| By Chris Crawford |  | By 11-06-2010 |
For almost 10 years the Seattle Mariners were able to pencil in the best designated hitter in history into their lineup for 150 games, and could count on as good a production as just about any hitter in baseball.
Since you-know-who retired, the M's have struggled to receive any kind of production from the position. From Carl "Jurassic Park" Everett to Jose Vidro to Milton Bradley, Seattle just hasn't had much luck filling a position that shouldn't be that difficult to fill.
With free-agents able to start negotiating with other teams Sunday, now's a good time to look at a few of the candidates who might be available -- and whether or not they make sense.
Adam Dunn
Anyone who spends more than 10 minutes talking to me knows that I love Adam Dunn. The guy walks and hits home runs, what is there not to like (assuming he's nowhere near the field)? Unfortunately, Dunn apparently has no desire in being a DH, and is likely to want the kind of money that doesn't make sense, not for a guy who can't play any position remotely well.
I'd jump for joy if Dunn's demands lowered and he was signed in Seattle, but it's simply not happening. He'll get at least three years guaranteed at a bare minimum $10 million per, or a two-year deal with a vesting or mutual option at as much as $12-13 million per. Both are probably too rich for Seattle's blood.
Jim Thome
He's not going to the West Coast to play on a bad team, so there's not much use talking about the possibility. But if something strange occurred and his price, believed the be in the $7 million range for one year, came down and he began to run out of options -- Minnesota, Toronto, Baltimore, the Angels, Yankees and Rangers included � Seattle could be a fit.
Vlad Guerrero
Vlad is coming off a solid year, but he was a much better at home and did most of his damage in the first half of the season. Though Guerrero has been notoriously good at Safeco Field, the chances of him putting up the numbers he did in Arlington are slim and none as he ages, loses foot speed, bat speed and the rest of his skills deteriorate to the point where he�s useless after he swings the bat. Vlad's name is going to get him a decent contract somewhere, but it probably shouldn't be Seattle, and probably won�t be.
Hideki Matsui
Matsui was considered a bargain when he signed for $6 million last December, but the left-handed Matsui had his worst full time season since his rookie year, and was close to being over paid for what he provided. Matsui will turn 37 in June, can no longer hit left handed pitching and probably won't want to play for a team in transition.
Matsui isn't a match in Seattle unless, like most others here, he comes cheaply and for just one guaranteed season.
Lance Berkman
Berkman is coming off the worst season of his career, putting up pedestrian numbers in Houston and worse-than-mediocre numbers after the trade to New York. However, the switch hitter was battling a wrist injury all year, and it's reasonable to expect the power numbers to bounce back somewhat. Berkman still provides plus on-base skills, and
can still play first-base enough to not destroy a club.
While Berkman is a name the M's could target, Seattle should probably stay away if multiple years are involved. It's difficult to imagine any club would guarantee the soon-to-be 35-year-old more than one year's worth of salary. Say no to two or three years for the switch-hitter, but he might be a true fit for 2011.
Pablo Sandoval
We talked about the possibility of acquiring Sandoval here, and it does makes some sense if you believe he's return to 2009 form. But the switch-hitter was one of the luckiest hitters in baseball that year, a .350 BABIP with a line drive percentage under twenty percent just isn't sustainable.
As lucky as he was in 2009, however, he was equally unlucky in 2010. His BABIP dropped sixty points to .291, even though his line drive percentage was less than a percentage point lower (18.6 to 17.9) and the majority of the rest of his rates stayed the same. Sandoval is a lot like Chone Figgins right now; neither are as good as they were in 2009, but both are better than the numbers they put up this past year.
Nick Johnson
It's unlikely that Johnson can play a full-season -- or a half season, for that matter as he's only been able to play more than 130 games three times in his career, and he's coming off a pretty serious wrist injury. All that being said, when Johnson plays, he gets on base -- period. If you don't give the left-handed hitter more than a year guaranteed at a reasonable rate, and you aren't expecting him to hit in the middle of the order, he makes sense.
A team that got on base under at a .298 clip can't say not to players with Johnson's track record of getting on base, but at some point is the injury risk just is not worth it.
