Mariners Rumors

Odds & Ends: Offenses, Ben Snyder, Kelly Johnson

By Tim Dierkes | March 31, 2010 at 1:45pm CDT

Action-packed links for Wednesday…

NL offense rankings are up at RotoAuthority, courtesy of CHONE projections and the Baseball Musings lineup analysis tool. The Rockies are on top and the Padres bring up the rear, but plenty will change as the season unfolds.
Two closers were named in recent days, and our Twitter account @CloserNews passed along the info instantly to allow you to make the winning fantasy pickups.
The Rangers are attempting to work out a trade with the Giants that will allow them to retain Rule 5 lefty Ben Snyder, tweets Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Snyder already cleared waivers, reports MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Sullivan also notes that Matt Treanor chose not to exercise his out clause; he's headed to Triple A.
WEEI's Rob Bradford writes that although the Rangers are scouting Mike Lowell today and they're more interested in him than any other club, a deal is unlikely now and the Rangers would want the Red Sox to pay almost all of his salary. Bradford also notes that earlier this offseason, the Rangers expressed interest in Jed Lowrie.
Free agent Kevin Millar hopes to continue his playing career, he explained on ESPN's Waddle & Silvy show.
Diamondbacks second baseman Kelly Johnson strongly considered offers from the Blue Jays, Pirates, and Indians, reports Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.
The A's feel that out of options players Eric Patterson and Jake Fox would not clear waivers, so they're likely to send Landon Powell and Adam Rosales down (Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reporting).
Baseball America's Matt Eddy offers analysis and predictions for seven out of options pitchers.
The Orioles are looking for a suitor for catcher Chad Moeller, who is "shocked and disappointed" about not making the team according to Dan Connolly and Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltmore Sun. Peter Schmuck feels that Moeller was a better choice than Craig Tatum.
Jeff Suppan explained to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy that he's not dealing with a phantom neck injury, despite the convenient timing.
Though they could've saved $750K, the Nationals chose not to cut Scott Olsen according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
Dave Cameron of FanGraphs knows the Mariners, and he analyzes the organization's health in this article.

Mariners Waive Ryan Garko, Will Keep Sweeney

By Zachary Links | March 30, 2010 at 7:19pm CDT

7:19pm: Mike Sweeney has made the Mariners' Opening Day roster, writes Morosi. The 36-year-old was set to retire if he didn't make a team's Opening Day squad. Sweeney will be in a designated hitter platoon with Ken Griffey Jr.

Meanwhile, a source tells Morosi that the Rangers' current interest level in Garko isn't high.

5:10pm: The Mariners have put Ryan Garko on waivers, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Seattle signed the first baseman to a one-year, $550K deal roughly two months ago. The 29-year-old still has options remaining.

Morosi points out that the Rangers are in search of a right-handed bat, though he is unsure if they are interested in Garko. Texas is in search of a backup corner infielder and although manager Ron Washington seems willing to give middle infielder Andres Blanco a chance at third, it is unlikely that Garko is up to the task. Before he landed with the M's, the Rangers were said to be interested in Garko's services.

In 40 games (127 plate appearances) for the Giants last season, Garko hit .235/.307/.330 with 2 HRs.

Odds & Ends: Gaudin, Stairs, Lowell, Darvish

By Tim Dierkes | March 29, 2010 at 9:55pm CDT

Links for Monday…

FoxSports.com's Jon Paul Morosi spoke to one executive who thinks the lack of open 40-man roster spots is inhibiting trades. There are only 28 open spots across the league, and more than half of the teams are maxed out.
Chad Gaudin said he considered "a couple" of other teams before deciding to rejoin the A's, reports MLB.com's Jane Lee.
MLB.com's Corey Brock reminds us that the Padres will have to remove someone from their 40-man roster before Opening Day to make room for Matt Stairs.
The Rangers have a scout on hand to watch Mike Lowell play third base tonight, tweets ESPN Boston's Gordon Edes. This deal has to get done eventually, right?
The Braves were concerned the Marlins would take Jason Heyward at #12 in the 2007 draft, writes Yahoo's Jeff Passan.
Yu Darvish hinted for the first time that he might be willing to come to MLB, says Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker. Newman passes along a Sponichi report in which Darvish said, "Well, I’m planning on climbing the ladder, step by step," when asked about moving to MLB one day. Newman notes that Darvish isn't close to free agency, so the Nippon Ham Fighters would have to post him.
SI's Jon Heyman writes that the Mariners and Jarrod Washburn "are believed to remain apart on the dollars for a new deal."
Brian Cashman and Johnny Damon met in person for the first time since Damon left the Yankees, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
MLB.com's Peter Gammons names six clubs that might be better than you think.

