By every account I’ve gotten — via phone calls with major league sources and reports that have popped all afternoon online — the three-team trade bringing starter Cliff Lee to the Mariners could be wrapped up in 24-48 hours.
That’s a big window that could get bigger, but it’s a big trade. Roy Halladay must finalize his contact extension with the Phillies, and medical information on all the players involved must pass through the hands of the M’s, Phils and Blue Jays.
Lee is a definite heavyweight pickup for the Mariners, but there’s a price being paid. Who are the Mariners giving up?
Phillippe Aumont, the powerful pitcher taken with their first-round pick in the 2007 draft, was said to be going to the Blue Jays, according to all reports Monday afternoon. Tonight, both ESPN and the Toronto Sun have reported that the Mariners will send Aumont, minor league outfielder Tyson Gillies and another player to the Phillies.
Several other names have been mentioned and written — pitcher Brandon Morrow, outfielder Michael Saunders and Gillies being the most prominent.
I’m told that Saunders is not part of the deal, and that at least one other piece from the Mariners would be a pitcher but not Morrow. Go ahead and fire up the speculation over that one.
The other price the Mariners are paying would be the uncertainty over Lee’s longterm status with the club. He’s signed for 2010 at $9 million but will be eligible for free agency after that.
Through his words and his work since becoming the Mariners’ general manager last year, Jack Zduriencik values strength in the farm system and deals that make sense over a long period of time. Giving up the farm for one year of Cliff Lee goes against that book, although you’ve got to look at it this way:
We’re talking about Cliff, not Brenda, Lee.
They’re getting a guy who’s gone 90-52 with a 3.97 ERA in his career. They’re getting a pitcher who went 4-0, 1.56 in this postseason including two victories over the Yankees in the World Series.
Couple that with the thought that the Angels are looking vulnerable after the loss of third baseman Chone Figgins to the M’s and starting pitcher John Lackey to the Red Sox.
The Mariners would put themselves in a strong position with Felix Hernandez and Lee at the top of their rotation, and following them with Morrow, Ryan Rowland-Smith and the possibilties at the No. 5 starter that include Doug Fister, Ian Snell and Luke French.
This hardly ends the Mariners’ offseason work. There’s still a big need for a power bat and left field remains vacant.
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