Manny Ramirez
Just kidding. He might have made sense last year, he most certainly doesn't make sense now.
Or does he? He and Bradley can be pals.
There are a lot of 1B/DH guys available this year that are on the market as well. Aubrey Huff, Carlos Pena and Paul Konerko are just a few that become free agents Sunday. The question is going to be what kind of money the M's are willing to spend on someone who isn't going to be playing in the field. It's not a position teams should over pay to fill, but you can't put the scrubs out there that Seattle has the last five or so years.
They need an upgrade if they want to stand any chance of being competitive next year and the year after.
Maybe bringing back Russell Branyan at a reduced rate -- the club declined his $5 million option this past Thursday -- would make the most sense, or even someone such as Troy Glaus turns out to be a fit.
One note to add is that it doesn't seem that Brad Hawpe, Magglio Ordonez or Andruw Jones are on the club's radar, or vice versa, for various reasons.
Any other bright ideas?
missing-edgar:-dh-in-2011
Comments
The following 29 comment(s) for this article are shown below:
| 1. By: rosterbatorextraordinaire on 11-07-2010 00:00:39 Victor Martinez, part-time catcher, part-time DH, backup 1B. Allows the Mariners to run Bradley out there as a DH or LF, whenever Moore, Smoak, or Saunders needs a day off, without depending on Bradley completely. If the Mariners stick with Bradley they are left with Carp as the back-up. If they sign one of the guys on the list, it'll be at a savings of 3-4MM or less per season over Martinez. Since nobody wants him to be a catcher, giving him a chance to get behind the plate and guaranteeing him 4 to 5 years at $9MM a season should get him to come to Seattle. Martinez doesn't give up past balls that often and Moore has a strong arm for throwing out would be base stealers, if Wedge uses them right, they could be a great 1-2 punch. If the Mariners get Victor Martinez to DH and have Bradley as his backup, they should have enough flexibility to carry a 3rd catcher like Rob Johnson who would be the emergency backup and 1 a week starter at best. Even at 35 or 36 and being the DH, Martinez will justify $10MM a year as 1 WAR will be worth $6MM a year by the time he's in the last 1 or 2 years of his deal. Getting a guy like him to give you 1.5-2 WAR while playing 50 games or less at catcher and the rest of the time at DH shouldn't be too hard. |
| 2. By: Jason A. Churchill on 11-07-2010 00:05:35 Unfortunately, Martinez wants no part of "planned time at DH" unless is very, very seldom, and he also wants to play for a team with a chance. He wasn't worth mentioning; it was wise for Chris to leave him out. He may suck at defense, but some team will sign him for pretty big money and let him catch a large portion of the time. There are far too many clubs that like his bat for Seattle to ever come out on top of that sweepstakes. We might as well mention trading for Justin Morneau or sending Pineda, Franklin and Ackley to St. Louis for Albert Pujols, because they have the same chance of happening. Wish things were different, but they aren't. |
| 3. By: sexymarinersfan on 11-07-2010 00:11:35 I wish he would come here. I wish that I knew for sure that Z would deal out the amount of cash it would take to get him here. But I just don't see it happening. Lance Berkman makes the best sense to me unless he's targeting a trade with someone. Maybe Adrian Gonzalez!? Who knows!? He's pulled off some big ones though! Cliff Lee! Chone Figgins! Franklin Gutierrez, Jason Vargas, and Mike Carp! |
| 4. By: sexymarinersfan on 11-07-2010 00:12:50 You mean "Smoak", not "Morneau" right? |
| 5. By: rosterbatorextraordinaire on 11-07-2010 00:24:32 I know he'll be 32 next year. My comment about him being 35-36, was about the concern most writers have in giving a long term deal to a guy who probably won't stay behind the plate for more than 2 seasons as a starter. The only down side to bringing in another catcher would be Moore going from 110-120 starts down to 70-80 starts, but I don't see that hindering his development substantially. My preference would be to trade Moore as part of a package for something better and sign Bard to share the catching with Martinez until we can develope a long term prospect in the mold of Dan Wilson (strong with the glove and servicable with the stick). |
