M’s Add Veteran Relievers

The Mariners announced they have signed a pair of veteran major league relief pitchers to minor league contracts. Each could pitch for Tacoma this season.

The team went local and signed left-hander Nick Hagadone, inviting him to major league spring training.

Hagadone is a 2004 graduate of Sumner High School, and he pitched for the University of Washington for three years after that. Boston drafted him No. 55 overall in 2007, and after a trade he reached the big leagues with the Indians in 2011.

Hagadone has pitched in 143 major league games, all as a reliever, going 3-2 with a 4.72 ERA. His last extended Triple-A experience was 23 games for Columbus in 2013.

He missed all of 2015 with an elbow injury, and the Mariners are bringing him to camp to see if he’s fully recovered. If so, he could open the season with Tacoma or even pitch his way onto the big league roster – he’s one to watch during spring training.

The M’s also brought in veteran right-hander Jean Machi, who has reached the pinnacle of the sport.

Machi was a member of the 2014 World Series Champion San Francisco Giants, pitching in 71 games and going 7-1 with a 2.58 ERA. He then appeared in six postseason games, including three in the World Series against Kansas City.

We’ve seen a lot of Machi over the years. He pitched for Fresno from 2011-2013, facing the Rainiers on numerous occasions.

Last year Machi pitched for both Iowa and Sacramento in the PCL. In 195 career Triple-A games, he has a 3.48 ERA.

Machi turns 35 tomorrow. The M’s are bringing him to camp to see if there is anything left in the tank.

There is a good chance both could open the season with the Rainiers. If the Mariners think that either of them can help the big league team at some point during the season, they’ll keep them in Tacoma. This season is going to be all about the Triple-A team having players ready to step in at the major league level when needed.

Links:

• Here’s the story from the TNT on Jean Machi‘s signing.
• Nick Hagadone once combined with Tim Lincecum to pitch a no-hitter for the Huskies.
• Bob Dutton has an interesting article on Jerry Dipoto‘s “win now” philosophy, the farm system, and overall strategy.
• New Mariners shortstop Jean Segura is excited to play with Robinson Cano.
• Is this the year that James Paxton breaks through?
• The Mariners are hoping that new outfielder Jarrod Dyson can bring some “edge” to the club. John McGrath also wrote about Dyson.
• Mitch Haniger is a key offseason acquisition, the Mariners hope.
• Mariners CEO and Rainiers minority owner John Stanton answered some questions for Geekwire at Fanfest.
• From Baseball America’s Minor League Transactions, we learn that ex-Rainiers and Mariners reliever Mayckol Guaipe signed with the White Sox, and 2016 Rainiers outfielder Ryan Strausborger went to the Minnesota Twins.
• Looks like former Rainiers and Mariners reliever Shawn Kelley has an opportunity to become the Washington Nationals closer this year.
• Eleven years ago, John McGrath thought that the World Baseball Classic would grow into a huge, must-see event. Today he thinks that the 2017 edition will be the last one.
• ESPN writer Jayson Stark toured the Hall of Fame with 2017 inductee John Schuerholz, resulting in a great feel-good story.
• The New Tribune has an update which confirms that Tacoma’s never-ending freeway construction project is indeed never-ending.

Check back on Thursday afternoon for a look at the possible 2017 Tacoma Rainiers outfielders as we move closer to spring training.

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Rainiers News From M’s Media Event

The Mariners held their annual Pre-Spring Training Media Luncheon yesterday, in which a number of speakers talked about the upcoming season.

For the major league news which came out of the event, hit the links down below.

I took some notes on items involving the Rainiers – and a few lower-level minor league prospects – and here’s what we’ve got:

Outfielder Tyler O’Neill will be the focal point on the Rainiers roster at the start of the season. According to Director of Player Development Andy McKay, O’Neill “is a special player. There are so many things about him that are more exciting than the numbers. He bought into what we asked more than anybody. There is a lot of substance behind those numbers.” Assistant GM Jeff Kingston added that O’Neill “really bought into our Control the Zone program.”

In regards to touted pitching prospect Andrew Moore, Kingston said he was “not sure if he’s going to start in Double-A or Triple-A,” which jives with rumblings I’ve heard. He made 19 Double-A starts last year, so experience-wise he’s right on the edge.

Recently acquired pitching prospect Max Povse “resembles the pitcher Chris Young, is very deceptive, an extreme strike thrower, and has a nice curve,” according to Kingston. Like Moore, Povse may start the year in Double-A and if things go well he could move up to Tacoma during the season.

Top prospect Kyle Lewis – the outfielder who broke his leg shortly after signing last summer – is expecting a mid-season return according to McKay. Lewis won’t see Tacoma in 2017, but he’s definitely a player worth following.

