I think we posted a list of the non-roster invitees to spring a while back, but I figured I'd post an updated one with Mike Sweeney and Randy Messenger added to the list. You can click on their names for bios and stats.

Pitchers

Denny Stark
Eric Hull
Chris Jakabauskas
Shawn Kelley
Luis Munoz
Chris Seddon (L)
Tracy Thorpe
Sean White
Randy Messenger

Catchers

Adam Moore
Jamie Burke
Luis Oliveros

Infielders

Chris Shelton
Calix Crabbe
Oswaldo Navarro
Chris Woodward
Mike Sweeney

Outfielders

Prentice Redman
Freddy Guzman

Reliever Randy Messenger, who was placed on waivers a few days ago to make room for Ronny Cedeno and Garrett Olson on the 40-man roster, has cleared waivers and signed a minor league deal with the Mariners. Seattle also gave him an invitation to go to major league spring training.

Here's the Mariners release.

MARINERS RE-SIGN RIGHT-HANDED PITCHER RANDY MESSENGER Messenger Agrees to Minor League Contract with Invite to Major League Camp.

SEATTLE, Wash. -- Seattle Mariners Executive Vice President & General Manager of Baseball Operations Jack Zduriencik announced today that the Mariners have re-signed right-handed pitcher Randy Messenger to a minor league contract and offered him an invitation to Major League camp.

Messenger was placed on irrevocable waivers Wednesday to create space on Seattle's Major League, 40-man roster for Ronny Cedeno and Garrett Olson. He cleared waivers today, and was re-signed to the minor league deal.

Messenger, 27, was signed by Seattle as a minor league free agent July 10, 2008, and assigned to AAA Tacoma. He was selected by Seattle from Tacoma on Aug. 25, and appeared in 13 games with Seattle, posting a 0-0, 3.55 mark with 1 save.

The Mariners now have 59 players reporting to Major League Spring Training (40 players on 40-man roster, 19 non-roster invitees). Pitchers and Catchers will hold their first workout February 14 in Peoria, Ariz., and the first full-squad workout will be held Feb. 18

I just got off the phone with Mariners manager Don Wakamatsu to get a few comments on the signing of Mike Sweeney to a minor league contract.

First of all, Wakamatsu was only around Sweeney for last season and not even a full one at that, but still came away impressed.

"Phenomenal," Wakamatsu said in describing Sweeney as a person. "He's the epitome of a professional. He works his tail off, he cares about people, he does what's supposed to be done. I don't know too many people that are quite like him."

As for whether Sweeney can contribute or even make the team, Wakamatsu said Sweeney will have to show him and the Mariners that he is capable.

"Obviously, he has something prove to us," Wakamatsu said. "From what I saw last year, we had questions whether the back alright. There was no signs of the back bothering him. He swung the bat well early then he had the knee problems."

Wakamatsu called Sweeney "a professional hitter" and said that didn't think Sweeney had lost any of his bat speed

"I saw a lot of good things from him last year," Wakamatsu said.

I mentioned to Wakamatsu that the whole situation seems like a pretty minimal-risk investment and any possible returns would be a bonus, he concurred.

"Exactly, that's the way we're looking at it," he said. "Here we have a quality guy, a guy with a good track record, who has played and had success at the big leagues, a guy that's a quality guy that could help us in the clubhouse with what we're trying to develop and we're just giving him a chance with no guarantees. It's really a no-risk deal for us."

The local media got to have a conference call with Mike Sweeney at 1 p.m. (had to grab some Taco Time afterward), and he was engaging, smart and positive - everything I'd heard about him from people he dealt with in the past.

Most people figured that Sweeney's career was over last season, after the Oakland A's released him in September after being hampered by knee injuries. But it didn't sit well with him.

"It was first time in my 14-year career that I had to take a blow like that, it was tough to pill to swallow," Sweeney said.

In the offseason, Sweeney said he started getting some phone calls about teams possibly interested and decided to give it another shot.

"I started cranking it back up in the gym," he said.

Of the teams interested, Sweeney was drawn to the Mariners for two reasons: 1. Manager Don Wakamatsu, 2. Family ties to the Northwest.

Sweeney was glowing in his praise of Wakamatsu after spending last season in Oakland with him.

"Once Don Wakamatsu got the job, that put Seattle as my No. 1 team I wanted to play for," In, my 18 years of professional baseball, I’d say Don Wakamatsu in terms of baseball men is one of my top three. He’s a leader, he’s intelligent, he communicates well and he’s just a brilliant student of the game. I admired him from the first day I met him in Oakland last year. I think he’s going to bring some great leadership and hopefully some passion to the Seattle Mariners this year."

As for family ties, Sweeney's wife, Shara, hails from Tacoma. She played volleyball at Pacific Lutheran University in Parkland. Her father is Jim Nettles, a former big league outfielder for the Twins, Tigers and a few other teams. Jim Nettles, who's also the brother of Graig Nettles, also is a baseball instructor for high school and college athletes in the area. The Sweeneys also own a house in Gig Harbor.

"It would be a really amazing opportunity, stay up in the Northwest with my family," Sweeney said.

But the real question surrounding Sweeney, at least in the past five years, has always been his health.

For many years,particularly his final years in Kansas City, Sweeney was hobbled by an ailing back. But last season with Oakland, he had surgery on his left knee, which shut him down for a good portion of the season.

"In the last couple seasons had a total of three knee surgeries," he said. "I was looking double micro fracture surgery this past October. The doctors thought it would be a career-ender and might not be in best interest to do that at this time, Once I got the red flag, I turned my attention toward getting body in best shape I could. Been doing a lot of core strengthening, similar to yoga, called egoscue, that combines running and core strength, I’ve been strengthening around my knee caps and things feel great, I’m hoping that even though some red flags on my resume with my health concerns. I’m hoping when I get to camp some of those concerns will be squashed."

As for the back, Sweeney also credited the egoscue for helping with the troubles, saying he's had "zero back issues" since he's started practicing it.

Sweeney admitted that this may be his last chance to play in the big leagues.

"I know last September I thought that door was closing," he said. "I was very thankful that a couple of teams were calling in the offseason."

A year ago, Sweeney defied odds and made the Oakland A's team out of spring training after signing a minor league contract. He knows the odds are against him again, and if he doesn't make the Mariners out of spring will then consider retirement.

"If things don't work out and I don't make that trip to Minnesota for opening day, I'll probably head off into the sunset to San Diego with my wife and three kids and be thankful for the opportunity and start looking toward the next chapter of my life."

As for his role on the team, Sweeney knows most likely he would see the most time at designated hitter, but said he can fill in at first if need be and not be a complete liability.

"I played some first base last year and thought I did a great job," he said.

Whether it means DHing, getting an occasional start or just pinch hitting, Sweeney believes he can help the Mariners by being a leader.

"Last year we played against the Mariners 18 or 19 times, I just saw a team that
didn't have any unity or much life. I'm hoping that from day one that not only the leadership of Don Wakamatsu, but hopefully but guys like myself can bring these guys together and help them realize there is strength in numbers."

Basically, though the guy just wants an opportunity and he isn't expecting anything other than that.

"If get to play another three years or three weeks, when I walk away I'll be a proud man," Sweeney said. "Right now the door is still open. I know there are no guarantees, but I'm still excited to walk through that door."

The Mariners have signed veteran first baseman/DH Mike Sweeney to a minor-league contract with an invitation to spring training.

His signing was announced in a press release this morning. The club has scheduled a media conference call for early this afternoon. Ryan will be taking part and reporting. (I, EdgarHOF, am actually Paul Miller, one of Ryan's co-workers at the Trib).

Sweeney, 35, who lives in Gig Harbor, is a .299 career hitter over 14 major-league seasons – the first 13 with the Kansas City Royals. Last season, he hit .286 in 42 games with Oakland. He was on the disabled list most of the season after having surgery on both knees. The A’s released him on Sept. 9.

That info comes from the team’s press release. Here’s the full text:

MARINERS SIGN VETERAN INFIELDER MIKE SWEENEY

14-year Major League veteran signed to minor league contract with invite to Major League Spring Training.

SEATTLE – Seattle Mariners Executive Vice President & General Manager of Baseball Operations Jack Zduriencik today announced that the Mariners signed infielder Mike Sweeney to a minor league contract with an invite to Major League Spring Training.

"Mike has been a very productive hitter in his Major League career," Zduriencik said. "He hasn't been 100% physically the past couple of years, but says he is feeling very good now. We're looking forward to giving him a chance to come to camp and compete."

Sweeney, 35, hit .286 (36x126) with 13 runs scored, 8 doubles, 2 home runs and 12 RBI in 42 games with the Oakland Athletics in 2008. He missed 85 games while he was on the disabled list from May 29 to September 2 after having surgery on both of his knees. Sweeney appeared in two games after returning from the DL and was released by the A's on September 9.

