Any excitement surrounding the Seattle Mariners is focused on the future. With the present mired in tepid mediocrity—aside from the occasional Felix Hernandez gem or geriatric long ball from Ibanez—pretty much the only thing M’s fans have to cling to is the hope that some day the team won’t be so miserable. Luckily, there are a number of young players stoking the light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel outlook, and perhaps none are as exciting as second basemen Nick Franklin. “A skinny 22-year-old from an Orlando suburb, Franklin has surprised Mariners fans in his first two months in the bigs with remarkable power: 10 home runs and 32 RBIs through his first 54 games,” longtime Seattle sports scribe Art Thiel tells Seattle Weekly. “It’s the most production from a Mariners second baseman since Bret Boone in 2001. He still needs work on his defense and he strikes out too much, but those deficiencies can be fixed with experience. The power-starved M’s are thrilled with the 2009 draftee’s fast transition to the majors.” Thiel’s right; as long as Franklin doesn’t suddenly go Ackley on us, the future at second base looks bright for the M’s.