Are you looking for a fast, easy way to track baseball scores on your phone? So was I. So I created one. It’s called MyMobileScores and it launched Wednesday. I’m blogging about it’s development, new features and general other stuff at my professional blog over at http://www.k3ndall.com.

It’s not full-featured yet and there is work to be done to make it better and easier to use. But it’s up, and it works. I’d love your feedback.

The site currently works with iPhone and iPod touch (for sure), Windows Mobile (I think). Support for the Palm Treo is in the works, but just haven’t gotten there yet.

And we only had to part with $48 million. Not the top prospect in the farm system who is already batting .260 at the Major League level. Not to mention delivering late in games. Something it seems like the Mariners might be able to use. I have no qualms with the Mariners pitching staff. It’s just the fact that there is not one bat in the lineup that opposing clubs need to plan around (save an occasional hot streak from Rauuuuul).

Mike Morse, the Mariners right fielder Sunday, has played all over the diamond in his 4 years with the M’s. Yesterday, he proved that right field is not his home on a major league field. He misjudged or misplayed 3 fly balls in right that led to 7 runs. On the last play he hurt his shoulder diving for a ball that he should have had an easy play on. On the previous 2 bone-headed plays that led to runs, he either didn’t see the ball off the bat, or just didn’t react properly.

If the guy makes one bad play in the field, you can give him some slack, but 3 in one game, that lead to runs, that’s unacceptable at the Major League level. Morse’s poor outing in the field put spot starter Cha Seung Baek in a really bad spot. Baek actually pitched pretty well. He got into some jams, and had more base runners than you’d like, but he definitely didn’t pitch badly.

Now for Erik Bedard. It’s not serious, I know. But he’s been scratched twice already this season. I see a problem brewing. I still think Bill Bavasi made a good trade, but I’d just like to see my ace pitcher actually take the mound on his scheduled days.

We battled the rain, the snow, and Erik Bedard’s 5 walks, but we stuck it out for the whole game. The Mariners open the season with a 5-2 win over the Texas Rangers.

Bright spots

• Adrian Beltre - He looked comfortable hitting and if he’s hitting, the M’s have some stability in the middle of their lineup.
• JJ Putz - One of the best closers in baseball still has electric stuff

Areas of concern

• Richie Sexson - Big Sexy still can’t layoff the bad pitches. He opened the season with a walk, but proved that was an anomaly as the game progressed.
• Erik Bedard - Let’s hope it was Opening Day jitters. He look terrible. Facing the leadoff batter in the first, he was lights out. After that, he was in trouble the whole game. Let’s hope this isn’t an instant replay of Jeff Weaver. I don’t think it will be.

So, the Mariners are undefeated. Looking at their lineup, I don’t think it’ll last. Let’s just hope that they can scrap their way to first place by mid-summer and see if Bill Bavasi brings in some help at the trade deadline. They may win the weak AL West with this lineup, but they won’t get out of the first round of the playoffs.

So, its 4 am on a Friday night/Saturday morning and I’m sitting at the Mariners Team Store downtown Seattle with Jared waiting in line for single game tickets.

Why? Hmm. Great question. I’m freezing my ass off. My hands are numb typing this out. For what? The honor of getting opening day tickets to see Erik Bedard. Guaranteeing ourselves the tickets we want. To see the Red Sox, the Yankees on my birthday, and some interleague action against the Padres (I’d love to see Maddux one more time). No Cubbies in Seattle this year, but that’s ok. Maybe I’ll be able to catch a game with the Cubs and the Mariners in October????

The Mariners and the Orioles finally get the deal done to send Erik Bedard here to Seattle and the Mariners send top prospect Adam Jones to Baltimore. There are some other players heading to Baltimore in the deal as well. Left-handed specialist George Sherrill along with 3 minor leaguers.

Was this too much for the Mariners to give up? 2 players from their 25 man roster in addition to 3 minor league prospects. As I’ve said before, Adam Jones is going to be a star. Of course, you have to give up talent to get talent. Erik Bedard is a top shelf starter. He’s a bona fide Cy Young caliber starter. So the question is then, is the combination of an All Star caliber outfielder along with a solid bullpen guy (potentially a closer), and then multiple minor league pitching prospects more or less than a Cy Young starter.