Sweeney is a .299 career hitter with 199 home runs and 849 RBI in 1324 games over 14 seasons in the Majors. Sweeney spent the first 13 years of his career in Kansas City before signing a minor league contract with Oakland on February 11, 2008. He is a five-time All-Star (2000-03, 2005) and hit .300 in four consecutive seasons from 1999-2002, including a career high .340 in 2002. He set a Royals single season RBI record with 144 in 2000 and added a career high 29 home runs that year and in 2001.

The Mariners now have 58 players reporting to Major League Spring Training (40 players on 40-man roster, 18 non-roster invitees). Pitchers and Catchers will hold their first workout February 14 in Peoria, Ariz., and the first full-squad workout will be held Feb. 18.

Aaron Heilman's time with the Seattle Mariners ended pretty much before it has started. The right-handed pitcher, who was acquired from the New York Mets during the baseball winter meetings in a three-team trade, which included sending closer J.J. Putz to the Mets, has been traded again.

Heilman was dealt Wednesday morning to the Chicago Cubs for infielder Ronny Cedeno and pitcher Garrett Olson, who the Cubs had just recently acquired from the Baltimore Orioles in a trade for once promising outfield prospect Felix Pie.

"This is a trade that just fit," Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik said in press release. "Our number-one goal is to continue to accumulate talent in our organization while doing everything we can to compete in 2009. Today's trade allows us to acquire a young, left-handed starting pitcher with Major League experience that we will still control for five seasons. At the same time, by adding Cedeno we have a player who is very versatile and gives us protection and depth, and can compete for a job at second base and shortstop immediately. Finally, I want to thank Aaron for his professionalism. We were excited to acquire him, and sorry to trade him, but I felt this was a deal that we couldn't pass up."

Zduriencik said during the Mariners' spring luncheon that he was looking for a middle infielder/utility infielder to provide depth and also push shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt and second baseman Jose Lopez. Cedeno seems to fit either role. But Zduriencik said Cedeno will get every opportunity to earn a starting job.

"He's going to compete for a job," Zduriencik said. "A few years ago, Ronny was very highly touted by the Cubs. He's young and he's going to come in and push these guys and get an opportunity to start."

Besides shortstop and second base, Cedeno is also athletic enough to play fill in at third base or left field if it were an emergency.

"Versatility is a good thing," Zduriencik said. "Versatility with productivity is even better."

Betancourt struggled both offensively and defensively in the first half of the season. His plate discipline has yet to improve, and his regression defensively is a concern. Lopez, who had a productive year offensively, has never been known for his defensive prowess. His range at second is not good, and by the end of the season he was playing some first base.

But Zduriencik didn't feel that either Betancourt or Lopez needed to be inherently pushed by bringing in someone like Cedeno.

"It just creates natural competition, which I think is a good thing," Zduriencik said. "He's already been a starter at shortstop, he can play second base and it gives you an extra dependable body."

Olson adds another lefty into the starting mix. Last season, he started 26 games, posting a 9-10 record with a 6.65 ERA. After being recalled from Triple A on April 29, he started strong, going 5-1 in his first eight starts. But like many rookies he had his ups and downs the rest of the way, perhaps his best moment of the season came on Aug. 1 when he pitched 8 1/3 innings, allowing three runs against the Mariners.

Zduriencik said that Olson will be given the opportunity to win a spot in the Mariners rotation.

"He's always been a starter," Zduriencik said. "So we'll give him a chance to win a spot in the rotation. If we were goinog to give Heilman a chance to be a starter, we are going to give (Olson) the same opportunity."

That means the Mariners will have at least six candidates for the starting rotation with Felix Hernandez, Erik Bedard and Brandon Morrow already locked in, it leaves Jarrod Washburn, Carlos Silva, Ryan Rowland-Smith, Olson and possibly Miguel Batista vying for the last two spots.

It also means that the Mariners will have four lefties in that mix. Zduriencik said he didn't worry about having too many left-handers in the rotation.

"You run your best guys out there," he said. "If your best pitchers are left-handed or your best options are left-handed that's a good thing."

But it also means that two of those four will be pitching in the bullpen. Rowland-Smith and Batista both did so last season.

"There's also the 'fit' factor," Zduriencik said. "If we're creating competition, obviously someone's going to end up in the bullpen."

Because of the acquisition of the two players, it put the Mariners over the limit on the 40-man roster. To make room for Olson and Cedeno, Zduriencik just announced that the Mariners will be giving right-handed reliever Randy Messenger his unconditional release by placing him on irrevocable waivers.

Messenger, 27, was signed by Seattle as a minor league free agent July 10, 2008, and assigned to AAA Tacoma. He was selected by Seattle from Tacoma on Aug. 25, and appeared in 13 games with Seattle, posting a 0-0, 3.55 mark with 1 save.

Greetings on a chilly Sunday evening. I ran up to Fanfest today to talk with a couple of relievers - Roy Corcoran and Tyler Walker - for my story for tomorrow's paper.

Anyways, it was f-f-f-freezing up there. Little snow flakes were blowing into Safeco through the open air spots. I saw Mike Morse, who said he's feeling fully healthy (for the time being). I also got a chance to see and meet Franklin Gutierrez, who seems like a nice kid and looks like he's 15 years old.

I know we've discussed Walker's weight. He's listed at 6-3, 262 pounds, which is bigger than Silva. But he seems to wear it differently. Silva has skinny legs and big upper body, like a popsicle. I talked with a couple of people who said Walker kind of has the big behind and thick trunk legs like Jonathan Broxton or Chad Billingsley of the Dodgers. Does that mean he will pitch like either, who knows. He's certainly looks a lot bigger than Corcoran or Mark Lowe when they were standing next to each other.

Anyway, TNT photographer Joe Barrentine has put together a photo slideshow from Fanfest and you should check it out.

Tracy Ringolsby of the Rocky Mountain News did a little research this week and came up with a look at how the economy is affecting major league baseball.

“Seven of the teams that were among the top nine payrolls on Opening Day last year are looking at lesser payrolls in 2009 - the No. 1 Yankees, No. 3 Tigers, No. 4 Red Sox, No. 5 White Sox, No. 6 Angels, No. 7 Dodgers and No. 9 Mariners. The Dodgers could fall as much as $30 million from last year's $118.6 million.”

In all, he found 15 teams are cutting payroll for 2009.

No, teams aren’t crying foul or blaming the union, they’re simply reacting to reality. And reality doesn’t help the Seattle Mariners.

Sure, they’re trying to cut back on the $118 million spent in 2008. Aren’t we all trying?

What the trend in baseball means, however, is that dumping the salary-heavy players the Mariners would love to trade has become impossible. Jarrrod Washburn, at $10 million, was the target of the Yankees and Twins last August.

No more. Now, $10 million for a No. 4 or No. 5 starter is a no go. It’s the same with Miguel Batista ($9 million).

New general manager Jack Zduriencik inherited more than a 101-loss team, he came into contracts that locked him into players this season he’d rather not have – think Carlos Silva (three more years, $34 million) and Kenji Johjima (three years, $24 million).

Moving them now is impossible, even if he agreed to eat, say, half those deals. And no, the Mariners aren’t going to release those guys.

Instead, the team will try to get as much out of each of those players as possible and, like all of us, hope for an economic turnaround.

They're stuck. And $38 million in salaries – more than a third of their payroll - will go to four players the Mariners would rather not have.

Alright, sorry for the delay in getting the stuff from today’s Seattle Mariners spring luncheon posted to the blog. We were provided lunch afterward and we sat with new Director of Amateur scouting Tom McNamara, which was pretty cool, he told us plenty of stories, including running against Ichiro in a 60-yard dash as a workout and seeing a young Chris Snelling in Australia.

After lunch, I ran over to Jimmy’s on First Avenue to do a little radio time with Ian Furness and Jason Puckett from KJR. You can listen to that HERE.

Enough of the peripheral stuff. Let’s get down to business. Before I get into greater detail, here’s 10 things I took away from the luncheon:

1. The Mariners all healthy going into spring training, specifically Erik Bedard, Jeff Clement, Adrian Beltre and Carlos Silva, who is apparently trimmer.

2. Brandon Morrow will not be moved back to a reliever. Everything we heard is that Morrow will vie for a spot in the rotation.

3. Aaron Heilman will get a shot at starting. But he’ll be joining a crowded group with Bedard, Felix Hernandez, Morrow, Jarrod Washburn, Carlos Silva, Ryan Rowland-Smith and Miguel Batista. Heilman may get the chance to win a spot in spring training, but will probably end up in the bullpen.

4. If the season started tomorrow, the outfield lineup would be Endy Chavez in left, Franklin Gutierrez in center and Ichiro in right with Wlad as the fourth outfielder. Um, that’s not lot of power right there, but the starters might be the fleetest group in the majors.

