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Mariners To Retain Jack Zduriencik For 2014

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The Mariners will bring General Manager Jack Zduriencik back for next season, team president Chuck Armstrong confirmed Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times.  Armstrong, citing club policy, declined to say how long Zduriencik has been retained for.

Zduriencik declined to say how long he's known that he'll be safe in Seattle but he did say that he'll be deciding on the M's managerial situation once the season is through.  The Mariners finished in last place in 2011 and 2012 under skipper Eric Wedge, but they avoided the AL West cellar this season thanks to divisional newcomers Houston.

An extension for Zduriencik was first reported in August, though this is the first time that there has been an official acknowledgement from Seattle brass.  Jack Z hasn't delivered a playoff team to Seattle during his tenure but he has managed to stockpile young pitching talent and today's news indicates that he'll at least get a chance to see that result in wins.

AL West Notes: Angels, M’s Ownership, Barton

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The Mariners/Angels game on Sunday at Angel Stadium was twice delayed due to a swarm of bees, as chronicled by MLB.com's Greg Johns.  The initial delay took 23 minutes, as the bees moved from the infield to the outfield and were eventually chased off with the help of John Poto, an apiarist who was attending the game as a fan.  "There was a softball-sized bee colony on the ground. It was amazing. I've never seen that before. That dude just came out of the stands, 'It's OK, I'm a beekeeper.' It was like a Seinfeld episode," C.J. Wilson said.  Poto's assistance didn't go unrewarded, as Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times tweets that Poto received a ball signed by Mike Trout.

Here's the latest buzz (#ObviousPunAlert) from around the AL West…

  • The Angels will try to re-sign Jason Vargas and will likely bid on Masahiro Tanaka as the club tries to fix its pitching situation for next season, Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times writes.  While the Halos are 21-8 over their last 29 games, DiGiovanna warns that the team shouldn't let this strong finish convince them that their roster doesn't need upgrades for 2014, particularly in the pitching staff.
  • Mariners team chairman and CEO Howard Lincoln says that team majority owners Nintendo of America "has no plans" to sell their shares, Patti Payne of the Puget Sound Business Journal reports.  There had been some questions about the future of the club's ownership since Hiroshi Yamauchi's passing earlier this week, but Lincoln says that the current Nintendo management and the Mariners' group of minority owners are as committed as ever to the club.
  • The Mariners' ownership news isn't surprising to Ryan Divish of the Tacoma News Tribune, who notes that Nintendo isn't apt to walk away from a profitable business and that Lincoln has enough influence to remain CEO for as long as he wishes.
  • Daric Barton has revived his career and likely earned a spot on the Athletics' postseason roster after a strong September performance, Carl Steward of the Bay Area News Group writes.  Barton, the longest-tenured player on the Oakland roster, struggled in 2011-12 and was twice designated for assignment earlier this year.  After being recalled from Triple-A on August 26, however, Barton has hit .319/.386/.431 in 83 PA.  "He's always had the advantage of the G.M. being a big fan of his," general manager Billy Beane said.  "I think he has all the skills that sometimes don't necessarily show up in the boxscore….And he's really grown up a lot. To see him contribute and be part of these last few weeks has been great and satisfying for all of us in the organization."
  • From earlier today on MLBTR, we published a collection of Rangers notes.

AL Notes: Dombrowski, Yamauchi, Porter

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The Tigers won the three-way Curtis Granderson deal with the Yankees and Diamondbacks, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes. With Granderson fighting through an injury-riddled season and Ian Kennedy now in San Diego, Max Scherzer and Austin Jackson have been crucial contributors to what is extremely likely to be a division-winning season for Detroit. The Tigers have also acquired Miguel Cabrera, Doug Fister and Anibal Sanchez via trade, Sherman points out.

"I learned not to care what others thought, only what we thought," says GM Dave Dombrowski. "The guys who are ranking, they have never seen our players." Sherman argues that one key to Dombrowski's success as a trader has been his willingness to deal his prospects. Also, Dombrowski isn't concerned with fleecing the other team, and is willing to give good value to get good value, Sherman says, citing this summer's swap of Avisail Garcia for Jose Iglesias (part of the Jake Peavy deal) as an example. "We didn’t want to trade Avisail Garcia," says Dombrowski. "We think he is going to be a very good player. The question for us is how good is the player we are getting back. We think Jose Iglesias is going to be a very good player, too." Here are more notes from the American League.