| 6. By: Shawnuel on 11-07-2010 00:32:09 I haven't seen anyone in the Seattle Blogosphere mention Derrek Lee as a possibility. He comes off a poor season, is going to be 35 next year, so I doubt he'll be very spendy. Atlanta has Freeman, who is ready for prime time so I doubt they re-sign Lee. I'd prefer a lefty but Lee mi9ght be the best they can get within reasonable costs. |
| 7. By: rosterbatorextraordinaire on 11-07-2010 00:36:07 It's not nearly as improbable as you say. He has familiar faces like Wedge, Willis, Thompson coaching. He has former teammates like Gutierrez, Felix (WBC), potentially Bard, and who knows whomelse Wedge suggests from his past. To compare signing Martinez to trading for Pujols is crap. Boston wouldn't even offer up more than 2 years guaranteed, even when the rest of their internal options suck. Additionally, 4 to 5 years with a coaching staff he knows could be a big influencing factor, it's the reason Figgins signed last season with Seattle and this year Martinez has the ties to the Seattle staff. One more thing, as a "starter" he's averaged less than 95 games behind the plate over the last 4 years. So signing him as a full-time starter would be the same thing as DHing him 80 games a year essentially. That number has dropped to less than 85 games per year behind the plate over the last 3 seasons, which only supports this thinking more. No matter who signs him, he'll have to DH for at least 50-60 games to justify the $9-10MM it'll take to sign him. So tell me how many teams in the AL need a part-time C and part-time DH. |
| 8. By: Chris Crawford on 11-07-2010 00:57:29 RE: Martinez, I didn't mention him because he's going to go catch somewhere. As I type this I see Jason said it for me. Good enough. Too much money, too not going to Seattle. RE: Lee -- I can't help but think Lee would be a disaster in Seattle, but I did think about putting him on there because he screams stop gap, which is kinda what it seems like Seattle's about right now. If Lee were left handed, I'd be all for it. Not a bad guy to give Smoak a day off or two, that dude saves errors. Period. Just don't like the bat enough. |
| 9. By: micahjr on 11-07-2010 00:57:33 I don't think we have a realistic shot at Lance Berkman. He has repeatedly expressed a preference for staying at home in Texas. I have to think that the best fit for him is the Texas Rangers, who have a DH spot open with Vlad now gone. I wish this wasn't the case, but I really think it is. Rosterbator, Victor Martinez has no reason to sign with a team that forces him to DH and decrease his value and doesn't have an opportunity to win. We would have to pay him a lot extra per year for the privilege. If he is going to play DH, why would he do it for the Mariners, instead of, say, the New York Yankees on a 2 year deal? I'd love to have both Berkman and Martinez, but I don't see it happening. We'd need some kind of miracle, or a lot of money. Both are improbable this offseason. |
| 10. By: sexymarinersfan on 11-07-2010 01:14:01 Jack knows that this team needs an offensive upgrade! He does! He saw what happened and I think that you'll see he does everything possible to acquiring some bigger sticks in here. |
| 11. By: Jason A. Churchill on 11-07-2010 01:36:28 No, I meant Morneau. |
| 12. By: Jason A. Churchill on 11-07-2010 01:46:14 roster, You're as wrong as anyone has ever been here at PI. Martinez may have ties to Wedge, but he doesn't have ties to Chris Chambliss, and he's not Chone Figgins. Not that Figgins signed for any other reason other than the fact that Seattle gave him significantly more money than anyone else. If you want to play connect-the-dots with Martinez, you'll lose, because he has so many more meaningful ties to several other clubs. 1. He's said through his agent that he wants to play for a contending team. Strike one against the Mariners. 2. He's said he wants to catch primarily. Strike two against Seattle, because he sucks defensively to the point where he will turn away clubs with managers and GMs that value defense at catcher that way Seattle does and because Seattle isn't stupid enough to shun Adam Moore, or any other legit catching prospect, for a guy who, at 32, already can't catch. 3. He won't sign a two-year deal, or he'd just go back to Boston. Why in the world would Seattle hand him 3+ years? Are you not paying attention to who is running the show? 4. Toronto, the White Sox, Tigers -- all provide a better chance to win, and all three are apparently willing to give Martinez the primary job at catcher. He's not going to Toronto because they have cheaper options, but why would he choose Wedge, his lone true connection to Seattle... Wait, why did I go past No. 2? You're entire basis is Martinez catching 80 games ish... he wouldn't agree to that in Boston, why would he do that in Seattle? You really need to rethink this, man. Since when do players NOT go where the most money+best chance to win is, except when all else is near equal and he has a shot to play at home? Last I checked, Victor Martinez wasn't born at Harborview or Swedish. |