5. Everyone in the organization loves catching prospect Adam Moore. He got raves from several people there including director of minor league operations Pedro Grifol and Zduriencik. Locally, fans will be pleased to know that Moore will start the season here in Tacoma with the Rainiers.

6. Catcher Kenji Johijma, who will miss much of the early spring training while training in Japan with the Japanese WBC team will fly to Arizona before it starts to meet with manager Don Wakamatsu.

7. The odds of Ken Griffey Jr. coming back seem slim. Zduriencik wouldn’t comment on any free agents for obvious reasons, but his comment about “taking emotion out of signings” seems to speak of Griffey.

8. The same goes for last year’s first round draft pick Josh Fields. Zduriencik wouldn’t say if he’s any closer. But it seems as though the Mariners have put their offer out there, take it or leave it.

9. Mariners director of amateur scouting Tom McNamara admitted the upcoming draft is pitcher-heavy and said they’ll take the best player available with the No. 2 pick. He also didn’t have a preference to college or high school, only talent. But he did say that if the Mariners took a high school player at No. 2, “he would have to be a very special player.”

10. Morrow will not close, Mark Lowe wants to close, Roy Corcoran wants to close, Tyler Walkers can close and probably wants to close, David Aardsma might have the stuff to close, but not the command, Aaron Heilman prefers not to close and nobody can seem to get a hold of Miguel Batista. So that’s the closing scenario. Want to be a manager?

UPDATED

Here’s some notes from Mariners’ Rick Griffin’s meeting with the media.
He discussed the five Mariners who had offseason surgeries. Here’s what we know - all of the players are doing well and should have “no restrictions heading into spring training.”

Jeff Clement – surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. He’s hitting, running and throwing and squatting already. He’s heading to spring training a few 10 days early to work with Roger Hansen.

Erik Bedard – surgery on his throwing shoulder. Griffin just returned from spending time in Ontario with him. He started throwing on Dec. 10th. He’s throwing three days a week, and threw flat ground bullpen while Griffin was there. They are now putting together a throwing plan for off the mound with Bedard throwing at least five off-the-mound bullpens before spring training. “As of now, he shouldn’t have any restrictions,” Griffin said once Bedard makes it to spring training.

Mike Morse – reconstructive shoulder surgery on his left shoulder after dislocating it six games into the season. He’s ready to go. “I was very proud of the effort he gave in rehab,” Griffin said. “It’s very tough to rehab while your team is still playing. Morse was healthy enough to play winter ball where he hit .310 (48-for-155) with a nine doubles, eight home runs, 30 RBIs. He had an OBP of .353 and a slugging of .523, while playing in 41 games.

Adrian Beltre – surgery on his left shoulder to clean out some bone spurs on his AC (acromioclavicular joint) and surgery to repair ligament damage on his left thumb. Beltre is in California working out. Beltre’s already swinging the bat and preparing to play in the World Baseball Classic. (More on that later).

Bryan LaHair – offseason hernia repair right after the season was over. The hernia was actually a minor tear and he played with it much of last season, but Griffin said that wasn’t a reason behind LaHair’s lack of power. But the Mariners are trying to increase LaHair’s power with some more strenuous offseason lifting and the minor hernia wouldn’t have allowed that – hence the reason for the repair.

As for other queries to Griffin, the first was about Carlos Silva and his supposed weight loss.

“He’s lost a lot of weight, he’s in very good shape,” Griffin said. “He says he’s going to surprise me and I’m looking forward to being pleasantly surprised.”

Apparently Silva has either a trainer, a therapist or a yoga instructor visit house daily. Yoga instructor? Yes, it’s for flexibility and possibly comedy. The thought of Silva doing a downward dog or a blossoming lotus is frightening. But yoga has been shown to provide much core strength and flexibility that could prevent the back issues that he had. That and the 45 extra pounds he was carrying.

Griffin wouldn’t say how much weight Silva’s lost, but said it was more than 20 pounds.

And make no mistake, the added weight Silva gained – Jim Riggleman called him a “hippo” was the main problem.

“I think of all the problems he experienced last year that were related not being in as condition as he could’ve been,” Griffin said. “I don’t think that’s going to be a problem this year.”

In other news, Felix Hernandez has already gotten to Peoria and is working out and is looking fit as ever. Part of the reason for this is the World Baseball Classic. Felix is pitching for Venezuela and bumped up his offseason schedule to prepare.

One other thing Griffin mentioned is the status of Phillippe Aumont playing in the WBC. The rule is that if a player has missed more than 45 days because of injury, he might not be “insurable” to play. Aumont missed significant time because of an elbow strain last season and may not play with the Canadian team.

While we’re on the subject, later in the meeting GM Jack Zduriencik said the Mariners were meeting later in the day to discuss Aumont playing in the WBC. While he never came out and said it, his tone along with Griffin’s earlier comments made it sound like he won’t be playing.

A few days ago, catcher Jeff Clement said he’d seen coverage of the 1995 season on MLB TV, and watched the Seattle Mariners accomplishments that year.

“I remembered a lot of that season, but I’d forgotten a lot, too,” Clement said.

We’ll forgive him – he was 12 that year.

No one remembers everything, and we all remember things a bit differently. Arne Christensen wanted to collect memories of that season from anyone who wanted to share theirs, so he started a website.

On it, you can find links to audio of ’95, some video clips and photos. The most fun, however, is the written memories from Mariners fans.

They’re all archived, from last January through December. They involve specific games, single plays, individual players, and they’re all contributed by those who share Clement’s memories of a dramatic season.

You can add your own, too.

It’s a charming website, which would be improved slightly if it linked to this blog, but why be picky? If you want to relive the ’95 season, it’s a fine place to start. Here’s the link. Enjoy.

In a move that wasn't overly surprising, but extremely logical, Bonneville Seattle, the parent company of the new 710 ESPN radio station, announced it has hired Shannon Drayer to be its Mariners beat reporter for the upcoming season and she will begin work for the fledgling sports-talk radio station on Feb. 2.

“Shannon Drayer is one the premier sports reporters in the Pacific Northwest,” said Bonneville Seattle Program Director, Rod Arquette in a press release. “Her connections with the Mariners will provide 710 ESPN Seattle listeners with exclusive, insider information unavailable anywhere else on the radio.”

Indeed, Shannon has been a fixture on Mariners broadcasts, covering the M's for the past five seasons for KOMO. Once KOMO lost the broadcast rights to the Mariners in the middle of last season, KOMO let Drayer go in mid-season to save costs.

As someone who's worked side-by-side with Shannon, she was the best and most qualified candidate to handle the reporting duties. She's got vast knowledge of the organization as well as the necessary familiarity with players and executives.

In the past few months, new-general manager Jack Zdurirencik has been busy, and the Seattle Mariners roster has been turning over, but to look at just how much this team has changed, flip the calendar back to last April.

What’s happened since opening day, 2008?

Plenty.

Last April, the Mariners had Willie Bloomquist, Miguel Cairo, Raul Ibanez, Charlton Jimerson, Greg Norton, Richie Sexson, Jose Vidro and Brad Wilkerson on their 25-man roster.

And the pitching staff? It had Cha-Seung Baek, R.A. Dickey, Sean Green, Eric O’Flaherty, J.J. Putz and Arthur Rhodes.

That’s 14 players gone since the first month of last season, an extraordinary turnaround, and doesn’t even include players like Jeremy Reed and Jake Woods, who came up later in the year and are now gone.

A team that suffers the ultimate meltdown of expecting to contend, then losing 102 games, can expect major alterations. The Mariners have a new GM, a rebuilt front office staff, a new manager and all-new coaching staff.

And on the field, you’re going to need to check your program through much of spring training.

The lineup will be different. The bench will be new. The rotation and bullpen have changed.

It’s been an extraordinary reworking of a franchise, and it’s likely not done, yet.

How well it works – and how patient the fans are in watching it move forward – should be intriguing to watch. For Seattle Mariners fans disgusted with 2008, this isn’t the team you booed four months ago.

It's a new team, and it had to be.

Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik continues to be busy making moves. After signing Erik Bedard and Aaron Heilman to one-year deals to avoid arbitration, Zdruiencik also announced that the Mariners have acquired right-handed reliever David Aardsma from the Boston Red Sox in return for minor league left-handed pitcher Fabian Williamson.

Aardsma was immediately placed on the 40-man roster giving the Mariners a full 40.

"Adding David to our roster gives us another quality bullpen arm," Zduriencik said in a press release.. "He has over three years of Major League experience and is a former first-round draft pick. We are excited to give him the opportunity to help bolster our bullpen."

