It's about time for Friday Night Lights ...

Yes, it's that time again. These days, it seems like I make a trek to small-town America to learn about the local team. There isn't an overwhelming amount of talent in the areas I primarily cover these days — the Olympic Peninsula and South Sound. A "big kid" is 6-foot-1, 230 pounds. Coaches implore their athletes to work as hard as possible and strategize to cover their team's inherent disadvantages. Facilities range from modest to dilapidated.

It's a much different scenario than I experienced the last few years in Bellevue. People like to compare the differences between the eastern and western portions of the state, but all you have to do is take a 90-mile drive down the freeway to see how striking they are in the Puget Sound region. On the Eastside, the facilities race that has become so prevalent in college football is readily apparent. I once saw a booster hand a coach a four-figure check so he could pay for the passing machine he just had to have for his wide receivers. There also is the famous $50,000 salary Bellevue boosters paid Butch Goncharoff.

There also was a striking difference in many of the athletes. It's not uncommon to see a 6-6, 280 prospect on the Eastside. Every year I worked at the Journal, there were multiple marquee athletes that UW and WSU didn't want to lose. Some of these kids worked just as hard as the smaller, less talented players outside the area. Others were coddled and wasted opportunities others would love to have.

As to which is better, I'll defer to a player I interviewed today about his team changing leagues: "Football is football."

Thanks, NBC

NBC executives stubbornly decided to stick with tape delay Olympics coverage on the West Coast. That means we missed the opportunity to watch swimmer Michael Phelps capture his record-setting eighth gold metal. Sure, I can turn on NBC's coverage and catch it before 11 p.m., but it won't be the same.

As a sports fan, I feel cheated out of witnessing one of life's memorable moments. Similar to everyone else, I can vividly recite where I was on Sept. 11, 2001. Or when Mark McGwire broke Roger Maris' single-season home-run record in 1998.

When someone brings up Phelps' accomplishment, I now can tell them that I was hitting the refresh button on ESPN.com and hoping that those at NBC might come to their senses. But hey, I guess that's too much to ask from the New York suits out here in the Wild West.

Old political bumper stickers

On my way home last night, I saw someone with a John Kerry bumper sticker on their car. In the last year, I also have seen faded ones endorsing Al Gore in 2000 and Bob Dole four years before that.

I feel like asking these people, "Don't you feel like a dork?" Seriously. In Dole's case, it's been 12 years since he ran for president. Even if he beat Bill Clinton, he would be out of office by now. If Gore won, he would be in the same position as George W. Bush is now if he were reelected in 2004. Kerry would be vying for a second term. All of it is irrelevant because none of those events actually happened.

Here's an idea: Peel off those dated stickers and support John McCain or Barack Obama — a candidate that actually can affect our future.

State of the Mariners

Given the team's abysmal perfor-
mance this season, I thought I would look at the roster and give my assessment what the future should hold for each player.

