Going Solo

I've long hoped that disgraced Grey's Anatomy cast member Isiah Washington would return in a cameo appearance to methodically gun down every blubbering character on that joke of a TV show. (Coincidentally enough, I'm told such a scenario, sans Isiah Washington, took place for this past season's finale. The gunman didn't kill any whiners though. So no luck there).

While watching Sunday night's Entourage Season 7 finale, I found myself hoping for Isiah Washington to bust through the door, guns blazing, only to put a fulfilling end to a completely unfulfilling season.

Entourage has gone from being a bro's answer to Sex and the City to a bra's answer to Grey's. Entourage is now a 30 minute melodrama that features more cameo appearances than The Love Boat.

Things have gotten so bad that Billy Walsh, once the most maddeningly obnoxious character on the show (actually Dom was worse), has become the lone bright spot.

Season 7 started with Vince having an on-set stunt accident, and ended with him in a hospital, badly beaten (by Eminem no less), in denial about his burgeoning drug problem, and possibly facing jail time after a cop finds his cocaine filled goody bag.

Literally every episode this season was so painfully bad that it became laughable. Real-life pornstar Sasha Grey as Vince's love interest? Turtle desperately trying to hawk tequilla for the affection's of A.J. Sopranos ex-fiance? Ari becoming a pariah for being Ari?

It's almost like the show's writers are purposely trying to see how stupid they can make the each episode.

Even Bob Odenkirk, who so masterfully plays sleazebag lawyer Saul Goodman on the phenomenal Breaking Bad, has gotten sucked into the Entourage abyss as Mark Cuban's... business manager? (Sidenote: Why does Mark Cuban all of a sudden have a Texas accent? He's from Pittsburgh.) (Additional Sidenote: Cuban should have been banned from TV shows following The Benefactor. This speaks volumes as to how far Entourage has fallen).

In 1986, Dallas answered for a dud of a season by saying it was all a dream. While fans were understandably upset that they wasted an entire season on nothing, they were glad the show had returned to it's winning formula.

Hopefully Entourage Season 7 is Vinny Chase's bad dream.

That's really the only explanation to a season that featured a Jordan Farmar cameo. Because at this rate, Fat Lever's phone could be ringing for a Season 8 guest spot as Turtle's new love interest.

Gone Wak

The best way to describe Don Wakamatsu's season and a half as the Seattle Mariners manager is that it was a torrid love affair that ended almost as quickly as it started.

Nobody could have predicted the Mariners would be struggling to avoid their second 100-loss season in three years. Nobody could have predicted Don Wak's swift demise either. Considering that absolutely nothing has gone right for the 2010 Mariners, it almost seems like a necessary evil for Wak to have to face the guillotine.

The Mariners now have their fifth field manager since July 2007. That number will surely become six at some point in October or November when interim manager Daren Brown is notified by M's GM Jack Zduriencik that his services will no longer be needed.

Many will opine that Wakamatsu had been managing on borrowed time ever since Ken Griffey Jr. bid adieu on June 2 (Black Wednesday). We'll probably never know the full story about what happened between Wak and Junior during Junior's final few weeks on the team. There obviously was some sort of communication breakdown.

The Griffey situation became more uncomfortable than your parents sexting. And when it finally culminated, it very clearly left the clubhouse alienated from Wakamatsu. Adding fuel to the fire was dugout scuffle between Chone Figgins and Wakamatsu that all but confirmed Wak had lost the team.

Along with determining in-game strategy, Wakamatsu's job as manager was bring out the best in his players on the field. That happened in 2009. But whatever Wak did in 2009, either didn't translate in 2010, or he simply changed as a manager.

Only Ichiro and Felix Hernandez have performed up to expectations. That means that every other player who's donned a Mariners uniform this year has failed. That's some pretty impressive futility.

A little continuity on the Mariners and Jack Z's part would have been nice. After last year's remarkable turnaround, it would have been reasonable to give Wak another shot at trying to repair his strained relationship with his players.

But Jack Z obviously felt otherwise.

Make no mistake, unlike most bumbling Mariners managers, Wakamatsu is incredibly bright and he hopefully will get another chance to manage a big league team. Don Wak deserves as much.

What Went Wrong?

At the MLB halfway mark, the Seattle Mariners season is more dead than Mel Gibson at a Lilith Fair concert. What looked like a team primed for a postseason run has turned into yet another rebuilding effort for a franchise that hasn't reached the playoffs since 2001.