In my opinion, a Cy Young starter is more important than any other position on the field. The Mariners can pick up an All Star outfielder, either in free agency or in a trade. Cy Young pitchers cost a ton in free agency, and you have to sell the farm in a trade. Another question is, “Is this selling the farm?” I don’t think this is giving up too much.

The Mariners are poised to compete in the American League West. They needed to keep pace with the Angels. This move to get Bedard puts the Mariners starting rotation on par or above the Angels and all other pitching staffs in the AL West.

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All signs are pointing to the fact that the Mariners will have a true #1 starter for the 2008 season. It is also looking like they will part with their 5-tool outfielder Adam Jones. Jones was called back from his Winter League assignment in Venezuela over the weekend to take a physical in Baltimore. Also rumored to be in the deal are left-handed reliever George Sherrill, 2006 second round pick minor league pitcher Chris Tillman, and another minor leaguer to be named later.

In some ways this is great for the Mariners, Bedard is a great pitcher. He will anchor a rotation that was very up and down last season. Losing Jones is a big problem for me. From what I’ve heard, and what I’ve seen, this guy will be an All Star for a long time.

We could argue conventional wisdom here, pitching and defense win championships, or you’ve got to score runs to win. Both are true, but looking at the Mariners, which is the bigger problem?

The Mariners finished no worse than 7th in the AL in all major hitting categories. And in pitching statistics the Mariners are consistently at the bottom. I guess that tells me what I need to know.

I’m hesitant to give up Adam Jones, but for a top shelf starter, that might be a great deal for the Mariners. Remember the Mariners recently signed Carlos Silva to a 4 year, $48 million contract. So it looks like their rotation will be Erick Bedard, Felix Hernandez, Jarrod Washburn, Miguel Batista, and Carlos Silva. Throw in Horacio Ramirez for a spot start, or injury replacement, and you have the looks of a solid pitching staff. The loss of Sherrill in the pen will be hard to replace, but the Mariners seems to have a lot of young arms who are about to make the jump from young and decent to solid bullpen arms.

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Watching the Mariner’s beat the Oakland A’s yesterday was one of the best baseball experiences of the year for me. It was turn back the clock day at Safeco and after a scorcher on Saturday the weather was more in line with traditional Seattle weather� cool, cloudy and perfect for baseball. The game was a high scoring, back and forth affair that ended with JJ coming in to finish the final three A’s batters with eight pitches. There were all sorts of great parts to the game. One was watching Ichiro hit his 1500th career hit. Another was watching Houston Street get punished for walking Vidro. There were also some parts to the game that were not fun to watch. Raul continued to demonstrate that he was not born to play defense. Washburn struggled the whole day, getting hit hard starting in the first; he was not fooling anyone. Here is a little quote from ESPN:

Washburn allowed baserunners in four of his five innings and also hit a batter. He threw 90 pitches and failed to get one groundout. Washburn is a mediocre pitcher who is dependent on defense and luck. It should never be a surprise when he gets lit up. That he is the No. 2 pitcher in Seattle’s rotation is a testament to the staff’s weakness.

This brings us to the point of this post. I think that as the Mariner’s make a run at the Angels for The AL West John Mclaren needs to light a fire. I get the impression from the team that the M’s clubhouse is place for team building and a place where the team can all feel safe and secure that despite their performance on the field, they need not worry because their job is safe; a great example of unconditional love. My opinion is that it is time for some tough love. I am of the opinion that a little competition may be just what the doctor ordered.