Aardsma appeared in a career-high 47 games last season with the Red Sox. He finished 4-2 with a 5.55 ERA (30 ER, 48.2 IP), averaging 9.06 strikeouts per 9.0 innings (49 K, 48.2 IP). He also missed some time during the season with two stints on the disabled list, July 20-Aug. 8 and Aug. 24-Sept. 10 with a strained right groin. The Red Sox had to designate him for assignment a few days back when the re-signed free agent outfielder/first baseman Mark Kotsay.

This will be his seventh professional season, Aardsma has compiled a career 10-3 record with a 5.29 ERA (85 ER, 144.2 IP) in 128 games (all in relief) with San Francisco (2004), Chicago Cubs (2006), Chicago White Sox (2007) and Boston (2008).

Aardsma played collegiately at Rice and was a first round pick of the SF Giants (No. 22 overall) in the 2003 draft.

His other claim to fame is that he is listed as the first player in the baseball encyclopedia moving ahead of Hank Aaron.

As for the guy the Mariners gave up. Williamson is a 20-years-old and was taken in the 22nd round of the 2006 draft. He went 4-3 with a 4.10 ERA (24 ER, 52.2 IP) in 11 starts for the Pulaski Mariners (short-season A) last season.

The Mariners' final player eligible for arbitration was signed today. Pitcher Aaron Heilman, who was part of the monster three-team trade for J.J. Putz, agreed to a one-year deal for this season.

“Aaron is a very versatile pitcher and is an important part of our pitching staff in 2009,”
Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik said in a press release. “It is good to settle all these negotiations and head into spring training focused on working hard and getting prepared for the 2009 season.”

The 30-year-old Heilman finished 2009 with a 3-8 record and a 5.21 ERA (44 ER, 76.0 IP) in 78 relief appearances with the New York Mets last season. Towards the end of the season he was forced to take over the closing duties when Billy Wagner was injured. He struggled in that role, drawing the ire of angry Met fans, who often used him as the prime example of a faltering bullpen.

He was acquired by Seattle on Dec. 10, 2008 in a three-team, 12-player trade that sent J.J. Putz (rhp), Jeremy Reed (of) and Sean Green (rhp) to the Mets.

Since 2006, Heilman has the second-most innings (249.0), fourth-most appearances (233) and fifth-most holds (64) among Major League relievers. However, he told Mets officials after last season that he would like to return to starting.

Since acquiring Heilman for Putz, the Mariners haven't decided on a role for Heilman, though with seven starters already vying for the rotation, he seems either destined for the bullpen or possibly a candidate to be traded again. In 25 career starts, Heilman is 5-13 with a 5.93 ERA

Left-hander Erik Bedard, the likely No. 2 starter in the Seattle Mariners rotation, avoided arbitration Tuesday by agreeing to a one-year contract.

Bedard, 29, made 15 starts in 2009 before a shoulder injury ended his season. He was 6-4 with a 3.67 earned run average.

Healthy again, Bedard and Felix Hernandez will make up one of the stronger 1-2 punches in the American League. The Bedard deal comes one day after Hernandez received a one-year, $3.8 million deal from the Mariners, also avoiding arbitration.

The team would not disclose details of Bedard's contract. Reports say it is for $7.75 million, which would be a $750,000 raise, and includes another $650,000 in incentive clauses and bonuses.

Later in the day the Mariners reached an agreement with right-hander Aaron Heilman, the last of their potential arbitration cases.

The team issued this press release today.

On the telephone, Jeff Clement sounded awfully cheerful for a man living in 21-degree temperatures.

“A couple of weeks ago, it was below zero,” Clement said. “That’s Iowa in the winter.”

Clement had reason to be happy. A few months ago, he moved into a new home not far from Des Moines, he and his wife are expecting their first child in March and his rehabilitation from season-ending knee surgery is going well.

“I’m good to go, physically,” he said. “I won’t have any restrictions when camp opens. I’m lucky I had the surgery when I did (Sept. 9) instead of waiting until the end of the year. Doctors said I could have done more damage to the meniscus and the rehab time would have been longer.

“There’s no reason to think the knee will be an issue again.”

The question many fans have raised in the off-season is where Clement’s immediate future is with the Seattle Mariners – at catcher, first base or designated hitter.

It’s not a question for Clement.

“I’m a catcher, period,” he said. “I’ve heard that stuff since high school, and I still hear it, but I’ve worked hard to improve as a catcher. I can be more consistent, I can be better, but I’m a catcher until they tell me I’m not, and no one has.”

And he’s fired up for a new season.

“I flipped by the new major league baseball channel the other day and the focus was on the 1995 season, and about a third of it was about the Mariners that year,” Clement said. “That was pretty cool, watching that team. I grew up a big Ken Griffey Jr. fan, and watching him against the Yankees – he hit five home runs in that series! – really got me going.

“I’m looking forward to getting to camp. There have been a lot of changes since last year, but when you lose 102 games, changes is probably good.”

We've all been kind of wondering what Mariners would be participating in the World Baseball Classic. We knew that Ichiro Suzuki, Adrian Beltre and Felix Hernandez would, but others like Ryan Rowland-Smith were not quite as certain. Well, the respective teams released their provisional rosters for the 2009 WBC and 16 Mariners players, including 10 on the 40-man roster were on them. The 10-players from the 40-man were third most in baseball, tying the Red Sox. The Los Angeles Angels and Chicago Cubs had the most with 11.

Here's the complete list of team rosters in PDF format.

Here's the list of the Mariners on rosters by country.

Australia (1):
Ryan Rowland-Smith, LHP

Canada (1):
Phillippe Aumont, RHP

Chinese Taipei (1):
Kuo-Hui Lo, OF

Dominican Republic (1):
Adrian Beltre, 3B

Italy (1):
Alex Liddi, INF

Japan (2):
Kenji Johjima, C
Ichiro Suzuki, OF

Netherlands (2):
Greg Halman, OF
Kalian Sams, OF

Panama (1):
Manuel Campos, RHP

South Africa (1):
Anthony Phillips, INF

Venezuela (5):
Felix Hernandez, RHP
Cesar Jimenez, LHP
Carlos Silva, RHP
Jose Lopez, INF
Endy Chavez, OF

Each of the 16 Baseball Federations participating in the 2009 World Baseball Classic has submitted its provisional roster prior to today's deadline. Provisional rosters allow Federations to list up to 45 players from which the final 28-man rosters will be selected. Each Federation must submit its final roster, including a minimum of 13 pitchers and two catchers, by February 24th.

Greetings to you on a relatively sunny Monday, well at least after the morning fog cleared. I'm actually sneaking in a few high school games up at the Bank of America Arena.

Anyway, let's get to a few links of some relative interest.

Boston Globe national baseball columnist Nick Cafardo always has one of the best and most informative Sunday columns. In this week's column, he mentions that the Mariners are interested in possibly bringing in free agent catcher Jason Varitek, a one-time Mariners prospect, as a possible mentor for the slew of young catchers as well as work with the Seattle pitching staff.

1. Jason Varitek, C, free agent: If the Sox can't come up with a young catcher like Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Taylor Teagarden, or even Miguel Montero, Varitek will likely be back. While it doesn't seem an obvious fit, a couple of Mariner advisers have talked up Varitek as someone who could help improve the Seattle pitching staff.

I can hear some Mariners fans screaming, “NOOOOOOOOOO!!” at that possibility.

And I’d be in total agreement. I can't tell you how bad of an idea that would be and it seems rather unlikely for any number of reasons. Let me preface that by saying, that I'm a huge fan of Varitek (I wrote a big story on him last season, but I can't link because of the paid archives and if for no other reason than the picture above). I respect his leadership, the way he handles his pitchers and his intensity. He’s a class act and I think would be great for Felix Hernandez, Erik Bedard, Brandon Morrow and Ryan Rowland-Smith. You wouldn’t here any bickering about his game calling, like we did with Kenji Johjima. But right now, signing Varitek doesn’t seem to fit in with what new GM Jack Zduriencik has been trying to do since taking over. And he’s not what this team needs for a number of reasons.

• There is the sharp decline in numbers. Varitek might be good for a pitching staff, but offensively his numbers are in sharp decline, this year he posted a .220/.313/.359 and at times looked simply overwhelmed. The Sox moved him to the bottom of the order and he looked like he would be a candidate to be platooned on any other team. Do I think Varitek's offensive numbers will stay that anemic this season, it remains to be seen. But I don’t think they can stay that bad. He is 36 and was battling through a divorce and also bothered by a couple different bouts with sickness and infection.

• Varitek wants a fair amount of compensation. Wait his agent, Satan, er, Scott Boras, doesn't always believe in "fair" compensation. Or at least fair meaning logical to most people. Anyway, Varitek passed up on salary arbitration in December which probably would have got him $10 million for this season on Boras' advice. Boras instead believed that Varitek could at least get a multi-year deal at a similar annual figure from another team, which seems preposterous even at first glance. Now as you look at the recent free agent signings and more importantly the lack of some signings and would you put Varitek’s worth much higher than the contract Gregg Zaun just signed with the Orioles? Not really. So to give him even a two-year deal at say $5 million a year is too much.