Mariners Strongly Considering Adding Starter

By Tim Dierkes | March 28, 2010 at 11:50am CDT

SUNDAY, 11:50am: The Mariners have intensified their search for starting pitching, according to Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The duo names Nate Robertson, Brian Tallet, and Manny Parra as a few left-handers who may be available while the M's wait for their own lefties (Lee and Erik Bedard) to return from injuries. FOX's Tracy Ringolsby adds (via Twitter) that the team had a scout on hand to watch Tim Redding pitch yesterday.

SATURDAY, 4:16pm: Fanhouse's Ed Price tweets that the Mariners are now strongly considering adding a starting pitcher due to Lee's injury. Price suggests that the addition would be a free agent or someone who was released from another organization.

THURSDAY, 12:12pm: The Mariners are "now again seriously considering Jarrod Washburn," tweets SI's Jon Heyman, even though he says the team is hoping to have Cliff Lee back by the third week of the season.

On Sunday, Washburn told ESPN's Mike Salk there have been "no recent conversations" between the Mariners and his agent Scott Boras. The added wrinkle is that Salk feels Washburn would need about four weeks to be game-ready.

Rosenthal’s Latest: D’Backs, Robertson, Pirates

By Mike Axisa | March 27, 2010 at 9:32am CDT

Some notes from Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com…

The Diamondbacks continue to pursue a number three or four starter in the wake of Brandon Webb's setback. A club official acknowledged that such a pickup was possible, but “I don’t think any team will be willing to give up that kind of pitcher at the start of the season.”
Rosenthal says the team has infield depth to use in a trade, and reiterated that they'd love to move Chris Snyder and the $11.25MM left on his contract. The Rangers and Red Sox are said to be looking for infielders, and the Mariners could join them following Jack Hannahan's injury.
The Tigers are shopping Nate Robertson, but Arizona doesn't consider him enough of an upgrade. Zach Duke and Paul Maholm are not available.
The best available starter may be Chad Gaudin, who was released by the Yankees on Thursday.
The Brewers considered a Jeff Suppan for Snyder trade, but didn't want to take on Snyder's 2011 salary. Suppan will earn $12.5MM this season, the final one on his contract.
The Cubs do not expect to make a trade for a reliever before Opening Day, but they've scouted Jason Frasor and Scott Downs, plus Luke Gregerson of the Padres.
Nick Green has an out clause in his minor league contract, but the Dodgers may add him to the roster to serve as the backup shortstop.

Odds & Ends: Braun, Reds, Marlins, Washburn

By Luke Adams 2 | March 26, 2010 at 9:33pm CDT

A few more Friday links for your browsing pleasure…

Speaking to Tim Allen of 1250 WSSP in Milwaukee (via SportsRadioInterviews.com), Ryan Braun said he has no regrets about signing an eight-year $45MM deal with the Brewers in 2008.
The Reds haven't been very involved in trade discussions during the spring, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
MLB.com's Joe Frisaro (Twitter link) thinks the Marlins will fill out their bullpen via a waiver claim or trade.
Larry Stone of The Seattle Times would like to see the Mariners get something done with Jarrod Washburn.
Cristian Guzman is making a case to be the Nationals' starting shortstop, writes MLB.com's Bill Ladson. If the Nats named Guzman the starter, Ian Desmond would start the season at Triple-A so he could play every day.
In his latest mailbag, Scott Merkin of MLB.com answers questions about the futures of A.J. Pierzynski and Jermaine Dye. He also gives his opinion on which player would be the ideal big-name trade target for the White Sox.

Mariners Re-Sign Yusmeiro Petit

By Tim Dierkes | March 25, 2010 at 3:35pm CDT

The Mariners re-signed pitcher Yusmeiro Petit, reports Baseball America's Matt Eddy. Eddy says the Ms released Petit on March 17th but re-signed him four days later.