All of the Mariners minor league affiliates are adding a fourth coach in 2017, for a simple reason according to McKay: “To improve the student-teacher ratio.”

Former Rainiers and current Mariners trainer Rob Nodine gave the injury report, and he covered one possible Rainiers player: reliever Tony Zych is rehabbing from his postseason shoulder surgery, and the hope is that he is ready by the end of spring training.

New Mariners Director of Baseball Operations Justin Hollander had a hand in some of the offseason acquisitions who are likely to play for the Rainiers. Minor league free agent outfielder Kyle Waldrop “has tools, and is looking to reset his career a little bit. We hope to help him find the 2014 version of himself and get his career back on track.” Waldrop’s stats are here to see what Hollander is talking about.

Hollander also said the Rainiers reliever Dean Kiekhefer “profiles as a situational lefty, and was among the best in the minor leagues (last year) at getting left-handed batters out.”

Mariners pitcher James Paxton took the podium and spoke on a variety of subjects. He credited Rainiers pitching coach Lance Painter for identifying the mechanical change he needed to make last April to get his velocity back.

And of course the Mariners made some roster moves during the day, which greatly affect the Rainiers. They traded just-drafted catcher Jason Goldstein to Oakland for Triple-A pitcher Dillon Overton, who will slot into the Tacoma starting rotation. They also acquired veteran catcher Tuffy Gosewich via a waiver claim, and designated catcher Jesus Sucre for assignment. Seattle also signed Triple-A veteran catcher Nevin Ashley to a minor league contract.

The catching portion of these moves serves as a perfect example of what Jerry Dipoto means when he talks about roster flexibility. Sucre is out of minor league options and was going to have to clear waivers at the end of spring training if he didn’t make the big league roster – which could leave Tacoma in a very tough spot right around opening day in terms of catchers. Instead, we find out now if he gets through.

Gosewich has one minor league option left – so if Sucre gets claimed by another team, Gosewich becomes the third catcher in the organization, and he can move freely between Triple-A and the majors throughout the season.

Ashley is on a minor league deal, but he does have a little major league experience. He’s highly respected around the PCL as a veteran leader in Triple-A.

As for Overton, he went 13-5 with a 3.29 ERA for Nashville last year. That can be deceptive – Nashville’s new home ballpark is now the best pitcher’s park in the PCL – but Overton actually had a slightly better ERA in road games (3.18) than home games (3.41). He beat the Rainiers on August 17 last year, 5-2, allowing two runs in six innings – Ryan Strausborger took him deep.

Links:

• As expected, optimism was the theme of the day.
• Larry Stone asks the question, can Felix Hernandez regain his ace status?
• The Mariners think Felix is motivated, Bob Dutton reports.
• John McGrath wrote about James Paxton‘s hope of a breakout season.
• Here’s more on the acquisition of Dillon Overton, and another piece on the Tuffy Gosewich pick-up.
• After all of these roster moves you can’t tell the players without a program… or Bob Dutton’s complete list of Mariners players on the 40-man roster plus those invited to spring training.

Have a great weekend and we’ll have a new post on Tuesday.

Spring Preview: Rainiers Corner Infielders

It’s Part 3 of our Tacoma Rainiers spring training previews, and this time we look at the corner infielders.

I’ve gotten into a habit of lumping the first basemen and third basemen into the same post, because in recent years the Rainiers have had a number of guys who play both positions. It looks like this will happen in 2017, too.

The key corner infielder for the 2017 Tacoma Rainiers should be D.J. Peterson. A former first round draft pick of the Mariners who has seen his stock rise and fall, Peterson is coming off a solid 2016 season and is set for a full year of Triple-A. The Rainiers are hoping he can provide a potent bat in the middle of the lineup this year.

Peterson came up as a third baseman but played primarily first base in 2016. I’d expect him to play first base in 2017 – except the Rainiers (at this writing) don’t have a true third baseman coming into spring camp.

Last year Zach Shank handled third base for much of the second half, but the organization feels that Shank is best suited as a multiple-position player. Shank can play third, second, shortstop (in a pinch), center field, and the outfield corners. Shank hit .292 for the Rainiers last year, with some doubles power. If he is going to reach the majors, it will be as a utility man capable of playing all over the place – and I’m sure manager Pat Listach would like to use him that way in Tacoma.

Another player in the mix for third base is Taylor Motter, who I wrote about in the middle infield post last week. Motter can play all over the diamond, and he could see quite a bit of time at third.

