Release

OK, I can breathe easy now. It sucks, but that Texas series showed beyond any shadow of a doubt that this team was never good enough to compete for the playoffs this year, with or without Mike Hargrove. With a better manager, we'd still look like we were in the race. And it's possible the team gave up, in a way they wouldn't have without all the games he single-handedly lost. But Felix isn't ready for sustained dominance, Meche's first half was the illusion we all figured it probably was, and the lineup and bullpen, while good, aren't good enough to carry a crappy rotation.

Apart from Felix's struggles, it's pretty much what I expected before the year started, and Hargrove's 4-6 losses (or whatever) aren't the difference. They'd make this team look a lot more respectable, so they still hurt...but hey, draft picks. So, no more complaining about Hargrove, unless he does something to mortgage the future. And probably, no more talking about the 2006 Mariners at all. If I have something to say, I'll stick to the minors or whatever, though I'm obviously no kind of expert there, or to next year.

I'm still excited about this team's chances from 2007 on, though. The A's are fading, with no real help on the way from their farm system, and I still don't really take Texas seriously, for whatever reason. So, I think from 2007-2012 or so we'll see the Mariners and the Angels slugging it out for the division title with the Rangers threatening occasionally. Oakland will probably still be dangerous next year, but they're going to have a real hard time competiting without serious, serious resurgences from Eric Chavez and Bobby Crosby.

So, since I have this nagging feeling the Angels are going to do something really stupid with their roster, and that their starting rotation isn't really as good as it looks (excepting John Lackey, though Weaver is obviously also very dangerous, I just think he's clearly not as good as he appears right now), I like our chances. We'll see what the offseason brings, though, we can't do it without starting pitching. So, until next year...