Royal Brougham is the Border Between Sad and Happy

Earlier, we asked if anyone outside the MLS bubble thought the idea of a players’ strike was a good idea, based on the fact that much of America hasn’t latched on to the sport quite like Seattle has. As next week’s strike deadline approaches with no sign of a deal between the players’ union and the league, Sounders FC majority owner Joe Roth - very much inside the bubble - has chimed in, and he agrees.

Roth told Times beat writer Joshua Mayers that, “We (MLS) haven't made enough of an imprint in the national psyche." Adding, "We're all jaundiced because we're in Seattle, where it's a big deal. But I don't think there will be a national outcry, like with the NFL, if somehow we weren't out there for a year... I just don't think that we can afford, in terms of the public eye, to take a year off."

We've lauded the Sounders for what they've brought to Seattle, but a strike does seem like a dire situation. The players lose a place to develop pure-bred American talent, the league loses fans who were beginning to warm to it, and the loyalists who stick around anyway lose out on everything they built last year.

And what are we supposed to do with our annoying horn/funnel?

We need a pick-me-up. So we sulk across Royal Brougham, where things seem much, much sunnier in Marinerworld.

Today, the 2010 batch of Mariners commercials hits the air, and they don’t disappoint.

Last fall, we highlighted how chummy our superstars Griffey and Ichiro became. Now their mutual love has spawned the best spot of the bunch.

In other notable ads - outfielder Franklin Gutierrez ruins a golf outing for manager Don Wakamatsu and GM Jack Zduriencik, while closer David Aardsma’s attempt at bullpen unity had us rolling.

Here they all are, if you can’t wait to see all of them on TV, or need a break from pretending to work.