Their season having tanked in that 17-game losing streak this month, the Mariners reached for all the gusto they could get today and came up with two more minor league hitting prospects.
Minutes before the 1 p.m. trade deadline, the Mariners traded pitcher Erik Bedard to the Boston Red Sox in a three-team deal that brought them Class AA outfielder Chih-Hsien Chiang from the Red Sox and Class AAA outfielder Trayvon Robinson from the Dodgers.
The Mariners also sent Class AAA Tacoma reliever Josh Fields, their first-round draft pick in 2008, to the Red Sox. The Dodgers got three players from the Boston organization – catcher Tim Federowicz, right-handed reliever Juan Rodriguez and right-handed starter Stephen Fife.
In two days, the Mariners have traded away two from their starting rotation, Bedard and right-hander Doug Fister (to the Tigers on Saturday), plus Fields and reliever David Pauley (also in the Tigers trade).
In return, the Mariners have gotten six players back as they try to find quality hitters but also add to the depth of a system that was pretty bare 2½ years ago when Zduriencik became GM. In addition to Chiang and Robinson, they got outfielder Casper Wells and left-handed pitcher Charlie Furbush from the Tigers, plus Detroit minor league third baseman Francisco Martinez and a player to be named later.
Encouraged as he is about the potential for the young players to become productive big leaguers, Zduriencik cautions that the journey until that time – especially the rest of this season – may be a rough one.
“We may have to sacrifice right now, to give up two months of Erik Bedard, for two more players who are going to be with us for a long period of time,” Zduriencik said. “Could we suffer from here to the end of the year? I hope our fans understand that there are sacrifices to be made and it’s possible that our pitching staff is not as good with the two guys we just moved. But, to get six player in return, it’s about today but it’s also about where we’re headed. It’s about accumulating talent.
“That’s where we’re at. It’s not easy, but that’s the decision we made.”
Bedard was scheduled to start Wednesday’s game against the A’s, and Zduriencik said the Mariners probably will bring up a pitcher from Class AAA Tacoma for that start. Furbush, acquired from the Tigers, needs time to build his pitch count and won’t be ready by Wednesday.
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