  • In the wake of the death of owner Hiroshi Yamauchi, the Mariners' future is uncertain, Jon Morosi of FOX Sports writes. One possibility might be the return, in some capacity, of former GM Pat Gillick, who currently works for the Phillies. "People here think very fondly of him,” says Scott Weitz, a sports law attorney from Seattle. "I don’t think anybody would be disappointed if he took on a role with the team." It's also unclear whether Yamauchi's stake in the team will be sold — his 55% of the team is now controlled by Nintendo of America.
  • Manager Bo Porter will be back for the Astros in 2014, although it's unclear what will happen to his field staff, MLB.com's Brian McTaggart tweets. The Astros have suffered through a 51-101 season, but it isn't as if a large percentage of the Astros' struggles can be pinned on their manager or his staff — 2013 was clearly a rebuilding year.

AL Notes: Twins, White Sox, Wedge

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The Twins could have as much as $40MM to spend this offseason, Phil Mackey of 1500ESPN writes. The contracts of Justin Morneau ($14MM in 2013), Nick Blackburn ($5.5MM) and Mike Pelfrey ($4MM) won't be on the books anymore, and Mackey points out that the Twins have $90-100MM budgeted for payroll in 2014. That doesn't mean they'll actually spend it all, and they haven't been big free-agent spenders in the past. But the possibility should make the offseason an interesting one for Twins fans. Here are more notes from the American League.

  • GM Rick Hahn of the White Sox doesn't feel his predecessor, Kenny Williams (who was promoted to executive vice president after the 2012 season), left the organization in a tough spot, reports MLB.com's Scott Merkin. "He left the position of general manager with a club that was in first place for [117] days," says Hahn. "He left us in a position to have a nine-digit payroll. You are not going to hear any gripes about the condition he left us in." Hahn points to the White Sox's crop of starting pitchers — which includes Chris Sale, Jose Quintana and Hector Santiago — as evidence that the White Sox aren't in that unfavorable a position.
  • Manager Eric Wedge says that "the kids," meaning young players, and their struggles with fundamentals have been a big part of the Mariners' struggles during his tenure. But Dave Cameron of USS Mariner points out that, while the Mariners have given playing time to lots of young hitters in recent years, those hitters — including players like Kyle Seager and Brad Miller — have mostly played at least passably, if not well. It's hitters over 25 who have really struggled. Cameron doesn't address how the Mariners' young pitchers have done, but it's clear that the Mariners' young hitters, at least, don't deserve a large portion of the blame for the team's performance.

Mariners Majority Owner Passes Away

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Hiroshi Yamauchi, the majority owner of the Mariners, has passed away at age 85, according to Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times. Yamauchi, who made his fortune as the president of Nintendo, bought the Mariners in 1992 as the city of Seattle was in danger of losing the team to relocation (St. Petersburg, Fla. was the likely destination).

Yamauchi and his investors purchased the Mariners for $120MM in 1992, but the team's recent acquisition of a controlling stake in the ROOT Sports Regional network could push the team's value north of $1 billion, according to Baker. Yamauchi transferred control of his majority shares to Nintendo of America in 2004, though Mariners officials insist that all major decisions were first cleared with Yamauchi, Baker writes.

Chris Larson is the largest minority holder with a 30.6 percent share, according to Baker, though billionaire and 10 percent stakeholder John Stanton could be the most financially capable successor. Minority investor Buck Ferguson offered the following statement: “Mr. Yamauchi deserves unending thanks for his key role in saving baseball in Seattle.”

MLBTR would like to offer our condolences to Yamauchi's family and friends, as well as the Mariners organization for the loss.

Quick Hits: Jimenez, D’Backs, Cubs, Dodgers

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Ubaldo Jimenez has managed to turn things around as of late and is looking more like the pitcher that the Indians expected to have when they traded first-round picks Drew Pomeranz and Alex White for him more than two years ago.  His resurgence is incredibly well-timed, as he’ll be a free agent this winter.  What does he attribute the turnaround to?  Jimenez says that he’s no longer obsessing about getting his velocity back to where it once was and is instead focusing on mixing up his pitches, writes MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian.  Here’s more from around baseball..

  • Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers took responsibility for the team’s .500 record and acknowledges that neither he nor skipper Kirk Gibson are safe, writes Barry M. Bloom of MLB.com.  Towers didn’t get into specifics about his offseason plan to improve the roster, but he sounds pretty content with the offense as it stands.
  • Cubs skipper Dale Sveum doesn’t have a vote of confidence yet from team brass, but he understands that the process comes with the territory of being a big league manager, writes Carrie Muskat of MLB.com.
  • The Dodgers announced the signing of a relatively unknown Japanese prospect in 19-year-old right-hander Takumi Numata this week and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com attempts to profile him based off of the crumbs of information that are available.  
  • Raul Ibanez and Kendrys Morales are the last two people to blame for the Mariners’ woes this season, writes Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times.  Barring obvious bat improvements at DH and first base/outfield front, Baker says there’s nothing wrong with having both impending free agents return to the team in 2014.

Quick Hits: Rangers, Washington, Ibanez

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The Rangers' seven-game slide is obviously cause for concern as the club looks to punch their ticket to the playoffs, but it also has skipper Ron Washington worried about his job security for 2014, writes Jeff Wilson of the Star-Telegram.  "I'm concerned about my job," Washington said on ESPN Radio. "If that decision is made, it's out of my hands. I hope I've gained credibility for what we've accomplished the past few years. I'm not a finger-pointer. We've all got to take blame for right now four our collapse, if you want to call it that. I'm calling it a slump. I don't really think about that type of stuff. I know at some point in this game of baseball, we all may have to look for another job."  Meanwhile, GM Jon Daniels tells Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter) that Washington's job isn't in jeopardy.  Here's more from around baseball..

  • At the age of 41, it doesn't sound like Mariners veteran Raul Ibanez has any intention of walking away from baseball anytime soon based on his chat with MLB.com's Meggie Zahneis.  "I feel very fortunate and blessed that I really, I get an opportunity to still do this," Ibanez said. "And there is no greater game, nothing else I would rather do than to play baseball."
  • Buster Olney of ESPN.com (Insider sub. req'd) looks at players who could be given the qualifying offer this summer and subsequently see their payday take a tumble thanks to draft pick compensation.
  • Eno Sarris of Fangraphs looks at the ramifications of the possible changes to the Japanese posting system.  Over the weekend, David Lennon of Newsday reported that the system could be altered this fall to allow for Japanese players to choose from the top three bidders instead of being locked into an exclusive negotiating window with one club.

NL West Notes: Balentien, Giants, Tanaka, D’Backs

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Wladimir Balentien smashed his 56th home run for the Yakult Swallows on Sunday to break Sadaharu Oh's Japanese single-season record and some within the Giants organization have wondered if they could find a way to acquire him, writes Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle.  There's one problem, however - Balentien signed a three-year deal with the Swallows before this season, which means he will not be a free agent until the end of 2015.  “He wants to come back.  That’s what he told me two or three weeks ago. His dream is to come back and play in the major leagues," said Giants hitting coach Hensley Meulens. “We’ve talked about him, but nobody knows how to go about it, to get out of the contract."  While the idea has been batted around, Schulman cautions that the  conversations have been theoretical and have not involved GM Brian Sabean.  Here's more out of the NL West..

  • The Dodgers have scouted Japanese right-handed pitcher Masahiro Tanaka, a source tells Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles.com.  Earlier today we learned that the rival Angels are also looking at the Rakuten Golden Eagles standout.
  • Diamondbacks left-hander Matt Reynolds learned that he'll require Tommy John surgery after his MRI was reviewed, according to Jack Magruder of FOX Sports Arizona (via Twitter).  The 28-year-old, who posted a 1.98 ERA with 7.6 K/9 and 1.6 BB/9 in 30 relief outings this season, will probably go under the knife with Dr. James Andrews next week.
  • Keith Law of ESPN.com (Insider sub. req'd) runs down the players that have exceeded his expectations this season, highlighted by the MVP-caliber play of Diamondbacks standout Paul Goldschmidt.