Petit was claimed off waivers from the Diamondbacks by the Mariners in November. He was designated for assignment in February to make room for Erik Bedard, and cleared waivers a few days later. The 25-year-old posted a 5.82 ERA, 7.4 K/9, and 3.4 BB/9 in 89.6 innings for Arizona last year, allowing 19 home runs.

Odds & Ends: Stanton, Daigle, Bell, Mariners

By Mark Polishuk | March 24, 2010 at 10:15pm CDT

A round-up of some of Wednesday's newsbits….

The Marlins assigned top prospect Mike Stanton to Double-A, but MLB.com's Joe Frisaro writes that by keeping Stanton in the minors until "around Memorial Day, or June 1," the club can delay Stanton's Super Two status.
RHP Casey Daigle, a non-roster invitee signed by the Astros in December, has a shot at winning a spot on the Houston roster, writes Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. Daigle last pitched in the majors in 2006.
MLB.com's Corey Brock (via Twitter) hears from GM Jed Hoyer that the Padres haven't heard from other teams interested in Heath Bell, nor are they "actively shopping" the closer themselves.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports calls the Mariners "a disappointment waiting to happen" and feels they won't live up to the hype generated by their busy offseason.
Carroll Rogers of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports on new TBS analyst John Smoltz popping by the Braves camp. Smoltz said he is "not officially [retired], but close" and noted that the Nationals offered a deal over the winter for him to pitch and eventually coach for the club.
MLB.com's Steve Gilbert writes that Arizona GM Josh Byrnes' interest in Kelly Johnson dated back to the infielder's high school days, and that Byrnes tried to deal for Johnson back in 2006.
LHP Danny Duffy, one of Kansas City's top pitching prospects, is quitting baseball, reports Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star.
WEEI.com's Rob Bradford reports that reliever Joe Nelson has an opt-out clause in his contract with the Red Sox that allows him to become a free agent if he isn't on Boston's major league roster by June 1.
Prospective Rangers owner Chuck Greenberg won't have the deal finalized to buy the team by Opening Day, reports Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com. Mid-April is the new target date.
Matt Klaassen of Fangraphs looks at the battle for the last spot on the Oakland roster, while also dropping several hints that the A's would be helping themselves by releasing Eric Chavez.
Matt Eddy of Baseball America looks at seven out-of-options players who he figures will either make their team's roster or be traded in the coming days. Eddy also gave us a shout-out by linking to MLBTR's full list of players who are out of options.

Rafael DePaula May Sign Soon

By Tim Dierkes | March 24, 2010 at 1:32pm CDT

17-year-old righty Rafael DePaula may sign soon, reports MLBTR contributor Blake Bentley on the scene in the Dominican Republic. Bentley sees a two-horse race between the Yankees and Mariners, with a bonus in the $1.5-2MM range possible.

DePaula threw a showcase yesterday, working in the 92-93 mph range. You can view Bentley's video of that here. ESPN's Jorge Arangure Jr. reported in January that DePaula's birth date was verified as April 1, 1992 by Junta Central, "the Dominican's official registrar." Previously MLB had suspended DePaula for a year on the belief that he lied about his age.

Odds & Ends: Orioles, Harper, Hanley

By Tim Dierkes | March 24, 2010 at 1:24pm CDT

Links for Wednesday…

Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports presents a slideshow of ten trades he thinks would make sense.
In another article, Morosi says Bryce Harper is "one terrible role model." Morosi contrasts Harper with Joe Mauer, who he says had an "uncontrived upbringing" but still became a well-paid star.
The Mariners acquired minor league infielder Edgar Trejo from the Brewers for a player to be named later or cash considerations, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
Over at RotoAuthority, I took a look at 2009's top position players and pitchers in terms of fantasy baseball earnings, and what rounds those players were drafted in.
The Orioles are replacing farm director David Stockstill, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Tony Pente of Orioles Hangout first hinted Monday of impending front office changes.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post notes that March 31st at 2pm is "the deadline to release players with non-guaranteed contracts and owe just 45-day’s pay." The Yankees' Chad Gaudin is one example, though a year ago with the Cubs Gaudin had a guaranteed contract.
In light of the news that the Giants are shopping infielder Kevin Frandsen, Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner explains why the Mariners acquiring him "seems like the most obvious move ever."
Marlins president David Samson told Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post he'd like Hanley Ramirez to retire a Marlin. Fortunately, Ramirez is already signed through 2014.

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