I’m hearing the Mariners are still looking at adding a Triple-A third baseman, maybe a veteran from the free agent ranks or via trade with another team. But if that doesn’t happen, we’re probably looking at Peterson at first base, with Shank and Motter sharing a third base / utility role (and that’s assuming Motter doesn’t oust Shawn O’Malley from the major league utility spot).

Note that Dan Vogelbach has not been mentioned yet. At this time it appears the Mariners are committed to giving Vogelbach an opportunity to play every day in the big leagues this year.

Links:

• The Mariners announced that they are going to retire Edgar Martinez‘s jersey No. 11 in a ceremony this summer. He joins Ken Griffey Jr. (24) and Jackie Robinson (42) as the only retired Mariners numbers (Robinson’s 42 is retired throughout Major League Baseball).
• Edgar will continue wearing his own retired jersey as he remains Mariners hitting coach, Larry Stone writes.
• Anticipated Rainiers starting pitcher Andrew Moore gave some thoughtful answers in an interview with his alma mater’s fan website. There is some good stuff in here.
• Current Mariners Robinson Cano and Kyle Seager each get mentions in Jeff Sullivan’s article on the best players in the majors who never appeared on a Top 100 Prospects list.
• An article from the Baltimore Sun focuses on how the Orioles and Mariners were very similar teams last year, but have taken extremely different approaches during the offseason.
• Police busted a burglary ring which counted Felix Hernandez among its victims. “What, this watch with ‘King Felix’ engraved on it? Uh, my dad used to call me that when I was a kid…”
• Brent Musburger is retiring at the end of the month. I always admired his relentless enthusiasm for whatever game he was calling – he always sounded so excited to be there. That’s a great trait for a broadcaster.
• Baseball America has a free preview of the No. 12 ranked Washington Huskies.

Today the Mariners are holding their annual Pre-Spring Training Media Luncheon. We’ll have a new post Friday to cover any Rainiers-related news that comes out of the event.

Wake Up! Baseball Is About To Start

Pardon me while I wipe the sleep from my eyes, because this is the week when I realize that baseball is coming soon.

On Thursday the Mariners hold their annual Pre-Spring Training Media Luncheon, when they have several speakers talk about the state of the team entering spring training. I attend this each year, and walk out of the room afterwards hyped for the start of another season.

This weekend the Mariners open up Safeco for the annual FanFest, which has a similar effect on the fans. You can hang out in the stadium, meet some players, and get geared up for the season.

My regular internet browsing of baseball sites led me to a preseason college Top 25 (link below), and that gets the mind thinking “wow, I think they start playing in like two weeks!”

On top of that, last week the Rainiers put tickets on sale for the Triple-A All-Star Game and Home Run Derby (click here to purchase), and I figured we ought to do another… Triple-A All-Star Flashback!

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Tacoma is hosting the 30th annual Triple-A All-Star Game at Cheney Stadium on July 12. We’ll spend the winter looking back at the previous years, to give fans an idea what they can expect in Tacoma this summer.

1996

This was a rather odd all-star game in that it played out as a pitcher’s duel despite being held 4,200 feet above sea level at Salt Lake’s Franklin Quest Field (now known as Smith’s Ballpark).

The National League beat the American League, 2-1. Hometown hero Todd Walker of Salt Lake hit a solo homer to give the AL a 1-0 lead, which it carried into the eighth inning, before Indianapolis catcher Brook Fordyce hit a two-run shot to put the NL on top.

The big fun as far as we’re concerned came in the Home Run Derby. Greg Pirkl became the first Tacoma player to win the derby title, beating out Lee Stevens of Oklahoma City in the finals. Only one other Tacoma player has won the Home Run Derby: Bucky Jacobsen at Pawtucket in 2004.

Pirkl must have been a lot of fun. He was a Triple-A slugger with some promise – in 1995 he hit 15 homers in 174 at-bats for Tacoma, started the all-star game, and must have gotten injured or something. He hit six homers in 53 at-bats during a major league call-up to Seattle in 1994.

Pirkl went to Japan in 1997, came back in 1998 – and converted to pitching. He pitched in the low minors in 1998 and 1999, and then disappeared.

He predates my time in Tacoma, but maybe not yours – if you have any memories of Greg Pirkl in Tacoma, please share them in the comments. He hit 36 home runs for the Rainiers in just 522 at-bats between 1995 and 1996.

