Texas was the rumored landing spot in the deal that was supposed to tear Josh Hamilton out of Texas to ensure that he landed in Seattle. Looking back, I'm sure glad that we moved away from that deal.
Now, the Mariners have missed out on Josh Hamilton, they passed on being too aggressive in the Nick Swisher sweepstakes and don't seem to be offering the farm to pry Giancarlo Stanton away from the Miami Marlins. At least, not that we know of yet.
Today, the Mariners have spun the wheel again and it seems to have landed back in the direction of Justin Upton again. Upton has a no-trade clause that would prevent Seattle from landing him, but it is believed that is just a means to get dollars out of a team.
So, why Justin Upton? A great center fielder, a decent bat and a great base runner, Upton could add a lot to the Young core of players that currently exists in Seattle and be a nice middle of the order bat, I think. If there is a deal done, we can only hope.
| Year | Age | Tm | Lg | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | CS | BB | SO | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 19 | ARI | NL | 43 | 152 | 140 | 17 | 31 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 37 | .221 | .283 | .364 | .647 | 62 |
| 2008 | 20 | ARI | NL | 108 | 417 | 356 | 52 | 89 | 19 | 6 | 15 | 42 | 1 | 4 | 54 | 121 | .250 | .353 | .463 | .816 | 107 |
| 2009 | 21 | ARI | NL | 138 | 588 | 526 | 84 | 158 | 30 | 7 | 26 | 86 | 20 | 5 | 55 | 137 | .300 | .366 | .532 | .899 | 129 |
| 2010 | 22 | ARI | NL | 133 | 571 | 495 | 73 | 135 | 27 | 3 | 17 | 69 | 18 | 8 | 64 | 152 | .273 | .356 | .442 | .799 | 110 |
| 2011 | 23 | ARI | NL | 159 | 674 | 592 | 105 | 171 | 39 | 5 | 31 | 88 | 21 | 9 | 59 | 126 | .289 | .369 | .529 | .898 | 141 |
| 2012 | 24 | ARI | NL | 150 | 628 | 554 | 107 | 155 | 24 | 4 | 17 | 67 | 18 | 8 | 63 | 121 | .280 | .355 | .430 | .785 | 107 |
| 6 Yrs | 731 | 3030 | 2663 | 438 | 739 | 147 | 28 | 108 | 363 | 80 | 34 | 306 | 694 | .278 | .357 | .475 | .832 | 117 | |||
Last year Upton hit a respectable .280 and just 17 home runs where in 2011 he knocked a total of 31 homers. 31 sounds amazing, but just one year before that, again he hit only 17. We have a handful of guys that hit over 17 homers last year. Kyle Seager led the team with 20, Justin Smoak had 19 along with Michael Saunders and Jesus Montero hit just under that at 15 as a right handed hitter. Right handed hitters have historically had a rough time hitting at Safeco and that is one of the main reasons the walls are being moved in this year.
I'm not trying to say that having Justin Upton would be a horrible idea because he's a great athlete. What I am trying to say is probably not very popular though. I think he isn't worth what the D-backs are looking to get in return. I think he isn't any better than anyone that we currently have on our roster in the outfield. Michael Suanders and Casper Wells will have much better seasons this year and Justin Upton coming to Seattle could very well see a reduction in his numbers coming from the hitter friendly Chase Field.
Nobody can speculate on how each park effects a hitters mindset, but for the players that took the field last year at Safeco, it was evident that it took a toll. It would be disastrous for us to trade the farm for a player that is a proven .278 average and 18 home runs per year. Upton would be maintaining what we have and the Mariners need to add, add, add. The only name I can see trading for at all would be Giancarlo Stanton, otherwise, evaluate who we have now that we have made Safeco Field a more balanced place to play.
SodoJoe