• And there is the other form of compensation that any team would have to give up in signing Varitek, who is a type A free agent and refused salary arbitration from the Red Sox. Any team who signs him would have to give up a first-round draft pick for him, but not the Mariners since the first 15 picks of the draft are protected. Instead the Mariners would give up their first pick of the second round. That doesn’t sound like much to some, but Zduriencik has a reputation for being a solid drafter. Just look at the quote in this blog from an an MLB general manager about that possibility. Perhaps it's why Varitek has not received an offer from any MLB team according to most sources.

• Then there is the fact that the Mariners have plenty of catching coming into spring training with Kenji Johjima, Jeff Clement, Jamie Burke, Rob Johnson and Adam Moore. Notice I didn’t say outstanding catching. But each of the five have their obvious strengths and weaknesses. With his contract, Johjima is untradeable (yes, even to a Japanese team), the team still wants to see Clement log more innings behind the plate before officially turning him into a DH, you know what you’re going to get with Burke, a steady solid back-up and a solid professional, Johnson showed some glimpses last season but still needs to improve offensively and get more big league innings while Moore is a few years away.

Looking at those five is there really a need for Varitek? Sure, he’d be better and cheaper than Johjima, but that’s the bed Bavasi made and the Mariners must lie in it, unless they just want to eat that contract and release Joh, which isn’t going to happen. If Johjima wasn’t around, and the Mariners were concerned about turning over the reins to any combo of Clement, Burke and Johnson for the season, I could see bringing in Varitek. But for better or worse, the Mariners seem to be stuck with the catching situation they are in for the time being and adding Varitek doesn't seem like an answer and would only make things complicated.

Do I think that signing Varitek is a real possibility? Not really. It doesn't seem to fit in with the type of moves Zduriencik has made so far. But this is coming from a guy that picked the Mariners to win 88 games (more on that later).

Now that I've ripped off a quick 1000 words on that, let's get to some more links.

Fox sports Ken Rosenthal mentions in his latest piece that the Mariners are interested in possibly acquiring veteran free agent utility man Craig Counsell and his awkward batting stance.

Rosenthal also mentions that the Mariners are open to trading recently acquired pitcher Aaron Heilman, who was part of the J.J. Putz trade. Obviously, Heilman wasn't the key part of the trade for Seattle - getting Franklin Gutierrez was. Heilman has also expressed his desire to be a starter and the Mariners already have plenty of candidates for the rotation. Now what Heilman wants and what happens are two different things entirely, but he also struggled in the closing role for the Mets and may not have the mental make up to be a closer. Parting with Heilman for perhaps some offensive help might be worth looking into.

Speaking of closing games, the Everett Herald's Kirby Arnold caught up with the always entertaining Roy Corcoran, and Corcoran said he would love to close games this season.

ESPN's Buster Olney had a nice blog post about Jamie and Karen Moyer spending their Christmas in Guatemala at the orphanage where their youngest daughter Yennifer was adopted from.

The San Diego Union Tribune's Tom Krasovic posted on his blog about the off chance that the Pads, who have the No. 3 in this year's amateur draft, might somehow luck into having consensus No. 1 pick Stephen Strasburg somehow fall to them.

Um, that isn't happening. If the Nationals, who have the top pick, don't take him, the Mariners would never let him slide past at No. 2. But just the Washington Post's Dave Sheinin chimes in with the fact that the Nats still like Strasburg for the pick.

That is all ... for now

The Mariners avoided arbitration with staff ace Felix Hernandez by signing the 22-year-old to a one-year, $3.8 million contract.

That's stage one of their effort to secure him for a longer stretch - but an important step, none-the-less.

Going all the way to arbitration with Felix would have been disastrous, and general manager Jack Zduriencik knew it.

"We are pleased to have Felix signed for 2009 and to avoid the arbitration process," Zduriencik said. "It was important to the club to get this done quickly and fairly to avoid any distraction as we prepare for the season."

It's quite a raise for Hernandez - about six times what he was paid last year.

Now, all Hernandez has to do is earn it.

To do so, all he'll have to do is build on his 2008 season, when he pit`hed 200 innings for the first time in his career, had an earned run average of 3.45 and won nine games.

Considered one of the best young pitchers in baseball, Hernandez cannot be a free agent until after the 2011 season, giving Zduriencik and the Mariners time to work on a multi-year contract.

For now, they've taken arbitration out of the picture for 2009.

Jack Zduriencik must like the way the free-agent market is playing out, and if it continues on another week or two, he and the Seattle Mariners might be in position to pick up a player at a bargain.

Teams are passing on the contract demands of still-available players like Manny Ramirez and Adam Dunn, and a pitcher like Pedro Martinez has suddenly found his market reduced to one interested team – the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Ken Griffey Jr. doesn’t have a job, or a serious offer. Neither do Bobby Abreu, Garret Anderson, Orlando Hudson, Orlando Cabrera or Omar Vizquel. That’s not to say the Mariners will make offers on any of them – but the market has kept those playes available, and their prices keep falling like Blue Chip stocks.

The new Mariners GM may benefit from the market or may pass entirely on grabbing another free agent, but his patience – if that’s what it is – has certainly put him in position to shop.

And it may be, that was his intention all along.

Yes, Zduriencik is pursuing trades and talking to teams. The Yankees are tangling outfielders Nick Swisher and Xavier Nady, and the Mariners have chatted to see what New York wants in return.

But if trade talks go nowhere, the Mariners may find themselves an unemployed player without many options. Then all they have to deal with is pride.

Back in the ‘80s, for instance, Hall of Famer Rod Carew still had enough bat left to play a few seasons, perhaps in a slightly diminished role. And the Angels offered him a $1 million contract.

Carew was offended and retired.

This year, players like Nomar Garciaparra, Tom Glavine, Frank Thomas and Vizquel may face the same option – play for what their market value has become or go home.

The Mariners? If they choose to bid, they won’t find nearly as much competition as they once expected.

Greg Dobbs, millionaire.

Given the economy – and the outrageous salaries we see players pull down – it may be hard to appreciate the new status Dobbs enjoys, but anyone who recalls his time with the Seattle Mariners can probably work up a smile.

Dobbs, 30, signed a two-year, $2.5 million contract with the Philadelphia Phillies by being just that valuable to the team that won the 2008 World Series. Two years ago, he was waived by the Mariners.

In 2007, Dobbs hit .272 with 10 home runs and 55 RBI – and 18 of those RBI came as a pinch-hitter. Last season, Dobbs batted .301 with nine home runs and 40 RBI, in 226 at-bats. His 22 pinch hits led he majors, and produced 16 RBI.

Saying Dobbs worked hard to extend his major league career doesn’t sound like much – who, given the chance, wouldn’t?

The answer is, a lot of guys.

When he came up with Seattle, he played the outfield, first base and – with Adrian Beltre’s help – learned to play third base. He never went through the motions, never took an easy day in drills that were monotonous.

Dobbs grew up, lost the youthful arrogance and the sense of entitlement so many good athletes have. He stopped finding bad breaks and worked harder than he ever had.

About the time he’d learned the position, he lost his job. The Mariners let him go, and for a time in December, 2006, Dobbs feared his career might be over. Then Pat Gillick and the Phillies called.

And today, Dobbs is a millionaire. Nice story.

Philadelphia seems to collect former Mariners. They traded for Jamie Moyer, who now has a World Series ring. They signed free agent Raul Ibanez. This week, they reached out to another ex-Mariner, left-handed pitcher Jake Woods.

Woods signed a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training, and finds himself in a similar situation to the one Dobbs faced in ’07. He has a chance, and in baseball that’s often all you get.

Dobbs made the most of his. Like Dobbs, Woods needs to alter his attitude a few degrees and do the work without seeing the politics of roster moves.

Here's wishing Jake the best. Everything else, he'll have to earn.

Three Seattle Mariners – all pitchers – filed for arbitration, and while all of them are penciled in to important roles this season, one of them is the team ace.

Felix Hernandez is still 22, and while is 39-38 major league record is mediocre, his talent is not. On the open market today, all 30 teams would love to have him. For now, he’s a Mariner.

Not necessarily a happy one.

As he heads toward arbitration, Hernandez is 14th on the Seattle salary chart, the lowest-paid member of the rotation that opened the 2008 season. Hernandez made $540,000 last year.

What will he ask for in 2009? Numbers will be exchanged later this month, but consider this:

Carlos Silva will make $11 million.

Jarrod Washburn will make $10.3 million.

Miguel Batista will make $9 million.

Bedard, who has filed for arbitration, made $7 million last year.

