| By Jason A. Churchill |  | By 02-05-2013 |
Pitchers and catchers report in one week and 10 days later the Seattle Mariners play their first Cactus League game.There hasn't been much to report on the player movement front, but there isn't a lot left that can happen. Let's discuss the few options that are left.
Making room for Shoppach
With the signing of catcher Kelly Shoppach, the M's will have to create room on the 40-man roster, which is why the club has not announced the addition officially.
They're trying to add a starting pitcher, either by trade or free agency, and if it's via trade they could create two spots to add the pitcher and Shoppach. If there is no trade, which could ultimately include a bullpen arm or a fringe 40-man roster member, the only option to designate a player for assignment.
The top candidates for that are Mike Carp, Yoervis Medina, Alex Liddi and Carlos Peguero. Hector Noesi could also be a candidate, but I doubt the club will give up on him this quickly -- there's little chance he goes unclaimed, despite a poor 2012.
Starting pitching options
Kyle Lohse isn't likely to be a target at any point, but Rick Porcello, Joe Saunders and Chris Capuano continue to be.
Derek Lowe has yet to be linked to the Mariners, and the same goes for Chris Young. At this point it's 50-50 that the club adds anyone.
One name that could come into play is already-signed right-hander Jeremy Bonderman, who is in camp on a minor league deal. Word is he's throwing well in Peoria, and the arm should be rested and sound; he hasn't pitched in a game since 2010 and is nine and a half months off Tommy John surgery.
If he's even 90 percent of what he was prior to the elbow problems popping up in 2008, he's a league average starter. He's unlikely to be available for more than 160 innings or so, and may not be ready to go at the start of the regular season, but he may be a factor in May.
Prospect Rankings
If you haven't read it yet, Keith Law's farm system rankings were published Monday. The Mariners moved up a handful of spots from a year ago to No. 8 overall.
I think an argument can be made that Seattle belongs ahead of Pittsburgh and San Diego, but one can also argue that the Rangers, ranked No. 9, belong ahead of Seattle.
Law's Top 100 and team Top 10s will be published in the coming days. I've seen them already and in regard to the top 10 for the M's, I can tell you it's not the same as mine.
Aside from differences in who belongs where within the top 10, there is a player in Law's top 10 that is not in mine, and therefore vice versa. That one player Law has as a top-10 guy that I don't ranks at No. 13 for me.
Law's work on these is unmatched in the industry -- he's the best in the business at covering all 30 clubs in this manner, and second place might as well be last.
Handbook Update
The tentative release date for the 2013 Prospect Insider Handbook & Preview Guide is Feb. 20. It's possible we could roll it out a few days early, and it's plausible we'll need an extra few days to polish it off properly.
I'll post an official announcement once we know, including purchase prices for subscribers and non-subscribers.
spring-training-countdown:7-days
Comments
The following 19 comment(s) for this article are shown below:
| 1. By: Docmilo on 02-05-2013 06:18:35 I was expecting to see Medina go before Adam Moore last year. Now I don't understand why the M's hang onto Francisco Martinez. Medina is still my first choice but people are always more likely to take flyers on pitchers. Let's just hope that there is a trade for a inning eater coming in the next few days. I Bonderman could be good for 160 or so innings, wouldn't that make it easier to go with Hultzen or Paxton out of camp if a trade falls thru? Baby Bonderman for a month in Peoria before moving him to Jackson to start the season in warmer weather and then when it warms up in Tacoma (hahahaha) if he's looking good promote him to the AAA club. It sure would be nice to have enough arms to bump Noesi to the bottom of the rotation in Tacoma and Beavan to the #5 spot or to Tacoma itself. Also, though I really like Erasmo, he didn't have the best winter in Venezuela. It's not out of the question that he starts the year in Tacoma. |
| 2. By: Docmilo on 02-05-2013 07:42:30 Just checking out the Dodgers depth chart at MLB.com, I did notice in the #8 spot is a lefty named Ted Lilly. He's owed a lot more money next year than Capuano and he's coming of arthroscopic shoulder surgery, but could he be had for lesser prospects as a salary dump? |
| 3. By: Edman on 02-05-2013 09:57:55 There's no reason to baby Bonderman, he's wisely chosen not to rush back to pitching directly after surgery. He's had plenty of rest. I agree that they should watch his pitch count, but I don't think they need to treat him with kit gloves either. |
| 4. By: rjfrik on 02-05-2013 10:06:46 I'm with Edman on this one. If the reports are true then Bonderman should be ready to break camp with the big league club and secure a rotation spot. He's more then serviceable, even if he's only 90% of the way back. If he checks out he could fill into the number 4 spot nicely. Give him 160 innings and one of the big 4 are ready come call ups then shelve Bonderman and let his arm rest. If the reports are correct, this could be Jack's thinking. |
| 5. By: maqman on 02-05-2013 11:24:49 Bonderman is a stretch but it would be nice if he can function effectively. I'd be more in favor of them signing a free agent and hold on to the prospects now they are getting near to being established. It may be they just think one of the Big Four will rate a spot in the rotation and want to wait until spring training is about over and sign an arm that is desperate if they don't promote one early. |
| 6. By: Paul Martin on 02-05-2013 12:41:45 Hey Jason, What do you make of Hultzen's AAA struggles last year? Did Jack make a BIG MISTAKE passing on Dylan Bundy to draft him? I remember the move left draft experts like Keith Law scratching their heads at the time... |
