Fifteen runs in two games and three wins in four — results we certainly did not expect but hoped for out of the 2012 Seattle Mariners.
Meanwhile, the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox sit in the cellar of the American League East winless with 0-3 records.
Is this business as usual in this 2012 Major League Baseball season?
With 158 games left in this season it’s probably best not to overreact to the first weekend of baseball, but it might be hard not to.
After all, these were the very same Mariners who played half of their games last year with Chone Figgins hitting .188. Seattle’s leading home run hitter last season was catcher Miguel Olivo, who hit 19 jacks. Justin Smoak was the next leading home run hitter with 15.
Last season the Mariners had quite possibly the most pathetic offensive existence I have ever had the misfortune to watch.
They ranked last in the American League in batting average, last in the AL in on-base percentage, and second-to-last in the AL in total home runs during 2011.
So when the Mariners put together a ridiculous hit parade, scoring 15 runs in two games and affording everybody a hit in their latest 8-7 victory, how can you not overreact?
General Manager Jack Zdurenciek entered the off-season with an explicit goal to improve the club offensively, while keeping the team on a low-cost youth movement. So instead of blowing $219 million on Prince Fielder, he dealt Pineda to the Yankees for Jesus Montero, his designated hitter of the future.
Dustin Ackley, Kyle Seager and Mike Carp all impressed during Spring Training and begin the first full major league seasons of their careers.
The desperation for offense has even made Figgins the leadoff hitter and put Ichiro in the three hole for the first time in his Major League career.
So far, so good.
Ichiro and Figgins have gotten off to scorching hot starts following the season opening games in Japan, becoming top-of-the-order sparks that led to huge offensive innings and blew the last two games against Oakland wide open.
This is encouraging not only because Seattle is actually putting runs on the board, but because this trend could reinvigorate fans and prove Seattle won’t be dead to rights when it is down two runs in the eighth inning. The ability to manufacture rallies from anywhere in the order could make this year a stark contrast from last season, although the pitching is likely to regress a little.
But, again, it’s important not to overreact to an optimistic 3-1 start for the Mariners. We haven’t seen what the Mariners will do against Texas or how the starting rotation, which features three new faces, will look.
This team, though, is worth our patience. It won’t be pretty all year — Smoak and Montero will go through their growing pains in the heart of the order, Figgins may fall on his face eventually, and the rotation after Felix isn’t an ideal two through five — but this team is being grown the right way, through young, home-grown talent.
If the first weekend of baseball is any indication, it should be better than last season.
Sean Kramer can be reached at [email protected]