Seeing Ichiro in uniform, combined with the relatively balmy weather up here the last couple days, and actually being able to drive home from work at 6m and NOT being in the dark... signs of spring.

I'm very, very encouraged to read your quote from McLaren re: Ichiro. One of my enduring memories of Ichiro now and likely forever is seeing the passion he displayed at the World Baseball Classic. Hooting and hollering from the dugout, cheering on his teammates, trash-talking about the Korean team in the press... it was night and day from the reserved, aloof Ichiro we've been used to here. I've always wanted to see Ichiro bring that kind of vocal leadership to the Ms.

McLaren is going to decide the rotations spots before spring training begins? The things that come out of his mouth make Hargrove seem like a wizard!

What everyone really wants to know is why Bavasi was willing to mortgage the future and so ridiculously overpay for a guy the Mariners will have for two years.

Meanwhile the team has the WORST DH in baseball and the WORST defensive LF in baseball.

Geoff

Can you give us an estimate of how many coaches the mariners have a spring training?

Geoff...... I want your job!!!

As not just an M's fan but a true fan of the game itself I'm jealous. You're one lucky dog! All that fun in the sun and getting paid for it to!

Sure Bob, very good points, you should be a analysist full time. Or better yet maybe the M's can sign you as a free agent for dh, im sure you couldnt be any worse??

Second worst defensive LF. Even Raul's statuesque suckiness is no match for Manny.

Higbie- By that logic, nobody can ever comment or make a judgement about a politician unless they are one, a tv show/movie unless they are an actor/writer/director/producer, or basically have an opinion about anything not in their field of expertise. Your opinion is just as worthless (worth as much) as his and your sarcasm was a little weak and juvenile. Whoops, I just made a judgment.

Washburn is the obvious #5, based on last year's performance. The only issue is whether you want to have two lefties back-to-back with Wash and Erik. Whether Bautista or Silva is 3 or 4 is irrelevant. They'll both get the same number of starts in the season. The #5 guy is the one that gets skipped from time to time. That is the one slot that no one wants. Sorry Jarrod.

Is anyone else getting tired of hearing people complain about the Bedard deal? None of the following arguments are based on Pythagoran thingamabobs or other stat formulas....I'm not a stat geek and may never be. Besides, stats lie and defy logic. This is what I think of the pessimism, negativity, whining, and griping that I hear in this and other forums:

#1, it had to be done. Everyone from Bill Bavasi to the average fan could see that starting pitching is a large part of why we didn't make the playoffs last year. Would you REALLY have been satisfied with a rotation of Hernandez, Silva, Batista, Washburn, and Ramirez, Dickey, or Morrow? (I'd rather see Morrow start at AAA than relieve at MLB....but he's sure not ready for 100-150, let alone 150-200 innings at the MLB level).

#2, you can't get value without giving up value. No matter what online scenario you play with, or what Kool-Aid you're drinking, you could not have gotten Bedard or anyone with his track record with what amounted to spare parts.

#3, IT COULD HAVE BEEN WORSE...Who knows, Bavasi MIGHT have been able to pull off a Santana deal...the only other traded pitcher worth bringing in. However, that would likely have cost us Jones, Morrow, and Clement. Then, after giving up everyone MLB ready for the next 2-3 years, we would have had to fork over 120 mil over 6-7 years to keep him past one year. Wasn't going to happen.

#4, Where would you rather have your most glaring weakness -- #1 starting pitcher, or DH/LF? How many teams have above average hitting at DH and above average defense at LF? Now, how many teams have a genuinely solid 1-2 punch (not a #3 pitcher trying to pass off as a #1) of starting pitching with a solid if not stellar cast following. Decent hitting and defense are readily replaceable, more so than starting pitching.

#5, similar to #4, How many solid setup pitchers have we had in the last few years, versus how many proven #1-quality starting pitchers have we had in the last few years? By my count, Freddy Garcia and Randy Johnson were the last two, and MAYBE Jamie Moyer. In that time, we've had Eddie Guardado setting up for Kazuhiro Sasaki, J.J. Putz setting up for Eddie Guardado, and George Sherrill setting up for J.J. Putz. Like decent hitting and defense, decent setup guys are conceivably easier to find than imposing starting pitchers.