1996 Triple-A All-Star Game Fun Facts:

• Pirkl started at first base and went 2-for-3 with a double. He was not the only Tacoma Rainiers starter: James Bonnici was the designated hitter, and he went 0-for-1.
• Two pitchers tossed three scoreless innings in the game, both for the AL: Nashville’s Scott Ruffcorn and Syracuse lefty (and future Rainier) Huck Flener.
• Managers were Sale Lake’s Phil Roof and Ottawa’s Pete Mackanin. Mackanin is currently the Philadelphia Phillies manager.
• Some current Mariners coaches and instructors are listed on the roster but did not play in this game. Minor league coach Brant Brown and Mariners first base coach Casey Candaele are both listed as all-stars but do not appear in the box score.
• Players who appeared in the 1996 Triple-A All-Star Game and went on to have long major league careers include Dmitri Young, Todd Walker, Neifi Perez, Brian Giles, Dustin Hermanson, and Kelly Stinnett.
• Salt Lake’s Steve Klauke led the radio broadcast; he’s still with the Bees and is one of the longest-tenured announcers in the PCL. One of his partners in the booth was current Miami Marlins broadcaster Glenn Geffner, who was with Rochester in 1996.

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On Thursday we’ll take a look at the Rainiers corner infield candidates.

Links:

• Jerry Dipoto visited the Mariners new Double-A affiliate in Little Rock, Arkansas. He explained to the local media why he switched the Mariners affiliate there (from Jackson, TN).
• The AL West is baseball’s most unpredictable division, according to this fun ESPN column.
• Dae-Ho Lee returned to the Korean Baseball Organization, signing with Lotte Giants.
• There were two baseball deaths over the weekend, both a result of car crashes in the Dominican Republic. Young Kansas City Royals pitcher Yordano Ventura made an impact in his brief major league career, and third baseman Andy Marte was a top prospect who ended up playing quite a bit at the Triple-A level, including time with Salt Lake and Reno.
• A study reveals that the effects of jet lag impact baseball games. This is not much of a factor for PCL teams – the study covers time changes of two hours or more, and most PCL teams play exactly four games in which the time change is two hours. Travel has a huge impact on PCL games, but jet lag isn’t really the problem – sleep deprivation is.
• College baseball starts soon, and Baseball America released its preseason Top 25. The University of Washington chimes in at No. 12.
• In the PCL, there are some rumblings about a new stadium in Las Vegas again, although there is no new news in the article.

Rainiers Middle Infield Candidates

As we move closer to the start of spring training, let’s take a look at the middle infielders who will be battling to make the Rainiers opening day roster. Two returning players lead the way.

Tyler Smith spent the entire 2016 season with the Rainiers, and it appears he has a ticket for Tacoma to start the 2017 season. Smith, 25, appeared in 114 games for Tacoma last year, batting .268 with five home runs and 20 doubles. He played 55 games at shortstop, 48 at second base, and 12 at third base. It was his first Triple-A season, and to my eye he seemed to improve as the year went on.

Second baseman Mike Freeman is also a candidate to return to Tacoma. The Mariners acquired Freeman via a waiver claim right around July 31 last year, and he spent time with both Tacoma and Seattle. Freeman is a proven .300 hitter in the PCL, and he draws enough walks to keep his on-base percentage around .375. In addition to second base, Freeman can play shortstop and outfield in a pinch. Freeman will go to major league spring training camp trying to wrestle the utility infielder job away from Shawn O’Malley – which won’t be easy.

Another player eyeing O’Malley’s utility role is offseason pick-up Taylor Motter. A true multi-positionist, in each of the last four seasons Motter has played at least one game at second base, third base, shortstop, and each of the three outfield positions. The M’s acquired this swiss army knife in one of their many trades with the Tampa Bay Rays. Motter had a terrific season offensively in 2015 at Triple-A Durham, but he slipped quite a bit in 2016 when he hit .229 with a .297 OBP.

There isn’t anybody coming up from Double-A this year. Jackson had solid middle infield play last season, but both players are no longer in the organization. Second baseman Tim Lopes was traded, and shortstop Benji Gonzalez left as a minor league free agent.

Freeman, Motter, and O’Malley are all on the major league 40-man roster, and each has at least one minor league option year remaining. At this point it appears that Smith, Freeman and Motter will be in Tacoma in April – unless one of them swipes that big league utility man job from O’Malley. Or injuries – we can’t have injuries.

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Three new members of the Baseball Hall of Fame were voted in yesterday: first baseman Jeff Bagwell, outfielder Tim Raines, and catcher Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez. Surprisingly, none of the three played in the Pacific Coast League. In fact, two of them never appeared in a Triple-A game.

Raines played Triple-A ball for the 1980 Denver Bears, who were members of the American Association in the pre-Colorado Rockies days. That franchise moved to New Orleans and is now the Baby Cakes, but let’s not digress. Raines hit .354 in 108 games for Denver, with more walks (61) than strikeouts (44), and he went 77-for-90 in stolen base attempts. That looks pretty Hall of Famey to me.

