Is Bill Bavasis plan ready to pay off for the Mariners?
Which plan? The rotation carrying the team to the playoffs? Scratch that. How about the plan where the infield defense is anchored for years to come by a young shortstop and second baseman given multimillion-dollar deals? Uh, no. Jose Lopez has shown some improvement, but Yuniesky Betancourt’s defense is worse and his plate discipline nonexistent. So, what plan? Brad Wilkerson was a bust in right field. Jose Vidro was a disaster at DH when it mattered. Sexson was a black hole at first base. Kenji Johjima tanked and was given a three-year extension. Jose Guillen, one of the team leaders from 2007, is sorely missed. The clubhouse appeared rudderless until Bavasi, its architect, called the players out. None of Bavasi’s “plans” — A, B, C, D, or E — have really worked. Nor are they ready to. Lots of work remains. The question is, will he? Is Felix Hernandez ready to show the Cy Young form so many have predicted for him? Hernandez has been the same as last season when you adjust his ERA for