#6, Bavasi made the move with only one (excellent, but probably replaceable) major leaguer from last year, and one additional major leaguer who would have been on this years roster. Sure, it can be argued that Guillen is a casualty of the deal as well, since we let Guillen go anticipating that Jones would be here, and it can be argued that Wilkerson is a downgrade from Guillen. However, what's to say we're really going to be all that much worse than we were last year?

Personally, without considering RH/LH matchups, with Bedard and Hernandez at the top, I LIKE Batista as a 3, Silva as a 4 and Washburn as a 5, or something like that. Overpaid? Yes, but if this staff does nearly as well as we know they can, it's hard to put a price on success. To wrap up, without the Bedard deal, we would DEFINITELY have been fortunate to win 85 games. Sure, we've got weaknesses, and there are bad bounces. But I think we're in place to have a very interesting, competitive season.

I'm just sick of hearing the continual bashing of Bavasi in regards to the Bedard trade. At the very least let it play out first. And Geoff has had a few blogs showing how Ibanez defense or lack thereof did not cost the M's as many games as alot of people claim last year.

How many times did the #5 guy get skipped last year...1 or 2? Like it matters....

Hargrove said he wouldn't Skip the #5
McClaren said he would skip the #5

It does matter whether you want to believe it or not.

*What everyone really wants to know is why Bavasi was willing to mortgage the future and so ridiculously overpay for a guy the Mariners will have for two years.

Meanwhile the team has the WORST DH in baseball and the WORST defensive LF in baseball.*

That's pretty much the real honest truth on the questions that will be answered during the season. You won't find Peter Gammons asking those questions other than his babblings about how the Red Sox are the best ever. Although I would add to Bob's post.... "one of the WORST defensive RF in baseball" with Wilkerson in right.

Wow, it is always entertaining how so many people are able to view the glass as half empty. Those upset with the Bedard trade are the same people that consistently complain that the team is always rebuilding.

Bavasi took a shot. Let's support it and our team. Pitching wins ballgames, ie. Atlanta's 11 consecutive division titles from 94 thru 05. This team will make the playoffs and once we get there anything can happen!

Resin,
as a close observer, I have to conclude you must be having an off day.
This was posted higher, but do you actually think Raul is a worse left fielder than Manny?

Ditto, especially to Matt and Higbie....I say bring on the season. Not a betting man, and I'm only a recent faithful to this blog, but I'd wager that the same people complaining about the Bedard deal are the ones who complained when Bavasi whiffed on Schmidt, Zito, Kuroda, Matsuzaka, etc. Don't get me wrong. I'm not a big Bavasi fan. But as a BASEBALL fan, I am really looking forward to this season. Is it April yet?

As for the #5 starter....does anyone know which of the three in contention (Silva, Batista, and Washburn) did better with longer rest (in case they don't make every fifth start), and if there are any of them that would actually be hurt by skipping a start here and there?

JD Drew
Manny Ramirez
Jose Guillen
Alex Rios

All of these players had similar Range Factor and Fielding percentage stats to Ibanez. These are all regular outfielders that played in the AL last year.

One of the worst outfielders is in the AL WEST: Vladimir Guererro had a far WORSE fielding percentage than Ibanez, and a little better range factor. He and Manny might be the worst fielding outfielders in the AL.

Ah, Ichiro back in blue. Just the sight of that relatively diminutive, almost knock-kneed hitter is enough to bring a smile to my face.

Actually, those of us not in favor of the Bedard deal were gleeful that we didn't get Zito or Schmidt. The folks ecstatic about the Bedard deal were more likely the ones screaming to get Zito and Schmidt.

With our revamped pitching roster I wish the M's had Vlad in LF and Adam in RF and Raul as DH / 1st base. I know..I need to just get over it and move on and enjoy the start of a fresh season. It sounds as though there is an energy brewing in spring training that denotes good times ahead for the M's.

I too get a little tired of hearing all of the negativity regarding Bedard and Silva signings and trade. My God, they replaced, possibly 2 of the worst starters in the majors last year.

Vidro, the WORST DH? You gotta be kidding me! He batted consistently and hit over .300 from both sides of the plate. If you're only looking for power, we could've always put Richie in at DH and got the .205 and 21 hr, but I'll take the guy that the pitchers can't get out consistently.

