Extra rest didn't do Jarrod Washburn any good, as he struggled against the Royals this afternoon and allowed ten baserunners and three runs in five innings. Over seven starts with Detroit, Jarrod's put up a 1.4 K/BB, and his contact rate is pretty much exactly where it was as a Mariner pre-2009. It's been fun to listen to people talk about him over the course of the season. He started out as a guy most people couldn't wait to see leave, then people liked him, then people wanted to re-sign him instead of trade him, then people wanted to re-sign him despite trading him, and now those people aren't talking about him anymore, which I assume means they no longer want him around in 2010. That's a neat and tidy full circle with a couple weeks to spare. I wonder if Jarrod's going to re-re-consider that whole retirement angle once he finds out that Z won't bring him back.

Now to change things up, guess what this table is showing:

That's Yuniesky Betancourt (A) as a Mariner in 2008, (B) as a Mariner in 2009, and (C) as a Royal in 2009. He's drawn 11 walks in 191 plate appearances with Kansas City, and while that isn't any shade of good, it's a great deal better than his ten in 245 with Seattle earlier on. It seems the coaching staff over there may actually be making a bit of a difference. Unfortunately Yuni still can't hit or field, but at least now when he makes outs he looks a little more professional.