Mariners Blog

Geoff Baker covers the Mariners for The Seattle Times. He provides daily coverage of the team throughout spring training, and during the season.

E-mail Geoff| Mariners Forum| Subscribe | Blog Home

August 25, 2008 3:28 PM

Lowe to minors, Messenger up, Guardado en route to Twins

Posted by Larry Stone

UPDATE 8/25: The Mariners have a logical explanation why Lowe wasn't DL'd. They don't think he's going to be out longer than a few days. If he had been DL'd, he would have had to stay out 15 days. This way, he can be brought back when the rosters expand on Sept. 1. And Lowe doesn't lose any service time. He'll still get credit for a full year in 2008; apparently, if you're in the minors for less than 10 days, you don't lose that service time.

Just got word that reliever Mark Lowe has been optioned to Tacoma, and the Mariners have brought up right-handed pitcher Randy Messenger.

Mesenger, who signed with Seattle on July 10 after being released by the Giants, was 6-0 with one save and a 2.38 ERA in 12 relief appearances for the Rainiers. He was 3-4 with three saves and a 4.83 ERA in 29 appearances for Fresno, the Giants' Triple-A affiliate, before his release. Messenger has major-league experiencde with both the Giants and Marlins. He was once traded for ex-Mariner Armando Benitez (yes, Benitez had a brief, undistinguished stint with the Mariners. He was traded from the Yankees to Seattle for Jeff Nelson after Nelson popped off about the M's not making any deals at the trade deadline).

It's a little odd that Lowe was optioned rather than put on the disabled list. He was on crutches yesterday because of a bone bruise on his left foot, the result of getting hit by a Frank Thomas line drive.

Eddie Guardado, ex-Mariner and ex-Twin, is a Twin again, acquired from Texas today for a Class A pitcher named -- we're not making this up -- Mark Hamburger. So, yes, expect every newspaper in America to have the headline, "Guardado traded for a Hamburger." He is expected to join his new teammates at about 5:30, flying in from Arlington. He will be an eighth-inning setup man for the Twins, who desperately need help in that department. He may not be what he once was, but Guardado is fearless and a great guy to have on a team. He should help the Twins.

Digg | Newsvine