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No Prince Fielder, but the Mariners could make some progress

Detroit Tigers president, CEO and general manager Dave Dombrowski, left, helps new Tigers first baseman Prince Fielder with his uniform as team owner Mike Ilitch looks on during a baseball news conference at Comerica Park in Detroit on Thursday.
The Associated Press
Detroit Tigers president, CEO and general manager Dave Dombrowski, left, helps new Tigers first baseman Prince Fielder with his uniform as team owner Mike Ilitch looks on during a baseball news conference at Comerica Park in Detroit on Thursday.

The Mariners, not surprisingly, missed out on Prince Fielder but that Detroit shelled out the big bucks for him did surprise KPLU sports commentator Art Thiel. Nevertheless, things are looking up for the Mariners, from the stand point of bringing on a new player who can hit the ball, but the problem could be catching it.

Other than that, "it doesn't look like there is any reason other than the usual, standard, every year 'You gotta have hope' for a fan base that has been told that for a decade and has seen very little to come out of it," Art said.

Click the Listen button above for the rest of the interview.

Kirsten Kendrick hosts Morning Edition on KNKX and the sports interview series "Going Deep," talking with folks tied to sports in our region about what drives them — as professionals and people.
Art Thiel is a co-founder and writer for the rising sports website Sportspress Northwest. In 2003 Thiel wrote the definitive book about the Seattle Mariners, “Out of Left Field,” which became a regional bestseller. In 2009, along with Steve Rudman and KJR 950 afternoon host Mike Gastineau, Thiel authored “The Great Book of Seattle Sports Lists,” a cross between historylink.org and Mad Magazine that has become mandatory reading for any sports fan who has an indoor bathroom.