It's that time of the season?

The last time I thought of the end of the baseball season in these terms were when the Mariners picked up Alex Rodriguez.  Now there's incentive for the Mariners to place last.

the "winner" of the worst-team sweepstakes has the consolation of being first in line for San Diego State phenom Stephen Strasburg. The only collegiate player on the U.S. Olympic team, the right-hander struck out 23 in a game against Utah this year and is the consensus No. 1 overall pick.

"It's a good year to pick No. 1," said John Manuel, editor of Baseball America. "I love Strasburg, but that's hardly original. He compares favorably to Mark Prior at a similar stage of his career. ... He's an elite, elite guy and could move very quickly."

I sincerely believe that playing to tank only leads to bad things, so hopefully the Mariners can spend the last couple of months developing their younger players and they also might end up with Strasburg.

Whom will of course be traded away for Victor (not Carlos) Zambrano in a couple of years.