| 13. By: sexymarinersfan on 11-07-2010 03:27:04 He would fit in really well down in Texas splitting with Bengie Molina at catcher, Moreland at first and Guerrero in right. Plus he came up through the farm system there and they were in the World Series last year. If it were me, that would look WAY more attractive than coming to a rebuilding club like the M's. The M's need to establish a young and strong sense of core players before it starts to pursue high praced free agent talent. Like next season when a lot of the high priced contracts of Milton Bradley, Jack Wilson and Carlos Silva come off the books. But Martinez would be fun to watch in Mariner blue, there's just better alternatives. |
| 14. By: sexymarinersfan on 11-07-2010 03:28:05 I meant Guerrero at DH! Lol! I was having nightmare flashbacks of watching Vlad make all those errors in the World Series. |
| 15. By: jgstecker on 11-07-2010 08:50:06 Would Ryan Doumit make sense as a part-time C/DH? He still hits RHP pretty well and should be available due to his contract and the presence of Chris Snyder. Maybe Pittsburgh would be interested in getting Jack Wilson back... |
| 16. By: randallball on 11-07-2010 09:06:40 My money is on the M's grabbing someone in the Austin Kearns/Marcus Thames area of the FA market. If not that, then via trade. Either way, the offense should be much better than last season simply because Kotchman and Lopez won't be part of it. |
| 17. By: ripperlv on 11-07-2010 09:09:52 I'm with you, I love Dunn. I really wish the M's would make a serious play for the guy. Hey, isn't someone a salesman in the FO, gitt it dunn Vern. He's also fan friendly, I think he would be a big favorite, you'd see lots and lots of Dunn jerseys. OK, coming off of that dream, I again agree that Berkman makes sense and can still hit. After that, it's just not as exciting. |
| 18. By: macdice on 11-07-2010 09:32:12 How about Travis Haftner? He has success with Wedge in Cleveland and maybe he can return to form. Would be another bad contract for bad contract deal...someone say Milton Bradley? |
| 19. By: shortstop9 on 11-07-2010 11:08:46 I think they should try to get Vlad for 1 year 1st.Ty Wigginton might be a good fit as he can also play 1B,3B,and even 2B if needed to give guys a break. Seems like we could matchup in a trade with the Dodgers-Kemp and Loney. |
| 20. By: maqman on 11-07-2010 11:17:31 There really isn't much on the free agent market that makes a lot sense. The names like Martinez and Berkman will cost too much for a team in the Ms position in 2011 and they don't want to come to this place to a major reclamation project. I say sign a cheap piece for no more than $2MM (Branyan) or rotate Carp, Poythress and Halman through the DH slot and see if any of them can contribute. They could sign a decent hitting catcher like Buck or Napoli for 2-3 years and move them to DH if Moore ever figures it out. |
| 21. By: MoneyMike on 11-07-2010 11:43:42 Chris or Jason, What does the hiring of Ted Simmons mean, if anything? Is he just a go-between for Zduriencik and Wedge, or does he bring something else to the table? |
| 22. By: Chris Crawford on 11-07-2010 11:47:57 I wouldn't read too much into it, other than Simmons was the organization liked considerably -- and IF (and this is a big if) Wedge struggled mightily to start the year, we're talking 1988 Baltimore Orioles, Simmons might be that guy to get the chance. Once again, huge if. |
