No Rhubarb!

The hometown nine lost a bit of its luster today. Jeff Clement and Wladimir Balentien, the two best hitters Tacoma had, were both called up to the Mariners. Unlike last September's cup of coffee, this should be it for both. Wlad becomes the new starting rightfielder for the M's, and Clement will DH against lefties righties.

As one might expect, this puts a big kink in whatever hopes the Rainiers had, but such is life in the minor leagues.

Posted by frinklin at 10:25 PM | 1 comments Links to this post    
Labels: niers, Our Favorite Rainier, TacThe Show, The Show

Starting soon - probably this weekend - we will be contributing to Bleeding Blue and Teal, one of the better Mariner blogs out there on the interwebs and the one smart enough to invite us. They are a great spot to follow the Rainiers' parent club.

Posted by frinklin at 9:24 PM | 0 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Blogs Much Better Than This One, Tacoma Rainiers, The Show

Geoff Baker in the Seattle Times Mariner blog reports that Mariner GM Bill Bavasi stated that Wlad Balentien and Jeff Clement will be in the majors "sooner rather than later." Neither player is in the Rainer line-up tonight.

Doesn't take a genius to figure this one out...

Posted by frinklin at 8:18 PM | 1 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Tacoma Rainiers, The Show

Do you own a Nintendo DS? Portable game system, replacement for the GameBoy, startling addictive? Just about everyone we know does. Meaning the Official Wife of No Rhubarb! and both Freitai, No Rhubarb! having a very limited social circle. Anyway, the Seattle Mariners - major league affiliate of Your Tacoma Rainiers - are owned by Nintendo. And they want you to looooove your DS as much as they love your money. So, if you're a proud DS owner, you can head to Safeco Field and use it for all sorts of good stuff. Over the park's dedicated network, fans will be able use their DS to track stats from the Mariner website, chat with other DS-owning fans, order refreshments or souvenirs... and all from the comfort of your seat. The M's played around with this last season, charging a nominal fee for the trouble, but when it starts up again this time it will be totally free.

This is pretty damned cool,and gets the official No Rhubarb! Seal of Approval. Knowing the DS-obsessed Freitai as we do, we're expecting to be at the game testing this out before the end of next homestand.

Posted by frinklin at 9:07 PM | 2 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Tacoma Rainiers, The Show

Alone? Bored? Nothing to do? Flip to FSN at 7:00 and watch Our Favorite Rainier candidate R.A. Dickey make his starting debut for the Mariners. Dickey and his knuckler open a huge April series against the Angels tonight.

Posted by frinklin at 7:01 PM | 0 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Tacoma Rainiers, The Show

As if to celebrate his being named Our Favorite Rainier on Monday, Matt Tuiasosopo had his best day as a Rainier, going 2-4 with four runs batted in and a triple. Plus, R.A. Dickey found himself promoted to the major leagues.

To top it all off, today Adam Jones - wearing the number 42 in honor of Jackie Robinson - hit his first home run as an Oriole.

Posted by frinklin at 9:57 PM | 0 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Our Favorite Rainier, Tacoma Rainiers, The Show

The good news? Jerry Crasnick of ESPN takes a look at prospects playing in the Cactus League and mentions Tacoma Rainier (and possible Favorite Rainier) Wlad Balentien, saying that he might have a "higher upside" than the departed Adam Jones.
The Bad news? The column also includes this gem:

"He's got ability,'' the scout said. "But with some of his actions, it's like he's playing at the game -- he's not playing in the game. It's a 'look at me' kind of thing.''

Suffice to say, this is not something that should warm the heart of a Mariner or Rainier fan. We here at No Rhubarb! believe that the emotional side of sports (he's a gamer or a leader or whatever the hell else you can come with) is almost always overrated, but there sure seems some truth in this. Watch Wlad and it's pretty obvious he likes to show off. He preens a bit, especially after he hits a dinger.

Of course, the more homers he hits, the less it matters.

Posted by frinklin at 9:26 PM | 0 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Tacoma Rainiers, The Show

Dave Niehaus today celebrated his 73rd birthday today by winning the 2008 Ford C. Frick Award, and with it enshrinement in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Niehaus has been the the Mariners' primary broadcaster for the entire lifetime of the franchise. He is the voice of the Mariners, and the first thing that many M fans think of when asked about the team.

Like many of us from the Pacific Northwest, I grew up with Dave Niehaus. He taught me to be a baseball fan. I spent many a day and night with my dog, my walkman and some very, very bad baseball. Neihaus is a storyteller of the first degree, and it is his voice I hear in my head whenever I watch a baseball game.

And if you don't catch the reference in the title to this post, you're not a fan.

Posted by frinklin at 6:31 PM | 0 comments Links to this post    
Labels: The Show

What the hell?

Being a fan of a minor league franchise is never easy. The teams exist only to feed the major league club's need for players, be they up and coming stars or replaceable spare parts. While we minor league fans love our boys, we also know they can be gone tomorrow. It's just a bit easier for fans of the Rainiers, since Tacoma's best should graduate to the Mariners, just a slow and traffic-filled drive up the highway to Seattle. Alex Rodriguez went from Tacoma to Seattle, so did Felix Hernandez. Adam Jones should have been the same.

But he isn't. Adam Jones, Our Favorite Rainier, will suit up for the Baltimore Orioles next season. He was the prime prospect sent to Baltimore for starting pitcher Erik Bedard. The Mariners sent Jones, reliever George Sherril, and three prospects (Kameron Mickolio – another NR favorite - ,Chris Tillman and Tony Butler) to the Orioles for Bedard. And that just sucks

Don't get us wrong, Erik Bedard is a very fine pitcher. He led the AL in strikeouts with 221 and won 13 games for a terrible Baltimore team. He'll pair with King Felix to form a dynamite one-two punch at the top of the rotation. But Jones ain't so slouch either. The best position player prospect the Mariners have developed since Alex Rodriguez (Ichiro don't count), Jones is a power/speed combination at a prime defensive position. Jones was expected to upgrade an outfield that is looking disturbingly old (Raul Ibanez), property of the Royals (Jose Guillen) and injury-prone Brad Wikerson. Plus, while Bedard is a free agent after the 2009 season, Jones will belong to the Orioles for the next six years.

The biggest drawback of this trade is that it misjudges how close the Mariners are to contending. Yes, the Mariners won 88 games last season, but they did that despite being outscored and featuring near dead zones at first, second and DH. This is not a team one pitcher away from the playoffs. This is a team that should be concentrating on young, cheap talent. You know, like Adam Jones.

Posted by frinklin at 7:04 PM | 0 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Our Favorite Rainier, Tacoma Rainiers, The Show