui the Closer!

[bpj]

Next year we already have, imo, 5 or 6 bullpen guys that are closer material.

Dipoto has actually put together something pretty special in the minor league system, and now some MLB.

Look what's on hand plus a few of the minor leaguers, judas priest.

With 3 or 4 key acquisitions the Mariners could challenge anybody in 2020. They would be foolish to wait on putting together their a squad until 2021.

Don't teach these kids what another wasted year looks like.

By far the most talent (going forward) that we've had on the field since the glory days. Add to that our best minor league system- maybe ever- and I honestly dont get the grumbling about how this team will never contend.

They're so close now. I hope they push for 2020 because theres no reason not to.

Fill out a lineup and rotation, we're short 3 or 4 key players. Dont waste it Dipoto.