Discussing the threat posed by a lawsuit aimed almost directly at amateurism, the foundation of big-time college athletics, University of Washington athletics director Scott Woodward offered a weapons-grade scoff.

“There are always warnings, but look at the trends. Get objective and don’t get caught up in the hype,” Woodward said in March for an interview with Seattle Business magazine. “In five years, when we talk about Ed O’Bannon, it will be as a great UCLA player, not someone driving a lawsuit. Threats come and go.”

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The Mariners Wednesday announced they have agreed to terms with 15 more selections from the 2013 June amateur draft, including fourth-round selection Ryan Hortsman, a left-handed pitcher from St. John's University. According to Director of Amateur Scouting Tom McNamara, Seattle has now signed 28 of the team’s 40 picks, including 10 players in the first 12 rounds.

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HAVANA -- Kendrys Morales and Enrique Diaz Martinez used to be teammates. It's the only connection remaining between the Cubans, formerly of Havana's Los Industriales, nine years after each made a decision that took their lives in different directions.

Morales, 29, is in his seventh productive MLB season, hitting cleanup for the Seattle Mariners, making $5.25 million. Martinez is 44, retired after a 23-year career in which he set the all-time marks for hits and stolen bases in Cuba's top professional league, National Series. Martinez is still in Havana with his wife and two kids in a two-bedroom apartment.

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GAME: Mariners (32-40, 3rd, AL West, -10.5 GB) at Angels (31-40, 4th, AL West, -11.0 GB). GAME #: 73. SERIES: 3rd of 4 games. MEETING: 9th (series tied 4-4). WHEN: Wednesday, 7:05 p.m., Angels Stadium. STREAKS: Mariners W 1; Angels L 1. TV: Root Sports. RADIO: ESPN 710, Mariners Radio Network

The Mariners, as per custom, are not going anywhere this season, but Jeremy Bonderman is quickly working his way into one of the more unlikely and positive stories of the 2013 season. He didn't factor in Seattle's 10-inning, 3-2 win -- and an unlikely one at that --  but he pitched six innings of six-hit ball Tuesday night and once again gave the Mariners a chance to win.

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As expected, the Mariners recalled 1B Justin Smoak from AAA Tacoma and sent INF Alex Liddi back to the Rainiers. Smoak will join the Mariners in Anaheim and was available for Wednesday night's contest against the Angels, the second of a four-game series.

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By David Eskenazi and Steve Rudman

At approximately 8 p.m. on July 2, 1963, 19-year-old University of Washington pole vaulter Brian Sternberg, the world record holder at 16 feet, 8 inches, arrived at Hec Edmundson Pavilion on the UW campus to get in a workout on a trampoline in preparation for a trip to the Soviet Union for the annual USA-USSR dual meet. For Sternberg, life could not have been going a whole lot better.

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GAME: Mariners (31-40, 4th, AL West, -10.5 GB) at Angels (31-39, 3rd, AL West, -10.0 GB). GAME #: 72. SERIES: 2nd of 4 games. MEETING: 8th (Angels lead 4-3). WHEN: Tuesday, 7:05 p.m., Angels Stadium. STREAKS: Mariners L 2; Angels W 1. TV: Root Sports. RADIO: ESPN 710, Mariners Radio Network

For most of the season's first two months, the Mariners muddled along with two starters (Felix Hernandez, Hisashi Iwakuma) they could consistently count on, one they could only count on at home (Joe Saunders) and an unpalatable mash of rotational back enders they couldn't count on at all (Brandon Maurer, Blake Beavan, Aaron Harang).

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PULLMAN -- Washington State athletic director Bill Moos sometimes speaks carefully when asked about the future of the NCAA -- and consequently -- his alma mater.

The college football landscape, convulsed by multi-billion-dollar television contracts, conference realignments and outrageous coaching salaries, has increased pressure on the former WSU offensive lineman to take a perceived small-time school in a big-money conference -- University of Washington AD Scott Woodward referred to them as an "irritant" in 2009 -- and make it more competitive.

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GAME: Mariners (31-39, 3rd, AL West, -10.5 GB) at Angels (30-39, 5th, AL West, -11.0 GB). GAME #: 71. SERIES: 1st of 4 games. MEETING: 7th (series tied 3-3). WHEN: Monday, 7:05 p.m., Angels Stadium. STREAKS: Mariners L 1; Angels L 1. TV: Root Sports. RADIO: ESPN 710, Mariners Radio Network

Aaron Harang sure is hard to figure. He lost five of his first six decisions with the Mariners after joining the rotation April 16, but has tossed two complete-game shutouts in his last four outings. And, during that stretch, May 27-June 11, Harang was shelled for six runs in a 2.1-inning outing against the New York Yankees.