Everyone knew that the Mariners would struggle to score runs. And while they have, few could have predicted the M's would have this much trouble. Getting the Mariners to put runs on the board has become the baseball equivalent to getting George Michael to stop crashing his car. It only happens on rare occasions.

What makes the Mariners 2010 season even more frustrating is that every single regular sans Ichiro has underperformed. Add Chone Figgins to the unimpressive list of Mariners free agent signees who screwed the pooch in northwest green and navy blue. Casey Kotchman seemed primed to finally fulfill the potential that made him a top prospect for the Angels. What he's shown proves why he's on his third team in less than a year. Milton Bradley was supposed to recapture his 2008 All-Star numbers, but all he's done is have a mental breakdown and struggle to keep his average above .200. The list goes on and on.

GM Jack Zduriencik made a surprise winner of the 2009 team by unearthing talent that other organizations had given up on. While it looks like Jack Z overplayed his hand by applying the same strategy on the 2010 squad, nobody could have predicted such offensive ineptitude.

Nobody expected Ken Griffey Jr. to hit 35 plus home runs as the Mariners designated hitter. But nobody could have foreseen Griffey hitting .184 with no home runs and retiring in a huff.

Griffey serves as a microcosm for the M's season thus far. Hoping for the best. Getting the worst.

But for all the commotion over how bad the offense has been, the achilles heel for the Mariners season has been the bullpen. The offense was intended to put 3-5 runs up per game, while the starting pitching, stellar defense and lockdown bullpen would take care of the rest. The offense is a big issue. The major issue and the primary reason why M's fans are suffering at record high rates (OK, just me), is the bullpen, stupid.

M's relievers have a 4.81 ERA. Good enough for worst in the American League. They are tied for the league lead with 13 blown saves. If the bullpen did what it was supposed to do, then you're looking at a team that's very close to .500, instead of 18 games under. Everyone in the pen from closer David Aardsma to mop up guys like Garrett Olson have sucked beyond belief. Throw in setup man Brandon League who routinely quits on the mound, and you've got a real problem.

Luckily, a bullpen is the easiest thing to restock and revamp. The Mariners have enough live arms in their minor league system that it's hard to imagine the pen being a problem going forward.

This brings us to last week's Cliff Lee trade, aka raising the white flag. Lee had to go because the Mariners stand a better chance of resigning John Olerud next offseason than they do Cliff Lee. To let Lee leave via free agency for two of the Yankees (Lee replaces Andy Pettitte who will retire after the Yanks win the Series) draft picks would have been ridiculously irresponsible on Zduriencik's part.

But Jack Z is a master dealer and he brilliantly struck a trade with division rival Texas for Lee. Even with Lee, the Rangers aren't going to the World Series. So while this trade strengthens the Rangers in the short term, it undoubtedly weakens them long term as they gave up their starting first baseman in Justin Smoak, along with three pitchers.

All indications are that Smoak will has a great career ahead of him. But he's a prospect. Casey Kotchman was a prospect too. So was Jose Lopez. Let's hope Smoak's path diverges from theirs.

What can't be denied is that what the Mariners got in return for Cliff Lee was far better than what they gave up (kinda hard not to do considering they gave up a kid who's hearing impaired, and a French Canadian selected by former GM - high functioning retard Bill Bavasi).

With the trading deadline just two weeks away, one could assume the Mariners will start trading any usable parts. But the sad truth is that right now Lopez Aardsma and whoever else you want to throw in that pack aren't worth more than a couple A, or AA fringe prospects.

George Steinbrenner's passing on Tuesday got me thinking about the cost of building a winner. The Yankees are seemingly in the playoffs every year thanks to their never ending payroll. Yes, they've wasted ridiculous amounts of money on players like Raul Mondesi, Gary Sheffield and Carl Pavano. But their recent signings of Mark Teixiera, CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett, along with trades to obtain Curtis Granderson, Javier Vasquez and Nick Swisher have not only made the Yankees a better team, but also far younger.

The Yankees, along with the Red Sox spend money to make money. They've had competitive teams every year for the last 15 years. It makes for a great story when a team like the San Diego Padres, whose entire payroll is barely more than what Alex Rodriguez earns in a season, is leading the NL West. But the Padres, along with every other mid to small market team is going to have some good years and some bad years (unless you're the Royals, Pirates or Orioles and you always suck).

As long as the Mariners organization remains intent on spending just enough to give the impression that they're trying to put a competitive product on the field, there is no reason to believe the M's will be anything more than a team that produces a few solid years, mixed in with some really crappy ones.