Aaron Heilman – the third Mariner to file for arbitratrion – made $1.2 million in 2008. And the Mariners signed reliever Tyler Walker last week for $750,00.

So Felix is, at the moment, the sixth highest-paid man on the Seattle pitching staff.

Former GM Bill Bavasi and the team front office tried last spring to interest Hernandez in a multi-year contract. He and agent Alan Nero passed.

Now, new GM Jack Zduriencik and that same hierarchy face the same challenge. If they can’t get the multi-year deal done, they have to sign Hernandez rather than allow him to go through the arbitration process.

Young Felix is sensitive, as most are at his age, to anything that could be perceived as criticism. If the Mariners have to make their case against him – in his presence – the team could lose even if it wins.

If Seattle wants Hernandez as the foundation of its rotation, it must sign him before arbitration. And if they can’t get him to agree to a long-term deal, it may be time to accept that Felix doesn’t see his future as a Mariner.

Tom McNamara is pumped, and the new Seattle Mariners director of scouting figures by the end of the weekend, all 24 amateur scouts in his department will be, too.

“It’s the first time most of us in the organization are going to sit down face-to-face,” McNamara said. “The manager and his coaching staff, all the scouts, the front office people. We’re going to go over everything from philosophy to report writing.”

Once new general manager Jack Zduriencik had the job, McNamara was one of his first hires. They have been friends for years, and worked well together in Milwaukee. This weekend, McNamara hopes, he begins to repay Zduriencik for his confidence.

“I’m of no use to Jack if our staff doesn’t produce good drafts,” he said. “And we’re going to talk about how important this draft is to the organization.”

McNamara has brought in a handful of new scouts, kept what he considers the best of the Mariners and now has a staff long on experience.

“Some of the guys we brought in have already seen a lot of the players we’ll be looking at – high school and college,” McNamara said. “We’re not starting from scratch. I want guys familiar with the players we’ll be seeing again. I want to build an environment where people will disagree at times and feel free to make their case.”

Three full days of front office meetings begin Friday, and new manager Don Wakamatsu will sit down with his coaching staff for the first time.

A day later, McNamara will begin a two-day ‘refresher course’ for his 24 scouts.

“We’ll talk about philosophy and accountability, how we’re going to do things,” he said. “Don is going to talk to them, and that will get the juices flowing. When I was first a scout here, Lou (Piniella) spoke to us, and it got me going. The big leagues is where you want your players to be. Part of this weekend is instilling the guys with pride.”

McNamara has been preparing for this weekend for more than a month. What’s h plan to do starting Monday?

“Open all the sealed boxes in my apartment,” he said. “Around here, we all have a passion about baseball.”

The Seattle Mariners will invite 17 non-roster players to spring training next month, and there are a few familiar names among them – from catcher Jamie Burke to infielder Oswaldo Navarro and former Mariners pitching product Denny Stark.

Here’s the complete list:

Pitchers Eric Hull, Chris Jakauauskas, Shawn Kelly, Luis Munoz, Chris Seddon, Stark, Tracy Thorpe and Sean White

Catchers Burke, Adam Moore, Luis Oliveros.

Infielders Calix Crabbe, Navarro, Chris Shelton and Chris Woodward.

Outfielders Freddy Guzman and Prentice Redmon.

A few highlights from among those invited?

OK – outfielder Guzman, a switch-hitter, averaged 50 steals a season for eight minor league seasons, with a high of 90 steals.

Right-hander Jakbauskas ripped through Class AA last year and jumped to Class AAA Tacoma and went 8-1 with a 1.94 earned run average in relief.

Right-hander Kelly led the Mariners minor league system with 15 saves pitching at three levels, and has a 1.98 ERA in 61 professional games.

Catcher Moore batted .319 in Class AA with 14 home runs and 71 RBI. In his 107 starts, he hit .339.

Outfielder Redmond split time beween Class AA and Class AAA and combined to hit 25 home runs

Right-hander Stark, a fourth round Seattle draft pick in 1996, has a 15-13 big-league record in 64 appearances after going 11-4 with a 4.00 ERA for Colorado in 2000. Last season in the minors he went 6-3 with a 3.86 ERA – this two years after undergoing ‘Tommy John’ surgery.

I was going to post some links earlier, but I had stop for a moment and revel in something we haven't seen in weeks around here - the sun. Of course, now it's gone back to being gray and overcast, but there was a few hours of sunlight and slight warmth which made me think of baseball (it's probably warmer today than it will be at the home opener at Safeco).

Anyway, I haven't posted any links (or much else) in a while. So let's get to a few of them.

MLB.com's Jim Street has an update on the Mariners negotiations with un-signed first round draft pick Josh Fields.

Here's 710 KIRO's "Hot Stove League" show that talks with Jack Zduriencik. Here's hour no. 2 of the show.

The Tigers signed a left-handed Chinese reliever and in the story it says they outbid the Mariners for his services.

KC columnist Joe Posnanski uses some stats to compare and contrast Adam Dunn and Willie Bloomquist after Bloomquist signed with the Royals.

Former Mariner and current Orioles closer George Sherrill checks in with the Baltimore Sun and says he's feeling good.

This Washington Times story discusses how clubs are having to change their selling strategies for season tickets because of the economy, including talking with the Mariners about their strategy.

Along those lines, Washington Post columnist Thomas Boswell also offers some thoughts about baseball and the current economic climate.

Apparently though, the economy isn't affecting the sale price of the Chicago Cubs. The going rate is now, $1 billion dollars.

Phillies pitcher Chan Ho Park has decided to not play in the World Baseball Classic and instead wants to focus on earning a spot in Philadelphia rotation.

Mets ace Johan Santana is also up in the air about playing. It certainly won't hurt the Mets feelings if he doesn't play and they are considering barring him from playing.

Elsewhere ...
Salon.com's King Kaufman is demanding that baseball writers start learning and embracing the new statistical measures out there.

Look, I don't understand every measure out there, and as Bill James mentions in this chat, no measure will ever be perfect and change will be constant, but I think you would be foolish to not at least make an effort to understand them and what they are trying to measure.

Also, this one has been bothering me, but the American Sportscasters Association has come up with a list of it's top 50 broadcasters. Vin Scully is No. 1 (no problem there), Dave Niehaus did not make the list (not completely surprised), but Chris Berman and Bill Walton making the list at No.'s 35 and 39, well that list loses most credibility right there.

Also, I really enjoy the ESPN ombudsman columns, because well, it's kind of strange to see someone taking the sports entertainment empire to task, but she does, and does it well. Check out this latest one.

The Mariners released their list of player development staff. Several of their roving instructors are familiar names. Roger Hansen, one of my favorites in the organization, will continue to work with the catchers as the catching coordinator. Jose Castro, who spent the second half of last season as the hitting coach with the Mariners, will be the hitting coordinator, while Dave Wallace will be the pitching coordinator.

Locally, Daren Brown will be back to manage the Tacoma Rainiers. His hitting coach Alonzo Powell, who's reputation as a hitting coach is growing, returns along with Dwight Bernard as the pitching coach.

Phil Plantier will get his first stint at managing, taking over at Double AA West Tennessee. Perhaps the most interesting name in the rest of the minor league managers is Jose Guillen in the Dominican Summer League. Rest assured, it's not crazy-eyed, former Mariner Jose Guillen, who is still pulling in an oversized contract with the Royals. But think for a moment if that Jose Guillen was a manager. He would bring an interesting skill-set and attitude to the job, that would make Ozzie Guillen seem tame.

Anyway, here is the entire list of the 2009 Player Development staff:

Roving Instructors
Coordinator of Instruction: Tim Tollman
Pitching Coordinator: Dave Wallace
Catching Coordinator: Roger Hansen
Hitting Coordinator: Jose Castro
Infield Coordinator: Darrin Garner
Strength & Conditioning Coordinator: James Clifford
Trainer Coordinator: Mickey Clarizio
Physical Therapist: Sean McQueeney

Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers
Manager: Daren Brown
Pitching Coach: Dwight Bernard
Coach: Alonzo Powell
Trainer: Tom Newberg

Double-A West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx
Manager: Philip Plantier
Pitching Coach: Tom Dettore
Coach: Terry Pollreisz
Trainer: Matt Toth

Single-A High Desert Mavericks
Manager: Jim Horner
Pitching Coach: Jaime Navarro
Coach: Tommy Cruz
Trainer: Jeremy Clipperton

Single-A Clinton LumberKings
Manager: Scott Steinmann
Pitching Coach: Lance Painter
Coach: Eddie Menchaca
Trainer: Eduardo Tamez

Single-A Everett AquaSox
Manager: John Tamargo
Pitching Coach: TBA
Coach: Jesus Azuaje
Trainer: Spyder Webb

Rookie Pulaski Mariners
Manager: Rob Mummau
Pitching Coach: Nasusel Cabrera
Coach: Rafael Santo Domingo
Trainer: Colby Harris

Rookie Peoria Mariners
Manager: Jose Moreno
Pitching Coach: Gary Wheelock
Coach: Andy Bottin
Trainer: Randy Roetter
Clubhouse Mgr.: Ryan Stiles

Dominican Summer League
Manager: Jose Guillen
Pitching Coach: Danielin Acevedo
Coach: Francisco Gerez/Joel Guerrero
Strength & Conditioning Coach: Francis Ramirez
Trainer: Leonardo Jimenez

Venezuelan Summer League
Manager: Russell Vasquez
Pitching Coach: Jesus Hernandez
Coach: William Oropeza/Humberto Espinoza
Trainer: Johnny Molina
Clubhouse Mgr: Melvi Piedra/Anglea Parga

The annual free agent frenzy is waning, after the they-got-how-much signings of players like C.C. Sabathia, Mark Teixeira and Francisco Rodriguez, and we’ve entered another annual phase.

