Kuzul

The Seattle Mariners finished the 2011 season with the third worst record in baseball at 67-95 to go along with their second consecutive last-place finish in the American League West.

On the bright side, the Mariners did manage to win six more games than they did in 2010 while managing to lose less than 100 games.

Seattle will be improved offensively with the addition of Jesus Montero into the middle of the lineup—although he came with a heavy price tag.  

Former No. 2 starter and future star, Michael Pineda, is now a New York Yankee as a result of the semi-blockbuster trade for Montero.

Let’s take a look at the Mariners’ projected starting lineup (with one surprise) and rotation for 2012.

Begin Slideshow

Matt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers leads the way in our group of award winner from the first half of the 2011 Major League Baseball Season.

Baseball has suddenly become dominated by pitching as there are only seven players in the entire league with at least 20 home runs.  

It’s a fascinating statistic when you think just 10 years ago, Alex Rodriguez hit 52, Luis Gonzalez hit 57, Sammy Sosa hit 64, and Barry Bonds hit 73—the most home runs for a season in the history of baseball.

Now that we’ve officially reached the half-way point of the season, let’s take a look at the MVP’s and Cy Young Award winners of the first half.

Begin Slideshow