Throw together some terribly poor performances on the field with the Mariners front office's refusal to up their payroll, and you've got what will ultimately be the fifth losing season out of the last seven in Seattle.

And that's Mariners baseball 2010.

Witness Protection

The LeDouche James free agency melodrama that ultimately culminated in his decision to um...take his talents to South Beach has created all sorts of reactions throughout the country. Cleveland fans are understandably irate, while the incredibly loyal Miami Heat fan base is beside itself. Everyone else seems to accept LeDouche for what he is - a phony who can now never be considered an all-time great player. Hurricane LeDouche tore through Cleveland at a ferocity not seen since the Browns left in 1996.

The issue is that LeDouche played Cleveland, the Cavs, and every team that courted him into thinking that they stood any chance of signing him. LeDouche has known for some time that he wasn't going to be playing in Cleveland long term. Why else would he force his way into free agency?

But instead of being a man and coming out and saying it, LeDouche lead everyone on like the hot girl in high school who starts getting rides from the poor schmuck who just got his driver's license.

The Cavs organization bent over backwards to put together a team of player's that could complement LeDouche. When he needed a point guard, they snatched up Mo Williams. When he needed some muscle after Dwight Howard manhandled the Cavs, they brought in the Shaqtus. When they desperately needed an all-star power forward to help them get over the hump in this year's playoffs, they made a deal deal for Antawn Jamison. And lest we forget about the humanitarian effort the Cavs made when they found a lover for LeDouche's mother.

Nobody understands what Cleveland's going through better than Seattle sports fans. We lost Randy Johnson, Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez in a 29-month span. But aside from losing a great player, we lost and ENTIRE FRANCHISE! (Yes, I know Cleveland lost the Browns temporarily. Seattle is not getting a NBA team in the next 10 years). Now Seattle is known as the best soccer city in America (yay!). Beat that.

LeDouche has received considerable praise for leaving $30 million on the table to sign with Miami. So in that regard, his situation is similar to Junior's. But Junior didn't force his way to the Yankees (or as my grandma's Puerto Rican care taker says, "the Jankees"). He forced his way to Cincinnati so he could be closer to his family. Instead of leaving home like LeBron, Junior went home.

Yet the overall feeling I get from this deal is reminiscent of Pay-Fraud's $252 million payday that followed months of Pay-Fraud talking about how much he loved Seattle and wanted to stay there. The Pay-Fraud deal was solely driven by money. LeDouche clearly is not. But the way both athletes carried themselves and put on a front for fans and other organizations is eerily similar.

Almost ten years later, Pay-Fraud still remains one of the most despised player's in baseball. Ten years from now, don't be surprised if LeDouche is held in the same regard.

A New Crown

Sports Illustrated runs a blurb in every issue called "Sign of the Apocalypse". It's aptly titled considering you'll see something like, "A Philadelphia woman refused to go to the hospital after going into labor during an Eagles game".

I fear that next week's "Sign of the Apocalypse" will be viewership for LeBron James' free agency special was higher than the State of the Union.

Now I must admit, LeBron has expertly milked his free agency for two years. The only thing missing is that he didn't offer his press conference on pay-per-view. I haven't been so anxious to hear an announcement since the classic Ruben vs. Clay battle in 2003.

Part of my anxiety stemmed from the uncertainty that live TV brings. ESPN devoted an entire hour in prime time for LeBron. I was hoping to see World Wide Wes perform a solo tap dance. Maybe even a couples interview like they do on "The Bachelor" with Delonte West and Gloria James.

In the end, LeBron chose Tony Montana over Joe the Plumber. Is that such a crime? You'd need a psych eval if you chose to live in Cleveland over Miami. But when you consider that LeBron is an Ohio native and the only thing keeping Cleveland afloat economically, it really makes you wonder how LeBron could leave.

The irony of this is that even with LeBron, the Lakers are still better than the Heat (the Celtics might be as well). Not only does the Lake Show feature a far deeper roster, but they have a better power forward than Chris Bosh in Pau Gasol, a LeBron stopper in Ron Artest and Kobe, who regardless of what the "experts" say, is the best player in the NBA.

LeBron now becomes the most hated basketball player outside of Miami. So along with his new team and his new city, I propose a new name - LeDouche.

Trading Places?

After my month-long moratorium on blogging following the dagger to the heart of my 2010 Mariners dream season, I figure it's time to switch gears.

The NBA free agent frenzy will hopefully move from rampant speculation to legitimate decision making in the coming days. The balance of power could shift to a super team that features a combination of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. Or we could see James and Wade stay put, with Bosh floating around as the wild card.