Pudge skipped Triple-A baseball. He jumped straight from Double-A Tulsa to the big leagues in the middle of the 1991 season, and never looked back. He was 19.

Bagwell had a big year for Double-A New Britain in 1990, hitting .333 with a .422 OBP, and was invited to Astros major league spring training camp the following year. He beat out the competition and won a starting job, batting .294 with 15 homers as a rookie.

Links:

• Seattle Times columnist Larry Stone shared his Hall of Fame ballot and explained his voting process.
• Edgar Martinez gained a lot of ground in the voting, making his election in the next two years more realistic. The story includes all of this year’s vote totals.
• Voting history makes one optimistic about Edgar’s chances, John McGrath writes.
• In the PCL, the Memphis Redbirds changed their logo and uniforms. I always thought they had the classiest look in the league, but apparently the people running the team disagreed.
• The Salt Lake Bees announced that Keith Johnson is returning for his sixth season as manager of the team.
• The Fresno Tacos Grizzlies got a lot of PR by announcing they had purchased the taco emoji.

Triple-A All-Star Tickets On Sale Today

We’ve got some Rainiers news to pass along today.

First and foremost, individual tickets for the Triple-A All-Star Game and Home Run Derby are on sale now.

To get good seats, get your tickets right away – this is going to sell out. I just opened up the Ticketmaster seat map, and there are excellent locations available now.

The two events are bundled together. You get the Home Run Derby on Monday, July 10 and the All-Star Game on Wednesday, July 12.

Here’s the link to buy tickets.

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On another note, we have changed the game time for Opening Night on April 11 to 7:05 pm. Early copies of the schedule had it listed at 6:05, but we realized that with all of the pregame ceremonies that didn’t seem right. 7:05 it is – mark your schedules accordingly.

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In an important transaction for the Rainiers, on Friday afternoon the Mariners outrighted pitcher Cody Martin to Tacoma. Martin was removed from the 40-man roster earlier last week, cleared waivers, and remains in the Mariners organization.

Martin had a strong 2016 season and will enter spring training camp with a realistic chance to be the Rainiers opening day starting pitcher. Martin went 10-7 with a 3.62 ERA for the Rainiers last year, with an excellent strikeout-to-walk ratio. In 114.1 innings pitched, he struck out 114 batters while walking 33 – and he also allowed only six home runs.

Most importantly to your local blogger, Cody Martin is a radio guy’s best friend: he works quickly and throws strikes. He’s from the Brian “The PCL Dream” Sweeney school of pitching. I’ll be petitioning manager Pat Listach to schedule Martin for every getaway day start in 2017.

Links:

• Ryan Divish spoke with Edgar Martinez about his improving Hall of Fame chances.
• If it seems like the Mariners make more trades than other teams, it’s because they do. Jeff Sullivan investigates.
• For you number crunchers, marc w of USS Mariner took a deep dive into defensive metrics to try to figure out how improved the Mariners outfield will be this year.
• Mariners top prospect Tyler O’Neill – who we expect to start the season with Tacoma – once hit a home run that wasn’t a home run. This is a wonderful tale of dugout humor.
• Former Rainiers and Mariners outfielder Michael Saunders signed as a free agent with the Philadelphia Phillies.
• Ex-Rainiers infielder Ramon Vazquez was added to the San Diego Padres major league coaching staff.
• Another former Rainiers player was in the news: Ji-Man Choi signed a minor league contract with the Yankees.
• Dan O’Brien – one of the earliest Seattle Mariners executives, and a former General Manager – passed away at age 87.
• Many ballplayers enjoy hunting and fishing during the offseason. This story about Detroit Tigers catcher Alex Avila and the 585-pound swordfish is a good one. I suspect he’ll never order swordfish in a restaurant again.

We’ll resume the Rainiers pre-spring training positional previews on Thursday.

M’s Get Their Starter and How It Affects Tacoma

Seattle Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto completed his quest to add a starting pitcher yesterday, making two trades to acquire left-hander Drew Smyly from the Tampa Bay Rays.

Dipoto had to pull some strings. He knew Tampa wanted Atlanta Braves outfielder Mallex Smith, and apparently the Rays couldn’t work out their own trade to get Smith.

So Dipoto traded two young left-handed pitching prospects to Atlanta in order to acquire Smith. Pitchers Luiz Gohara and Thomas Burrows went to the Braves, with the Mariners getting Smith and pitcher Shae Simmons.

Then Dipoto flipped Smith, expected Rainiers starter Ryan Yarbrough, and teenage infield prospect Carlos Vargas to Tampa to get Drew Smyly.