Ibsnez, the worst LF? Again, you gotta be kidding. He also was a consistent bat with a decent field pct. His range is more than accommodated for by our DECENT CF, and his average arm is compensated for by the fact that he is in LF. By the way, didn't he lead the team in OF Assists last year, and wasn't he pretty high on that category in the majors.

That rain and snow must be making you so negative. Get some sunshine and optimism back into your life. Enjoy the spring and look forward to wasting the Angels, as they're already beginning to have injury problems.

I too get a little tired of hearing all of the negativity regarding Bedard and Silva signings and trade. My God, they replaced, possibly 2 of the worst starters in the majors last year.

Vidro, the WORST DH? You gotta be kidding me! He batted consistently and hit over .300 from both sides of the plate. If you're only looking for power, we could've always put Richie in at DH and got the .205 and 21 hr, but I'll take the guy that the pitchers can't get out consistently.

Ibsnez, the worst LF? Again, you gotta be kidding. He also was a consistent bat with a decent field pct. His range is more than accommodated for by our DECENT CF, and his average arm is compensated for by the fact that he is in LF. By the way, didn't he lead the team in OF Assists last year, and wasn't he pretty high on that category in the majors.

That rain and snow must be making you so negative. Get some sunshine and optimism back into your life. Enjoy the spring and look forward to wasting the Angels, as they're already beginning to have injury problems.

Erik and Felix are obviously the best two pitchers, but I would set up the rotation as follows: Felix, Batista, Erik, Silva, Wash. The two lefties are kept apart. Wash is number 5, and Felix and Erik do not appear back to back. This would ensure that there would never be a three game series in which Felix and Erik do not appear. If Erik and Felix are back to back (as #s 1 and 2), you could have the M's play a three game set, possibly against the Angels, in which #s 3, 4, and 5 (Silva, Batista, Wash.) are the probable pitchers. Obviously the playoffs are different, but in the regular season, I would like to see the two best pitchers have one starter serve as a buffer between them. I realize that there is no chance of this happening.

For a guy who bat over 300. last year i love the view that he is the worst DH in basbeall. He must be basing his opinion on baserunning speed or something.

Vidro hit over .300 but it was a pretty empty .300. Of the 8 DHs with enough ABs to qualify for the batting title Vidro was 5th in on base percentage. He was dead last in slugging percentage, OPS, extra base hits, RBIs and HRs. Throw in the two DHs who played in over a hundred games but did not qualify and he stays at 5th in on-base percentage and falls to 10th in all the other categories. He is the worst full-time DH in the league.

Consider he brings nothing but his bat to the Mariners and yet on his team he finished 5th in OPS, 6th in doubles, 8th in extra base hits, 9th in RBIs and 9th in HRs.

Better production can be found for a lot less money.

Tek Jansen - the rotation was set up to, among other things, a) ensure that the best pitchers are in the most series possible, b) ensure that bedard is matched against other #1 pitchers as much as possible, and very importantly c) front-loads erik and felix so that they play the angels a lot, in the first half of the season.

And because I need the 2 minute's break from work... if everyone was healthy, if there were no weather delays, if you assume the rotation is Erik/Felix/Silva/Wash/Batista, then according to the current schedule, see below. (Apologies for a Merrill-sized post, but hey. Throw this in a spreadsheet and play armchair manager to shuffle who you'd want where...)

