Posts tagged RichieSexson at FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog

Baseball parks have long been a great place to meet somebody, whether you're a man or a woman. If you meet somebody at a game, you already know you have a common interest with them, so you've got your icebreaker right there. The seemingly never ending flow of beer doesn't hurt much either, of course.

If you're single and still looking for that special someone, or even that special person for the next few hours, I highly recommend going to a baseball game to find them. Just make sure you aren't going to SafeCo Field. Don't be fooled by the lesbian make-out sessions, because that place is a ghost town these days.

Among the several casualties of this dismal Mariners season -- Jeff Pentland's job, Richie Sexson's career, the fantasy team of anyone who drafted J.J. Putz -- is the singles scene at Safeco Field.

The scene is dead for one simple reason (which is practically a natural law): Women don't like losers.

I say this with the certainty of someone who went on several dates while unemployed and living at my parents' house. Eventually the girl would learn the gravity of my situation, and then (evidently) lose my phone number.

The Mariners -- who also live in the basement and rarely score -- are just as unattractive to women. At least that's what I conclude from the looks of Safeco Field's Hit It Here Cafe on a couple of recent nights.

As Mr. Watson told you yesterday, the Seattle Mariners finally went ahead and did what we'd all been waiting for them to do for a few weeks now: they fired general manager Bill Bavasi. In other words, Monday was probably the best day that Seattle sports fans have had in a while, and a cause for celebration.

With the pending move of the Sonics, and the Mariners struggles this season, there hasn't been much to cheer about in the Emerald City lately. Still, while there's some debate in New York about the Mets firing Willie Randolph (was it deserved? did they go about it the right way? etc.), I don't think there's much debate amongst Mariners fans about how they feel for this move. If they're upset about anything, it's probably that Bavasi was the only one to go and that the team can't fire Richie Sexson.

As Watson mentioned in his post yesterday, Bavasi's tenure in Seattle is not one littered with success. He gave questionable contracts to Sexson, Carlos Silva, and Adrian Beltre (though I think Beltre has been a good addition to the club), actually gave Jeff Weaver $8 million to suck for a season, and made trades like sending Carlos Guillen to Detroit for Ramon Santiago. Those are some devastating moves, and yet, that's only part of what Bavasi did to help bring this organization down.

The Mariners will be finishing up a six-game road trip this afternoon at Yankee Stadium, and they'll be hoping to avoid going 0-6. Still, you have to wonder, despite the fact that they haven't won a game on this trip, do they really even want to go back home to Seattle? At least while they're in New York, the home fans can't kill them, so they're safer on the road.

There's probably also some fear in manager John McLaren and general manager Bill Bavasi that they may not hold those titles for much longer. The fans wouldn't exactly cry themselves to sleep at night knowing those two were gone, and they may be getting their wish soon as both have received the dreaded votes of confidence from team president Chuck Armstrong.

"Their positions are secure," Armstrong told MLB.com from his Bellevue, Wash., home. "They are not to be blamed for what's going on.

"In my 23 years, I have never ever seen anything like this. We saw it the other way in 2001. I mean, you have to ask yourself, 'How did the Mariners win 116 games that season with that roster, compared to this roster?' This is just as inexplicable the other way."

On Deck is FanHouse's look at the day's most intriguing baseball matchups

Texas Rangers (19-21) vs. Seattle Mariners (15-25) - 8:05PM Est.

Let's start today's On Deck by taking a trip in the FanHouse Time Machine. We're going to go all the way back to May 8th, 2008. The world was a different place back then. Ok, so the world was really any different as all, as it was just five days ago, but it was sort of exciting!

That was the day when Richie Sexson threw his helmet and charged Kason Gabbard after taking exception to a pitch. Sexson thought that Gabbard's eye-high fastball was meant for his face even though it was over the heart of the plate, and he took umbrage. Of course, had Felix Hernandez not plunked Ian Kinsler earlier in the game after Kinsler homered, none of this would have happened.

Now, here we are five days later, and Gabbard and Hernandez are set to face each other one more time. Will we have an encore?

