The names are dancing through the heads of Seattle Mariners fans like the Christmas wishes of an 8-year-old.
Carlos Delgado. Richie Sexson. Jeromy Burnitz. Adrian Beltre. Carl Pavano.
Those players are among baseball’s biggest free agents this offseason, and they’re on the Mariners’ radar.
Beginning today, when the annual baseball winter meetings begin in Anaheim, M’s fans may get a better sense of how serious their team is about putting at least one star on the roster for 2005 and beyond.
General manager Bill Bavasi won’t say who the Mariners have made offers to, but he made it clear the team will step up the pressure this weekend to address its greatest needs: power hitting at the corner infield positions and, if those don’t work out or if there’s money available, a top starting pitcher.
“We’re now in the mode where we’re going to hound people a little bit,” Bavasi said. “We have to get better. We have to do what we can to get back to winning.”
That much is obvious after the Mariners swung and missed badly in the free agent market last year.
Outbid by the Orioles, who threw more years and more money to land star shortstop Miguel Tejada, the Mariners tried to plug their holes with mid-level free agents like Rich Aurilia and Scott Spiezio. Their poor play contributed to a 99-loss season, and fans questioned whether the Mariners truly are committed to acquiring a high-paid superstar.
With about $20 million to spend on free agents, Bavasi said the Mariners are willing to extend themselves with both cash and contract length.
“We went to five years on Tejada,” he said. “We’ve already shown we’re willing to be flexible.”
It may take the flexibility of a contortionist to land what the Mariners really need this offseason. After finishing last in the league in home runs (136), they need not only power, but left-handed power.
The Mariners tied for last in the league with 93 homers off right-handed pitching, a woeful statistic considering the right-field seats are the most reachable part of Safeco Field.
That’s why they’re interested in Delgado, a left-hander who hit 32 homers and drove in 99 runs for Toronto despite missing all of June because of injury. The Yankees may have eyes on Delgado, too, if they can void the contract of Jason Giambi after he admitted using steroids.
Burnitz is another left-hander who brings suitable power numbers (31 homers, 77 RBI at Colorado in 2004), although he’s primarily an outfielder.
“Right now, (left-handed hitting) probably fits better on our club,” Bavasi said. “What is important, however, is that there’s some pretty good offense out there. There’s a couple of (right-handed) power guys who Safeco isn’t going to scare them.”
One of those, third baseman Troy Glaus, fell off the Mariners’ watch list Thursday when he signed a four-year, $45 million deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Beltre and Sexson, however, remain.
Beltre, a third baseman, hit 48 homers and drove in 121 for the Dodgers and looms to get one of the bigger free agent contracts this offseason. Numbers like that could put him beyond the Mariners’ price bracket, which is one reason they are looking at Minnesota free agent Corey Koskie.
Sexson played just 23 games last season for Arizona because of a shoulder injury that the Mariners must be convinced is healed. The offensive possibilities are enticing; Sexson hit 119 homers and drove in 351 runs in the previous three seasons with the Brewers.
A sub-plot to the Mariners’ work is where Pavano, the top free agent pitcher this offseason, fits into their plans. The answer is that he doesn’t fit, unless those plans fall apart.
“Given our druthers, if we could improve one over the other, we’d probably go toward adding offense,” Bavasi said. “But as players come off the board, if we have the money we’re not going to bypass tremendous pitching to take on mediocre offense.”
Bavasi won’t predict any major signings by the Mariners this weekend, but he anticipates plenty of hard-nosed discussions with agents after what has been a slowly developing free agent season.
“I get that sense when we’re talking to agents now that they want to talk more in Anaheim,” he said. “I’d love to get something done this weekend, but we’re not going to target that. But, there will be a lot of intense discussions and there won’t be a whole lot of sleep going on.”
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