Quick Hits: Balentien, Marlins, Abreu, Yankees

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Wladimir Balentien's journey to becoming Japan's single-season home run record holder took a number of twists and turns through the Mariners and Reds organizations, ESPN's Jerry Crasnick writes. Balentien, now with the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, has 57 homers this year, topping Tuffy Rhodes, Alex Cabrera and Sadaharu Oh. Before that, though, he made his way through the Mariners' system, then went to the Reds in a minor trade after former Seattle GM Bill Bavasi took a job there. He played part of two years in the Reds organization and failed to find a lasting spot on their big-league roster. "For me, he was just one of those guys who ran out of time," says Bavasi. "It's not like there were two clubs that passed on him and he went over there and played great. There were 30 clubs that passed on him, and he went over there and found his niche. It's kind of remarkable what he's done." Here are more notes from around baseball.

  • The Marlins have been scouting Cuban first baseman Jose Abreu, reports Joe Frisaro of MLB.com. Frisaro also notes that the Marlins are scouting "a couple" of young Cuban pitchers at an MLB showcase in the Dominican Republic. Abreu is expected to command an enormous contract, so it would be surprising if the Marlins ended up being serious contenders for his services. Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun Sentinel tweets that, while the Marlins are interested in Abreu, they probably won't be able to or willing to spend the money necessary to sign him.
  • The Yankees' outlook for 2014 is bleak, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes. Robinson Cano, Hiroki Kuroda, Mariano Rivera, Curtis Granderson and Andy Pettitte will all be free agents. While some of them might be back, many Yankees who are already under control for 2014 are signed to ugly contracts. Sherman points out that the Yankees have also seen few positive developments from their young players this season, and that 2013 hasn't seen the debut of a single blue-chip prospect.

Quick Hits: GMs, Comp Picks, 2013 Free Agents

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On this day in 2007, Terry Ryan announced that he would step aside from his post as the Twins general manager at the end of the season. As MLBTR's Tim Dierkes noted, Ryan's history was checkered at best at the time. Of course, as a read through this site's most recent post would indicate, Ryan is now back at the helm. Though the team has yet to post more than seventy wins in a season since Ryan returned in November of 2011, Minnesota stands at 15th in ESPN's latest future power rankings on the strength of its minor league system. While Ryan has long been said to have his job as long as he wants to keep it, some other GMs may not be so lucky …

  • There are four general managers around the league who could soon be replaced, writes Peter Gammons of GammonsDaily.com. According to Gammons, two of those — Jerry Dipoto of the Angels and Larry Beinfest of the Marlins – have arguably been undone by meddling owners. (Gammons cites Arte Moreno's $365MM investment in Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton, and Jeffrey Loria's propensity for "whimsically run[ning] everything.") Meanwhile, Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik may not survive to see whether the team's top young pitching talent can drive a winner. And Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd — the game's fourth-longest tenured GM — has yet to figure out how to craft a squad that can win away from Coors field. (For what it's worth, O'Dowd was in charge for the franchise's lone season with a winning road record, when it posted a 41-40 mark in 2009.)
  • It would be ridiculous to consider Rangers GM Jon Daniels among those at risk, writes Baseball Nation's Grant Brisbee. While he surely could have sacrificed future value to win at all costs this season, says Brisbee, Daniels was prudent not to and still delivered a team that should qualify for the post-season.
  • Teams must determine whether to make outgoing free agents a qualifying offer just five days after the conclusion of this year's World Series, and those decisions will play a major role in setting the stage for the 2014 free agent market. For non-obvious candidates, writes Dave Cameron of Fangraphs, an important part of the equation lies in valuing the compensation pick that the team would receive if the player declines the offer and then signs with another club. Working off of a rough valuation of international signing slot dollars, Cameron opines that teams could value the dollars spent on a comp pick as much as three-to-four times higher than money the team could spend outside the draft. As he explains, this would imply that there is substantial excess value in obtaining non-marketable draft picks, which could move the needle in favor of making qualifying offers in marginal situations.
  • As we prepare to weigh a new class of free agents, CBSSports.com's Jon Heyman ranks the best signings of 2013. His top three are a collection of veterans whose contributions have vastly outweighed the relatively meager financial commitments that they received: Pirates starter Francisco Liriano, Red Sox reliever Koji Uehara, and Athletics starter Bartolo Colon. Next on his list is Boston's David Ortiz, who as Heyman notes was the only player to accept a qualifying offer in the first year of the system.
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