I never take myself seriously
when I make a predicition in
baseball because to predict
in baseball reminds me of
Rodney Dangerfield:
“let me tell you,let me tell you
I get no respect…my wife,
my wife is such a
bad cook, in our house we pray
after we eat”!
When you predict you
get no respect.

By Amaury Pi-Gonzalez
SeattleSomeone once said: “If a team
wins each series they should
have 108 wins by the
end of September” no kidding !

Baseball is a daily affair and
injuries come in and then
your predicitions go
‘out the window’.
Here in Seattle where the
Mariners are holding the last
place in the West their best
power hitter was Raul Ibanez.
Raul pulled his right hamstring
last week running out a bunt
single to first base, he is out
at least 4 weeks maybe more.
Something ironic that your
best Homerun hitter is
out on an injury that he
suffered while running out
a bunt single to third. But that
is what happens when a team
in having a bad season like
the Seattle Mariners.
And that is also what happens
when you are lossing and
each player in your team
is trying to do more than they
should. Ibanez had no business
bunting,but he is playing on
a team last in power and not
scoring runs so he was trying
to ‘get on’and generate
something.

In Oakland the highest paid
A’S ever Eric Chavez fractured
his right hand from a pitch by
Damaso Marte of the White
Sox, he is out at least one
month and we know as strong
as the Athletics farms sytem is
there is nobody that can
replace Chavez at thirbase.
Until this season he was the
best thirdbaseman in the
American League, until the
Yankees got Alex Rodriguez
and moved him to third.

Troy Glaus is already missed
a great deal in Anaheim you cannot
replace a bat like that although the
Angels have the most
exciting and talented player
in the American League,
Dominican Vladimir Guerrero.
Did anybody predicted that
Vladi was going to have
a 9 RBI game ?How come?
What happened to all these
great people that can tell
you all this stuff ?

I like to say this team wins 4 in a
row and should be in first place by
Sunday or this other team wins
8 in a row and they can get out
of the cellar right away, but all
those are “shots in the dark”when
you figure injuries and un-expected
stuff that is never thrown into
the mix.

However, I can tell you today
the Yankees with 35-20
have the best record in baseball
and at this pace they will win
around 110 games and will
win the division, the league
and the World Series. The
Yankees are very much
interested in Mariners pitcher
Freddy Garcia, who will be a
free agent at the end of this
season. Garcia won 1 year
with Mariners in arbitration
around $6 million for this
2004. Cuban Jose Contreras
has not been the pitcher the
Yankees thought he was going
to be and they are ready to unload
him to some other team, the
Mariners could be that
“other team”. However, at this
time Mariners General Manger
Bill Bavasi just told me that
towards the end of this
month there might be some
changes here in Seattle.
Do not be surprised If
the Mariners keep
Freddy Garcia and try
to sign him during the
off season. At the start
of Interleague action
today, Freddy Garcia
is the American Leage
pitcher with the best ERA
against NL teams, an
incredible 2.00 ERA.

There is nobody that can
predict with certainty a team
will move into first place by
exact day or a team might
collapse out of first by
this such and such day, because
people that have than insight
could then also win the Lotto
and predict I am going to
be $250 million wealthier
by the ned of next week !
Have you ever heard of
anybody predicting they
were going to win the Super
Lotto and then did it ?
Many “experts”gave the Giants
for dead after April, then
they had a 10 game winning
streak and today they are
positioned within 3 games
of first place on a division
that looks more and more
everyday where the Giants
could compete all the way
into September. Well, I did
predicted that this Division
would be tight, I never said
It would be good, but I did
said it would be tight.

I know there are some people
out there that cannot wait for
the Giants to drop 15 games
in a row and fall off the radar,
but in the NL West the problem
is that nobody is taking
charge, maybe the Dodgers
should cconsider making Gagne
a starter. He once was a starter
you know ? That will not happen
as the Dodgers(of all teams)are
short in pitching !

Predicting baseball is like
predicting world affairs and
politics. There are always
surprises and unexpected
events that just happen.

The Mariners have shown
some life but still on this,
the longest homestand of
the season they have
–as of today– a 3-3 record
they lost 2 of 3 against Toronto
and won 2 of 3 against
a first place team like
the Chicago White Sox.

Today, the Houston Astros
visit Seattle for the first
time in history and the
story is Roger Clemens
who will put his 8-0 record
on the line when he pitches
on tuesday.

Predicition ?
Yes, I have one.
The Mariners
will end this homestand
on Sunday when they
play the third of three
against the Expos.
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