Earlier this year Hargrove sat Big Sexy (Richie Sexson) after he refused to get a hit, this is the type of move I think Big Mac needs to make. I understand that he may be nervous with the Angels coming to town and want to ride the winning vibe after taking three out of four from the A’s, but I say this is the perfect time. Put the team on notice that their position is not a given and that production matters. I would love to see some people have to fight a bit for their jobs. Some of those people would be: Ibanez, Guillen, Washburn, Weaver, Ramirez and Sexson. I know these are some of the big boys on our team, but I think it would do them some good. I would love to see a hungry Adam Jones come up and play a little left field and see how Raul reacts. I would love to see Feierabend brought back up to take Ramirez’s place in the rotation for a week and see how that shakes things up. How about letting Big Ben play first for the Angel’s series? It is time to move. Although the M’s won yesterday is was not because they dominated, they didn’t. The team looked downright defeated after Swisher came in and cleared the bases with a double to give the A’s the lead. The spark came after Big Sexy was thrown out and Broussard came in to replace him. Big Ben went yard to set things right and the Mariner’s rolled.

We are a streaky team, everyone knows this. I say we play to it. We don’t win because of the production of our big names, save for Ichiro of course, but rather because the guys feed off of each other. This is one reason why retaining Ichiro was so essential to the long term viability of the club. He sparks the momentum, but one man does not a team make. Ichiro needs guy behind him that are going to bring him around to score. I think the upcoming series with Anaheim is going to be a pivotal point in our season. We are on the brink and a strong series could really make the difference for the rest of the season, we need this. Play to win Mac, get these guys going!

Editor’s note: And now a break from my normal drivel. This is a post from my better half, Mollie. She is a blogger of a different variety (that is to say she talks about actual important things in life) over at One/Change. I couldn’t be happier to lend some of my blogspace to her. Quite frankly, her mere presence adds a level of sophistication and intelligence not seen in these parts for a long time. Be sure and give her a warm welcome.

Going to baseball games is one of my favorite things to do with Kendall. It enjoys the esteemed company of camping, long walks, and Saturday morning breakfast at El Greco.

Friday night we went to a game we have been looking forward to all season. It was our “living the high life” game. The Tigers were in town to play The Mariners and we got to watch the (whole) game from behind home plate. Incidentally, it happened to be Ichiro’s first game since signing his contract and the crowd was on fire (too bad Ichiro wasn’t…sorry buddy).

It was a good game, but The Mariners lost. The Tigers played a crisp game and The Mariners couldn’t keep up. Bottom of the 9th, the score was 6-3, players were one 1st and 3rd with 2 outs. Ben Broussard came up to the plate to pinch hit for Jose Lopez. Kendall and I stood up, cheering The Mariners, cheering Broussard on, and hoping for a home run to tie up the game. We were joined by a few others, but not by all, and definitely not by the 65 year old lady behind us who began to hysterically scream at me to sit down. Fortunately, I didn’t hear her until her third attempt because, as she said, “the crowd was too loud”. That should have been her first clue that we were at a sporting event and not at home napping.

My thoughts on this are as follows: 1) if you pay so much for a seat that it keeps you from being able to enjoy the game because you want to get what you pay for, then either stay home or sit in the bleachers (which I love…so, on second thoughts, don’t sit there); 2) if you are more passionate about telling other people what to do than you are about the game…stay home; 3) next time I will spend less time getting into ridiculous arguments with the sour old bag behind me, and more time watching the game and cheering for the Mariners.

Thanks to the 2 different couples who came up to me afterward offering me encouragement in my struggle against people who just don’t get what going to a ballgame is all about.

By the way, I cut off my tussle just in time to see Broussard strike out.

The Mariners did not let the unthinkable (losing their franchise player) happen. They locked up Ichiro for 5 years and will pay him $90 million. One thing we all know about Ichiro is that he remains healthy. He has played in 98.5% of the Mariners games since the start of the 2001 season.

Ichiro’s skills are without question. He’s a disciplined hitter who will most likely not lose his swing until after this contract is up. Mariner’s general manager Bill Bavasi said that he wanted Ichiro to head to the Hall of Fame wearing a Mariners cap. I think that bodes well for the Mariners.

I have to say, that as a frequent patron of the centerfield bleachers at Safeco Field, I’m glad that Ichiro will be around to dazzle us until 2012.