I believe in the Madden curse because John Clayton, football guru, believes in it. I believe in UFO’s because I have seen one hovering over a street one block away, then zoom straight up into the stars and beyond faster than any Star Trek warp drive. I believe in ghosts because I live in a house where someone died and I hear knocking on my bedroom door and was slapped on the back when I was alone.

But I will reserve judgment until the season is over to verify the John Buck curse.

Why did the Mariners release John Buck in early July? He was the veteran backup catcher they wanted to tutor Mike Zunino. Every source said he was doing just that. Zunino said he learned something everyday from John, the players loved him, he was a clubhouse leader with veteran leadership.

Was it his hitting that got him released? In 27 games, 84 at bats, he hit .226 with one homer and 6 rbis. But what more do you want from a backup catcher.  Zunino is currently batting .204, but he does have 14 home runs. On the other hand he strikes out 36% of the time. Of course he is young, he is learning, thus having Buck on hand was a good idea.

Was it Buck’s defense that got him ousted? In 19 starts as catcher he had one error and one passed ball. Pretty good I should think. He threw out only 3 of 14 base stealers, but pitchers who fail to hold runners take part of the blame. Runners stole bases at a .786 clip against Buck, .707 when Zunino is catching. The Mariners said they brought up young Jesus Sucre because he was throwing out around 50% of base stealers. Okay, but he is a back up catcher. The Mariners said it was just the right time. Why?

The release of John Buck is a mystery.

There are those who believe the Mariners will be cursed for releasing him, that the Mariner mojo has been disturbed, especially now that the Angels have picked him up. The numbers say that since his release the Mariners are 4-9. Okay that is scary I admit. Of the nine losses they have been shut out twice, scored one run three times, and two runs three times.

The good thing is that if the Mariners continue to slide downhill, Mariner fans have something to blame. It will be the Buck curse and I will believe.