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Another team and pro sports league appears ready to use the eagerness of Seattle and investor Chris Hansen for a new arena to help an existing franchise score a deal. This time it is the NHL, which has owned the Phoenix Coyotes since 2009 and is trying to leverage Seattle's arena urgency into a new deal for the distressed franchise in suburban Glendale.

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Dominant most of the season, Hisashi Iwakuma failed to bring his best stuff to O.com Coliseum Sunday, was beat up -- for him -- for four runs in five innings, and the Mariners fell to the Athletics 10-2, spoiling their shot at a three-game sweep in Oakland for the first time since April 10-12, 2009.

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GAME: Mariners (31-38, 3rd, AL West, -9.5 GB) at Athletics (41-29, 1st, AL West, +2.0 GA). GAME #: 70. SERIES: 3rd of 3 games. MEETING: 10th (Mariners lead 6-3). WHEN: Sunday, 1:05 p.m., O.com Coliseum. STREAKS: Mariners W 2; Athletics L 2. TV: Root Sports. RADIO: ESPN 710, Mariners Radio Network

When former Mariner Randy Johnson (1989-98) enters the Hall of Fame, probably in 2014, he will do so with 303 career victories, 4,875 strikeouts, 100 complete games, 10-All-Star selections, five Cy Young awards and a World Series ring (2001). The Big Unit will also tote into Cooperstown a career WHIP (walks + hits / IP) of 1.25. It's the WHIP numbers The Unit compiled during his five Cy Young seasons that interests us here.

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Backup catcher Henry Blanco, acquired by the Mariners Friday, improbably swatted a grand slam off A.J. Griffin in the sixth inning Saturday, and Felix Hernandez did the rest as the Mariners defeated the Oakland Athletics 4-0 at O.com Coliseum. Blanco, a career .226 hitter with his 11th team in 16 seasons, whacked a four-seam fastball on the inner half of the plate over the wall in left. It barely stayed fair.

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GAME: Mariners (30-38, 3rd, AL West, -10.5 GB) at Athletics (41-28, 1st AL West, +2.0 GA). GAME #: 69. SERIES: 2nd of 3 games. MEETING: 9th (Mariners lead 5-3). WHEN: Saturday, 4:15 p.m., O.com Coliseum. STREAKS: Mariners W 1; Athletics L 1. TV: Root Sports. RADIO: ESPN 710, Mariners Radio Network

The Mariners made a major move Friday by signing 41-year-old catcher Henry Blanco, a well-traveled catcher with 16 years of major league experience, while simultaneously designating for assignment their recent starter, Kelly Shoppach. The move says that the Mariners are handing the backstop slot for the foreseeable future to 2012 first-round draft choice Mike Zunino.

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Rookie catcher Mike Zunino, called up earlier in the week from AAA Tacoma, cracked his first major league home run, a solo shot to center on a 1-and-1 count in the seventh inning, lifting the Mariners (30-38) to a 3-2 victory over the Oakland Athletics Friday night in the opening game of a three-game series at O.com Coliseum.

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University of Washington sophomore Cheng-Tsung Pan has a chance to do something that no amateur golfer has done since the 1930s: Win the U.S. Open. At even par through 27 holes, Pan was a stroke back of the lead Friday when play was suspended because of darkness at Merion Golf Club outside Philadelphia, where bad weather has forced delays in the first two rounds.

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So many roster issues are upside down for the Mariners this season -- led in homers by a 41-year-old, nearly led in batting average by a 35-year-old, and mass failures by the young core -- the assumption is that everything management does is a mistake. A fair, reasonable assumption by anyone. But for the sake of novelty as much as baseball logic, let's offer one contrary thought:

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The Mariners Friday signed veteran free agent catcher Henry Blanco, 41, making room for him on the roster by designating Kelly Shoppach, who had been the starter, for assignment. Blanco, a 16-year veteran who most recently played with Toronto, will be available for Friday night's game in Oakland against the Athletics.

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Dick Mansperger, the Seahawks' first director of player personnel (1975-84), died May 12 following a long battle with cancer. He was 80. Mansperger, who worked for the Dallas Cowboys prior to joining Seattle's expansion franchise, exerted a profound influence on the team's early NFL drafts and rosters.

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University of Washington basketball coach Lorenzo Romar announced the lineups for what could -- and probably should -- be an annual treat for Husky fans: An Alumni Game featuring ex-Dawgs of relatively recent vintage. The Alumni Game is part of a" Husky Legends Return" extravaganza June 23 at Alaska Airlines Arena.

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