Date Opponent Probable?
Mon, 3/31 Rangers Erik
Tue, 4/1 Rangers Felix
Wed, 4/2 Rangers Silva
Wash
Fri, 4/4 at Orioles Batista
Sat, 4/5 at Orioles Erik
Sun, 4/6 at Orioles Felix
Mon, 4/7 at Orioles Silva
Tue, 4/8 at Rays Wash
Wed, 4/9 at Rays Batista
Thu, 4/10 at Rays Erik
Fri, 4/11 Angels Felix
Sat, 4/12 Angels Silva
Sun, 4/13 Angels Wash
Mon, 4/14 Royals Batista
Tue, 4/15 Royals Erik
Wed, 4/16 at Athletics Felix
Thu, 4/17 at Athletics Silva
Fri, 4/18 at Angels Wash
Sat, 4/19 at Angels Batista
Sun, 4/20 at Angels Erik
Felix
Tue, 4/22 Orioles Silva
Wed, 4/23 Orioles Wash
Thu, 4/24 Orioles Batista
Fri, 4/25 Athletics Erik
Sat, 4/26 Athletics Felix
Sun, 4/27 Athletics Silva
Wash
Tue, 4/29 at Indians Batista
Wed, 4/30 at Indians Erik
Thu, 5/1 at Indians Felix
Fri, 5/2 at Yankees Silva
Sat, 5/3 at Yankees Wash
Sun, 5/4 at Yankees Batista
Mon, 5/5 Rangers Erik
Tue, 5/6 Rangers Felix
Wed, 5/7 Rangers Silva
Thu, 5/8 Rangers Wash
Fri, 5/9 White Sox Batista
Sat, 5/10 White Sox Erik
Sun, 5/11 White Sox Felix
Mon, 5/12 at Rangers Silva
Tue, 5/13 at Rangers Wash
Wed, 5/14 at Rangers Batista
Erik
Fri, 5/16 Padres Felix
Sat, 5/17 Padres Silva
Sun, 5/18 Padres Wash
Batista
Tue, 5/20 at Tigers Erik
Wed, 5/21 at Tigers Felix
Thu, 5/22 at Tigers Silva
Fri, 5/23 at Yankees Wash
Sat, 5/24 at Yankees Batista
Sun, 5/25 at Yankees Erik
Mon, 5/26 Red Sox Felix
Tue, 5/27 Red Sox Silva
Wed, 5/28 Red Sox Wash
Batista
Fri, 5/30 Tigers Erik
Sat, 5/31 Tigers Felix
Sun, 6/1 Tigers Silva
Mon, 6/2 Angels Wash
Tue, 6/3 Angels Batista
Wed, 6/4 Angels Erik
Felix
Fri, 6/6 at Red Sox Silva
Sat, 6/7 at Red Sox Wash
Sun, 6/8 at Red Sox Batista
Mon, 6/9 at Blue Jays Erik
Tue, 6/10 at Blue Jays Felix
Wed, 6/11 at Blue Jays Silva
Wash
Fri, 6/13 Nationals Batista
Sat, 6/14 Nationals Erik
Sun, 6/15 Nationals Felix
Mon, 6/16 Marlins Silva
Tue, 6/17 Marlins Wash
Wed, 6/18 Marlins Batista
Erik
Fri, 6/20 at Braves Felix
Sat, 6/21 at Braves Silva
Sun, 6/22 at Braves Wash
Mon, 6/23 at Mets Batista
Tue, 6/24 at Mets Erik
Wed, 6/25 at Mets Felix
Silva
Fri, 6/27 at Padres Wash
Sat, 6/28 at Padres Batista
Sun, 6/29 at Padres Erik
Mon, 6/30 Blue Jays Felix
Tue, 7/1 Blue Jays Silva
Wed, 7/2 Blue Jays Wash
Thu, 7/3 Tigers Batista
Fri, 7/4 Tigers Erik
Sat, 7/5 Tigers Felix
Sun, 7/6 Tigers Silva
Mon, 7/7 at Athletics Wash
Tue, 7/8 at Athletics Batista
Wed, 7/9 at Athletics Erik
Thu, 7/10 at Athletics Felix
Fri, 7/11 at Royals Silva
Sat, 7/12 at Royals Wash
Sun, 7/13 at Royals Batista
All-Star-Break
Fri, 7/18 Indians Erik
Sat, 7/19 Indians Felix
Sun, 7/20 Indians Silva
Mon, 7/21 Red Sox Wash
Tue, 7/22 Red Sox Batista
Wed, 7/23 Red Sox Erik
Felix
Fri, 7/25 at Blue Jays Silva
Sat, 7/26 at Blue Jays Wash
Sun, 7/27 at Blue Jays Batista
Mon, 7/28 at Rangers Erik
Tue, 7/29 at Rangers Felix
Wed, 7/30 at Rangers Silva
Thu, 7/31 at Rangers Wash
Fri, 8/1 Orioles Batista
Sat, 8/2 Orioles Erik
Sun, 8/3 Orioles Felix
Mon, 8/4 Twins Silva
Tue, 8/5 Twins Wash
Wed, 8/6 Twins Batista
Thu, 8/7 Rays Erik
Fri, 8/8 Rays Felix
Sat, 8/9 Rays Silva
Sun, 8/10 Rays Wash
Batista
Tue, 8/12 at Angels Erik
Wed, 8/13 at Angels Felix
Silva
Fri, 8/15 at Twins Wash
Sat, 8/16 at Twins Batista
Sun, 8/17 at Twins Erik
Mon, 8/18 at White Sox Felix
Tue, 8/19 at White Sox Silva
Wed, 8/20 at White Sox Wash
Thu, 8/21 Athletics Batista
Fri, 8/22 Athletics Erik
Sat, 8/23 Athletics Felix
Sun, 8/24 Athletics Silva
Mon, 8/25 Twins Wash
Tue, 8/26 Twins Batista
Wed, 8/27 Twins Erik
Felix
Fri, 8/29 at Indians Silva
Sat, 8/30 at Indians Wash
Sun, 8/31 at Indians Batista
Mon, 9/1 at Rangers Erik
Tue, 9/2 at Rangers Felix
Wed, 9/3 at Rangers Silva
Wash
Fri, 9/5 Yankees Batista
Sat, 9/6 Yankees Erik
Sun, 9/7 Yankees Felix
Silva
Tue, 9/9 Rangers Wash
Wed, 9/10 Rangers Batista
Thu, 9/11 at Angels Erik
Fri, 9/12 at Angels Felix
Sat, 9/13 at Angels Silva
Sun, 9/14 at Angels Wash
Mon, 9/15 at Royals Batista
Tue, 9/16 at Royals Erik
Wed, 9/17 at Royals Felix
Thu, 9/18 at Royals Silva
Fri, 9/19 at Athletics Wash
Sat, 9/20 at Athletics Batista
Sun, 9/21 at Athletics Erik
Mon, 9/22 Angels Felix
Tue, 9/23 Angels Silva
Wed, 9/24 Angels Wash
Thu, 9/25 Angels Batista
Fri, 9/26 Athletics Erik
Sat, 9/27 Athletics Felix
Sun, 9/28 Athletics Silva

