Hey everyone--
This is Steve and I've written an article that was published in the
Northwest Society for American Baseball Research January 2003
newsletter. So, I figured I'd write it down here and see what you
all think of it. Any feedback is appreciated, even if it's that you
hate it. As long as it's constructive, please. It's an article
about the 2002 Seattle Mariners. Lou Pineilla's departure is not
included simply for space reasons and also it was just supposed to be
about the season in general.

So here it is:
2002 Seattle Mariners Review

Baseball plays funny tricks, doesn't it?

Coming off one of the finest seasons in baseball history, the Seattle
Mariners looked to take the New York Yankees' place as the next
baseball dynasty. Those "Mystifying Mariners" were going to be the
team to beat for years to come, and 2002 was going to prove that.

The 2002 version of these Mariners acquired veterans Jeff Cirillo,
James Baldwin and Shigetoshi Hasegawa to bring them closer to their,
so far, elusive American League pennant. Bret Boone also returned,
signing a three-year contract. Everything seemed to be in order.
After the first six games the Mariners were playing modest .500 ball
and about to embark on a road trip more dangerous than the Donner
Party expedition. The Mariners tore through Oakland, Anaheim and
Texas on a ten-game winning streak, the longest road streak in
franchise history. The Mariners were determined to prove that 116
wins were no fluke. During the streak the Mariners moved into first
place in the AL West, a spot they wouldn't relinquish until August.
The Mariners finished April with eighteen wins, just two wins shy of
the previous year's total for April.

Perhaps the biggest highlight of 2002 came from a batter who struck
out 176 times during the year. On May 2nd, against the Chicago White
Sox, Mike Cameron hit four home runs. becoming one of only fourteen
to accomplish the trick. Add those homers to Ichiro Suzuki's .404 May
batting average and Freddy Garcia' 3.32 May ERA, and it was beginning
to look like 2001 all over again.

Entering the All-Star break the Mariners had plenty of reason to
smile: they had a happy 55-33 record.

But sometimes fate decides to intervene. Nobody can win forever,
unless, of course, you play in New York. The Mariners discovered
that they, too, are a normal ball club. There would be no more
winning streaks. No more four home run games.

No more "Mystifying Mariners."

In August the team slumped. Ichiro's batting average for the month
was .282. Garcia's ERA for the month rose to 5.54. "We're in a rut.
It's everybody. It's a team effort," said Bret Boone. "Whatever we're
doing, it's not working." The Mariners suffered their first losing
month in nearly two years, going 13-15 in August.

One of those losses included the inevitable kick out of first place,
when they lost to the Cleveland Indians on August 23rd by a score of
4-2. The Indians, who almost knocked them out of the playoffs in
2001, got the job done this time. The season was by no means over,
but the Mariners were mentally and emotionally defeated. The rest of
the season the team fashioned a record of 16-17, including a six-game
losing streak against Texas and Oakland.

This inexplicable slump dropped them out of contention for the AL
West division and the Wild Card. After a year in which baseball
seemed too easy, they suddenly found themselves with nowhere to go in
October.

The Mariners finished the season with 93 victories. But in the end
the Oakland Athletics finished with 103 and the Anaheim Angels with
99.

"We had it," said Bret Boone after the season ending loss to the
Angels. "We had the division in our hands, and we let it get away
from us."

Baseball plays funny tricks. Doesn't it?