Smyly is established in the American League, and in the articles linked below Dipoto says he has been targeting him all winter.

To get Smyly, the M’s gave up a top prospect in Gohara, who is very talented but a long way away from the major leagues. Carlos Vargas received a huge signing bonus and hit for power in the Dominican Summer League, but he’s even farther from the majors. We had Yarbrough inked into the Rainiers rotation, but now he’s gone – he’s a polished lefty who was really good at Double-A in 2016. Burrows is a relief prospect.

The M’s also added Simmons, who is a potential major league reliever this season. Simmons reached the majors in 2014, hurt his elbow and required Tommy John surgery, and made his comeback last year. Simmons could pitch for Tacoma or Seattle (or both) in 2017.

In all of this shuffling, the Mariners removed Cody Martin from the 40-man roster and he is currently on waivers. If he doesn’t get claimed by another team, the Mariners will outright him to Tacoma. Martin was terrific for the Rainiers last year, and he is a PCL dream: he works quickly and throws strikes.

Despite the loss of Yarbrough and the potential loss of Martin, the moves don’t do too much damage to the Rainiers starting rotation. By adding Smyly, others got pushed down a spot on the ladder. Suddenly pitchers who looked like major league rotation candidates are now Tacoma possibilities. Ariel Miranda and Chris Heston are two pitchers with recent major league starting experience who might find themselves in Tacoma in April. A lot of it will depend on team health coming out of spring training.

The Mariners rotation (not in order) is looking like Felix, Iwakuma, Paxton, Gallardo, Smyly. Tacoma will probably have Heston, Miranda (if he’s not in the Seattle bullpen), Rob Whalen, Christian Bergman, Sam Gaviglio, and maybe one of the prospecty-guys like Andrew Moore or Max Povse.

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I was planning to preview the potential Rainiers middle infielders today but that subject deserves its own post. We’ll look at Tacoma’s middle infielders next week.

Links:

• Ryan Divish has the news story on the Drew Smyly acquisition.
• After the latest trades, Bob Dutton provides us with a complete look at how the Mariners roster shapes up.
• ESPN’s Dave Schoenfield writes that the Mariners now look like a playoff team.
• The always amusing Grant Brisbee wonders if, after trading everyone including your cat, Jerry Dipoto has made the Mariners any better?
• Dave Cameron writes that the latest trades have officially made the 2017 Mariners… interesting.
• Lookout Looking took a look at Rainiers first baseman D.J. Peterson. I’m curious to see what D.J. can do in 400 PCL at-bats – could be a lot of fun.
• The most successful manager in the PCL is back for 2017: Tony DeFrancesco is managing the Fresno Grizzlies. The story includes a few notes previewing one of the Rainiers division rivals.

Recent Trades, and Derek Jeter’s AAA All-Star Game

We’ve got a few things to cover today: the recent trades and a flashback.

On Friday, Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto made two major league trades involving veteran players. He sent outfielder Seth Smith to the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for starting pitcher Yovani Gallardo, and then he traded pitcher Nathan Karns to the Kansas City Royals for outfielder Jarrod Dyson.

Add them together, and they replaced Karns with Gallardo, and Smith with Dyson.

Gallardo has been a pretty good starting pitcher for a long time, but his 2016 season was a nightmare. If he bounces back to his career norm, the M’s will probably be pleased with this trade.

Dyson and Smith are both left-hand hitting outfielders, and the similarity ends right about there. Dyson is a speed player, he can be electrifying on the bases, and he plays good defense. Dyson is two years younger than Smith. But he does not possess the plate discipline and power of Seth Smith.

Dipoto cited outfield defense as a key reason for the trade. The team should have some terrific glovework, with Dyson, Leonys Martin, Mitch Haniger, Ben Gamel, and Guillermo Heredia each capable of playing center field.

There is some serious analysis of the trade from USS Mariner in the links below.

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It’s been a while since we had a Triple-A All-Star Flashback, so let’s do one!

Tacoma is hosting the 30th annual Triple-A All-Star Game at Cheney Stadium on July 12. We’ll spend the winter looking back at the previous years, to give fans an idea what they can expect in Tacoma this summer.

1995

Today, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre is the home of the New York Yankees Triple-A affiliate. But in 1995, when Scranton hosted the Triple-A All-Star Game, the Red Barons were the Philadelphia Phillies affiliate.

That didn’t stop them from hosting one of the most famous New York Yankees of all time.

Derek Jeter was the starting shortstop for the American League in the 1995 Triple-A All-Star Game, representing the Columbus Clippers. He went 2-for-3 at the plate, including a double, and scored a run before being replaced by New Orleans shortstop Mark Loretta.