The guys who were certain they’d be signed by now but aren’t.

As we stand a month before camps open, there are future Hall of Famers – Ken Griffey Jr, Manny Ramirez – and strong HOF candidates like Tom Glavine, Ivan Rodriguez, Frank Thomas and Omar Vizquel still unsigned.

There are dozens of free agents still on the market, and not all are going to get signed in the next few weeks. Some are going to wind up with spring training invites and the chance to make a team out of camp.

As always, somewhere in the remaining free agent group are players who are going to surprise in 2009. Some will continue a downward spiral in their careers, but others – ah, the annual treasures – will be the bargains that produce.

It might be a starting pitcher like Paul Byrd, Bartolo Colon, Freddy Garcia or Livian Hernandez. Maybe a reliever like Eddie Guardado.

Among the hitters available, there’s Bobby Abreu, Adam Dunn and Ramirez, then take-a-chance guys like Garret Anderson, Orlando Cabrera, Griffey, Rodriguez.

Want a little fun today, check out this list of free agents – signed and unsigned – and pick out a few of the remaining guys who will be the surprises of 2009. Any the Seattle Mariners should grab?

Someone is going to make a mistake in the next month, someone else is going to strike pay dirt with a shrewd-and-a-little-lucky pick up. Play general manager and find the best bargain.

Who knows, maybe the Mariners will wind up inviting him to spring training?

In the world of baseball beat writers, there is nothing finer than awakening in the morning and knowing you have something in the paper that your competition didn't get.

It might be a note, a quote or a story, doesn' matter. Being the competiton with bullets is nearly as much fun as beating them with a bomb.

The Seattle Post Intelligencier is among my competitors, and over the years he has worked there, John Hickey has been one hell of a beat writer.

I have, occasionally, beaten him. He has, occasionally, beaten me. Along the way, we became friends who shared a love of baseball, music, outrageous shirts and good journalism.

John is more than a good reporter. He's more than a good writer. He's a true beat guy, and there aren't many of us around, any more.

More and more, the industry is hiring bloggers who also write for the newspaper. Hickey and I both blog, but our real love has always been the daily paper.

Now, the P-I is for sale, most likely facing closure or the transition to solely on-line content.

How's that going to impact folks like John?

He's got a moving blog on the topic today, and for the first - and probably last - time, I'm going to link to the competition.

The death on any newspaper is a blow to those of us who love the business and enjoy reading different viewpoints.

Even if, occasionally, that newspaper and its beat guy kick your butt.

Here's a link to John's blog, on the P-I sports website.

And here's hoping I get to kick John's butt a few times this year - and that he gets the chance to kick mine, too.

It wouldn't be nearly as much fun out there without him.

Since the day he was hired as the manager of the Seattle Mariners, Don Wakamatsu’s off-season ended.

“I probably talk to two of my coaches every day, and I’m touching base with as many people as possible,” he said. “I’ve had thoughts on lineups – I’ve played around with a lot of different things.

“I’ve been thinking about bunt plays, hit-and-runs, ways to cut down walks from our pithing staff and increase them with our offense, fundamental defense. I’ve even looked at details like last year’s spring training stats.

“Your mind wants to think baseball 24/7. I try to reserve Sunday for family.”

And, keep in mind, this is the off-season – Wakamatsu’s down time.

“Your mind just wants to roll,” Wakamatsu said. “I want to make the fans happy, the ownership happy. That’s a responsibility and I take it seriously.”
What’s been the toughest part of being a first-time manager?

“The staff hiring process was much more difficult than I assumed,” he said. “There were so many good candidates, so many relationships involved. Some guys I thought I’d have, it ended up being another guy. The hardest part was calling friends and saying no.”

And when did it hit Wakamatsu that he was, indeed, a major league manager.

“That’s funny, but it was at the winter meetings last month. When they took the photos of all the American League managers as a group, it hit me. To be part of that fraternity was special,” he said. “It really sunk in.”

Later this week, Wakamatsu will fly to Seattle for organizational meetings, and – for the first time – his coaching staff will be together in one room to talk baseball.

In the meantime, he mans the telephone at home.

“The other day I called Chuck Tanner just to talk baseball,” he said. “He has so many stories, so much information. He’s a wonderful story teller, a passionate baseball man. I want to hear and learn from everyone I can."

If you think the Seattle Mariners have more catchers than they need, consider the question made famous by Abbott and Costello – Who’s on first?

There are only four legitimate candidates at catcher. At first base? They have at least five men who’ll battle for playing time there, and no one permanent starter is likely to emerge in spring training.

The team gave Bryan LaHair the chance to play last year, but his production = apparently hampered by an ailing back – was unimpressive. Still, he’s spent he off-season strengthening his back, and whatever LaHair has, it’s likely to be on display in camp. LaHair has even volunteered to return to the outfield, where he last played more than four years ago.

At seasons end, the Mariners first baseman was Jose Lopez. Without the range of a true second baseman, Lopez played first base well and continued hitting. Lopez didn’t like the move and wants no part of the position – but that’s not his call.

This winter, the Mariners sent Mike Morse, the shortstop-turned-outfielder, to the instructional league, then winter ball, to learn to play first base. He’s learned, and is healthy and will get a look from the new coaching staff.

To that mix, general manager Jack Zduriencik added free agent Russell Branyan, a left-handed hitter with power who can play first base or serve as the DH and will likely get plenty of time at both.

The Mariners also signed first baseman Chris Shelton to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training.

One position, five candidates. In a bit more than a month, the team will begin the process of sorting out who’s on first.

If it were your call, who would start – or would you platoon? How many first basemen would you keep on the 25-man roster?

Jamie Burke has done the math.

The Seattle Mariners have too many catchers who either have promise (Rob Johnson, Adam Moore), are left-handed hitters with potential power (Jeff Clement) or are under contract for another three years (Kenji Johjima).

A career backup catcher, Burke has done that job – and done it well – for the past two seasons, batting .283 for the Mariners. He has a strong arm, calls a good game and, in a pinch, can pitch.

That may not be enough this year.

“I talked to (manager) Don Wakamatsu and he let me understand I’m going to get a lot of opportunity to catch in camp,” Burke said. “Rob, Jeff and Joh – we’re all going to be fighting for something. The World Baseball Classic probably means I’ll get more playing time.”

Yes, it does.

Johjima, coming off he worst season of his professional career, has chosen to play for Team Japan in the WBC. That means he won’t report to Mariners spring training until Japan is eliminated or wins the tournament – which could mean he won’t be in camp until the last week of March.

Still, Johjima is going to be on the opening day roster.

“How do I make the team? If they carry three catchers. That’s it,” Burke said. “If they go with two and Jeff hits, it’s his job to lose. If they carry two catchers and Jeff DHs some, that’s tough for a team – if both your catchers are playing, you're handcuffed a bit.”

“Of course, if we go with three, it could be Rob and not me …”

Burke knew all this when he signed a split contract with the Mariners last month, a deal that paid him one salary if he makes the team, another if he plays in the minors. And if he plays in the minors, he has the option of leaving in June.

“A lot of teams contacted me after the Mariners let me go, but I know the new coaching staff here and I wanted to be here. I’m comfortable with the situation and the opportunity I’ll get,” Burke said.

“Heck, I’ve been blessed my whole life in baseball. I have to do what I’ve always done. If I just do that, stay consistent, I’ll be all right. They make decisions, I just play. That’s story of my career, and I’m still playing at 37.”

Willie Bloomquist, the utilityman who played seven positions in his Mariners career, has signed a two-year contract with the Kansas City Royals – and will compete for one spot there, second base.

The Royals, calling Bloomquist an ‘ignitor,’ have agreed to a two-year, $3 million deal and will let the 31-year-old free agent fight for a starting job at second base. If he doesn’t win that, he’ll come off the bench.