On Deck is FanHouse's look at the day's most intriguing baseball matchups.

St. Louis Cardinals (23-15) at Milwaukee Brewers (17-19) - 2:05 PM ET

Milwaukee, already known for its consumption of beer and brats, has been the Tums capital of America this weekend. First, Jason Isringhausen blew a save on Friday after having the Brewers at two outs and nobody on in the ninth inning ... which led to Jason being demoted from the closers role. Then the very next day, there was Eric Gagne blowing yet another save, which was Gagne's ... oh I've lost count this season, how many blown saves is that? Gotta be between 50 and 80 (actually, he only blew a tie game in the ninth, but Gagne did get the loss). And that led Gagne to muse that maybe he should go the same path as Isringhausen. So can anybody here close today's game? Hey, at least extra innings will be fun.

Let's set the scene for those who don't stay up all hours watching west coast baseball: Felix Hernandez comes inside and plunks Ian Kinsler on the shoulder in the fourth inning of the Rangers' tilt with the Mariners. This came after Kinsler took King Felix deep in the second inning, so of course, tensions are going to be a little high after that.

Bottom of the frame, Kason Gabbard takes the mound for the Rangers and retires the first two hitters he faces. Then he throws a pitch eye-high, but not so tight at Richie Sexson. Sexson then immediately charges Gabbard, throws his helmet right at his back, and triggers an all out melee:

Sexson said he fully expected to get hit, given what had transpired and the fact that there were two out with the bases empty, but it was the location that angered him.

"I know the situation there, and he should throw below the shoulder," Sexson said. "But the face? No one should do that ... Throwing the helmet was not good. I know that's not the right way to do it, but at that time I lost it."

Texas manager Ron Washington, not surprisingly, was not happy.

"We got two hitters hit, and if you go look at that replay, Gabbard was nowhere near Sexson's head," Washington said. "I guess he was just frustrated and things got out of control. ... Sexson overreacted. If we'd have wanted to hit him, we'd have hit him ... I thought (throwing the helmet) was (expletive). How tall is he, 6-feet-13? And you go run out there on a little guy and throw a helmet. That's just frustration. The guy is a competitor and he got frustrated."

Rangers broadcaster Tom Grieve proceeded to unload on Sexson during the Rangers broadcast ... highlights of which come after the jump:

When you are a 6'8", 240 lb first baseman, people expect you to rake. A LOT. And for awhile, Richie Sexson did just that. He's hit over 30 HR five times, twice reaching 45 jacks in a single season. Just two years ago, he posted the following line:

.264 avg, .338 OBP, 34 HR, 107 RBI, 75 R and 1 SB.

Sure, it's not going to win you any fantasy MVP awards. Among other things, the On Base Percentage suggests a lack of plate discipline (yep, 154 strikeouts – and that's not a season high for him) and he's obviously not racing around the bases.

But 34 jacks is 34 jacks. If you are even remotely interested in Sexson, it's for power. Home runs are like a little pot of gold in fantasy baseball – they provide a hit, a run, an RBI and of course the tater itself. This is why Sexson is potentially so appealing.

BUT ... there's always a but, isn't there?

After all, through Wednesday's games, Sexson is hitting a robust .091 (1/11) and ... well, that's all you really need to know about that. He's being dropped in a bunch of leagues as a result.

This in part is because this isn't a new development. Last year, Sexson missed a bunch of games due to a balky hamstring, and this season he's already suffering from a sore shoulder. That ain't good for fielding or hitting.

Before last night's game against the Rangers, one in which the Mariners lost their sixth straight, J.J. Putz and some teammates had an idea to get the Mariners back in the win column.

Haircuts for everybody!

Putz, Adrian Beltre, and Richie Sexson took turns cutting the hair of everybody on the team and even the coaches. Well, Richie did for a while, but he broke his leg while trimming Raul Ibanez's hair. At least I think he did, I'm sure some Mariners fans wish he had.