Jeter had recently made his major league debut for the Yankees, but was sent back to Triple-A and made the all-star team. The 21-year-old hit .317 with two homers in 486 at-bats for Columbus in 1995. He took over as the Yankees starting shortstop in 1996 and won the Rookie of the Year award.

Despite his strong performance in the all-star game, Derek Jeter was not the MVP. Buffalo first baseman Luis Lopez had three hits, including a double and a homer, and drove in four runs to take home the trophy.

Seven American League pitchers combined to toss a two-hit shutout as the AL won the game, 9-0.

1995 All-Star Fun Facts:

• Fans of a certain age will remember the hype surrounding the New York Mets “Generation K” pitching prospects: Bill Pulsipher, Paul Wilson and Jason Isringhausen. Isringhausen was the starting pitcher for the NL, representing Norfolk, and get this: a top prospect at the time, Isringhausen was notified that he would be making his MLB debut after the all-star break – and the Mets let him start the Triple-A All-Star Game anyway. That would never happen today! Isringhausen had the best career of the trio, collecting exactly 300 major league saves.
• The starting pitcher for the AL was Toledo’s Pat Ahearn, who would later pitch (quite well) for the Tacoma Rainiers in 2000.
• Managers were Grady Little of Richmond and Chris Bando of New Orleans. Little became manager of the Boston Red Sox, and, well… you know what happened.
• The 1995 season marked the first year of our Mariners affiliation and our new name, the Tacoma Rainiers. The first Rainiers all-star was relief pitcher Jeff Darwin. He worked a scoreless inning.
• Albuquerque’s Ron Coomer topped a field of five to win the Home Run Derby. Slugger Brooks Kieschnick was a runner-up.
• Player who had long careers in the majors included Derek Jeter, Mark Loretta, Jeromy Burnitz, Ron Coomer, John Marzano, Eric Owens, Eddie Perez, and Mark Sweeney.
• Two current PCL broadcasters worked the game: Iowa’s Deene Ehlis and Phoenix’s Russ Langer (now with Las Vegas).
• The television broadcast aired on ESPN2, with current MLB Network host Matt Vasgersian on the call.

Our Usual Links:

• The two trades add up to a four-player deal, Bob Dutton writes.
• Stories from the Times, first on the Gallardo deal and a second on the Dyson trade.
• USS Mariner looks at each trade: the Gallardo deal, and the Dyson acquisition.
• Dave Cameron writes that the Mariners are trying to copy the Royals strategy of focusing on speed and defense.
• What if the Mariners are unable to add another starting pitcher? Bob Dutton looks at the six in-house candidates to be the M’s fifth starter.
• Jos Posnanski wrote beautifully – as he always does – about Edgar Martinez and the Hall of Fame.
• Congratulations, I guess: the Mariners rank No. 2 on the list of Most Tortured Fan Bases.
• According to a broadcast industry report, former Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik will be doing the Pittsburgh Pirates pregame and postgame shows this season.
• This is a broadcaster’s nightmare: over in the International League, Charlotte could have a battery of pitcher Giovanni Soto and catcher Geovany Soto. Thoughts and prayers for broadcaster Matt Swierad.
• Blake Snell – the Seattle native who broke into the Tampa Bay Rays starting rotation last year – is coaching his high school’s basketball team during the offseason.
• Former major league pitcher and longtime pitching coach Jackie Brown passed away. He is the uncle of former Rainiers manager Daren Brown.

Check back Thursday for a 2017 Rainiers pre-spring training position preview.

An Early Look: 2017 Tacoma Catchers

Today we start our annual spring training positional previews, in which we take a look at the players who head into spring training with a chance to break camp as members of the Tacoma Rainiers.

We start with the catchers.

So much of the Rainiers roster depends on who makes the big league club, but in the case of catchers there is another huge factor: injuries.

Catchers are so much more injury prone than the other position players, strictly because of the nature of the position (unpredictable foul tips! Baseballs flying at you at all times! A grown man swinging a large stick right in front of your face! All of that squatting!).

We expect the Mariners to carry two catchers on the opening day roster, and if there are no injuries in the Cactus League they will be Mike Zunino and Carlos Ruiz.

Here in Tacoma, we’ll have two or three catchers when the season starts on April 6.

Seattle re-signed Jesus Sucre to a complicated contract which pays him a lot of money (by Triple-A standards) if he is in the minor leagues. This was a strategic play by the Mariners: they value Sucre and want to keep him, but he is out of minor league options. The hope is that the high Triple-A salary will prevent other teams from claiming him off waivers if the M’s have to send him to Tacoma. So, Sucre is a possible Rainiers catcher on Opening Day.

