Tim Booth Beat Writer For The Seattle Times
Tim Booth, a beat writer for the Seattle Times, joins Scott & Jeremy to discuss the Orioles' current series with the Mariners, as well as the Seahawks' recent training camp buzz.
With a win against Seattle's Iwakuma last night, the Orioles have a chance to give the Mariners' two best pitchers a loss while bettering their west coast road trip record. However, Felix Hernandez is having one of his best seasons, so it will be a challenge.
"It's absolutely possible with the way Seattle's offense is playing--not giving their pitchers run support at all," said Booth.
With that being said, the Mariners themselves have a decent chance of making the playoffs via a wildcard spot, regardless of their spotty hitting. But Booth contends they must trade for a decent hitter to bolster their inexperienced lineup.
"If this team wants to make a legitimate push in the west with how good Oakland is and how the Angels have come back, the Mariners flat out need to get better on offense."
"I don't necessarily think they're done [making moves] before the trade deadline. They could still go out and get some hitters who aren't as young," Booth added.
As for which players Seattle may be targeting before the deadline, Booth stated there are a number of possibilities.
"The latest rumor is that they have some interest in Drew Stubbs, the Colorado right fielder. There's been a lot of talk about Ben Zobrist from Tampa Bay as well," said Booth.
Though Seattle is in decent shape as an organization now, the Orioles are still huge beneficiaries of one of the Mariner's worst personnel decisions in the history of their front office. Baltimore received two cornerstone players in Adam Jones and Chris Tillman in exchange for giving Seattle Eric Bedard.
"It's still regarded as one of the worst trades the franchise has ever done. Bavasi thought his job was on the line that season, and he traded away the farm for a quick fix. It's still a major sore spot for Mariners fans," Booth pointed out.
Though the Mariners are in contention, it's clear that Seattle is still very much a football town.
"They became slightly irrelevant today. Richard Sherman held is charity softball game and it drew 22,000 people. A night later with the Mariners, right out of the all-star break, they drew 21,000," Booth said.