Though I do believe there should be a one Mariner maximum when it comes to fantasy baseball bloggers and I’ve already filled that need with my Olivo post, it’s hard to ignore what Kyle Seager has done over the last couple of weeks. Blame Mike Carp for using fugu as a shoulder wrap for this article if you’re angry. The ESPN crowd is slowly coming around to him at a 5.5% ownership clip but for the most part they just haven’t found the need for a Mariners hitter on their roster that isn’t posing for a last supper painting. Yahoo owners do have him already with an 18% clip, but that’s mainly for his shortstop eligibility where as long as you have a pulse and you’re not Alex Gonzalez, you’re probably on someone’s team. Actually, if there were a zombie Phil Rizzuto (Spelled ‘Rirruto’ in cursive for Billy Madison fans), they’d probably pick him up too. In Fleaflicker leagues, he’s at 9% owned. All that said, let’s take a look at why I’m eager for Seager in AL-only and deeper leagues.
First off, he’s hitting…I don’t think that needs much more of an introduction. Production is production, folks, and you take it where you can get it. Over 40 at-bats, Seager has hit .300 with 1 slam and 1 leg (slam and leg sold separately). What that equates to if you dig math is about a 10/10 clip given 450 at-bats. Though the average won’t stick and will probably slip down to the .260 or .270 area, that line is in line (say that 5 times fast) with what is reasonable to expect. The only issue we may have with Seager is the bane of every Mariner’s fan: Chone Figgins. The giant albatross around the M’s neck (Get it? Mariners? Albatross? Samuel Taylor Coleridge? Oh sure you got Rirruto but not that one. I weep for the youth of this once great nation) since he signed a hurkin – technical term for ‘large’ – contract in 2010. If and when Carp and/or Franklin Gutierrez come back, Seattle is going to have a tough call on their hands. Do they keep allowing Chone to get Figgy with it in the hopes of a contender trading for him or do they do the right thing and let Seager stick at 3rd? Well, we all know how large contracts go; most likely Seager goes back to a utility role once the dust has settled. However, when you have a chance to ride a luckdragon you don’t turn it down, do you Bastian? There’s still a chance he gets to stay around and be productive. Since he has played SS in the past, there could be room for him to spell Brendan Ryan or possibly take over if he keeps raking. The Mariners need to string together more singles to score runs than match.com has to offer so it is a plausible reality we see Seager quite a bit even after Figgins gets his 3rd base gig back. With any luck, Falkor comes by and saves us from these swamps of sadness and Figgins is playing for *insert contending team here* soon. Yeah, I really liked the Neverending Story.
