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  Eric Degerman is SportsTriCities.com's managing editor. Eric is a longtime Tri-City Herald sportswriter who spent several years covering a variety of sports, including the Tri-City Americans and golf. Eric now produces a regular Web-based sportscast that focuses on Mid-Columbia sports. Have a question for Eric? Click here to e-mail him |
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This afternoon, the Seattle Mariners did it. Jose Vidro has been sent packing.
He ranked 16th among designated hitters with a .234 batting average. He falls to No. 20 when ranked by slugging percentage (.274).
Vidro has been on a tear if you look at where he was on May 4, when his batting average was .192. And actually, he's been performing decently since the All-Star break, batting .340 and slugging .489.
One thing I never understood about John McLaren was why he batted Vidro cleanup, where he hit a measly .216 in 13 games.
And I couldn't figure out why Vidro, who is only 33, let himself get so out of shape. He is listed at 200 pounds. I don’t believe it. And whenever I watched him run the bases, I thought of Jim Rome’s saying, “Mix in a salad.”
Regardless, if the recent Mariner tradition holds true, rookies Wladimir Balentien and Jeff Clement will struggle as they get more at bats. And watch Vidro catch on with a playoff-bound team in the next few day and turn into a productive switch-hitter off the bench.
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