Mike - to paint Vidro in an even worse light, factor in all the DP's he hit into - that's what griped me the most - shows why statistics don't tell the whole story.
Speaking of statistics, Raul had more outfield assists than Ichiro - therefore he is a better fielder? Anybody buy that?
Everyone and his brother ran on Raul, and he got lucky on a few. Nobody ran on Ichiro.
QED.

I would even put Adam Dunn and Carlos Lee as worse feilding LFs. I bet Brad Wilkerson is a worse OF than Raul. Its not that Raul is bad, he is just slow with no range. You can't knock the guy's effort and he always hits the cut-off when the ball gets to the wall. For all the OFs with speed like his, I would be willing to say he is above average. That still doesn't put him near half way up the latter, I know. Now that I got my shots in, I think its clear that Bob is and idiot. Time to lay off and move to a new subject...
Bonds at DH anyone?
Make his whole contract performance based (start in 95+ games)
Not gonna happen I know.
I saw on ESPN insider Mariners may have interest in Shannon Stuart. Is this true or are the "experts" just relating it to the fact that the Ms could use another RF option?

Manny has a much stronger arm than Raul. Raul has a little bit better range.

The bottom line is that Manny is a better left fielder in Fenway (the Green Monster limits the amount of range that is needed) than Raul is in Safeco.

I think some of the fans could take some fashion advice from Bavasi. Look'n sharp man.
Hopefully the phone in hand represents an anticipated call back from Bowden regarding Nick Johnson.

I think you pencil in Batista for the #5 spot, not because he had a bad year or anything. He just happens to be the only one of the three (Silva, Washburn and Batista) that has had extensive experience coming out of the bullpen. Since #3-5 are fairly equal and Batista is more versatile, Batista would be the logical guess to start the season in the bullpen. Once the schedule requires the 5th pitcher, slot him back into the rotation and at that point it really doesn't matter who your #1, #2, #3, #4 or #5 pitchers are.