The signing ends Bloomquist’s six-year run with Seattle, during which the Port Orchard product was beloved by some fans and disliked by others.

In 540 games as a Mariner, Bloomquist batted .263 and stole 71 bases in 87 attempts.

For those who don’t believe intensity plays a role in major league games, Bloomquist was never more than an afterthought with Seattle – the kind of player who gets in the game when someone else is tired or hurt.

Much of Bloomquist’s value was a clubhouse presence that demanded maximum effort, and it was embraced by every manager he played for. Bloomquist would challenge anyone, and was as good a clubhouse mimic as there is in the game.

He could sound like virtually anyone, given enough time, from Mariners broadcasters to coaches and teammates – and he was not beyond mocking writers, in their presence, with spot-on impersonations.

Yes, he used to ‘do’ me, often grabbing a bat, making it look like the monopod I carry. Then he’d focus his imaginary camera, take a shot, check it in his view finder and beam.

That, he said, was me. His teammates loved it. I couldn’t deny it.

Bloomquist will be missed, but knew it was time to move on. Here’s hoping his time with the Royals finds him playing time and yet another manager who comes to appreciate what he can bring to a game and a team.

The strength of the 2009 Seattle Mariners appears to be a strong, deep starting rotation – but as with all things facing this team, even putting that together will be a challenge.

If you’re new manager Don Wakamatsu and his staff, you’re faced with a lot of options and some harsh reality. There are nine potential starters on this roster, and no room for all of them on the pitching staff.

The harsh reality? The Mariners can’t trade pitchers like Carlos Silva, Jarrod Washburn or Miguel Batista, and can’t send them to the minor leagues, either. And early on, at least, new general manager Jack Zduriencik isn’t going to eat their contracts.

So the Mariners must build their rotation with all that in mind, and consider not just who the teams best starters are, but which of their pitchers could also be effective in a relief role.

Want to put together a rotation? That also means figuring out where to put the men who don’t make it.

Here are your candidates.

Right-handed pitchers Felix Hernandez Brandon Morrow, Aaron Heilman, Batista and Silva.

Left-handed pitchers: Erik Bedard, Washburn, Ryan Rowland-Smith and Ryan Feierabend.

And keep this in mind while you’re building your rotation – the Mariners bullpen already includes Roy Corcoran, Mark Lowe and Tyler Walker, and candidates like Cesar Jimenez, Randy Messenger, Justin Thomas, Jared Wells andJason Vargas.

The Mariners are going to have to be creative.

Want to help them out? Put together a rotation, then figure out what the other four pitchers can do on this staff. Remember the restrictions – you can’t release any of them, cannot trade some of them and can only send Morrow and Feierabend back to the minors.

Let’s see what you can come up with, and feel free to explain why.

Mark Cuban isn't among the finalists to buy the Chicago Cubs, which is a shame.

Having a personality and owning a major league team doesn't seem to be priority for baseball, although Cuban said other team owners were supportive of his efforts.

And Cuban wasn't going to outspend the Yankees or Red Sox once he owned the team. He wanted to win, but as he said, he wouldn't have to worry about the Yankes or Red Sox until or unless they met in the World Series.

So what happened?

You can read Cuban's thoughts on his blog, and as you do you're likely to wish the Cubs had committed to him.

Cuban is a delightful fellow, creative, passionate and thoughtful.
On the same blog, you might want to read his prior entry - 'Why Sports Teams Need Newspapers.'

That, too, is why we love Mark Cuban.

When it comes to who should close for the Seattle Mariners this season, the team could do worse than listen to the man who closed for them the last three years – J.J. Putz.

Since he never played with newcomers Aaron Heilman or Tyler Walker, Putz couldn’t evaluate them. But he has played alongside Brandon Morrow, Mark Lowe, Roy Corcoran and Miguel Batista.

“Stuff-wise, Mark has the fastball to close, but I don’t know about his other pitches,” Putz said from his home in Arizona. “And everyone knows Brandon can close, but I don’t think he wants to. That’s not a job you want to get if you’re not ready.”

Batista?

“What’s baffling about Miguel is he’s got some of the nastiest stuff you’ll ever see, and he throws a 93-97 mph fastball with movement – and he refuses to throw it,” Putz said. “He wants to throw his other pitches to get you out. I mean, I’ve never seen him get beat with his fastball.”

So, it’s the ninth inning of the first game of the regular season, and the Mariners have a one-run lead. Putz, of course, is sitting in the New York Mets bullpen. Who does Seattle go to?

“If you’re looking for the guy who’s got it downstairs, Corcoran is best suited to close,” Putz said. “Roy didn’t care what his role was last year, when he came in, he was ready. I think if he knew the job was his, he’d be even better at it.

“To me, he’s a right-handed Eddie Guardado with a better fastball. He’s not afraid of anyone, and he can do the job.”

There was some speculation that the Mariners may make a push to sign Reds utility player Jerry Hairston to a free agent contract. But that appears to be done now as Mark Sheldon of MLB.com is reporting that Hairston has agreed to a one-year deal to stay with the Reds.

He also mentioned that the Reds may try to make Hairston their starting shortstop, which may be the main reason why Hairston decided to stay in Cincy.

Tyler Walker, a 32-year-old right-handed reliever who appeared in 65 games last season with San Francisco, has signed a one-year contract with the Seattle Mariners.

"Tyler is a pitcher we had identified early on as a guy who could help us in the bullpen," general manager Jack Zduriencik said. "He has the ability to pitch in any role: middle relief, set-up and he has experience as a closer."

Walker has a 20-17 career record in relief with a 4.52 earned run average.

After undergoing 'Tommy John' elbow surgery in 2006, he missed most of the next season - then worked 53 innings last year with the Giants.

Walker had a career-high 19 holds in 2008, and struck out 49 batters while walking only 21.

He's also registered 34 career saves, which immediately makes him a ninth-inning option.

“Closing? That’s not up to me. That’s the ideal spot to be, the only guy who’s ever happy in the bullpen. He’s pitching when you’re winning. We’ll see how it pans out,” Walker said. “I’ve pitched every inning of a game, including the 14th.”

Happy New Year. Six days in, how are those resolutions holding up?

If, like some of us, you took on a serious task with the New Year – like becoming a kinder, gentler sportswriter or quitting smoking – you’ve probably already broken rank and returned to sober mortality.

For anyone whose made and already broken a resolution, here’s a chance to get back on the plus side.

For one day – today – resolve only to write something positive about the Seattle Mariners.

Take a moment and spend it in quiet reflection, then give us your best. Be Polyanna for a day. Maybe it’s one player. Maybe it’s the ballpark. Maybe it’s something only you appreciate about this team.

Like all resolutions, this one can be broken tomorrow.

But today, let’s fill the blogosphere with, like, positivity, dude.

Adrian Beltre was out of breath when he answered the telephone. He’d been working out – good news for fans who remember the Seattle Mariners third baseman ending the ’08 season with not one but two surgeries.

“The shoulder is still aching, not from surgery but from inflammation,” Beltre said. “The thumb is much better than I’d expected.”

Beltre, a Gold Glove third baseman, need operations on his left shoulder and thumb when the pain finally overwhelmed him in September. Now, he’s getting ready to play again – and thinking about a new-look clubhouse.

“I’m hitting and I’m sore, but I’ve been taking ground balls and throwing a little,” he said.

And the ’09 Mariners?

“There’s probably been more change than I expected,” Beltre said. We lost a lot of games, and I understand, but I wasn’t sure which way the team was going to go. We’re young, and it’s probably not a team that will win a lot of games.”

New GM Jack Zduriencik would likely ask Beltre for the benefit of the doubt. Yes, the Mariners lost free agent Raul Ibanez and traded J.J. Putz and Sean Green, but in acquiring outfielder Franklin Gutierrez, first baseman Russell Branyon and pitcher Aaron Heilman, he got veterans in return.

“The youngest players on this team are probably two of our horses – Felix Hernandez and Brandon Morrow,” Zduriencik said.

Beltre is doing his part to be ready for spring training next month, and then the World Baseball Classic, where he’ll represent the Dominican Republic. Asking for a trade, he said, is not going to happen.

“Seattle has treated me really well, better than expected, and I’ve given it all on the field,” Beltre said. “I want to be part of a better team. As player, you want the best pieces. Last year was frustrating for everyone, we didn’t do it. I understand why they went young, but it’s not what I was hoping to see.

“Me? I’m healthy again, and I’ll be ready for spring training.”

As for Zduriencik, he’ll try to improve the Mariners between now and spring training.

“We don’t hold all the cards, but we’re in the game,” Zduriencik said. “There are a lot of bodies out there, and we’ve had enough discussions that if something should fall through, they’ll come back to talk to us.

“We’ve got an offer out right now for a piece of the puzzle, and I’d hope to hear in the next few days.”