For the Cleveland's sake, it would be great to see LBJ stay put. But if LeBron does decide to bolt, the National Weather Center should create "Hurricane LeBron". The nightly news will show chopper shots of Clevelanders standing on their roofs, begging to be rescued. Cleveland will immediately become Detroit 2.0 and we'll see another Midwestern city go down for the count.

LeBron's legacy would also be greatly enhanced for showing loyalty to Cleveland. He's let this entire free agency hoopla take on a life of its own solely for his ego's sake. He could have signed an extension with Cleveland at any point. But James chose this path. It's hard to imagine his defection going over well with anyone except those who root for whatever team he potentially ends up with. King James could easily become the NBA's answer to Alex Rodriguez.

D-Wade's situation doesn't have nearly as much riding on it as LeBron's. While Wade is undeniably one of the Top 5 player's in the league, the city of Miami is not nearly as dependent on him. (They survived Bimbo Coles being traded, so they'll get by). And even more importantly, Wade peacing out would leave the Heat with just Michael Beasley and Mario Chalmers under contract. This would ultimately have to be made into a reality show called "Mario and The Bease", featuring the two hot boxing the Heat locker room while they openly mock Pat Riley's hair. Riveting TV.

What's gotten lost under all this free agent madness is how financially inept most NBA GM's are. Unless you put a value on pouty power forwards who can't rebound or defend, Amare Stoudamire is not worth $100 million. Nor is Joe Johnson worth anywhere near $120 million.

Why a franchise like the Hawks that is perennially bad (even their "good" teams of the mid-eighties couldn't get past the Eastern Conference Semis) feels compelled to give dole out $120 million to a guy who averages slightly north of 20 points a game, while struggling to shoot 45 percent from the floor is Example A of what's wrong with the NBA.

There are maybe 10-15 players in the NBA that aren't replaceable. If you play fantasy basketball then you understand that statement. What it basically boils down to is that 90 percent of NBA players will put up good numbers if given enough minutes. There are a few select player's whose production simply can't be replicated. But otherwise the parity is astoundingly similar. It's not coincidental that Flip Murray averaged over 20 PPG for the 2003-2004 Sonics when Ray Allen opened the season on the injured list. Flip got the minutes. Flip filled up the box score. Simple as that.

LeBron, D-Wade and Chris Bosh are three of the best in the league. Wherever they land, and where they don't, will be greatly affected for years to come.

The Goodbye Kid

There's usually no way to know when your childhood ends. You get a job. You get married. You have kids. Probably somewhere in there. But for thousands of people who grew up watching Ken Griffey Jr., their childhood ended June 2, 2010.

It's impossible to overstate what Junior means to Seattle or to baseball. The 630 career home runs and the 13 All-Star Games don't even scratch the surface. Defensively, Willie Mays is the only other centerfielder who can compare. Offensively, Junior's swing is one of the most fluid things I've ever seen. The guy was born to play baseball.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I'd rather watch Junior strike out than see any other player hit a home run.

Many will lament about how injuries ravaged Junior's career. But doing so completely disrespects Griffey's legacy. Even with the injuries, Junior put together one of the greatest careers in baseball history. And in an era where his most of his contemporaries have been linked to performance enhancing drugs, Griffey stands among few who can honestly say that they played the game the right way.

A number of people have told me that they don't love anything as much as I love Junior. While I realize my passion for all things Griffey is a little intense, I'd like to think it's more a result of falling in love with baseball at the exact time that Griffey started his career. To have the best player in the world playing in your city as you're growing up is an incredible gift.

Seattle has seen it's share of great athletes. But Junior is the only one who was the absolute best in his respective sport.

I'm lucky enough to say I saw Junior's last home run and his last hit. I am beyond grateful to have literally hundreds of Griffey moments that replay in my mind on a daily basis. But the best part about those moments is that I got to share everyone of them with my family and my best friends.

This season did not go as planned. The Mariners were supposed to contend, and Griffey was supposed to provide some pop to a lineup that couldn't rely solely on Rob Johnson's potent bat. But in a tragically ironic way, it's a fitting end for a player whose career did not go as planned.

Even as the season continued to unfold at frustrating levels, I still maintained that I had 50 games in me. I could handle Griffey as a glorified pinch hitter. Having Junior in the stadium provided a sense that you could see something special. Now I'm not sure if I have ten more games in me.

Baseball just doesn't seem as much fun anymore.