The team entered Wednesday mired in a five-game losing streak and was greeted upon arrival at the visitors clubhouse by closer J.J. Putz and some clippers. Assisted by third baseman Adrian Beltre, who did the majority of the cutting and clipping, and first baseman Richie Sexson, the entire team, most of the coaches and manager John McLaren began the game minus some hair.

Unfortunately for the Mariners, their new looks weren't enough to pull out a victory. In fact, Putz got so tired from cutting all that hair that he blew his first save of the season as the Rangers pulled out a 7-6 win.

The mistake the Mariners made here was not in theory, but in execution. You see, haircuts will not change a team's luck unless they shave their heads completely. It's science. So unless the entire team shows up to the park tonight looking a lot more aerodynamic, these haircuts will not work. If they aren't willing to commit, maybe they can all just stop shaving.

Ivan Rodriguez could face a suspension after making inadvertant contact with home plate umpire Mike Winters on Thursday night in Seattle.

Pudge became upset because after Yuniesky Betancourt failed to keep up his end in a hit and run. After a wing and miss, Betancourt leaned out in front of the plate and interfered with Rodriguez's throw to second to try and get Adrian Beltre. Seeing the play live, Pudge had every right to be angry.

Still, Winters didn't call interference on Betancourt which prompted an argument from Rodriguez.

"Rodriguez was ejected because during the argument he got too demonstrative and in so doing inadvertently bumped into me," Winters said. "That's why he was ejected."

I have no idea if I-Rod will also be forced to wear a skirt.

This play was only one of two odd incidents in last night's Seattle victory over the Tigers. In the 5th inning Adrian Beltre hit a bases loaded single to tie the game at two, and as he tried to take second base on the throw home, Carlos Guillen missed the tag and he was called safe. Beltre then came off the bag, and again Guillen missed a tag on him. Beltre got to his feet and started towards third, as Guillen swung and missed with his glove a few more times.

Eventually Richie Sexson scored what proved to be the winning run for Seattle, but when the Tigers appealed the play at second before the next pitch, Beltre was called out. Bruce Froemming said Beltre never touched second, which is odd seeing as how Froemming called him safe at second. After viewing replays, it was clear that Guillen never did tag Beltre, but also that Beltre did in fact touch second base.

Just a very odd play, one that left both teams a little unhappy.

Previously at FanHouse:
David Wells Gets Suspended, Thinks He Might Be Wearing a Skirt Soon

Now that Jeff Weaver has been vanquished to the furthest reaches of the disabled list, Mariners fans have needed a new outlet in which to showcase their disgust. Unfortunately for Richie Sexson, that person just happens to be him.

After striking out for the third time last night, Mariners fans let Richie know just what they think of him as they serenaded him with a round of loud boos. After last night's debacle, Sexson has seen his average drop to .162 on the season. He's also struck out 30 times, and considering he only has 21 hits, that's not exactly good.

Especially when you're making $15.5 million this season.

So now the debate has sparked on what the Mariners should do with Richmond Lockwood, and the consensus seems to be that the least they can do is move him down in the batting order. Even Sexson agrees with that move.

"I don't know if that will affect my swing," Sexson said of such a move. "If you get a hotter guy in there, sure it could help. I've been leaving a lot of guys on base. There's no excuse for the ways I'm leaving guys on base."

He's also well aware of the boos, but to his credit, he's not angry with the fans for doing it.

"You can't shut it out," Sexson said of the crowd's reaction. "I deserve it. I've played horribly. All I can do is continue to work hard. It's their right. They pay money to come to these games and watch us do well and watch us succeed. And I'm not playing well. They deserve to do whatever they want to me."

The Mariners can't really complain about the fact that Sexson isn't hitting that well, and striking out a lot. That's basically what he's made an entire career out of doing. The concern is related to his power numbers. In previous seasons Richie has always been able to sneak in at least 30 home runs and 100 RBI between those strikeouts.

As of now he's only hit 5 long balls and driven in 20 runs, which would put him on pace to finish the season with 21 homers and 87 RBI.

Not exactly the kind of production that the Mariners are looking for in their big bopper, or one that's going to endear him to a fan base.