C—Kenji Johjima: He should've been a free agent after the season and given the organization's depth at the position — Jeff Clement, Rob Johnson and Adam Moore — all are 25 years old or younger, it's inexplicable why the team re-signed him to a three-year contract. But that happened and Johjima will be back as a starter or reserve next season.
C—Jamie Burke: Johnson has an .844 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) at Tacoma and is the best defensive catcher in the system. Burke has been a solid reserve for two seasons, but it makes more sense to go with the young player if the M's are going to carry three catchers.
C—Jeff Clement: Clement's power is intriguing, but I'm not convinced he can be a sufficient catcher. A rebuilding team has time to figure that out and deal with his learning curve.
1B—Miguel Cairo: Can anyone explain why he still is with the team? He's horrible at the plate (.244/.326/.299) and can't play anywhere besides first or second base. Jim Riggleman had him at shortstop recently and it was a disaster. There's no place for him next season.
1B—Bryan LaHair: He's off to a nice start, but a major-league starter usually doesn't require three seasons at the Triple-A level. His minor-league numbers don't indicate La Hair's the solution at first base.
2B—Jose Lopez: Probably the toughest player to evaluate on the roster. He's having the best year of his career (.309/.329/.436) at the plate, but his defense is below average. Couple that with his lack of conditioning and there's some concern he might not have a long career. I wouldn't be averse to trading him and signing someone such as Mark Ellis to handle the position while Carlos Triunfel develops.
3B—Adrian Beltre: Beltre has one year left on his contract and the team doesn't really have any other options. Matt Tuiasosopo has been decent at Tacoma, but I'm not convinced he's ready or is the long-term answer. Until that's resolved, the team would be wise to hold onto Beltre.
2B—Tug Hulett: He might fit in as a left-handed bat off the bench. I like his .396 career on-base percentage in the minor leagues.
SS—Yuniesky Betancourt: Betancourt seems to regress as a player with each year in the major leagues even though he should be entering his prime. He makes careless errors in the field and his range significantly has decreased since he came up in 2005. Betancourt has no approach at the plate where he has a pathetic .273 on-base percentage. The team needs to get away from its lineup full of free-swingers and trading Betancourt during the offseason would be a good start.
OF—Wladimir Balentien: Next season almost certainly will be a continuation of the rebuilding project and it makes sense to install Balentien in left field and allow him to develop.
OF/IF—Willie Bloomquist: Hulett's younger and should provide at least the same production at significantly less than the $1 million Bloomquist earned this season. He's a free agent and likely will find a team that can provide more playing time in the National League.
OF—Raul Ibanez: There's no place on a rebuilding team for a player who turns 37 next summer. Ibanez was one of Bill Bavasi's few good free agent acquisitions, but it's time to move on. Other him salary arbitration — he can be the designated hitter if he accepts. Ibanez almost certainly will do better than that on the free-agent market, which means the M's collect two compensatory picks when they lose him.
OF—Mike Morse: He's missed almost the entire season with a left shoulder injury. Morse might be a player who sticks around for a year or two before a more talented prospect, such as Greg Halman, knocks him off the roster.
OF—Jeremy Reed: Reed's lack of power makes him a fringe starter, but he plays all three outfield positions well. That's valuable enough to keep him around as the center fielder while the team rebuilds. He eventually should settle in as a quality No. 4 outfielder.
OF—Ichiro Suzuki: He seems to be a scapegoat because he doesn't crash into walls or dive for balls. Whatever. There's a lot of value in a player who never has played less than 157 games in a season. Players with good speed, such as Rickey Henderson and Kenny Lofton, age well. I would keep Ichiro.
No. 1 starter—Felix Hernandez: I won't waste time with analysis on this one. Barring injury, he should be the team's top starter for the foreseeable future.
No. 2 starter—Erik Bedard: I never liked the trade as I felt the package Bavasi sent to Baltimore was far too much for an injury-prone starter. Bedard has been just that in his first year with the M's. I don't see a future with the club beyond 2009 when he becomes a free agent. Unless the M's receive a strong trade offer for Bedard, the team should follow the plan I outlined for Ibanez.
No. 3 starter—Carlos Silva: Ugh. When Bavasi signed him to the foolish four-year contract before the season, my first thought was Jaime Navarro, who signed with the White Sox in 1997 after a mediocre season with the Cubs. Silva's a little different than Navarro, but the concern is the same. He doesn't miss bats and might implode the same way Navarro did with the White Sox. His contract makes him difficult to trade, which means he'll be back as the fifth starter or reliever next season. The M's should learn that giving long-term contracts to mediocre pitchers just isn't a good investment when they easily can find similar players at Tacoma or via trade.
No. 4 starter—R.A. Dickey: He doesn't fit in the rotation on a team that's looking to evaluate young talent. Dickey's knuckleball makes him a valuable asset, though, as he can serve as a reliever who can pitch on short rest or fill in if a starter's injured.
No. 5 starter—Ryan Rowland-Smith: Rowland-Smith is a solid, inexpensive option in this position. He's shown that he can be a quality reliever if the organization develops better pitching prospects in the future.
Closer—J.J. Putz: Seattle has seen closers quickly go from standouts to worthless. It's happened with Mike Schooler and Kazuhiro Sasaki. The team should avoid a similar outcome with Putz, who's 31. He likely would have some value to a contender.
Setup—Sean Green: With Brandon Morrow finally at Tacoma developing as a starter, Green probably fits this description better than anyone else on the roster. He's improved against left-handed batters, which could make him an option as a closer if Putz is traded.
Middle relief—Roy Corcoran: A nice addition in the offseason, Corcoran is a serviceable option in the bullpen.
Middle relief—Cesar Jimenez: Not a lefty specialist, but Jimenez should vie for a spot in the bullpen next season.
Middle relief—Mark Lowe: He obviously throws harder than his bullpen counterpart, but is in the same position Green was a year ago. He's going to have to learn an out-pitch against lefties, who have dominated him this year (.337/.400/.885).
Long relief—Jake Woods: Woods isn't a major-league caliber pitcher. The team should have better options in relief when Spring Training comes around.

Welcome

I finally have decided to join the 21st century and start a blog. There's no set plan at this time as far as content is concerned — we'll see where it goes from here. I hope you enjoy it and feel free to post comments.