Another likely Tacoma catcher is Marcus Littlewood, who had a strong 2016 season at Double-A Jackson and finished the year with a three-week stint in Tacoma, including the playoffs. A switch-hitter, Littlewood batted .307 with a .404 OBP for Jackson last year, albeit in just 192 at-bats. He was a second round draft pick as a high school infielder in 2010, and the M’s converted him to catcher knowing it would be a slow development path.

Steve Baron is also in the mix, but there are injury concerns. His 2016 season ended in August with shoulder surgery, and at this time I’m not sure what his health situation is going into spring training. I’ll let you know when I learn anything.

The Mariners signed former Phillies prospect Sebastian Valle to a minor league contract, and he can slot in at either Double-A or Triple-A. Valle has Triple-A experience with Lehigh Valley in 2012 and 2014, but mostly has been playing at the Double-A level recently. His profile looks like that of a good defensive catcher – you just kind of assume it, since he hasn’t hit much.

One other player to add here: midway through last season, the Rockies released Ryan Casteel and the M’s signed him and sent him to Jackson for the stretch run. Seattle recently re-signed him for 2017. Casteel caught 51 games for Albuquerque over the last two seasons, but after Seattle acquired him last year he played strictly first base for Jackson.

A late acquisition at the catcher position is always a possibility – especially if one of the top three (Zunino, Ruiz, Sucre) gets injured in spring training. Last year, the M’s acquired Rob Brantly at the very end of March, and he spent the entire season in Tacoma and was a key contributor on a playoff team.

Links:

• 2016 Rainiers reliever David Rollins has been claimed off waivers five times this winter. So far. He seems to have a good sense of humor about the weird situation. As I type this sentence, Rollins is on the Cubs.
• Here’s a story on one of the four new Mariners minor league coaches who will assist with the mental side of the game.
• In the PCL, the Las Vegas 51s revealed their 35th Anniversary logo.
• And in the category of “Marketing Decisions We’ll Later Regret,” the New Orleans Baby Cakes are giving free lifetime tickets to every baby born in 2017.

New Year, New Rainiers Outfielder

Hey guys, we’re back!

I hope you had a good holiday season, and are ready to get on with 2017. We expect to have a super-fun season at Cheney Stadium this year, highlighted by the defending division champion Rainiers, and the Triple-A All-Star Game in July.

Spring training opens in just six weeks. To build up to spring training, we’ll start a weekly series of blog posts looking at which players are going to camp with a chance to open the season in Tacoma. The first post will come on Thursday.

The Mariners were very quiet over winter break, and still need to acquire a starting pitcher (or two) for the big league club.

On the minor league front, the M’s signed free agent outfielder Kyle Waldrop, who is kind of interesting.

A 25-year-old outfielder, Waldrop has hit in the lower-level minor leagues but struggled with Triple-A Louisville in 2016, batting .252 with five homers and a .300 on-base percentage. What’s interesting is that he put up much better numbers in Double-A, and he is young enough to improve.

In 133 Double-A games for Pensacola of the Southern League, Waldrop has hit .295 with 14 homers and a .473 slugging percentage, while keeping his strikeouts at reasonable levels. He’s a left-handed batter.

Waldrop appeared in 15 major league games for the Reds last year, going 5-for-22, but was removed from the 40-man roster after the season and became a free agent. He’ll be a player to keep an eye on this season for Tacoma.

Links:

• A Canadian newspaper caught up with likely Rainiers outfielder Tyler O’Neill.
• A hometown newspaper feature on recent Mariners signee Micah Owings includes comments from his brother-in-law, ex-Rainiers infielder Matt Tuiasosopo.
• It appears that Edgar Martinez is making some big gains in the Hall of Fame balloting, Larry Stone writes.
• Felix Hernandez and Robinson Cano started playing in winter leagues to prepare for the upcoming World Baseball Classic. Felix made two starts before focusing on the WBC.
• Lifelong Cubs fan John McGrath finally wrote about his world Series experience.
• In the PCL, Reno has a new manager: former major league skipper Jerry Narron, who most recently has been a bench coach for the Milwaukee Brewers. An ex-catcher, Narron played for the 1978 Tacoma Yankees and the Seattle Mariners (1980-81, 1987).
• The Oklahoma City Dodgers announced that their entire coaching staff from 2016 is returning, led by manager Bill Haselman.
• Fresno Grizzlies reliever Brendan McCurry is going to sit for 50 games.
• Ballpark Digest recaps the current situation regarding the PCL eventually having a team in San Antonio. Nothing to see here – for now.