| 7. By: Edman on 02-05-2013 12:50:31 Paul, Dylan Bundy would not have signed with Seattle. He made it clear that he would only go to Baltimore to be with his brother in the O's organization. So no, Seattle did not make a mistake by drafting him, and not being able to sign him. Keith Law's scratching of his head was apparently to remind himself of Bundy's pre-draft comments. |
| 8. By: Paul Martin on 02-05-2013 13:06:06 @7 where is your source for that? I think they passed on him because he was short, and a high school pitcher. They wanted someone more MLB ready and Jack had a thing for Hultzen. Jack made a mistake, but he does so well in the draft that I don't hold it against him. He more than made up for this mistake when he found Walker, Seager, and others where he did... |
| 9. By: masonb on 02-05-2013 13:16:16 Paul, Jason said it only about 50 times. Bundy wasn't signable in Seattle. Neither was Starling. It was basically Hultzen, Rendon or Lindor with that pick, and they picked Hultzen because they thought he fit within the window of what they were trying to do at the time. In retrospect, I'd rather have Lindor because he's a SS, but Bundy wasn't coming here. And you can't make that argument that they wanted Hultzen because he could get to the big leagues faster. There were plenty of people saying that Bundy was going to be up really fast. He was and is one of the most advanced high school pitchers ever. Signability plays a huge role in the equation of a pick, otherwise it's a waste. Look at Appel and Pittsburgh just this past year. |
| 10. By: rightwingrick on 02-05-2013 13:20:50 I think it's funny that people think Hultzen was a mistake, when almost all of the experts in the industry still rate Hultzen as one of the top two or three LH pitching prospects in the entire minor league system. If I'm the M's, I start Bonderman in AAA Tacoma to let him find his command in the minors, along with Hultzen, Paxton, Maurer, and Walker. One hell of a AAA starting five! I suspect at least two of those will be in Jackson, though. |
| 11. By: Edman on 02-05-2013 13:25:30 Thanks, masonb. Couldn't have said it better. Paul, many think they "know" what Jack and Tom's reasoning is, but they are guessing. Jack did not make a mistake. You made the mistake of assuming you more more based off of what you see on the surface, than doing a little digging in the ground. You simply could have asked why Jack chose Hultzen instead of Bundy, instead of jumping to the conclusion that he mad a big mistake. You seem to be a bit of an extremist. It's either black or white, with no gray between. |
| 12. By: Edman on 02-05-2013 13:27:40 rightwingrick, how about we wait until Bonderman pitches in Spring Training, before you conclude he will have command issues? |
| 13. By: rjfrik on 02-05-2013 13:35:20 Not sure what's in the water, but I agree with Edman on everything in this thread. Looks like Edman is finally thinking soundly, LOL. Just kidding Edman, don't take it personally please. But Edman is right. Bundy was never coming here, it was down to Lindor, Rendon or Hultzen and that info was known by all of us here on PI the day of the draft. I still think Hultzen proves his worth, but right now Lindor (who I desperately wanted on draft day) looks like the much better prospect. By the time he reaches the big leagues he will be one of the better defensive (if not the best) SS in the league. Kid is a wiz. About Bonderman, what happens if he has no control issues in Spring Training? What happens if he looks good? You send him to AAA. Why? No, he's with the big league club. Let's not put the cart before the horse here. |
| 14. By: cusefan115 on 02-05-2013 14:08:35 Tampa just designated Brignac for assignment. I doubt it happens but I think he would probably make better competition for Ryan than Andino. |
| 15. By: Edman on 02-05-2013 14:28:04 Funny how things turn out. A couple of years ago, there were a lot of people hoping the M's would trade for Brignac. Now, there's a slim chance he could be a Mariner for a waiver wire pick-up. |
| 16. By: cusefan115 on 02-05-2013 14:39:02 Yep, its amazing what one poor year will do to a career. Granted, it was a really horrible year. The skillset that had everyone excited still seems to be there though: power, defense, and left-handedness. |
| 17. By: Nickname Damur on 02-05-2013 14:53:45 Porcello would be an excellent get for the Mariners if the price isn't too steep. He's a ground ball pitcher, which fits well with the Mariner's superior fielding infield, and occasionally mediocre to bad fielding outfield. Morales, Morse, and/or Ibanez will all play at least a few games out there. Hopefully no two of them at once. With that infield behind him, Porcello could (best case) look like a number three starter and be moved for something tasty when one or more of the prospects are ready. |
| 18. By: sexymarinersfan on 02-05-2013 15:19:06 Detroit is really starting to piss me off. Granted I have no clue what their asking for Porcello, but damn, it can't be much. After raking us over the coals in the Doug Fister trade, I'm a little reluctant to deal any significant pieces to them with the depth of minor league pitching that we have on the horizon. Same goes for Los Angeles. Look I know that their just trying to get the most value out of those pitcers. If it was Seattle I'd be doing or saying the same thing, but I'm starting to get a little nervous with Pitchers and Catchers reporting in only just 7 days. And I do remember Lindor, Hultzen, and Rendon all being the only options at the time of our selection. I still think Danny Hultzen will come back and wow us this year in AAA. He might even do it in Spring Training. I remember watching him and the rest of the Big Three down in Spring Training last year and came away very excited about the future of our pitching staff. |
| 19. By: d2ret on 02-05-2013 15:19:50 Morales in the outfield, that would be outstanding... I dont think its been mentioned, but if the Mets do bite and sign Bourn, we'll get bumped up one draft slot! Thats probably what were rooting for in a minor but significant way. P.S. The commissioners office is not going to allow them to keep it (I hope) |
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