| 23. By: Lailoken on 11-07-2010 13:00:19 Pronk is a really poor man's Dunn these days but if Cleveland wanted Bradley (as if they didn't get enough headaches with Manny & Albert Belle) & were willing to kick in some money to cover parts of Pronk's 2nd year & option that could be a fit. The only names missed that intrigue me are Carlos Delgado, Kila Ka'aihue, & Xavier Nady. Sounds like Delgado's hip still isn't healthy enough but if it gets better he'd profile well. Ka'aihue may have struggled in his cup of coffee for KC but he'd fit well with the patience (a near 20% walk rate overall in AAA), power (24 HRs in 94 AAA games), & youth (26). With Butler, Hosmer, Moustakas, Betemit, Gordon, & Will Myers the Royals' 1B/DH/LF spots are full up. Nady could be a fit in that he'll come cheap after two (really one since 2009 was mostly lost) down years, is versatile, & could platoon in LF some with Saunders. Preferrably Nady would only play LF in smaller parks as he is more of 1B/DH type these days, even at 31. Really though, I'd rather the team find someone who swings a lefty stick because Bradley was horrible from that side of the plate. Getting Bradley at bats from the right side at DH & LF would keep him a little happier & possibly help him become tradeable come deadline time. This dynamic is likely why they are not pursuing Hawpe, Ordonez, & Jones too. A pretty strong idicator that they're intent on keeping Bradley on the roster to begin the year. |
| 24. By: Jon O on 11-07-2010 14:12:20 If the M's are going to go young, then why not consider adding a young DH? I think the M's need to focus on getting young players that are either stuck behind a star player or just haven't been given a far shake (i.e. Franklin G. when we acquired him). I would love to see the M's trade Brandon League to the Reds (who could use bullpen help) for Yonder Alonzo who is clearly stuck behind MVP Joey Votto. Jason or Chris... your thoughts. |
| 25. By: JonathanAicardi on 11-07-2010 16:00:43 Adam LaRoche. Maybe. |
| 26. By: sexymarinersfan on 11-07-2010 16:45:12 LaRoche will command too much money on the FA market. |
| 27. By: rocketdawg31 on 11-07-2010 18:27:33 He's not a sexy name, and not the most accomplished name. But at the end of the 2011 season, if Dan Johnson (formerly of the Rays) had 400-500 ABs as our DH, we're a lot better off offensively. I like the idea of Berkman, but I don't think the parameters are there for both sides. Victor Martinez? I'd have to agree with Jason and Chris. Not a match whatsoever. |
| 28. By: sexymarinersfan on 11-08-2010 00:23:52 Houston has come out and said it will not pursue Lance Berkman, and if Texas re-signs Vlad, which there's a very good chance of that happening then LB won't be going back to the Texas area. |
| 29. By: rosterbatorextraordinaire on 11-09-2010 18:13:24 "A major league source has indicated that six teams (and that includes the Red Sox) have inquired about Victor Martinez. No firm list yet of who those teams are, but early interest had come from teams like the Tigers, Rockies, Blue Jays, Mariners, Rangers and Orioles." from this... http://www.boston.com/sports/baseball/redsox/extras/extra_bases/2010/11/vmart_drawing_i.html So obviously the Mariners, Zduriencik, and I have a similar idea for how to build a club. If you look at the other 5 teams... Martinez would have to share time with Avila in Detroit, Ianetta in Colorado, Arencibia in Toronto, Teagarden and/or Ramirez in Texas, or Wieters in Baltimore. I can't see any of the other five teams giving him 4+ years except Baltimore and Seattle. Additionally Colorado, Toronto, Texas, and Baltimore all would want him to spend significant time at 1B, while Detroit would make him DH a significant amount of time. The best fit is with Seattle and he clearly wants to catch, which Seattle is the only team on that list with a true question mark at that position. Sure we have Moore, but the high number of passed balls can't be ignored and the only weakness Martinez has is his throwing game, one of the strengths for Mariner catchers. It's possible we could get him back to being a league average arm behind the plate after some time with Dan Wilson in the offseason. Keep in mind Martinez had only 4 passed balls in 904 innings behind the plate and he caught Lester, Buchholz, and Matsuzaka who all have nasty breaking balls plus Wakefield a knuckleballer. It sure would feel good to know we have a guy behind the plate who knows how to turn his glove over and block a ball in the dirt. I'd pay $10MM-$11MM a year for 4 years, just to have an option behind the plate, who can block a Felix curveball in the dirt. I don't think he'll have a better offer than that from any of the teams listed above. |
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