Your Seattle Mariners--with mixed helpings of optimism and gloom

I think that any fan of the Mariners is currently struggling on how to feel about their team right now.

On the one hand, they've got a winning record. On the other, they've only played 5 (well, 5 and a half if you count that terrible snowy abomination in Cleveland last Friday) with five games being canceled due to weather.

On the one hand, they've had brilliant games by Felix Hernandez and a decent start by Washburn. On the other, all their other starters have looked absolutely terrible.

On the one hand, the offense has found ways to win when the pitching is good. On the other, the team has a collective AVG of .187 and an OBP of .228. Not good numbers.

Geoff Baker has a pretty gloomy blog post that sums up the dire side of things. However, I think he may be jumping to conclusions that we simply can't come to until the Mariners play a few more games and get into a rhythm. I still think Wednesday's game gives fans a lot of reasons to hope: the Mariners got several hard hits against a difficult pitcher. They strung hits together. They took pitches--yes, they only got a couple walk, but I saw patience at the plate, and that's something they've struggled with. Ultimately, I think that while the numbers paint a pretty dim picture of this team, looking at the whole story makes it seem pretty silly to come to any sort of conclusions at this point.

I think the Mariners have a chance to win a series against a not very good Texas team this weekend. And then, they'll be up in the standings with a little breathing room, and who knows what they might come up with.

In the other news, Washburn is a funny guy and I have added him to my "players I like" list.

After yesterday's game got rained out:

Hernandez, who pitched in cold but completely dry weather Wednesday, looked at Washburn and started laughing at the lefty having had his start pushed back until tonight when Texas visits Safeco Field.

Washburn, not to be outdone, said, "Hey, Felix, I didn't give up any hits today."

A little more on the rain:

Washburn tried to make light of his situation.

“I’ve now prepared to face three teams for the same start – that has to be a record,” he said.

Scheduled to pitch in Cleveland, he didn’t. Scheduled to pitch in Boston, he didn’t. Tonight, barring an earthquake or some other natural disaster, he’ll face Texas in Safeco Field.

“The bright side is, they don’t have any recent video of me pitching,” Washburn deadpanned. “I haven’t pitched since April 3.”