Along with some of other new Sportswriter blogs Jeff mentioned the other day, Shannon Drayer has got one as well.  There hasn't been much news yet, but I am a fan of Shannon, so...

http://www.komoradio.com/marinersradio/shannon/5971691.html

Highlights from today include: Sexson trying to swing through Rene's head, Clement may have a minor finger injury. Vidro took some balls at third, may also see some time at first, but i bet that's all for Spring Training only.

Of course, this is Hargrove.

Well, I guess the echos of all those nasty letters must have reached all the way to the top.  Atleast enough to make Lincoln try and make a response through the press before Friday's game.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/baseball/287132_lincoln30.html

There's not really anything remarkably here in this article, but I do think it's notable there was a response.  The mere fact that the organization felt compelled to try and respond says that at least the fans' digust probably made a decent-sized stink.

Alan Schwarz and Gary Gillette spend a little time talking about Bavasi and the Mariners. Nothing ground-breaking, just your basic A. Soriano rumors, buyer/seller dilemma, Bavasi's job security.

But Schwarz does give some love to the Mariners' bullpen, calling Lowe "a young Brad Lidge, and I don't say that that often".

Here's the link to the ESPN's Podcast page, and then click on the Baseball Today audio link. If you download it, you can skip to the Mariners' segment, which begins at 10:50 or so.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnradio/podcast/index

From rotoworld.com:

"Nageotte had an 8/9 K/BB ratio while giving up nine runs -- seven earned -- in 16 1/3 innings for Tacoma. He'll be headed back to the bullpen now after starting games in Triple-A. If the Mariners would let him settle into a role, he might have better luck."

"Borchard hadn't received an at-bat in 12 days, as manager Mike Hargrove made it clear that he preferred Willie Bloomquist as the alternative to Jeremy Reed in center field. Borchard will have to report to Triple-A Tacoma if he clears waivers."

From seattlemariners.com:

"Catcher Guillermo Quiroz cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Tacoma on Monday. To make room for him on the Tacoma roster, the club released catcher Corky Miller."

http://seattle.mariners.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060417&content_id=1404677& vkey=news_sea&fext=.jsp&c_id=sea

I guess this is okay. In the grand scale of things, its a pretty minor upgrade, especially with Johjima playing the way he is and Clement coming down the pipe.

It is my belief that the whole Rivera-to-the-minors deal, while Quiroz got one major league start, was all part of Bavasi's plan to get Quiroz through waivers. Which is pretty shrewd.

Guys like Koyie Hill, while no great shakes had the same thing happen with NY, so I think it was a pretty sound plan.

Quiroz over Miller -- sure, why not?

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=betweenthenumbers/ortiz/060405

Lawton ranks #5 on the all-time "clutch" hitters since 1972.

You know, if you believe in that sort of thing.

300 character fact of the day: German Karl Benz is credited with the invention of the automobile clutch in the late 19th century.

After Deanna of Marinerds mentioned the deal for 2 tickets for $22 on Tuesday games yesterday, I started thinking. For those of us that don't have season tickets or deep pockets but still want to see Felix pitch as often as possible, we should pool our cheap ticket acquisition knowledge.

I myself am a fan of picking up a centerfield bleacher ticket for $7 and then watching the game from the bullpen area.

What deals do you know about?

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/5418188

This has the Mariners coming out a little better than I thought. Not blowing anyone out of the water, but considering how many players have been called up in recent years, hovering around the league average doesn't seem all that bad. Plus, we miss the King in all this:

"Speaking of players who had previously exhausted their rookie status, Mariners right-hander Felix Hernandez, were he still a prospect, would've been a ridiculously easy choice for No. 1."

From John Hickey's PI Blog: "Center field prospect T.J. Bohn was optioned to the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers before Friday afternoon's game with the San Diego Padres. Bohn, 26, was at his first big league camp after four years in the Seattle minor league system, and had been having a nice spring -- a .333 batting average in 21 at-bats with a .407 on-base percentage boosted by four walks."

From:
http://www.worldbaseballclassic.com/2006/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060308&content_id=1341351&vk ey=wbc_news&fext=.jsp

"As for Puerto Rico starter Joel Pineiro, he was in control from the get-go, pitching like the Pineiro of old. The right-hander stymied the Netherlands' offense by changing speeds and keeping virtually every hitter off balance.

...(Pineiro)finished the night with a respectable line: three hits, two strikeouts and one unearned run in the four-inning, 56-pitch outing."

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=4818

Be forewarned, it gets pretty ugly when we get to the pitchers, saying:

"this might be the ugliest rotation we've looked at with respect to injury risk."

I am surprised that they list Guardado as less of a risk than Washburn, and Felix. I understand that all those guys are injury risks but weren't we all sure Guardado's arm was going to fall off last year. And then his knee went?

Citing a lack of passion for the game, Bret Boone has decided to call it a career.

"Something I've loved my whole life has become a major, major job for me," Boone said. "I don't think it would be fair for me -- or fair to the Mets -- to continue something I've loved my whole life and had so much passion for, and all of a sudden that passion isn't there anymore."

http://seattle.mariners.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060301&content_id=1329064& vkey=spt2006news&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

I have had my issues with The Boone over the time he was here (as most Mariners fans have), but he was a fun player to watch in his prime.  I wish him a happy retirement.

I know this isn't really Mariners-related, but it is baseball related. The NY Times has a piece on Julio Franco, highlighting some of his odd dietary practices. Including eating six meals a day.

http://tinyurl.com/o9uop

Some choice parts:

"A few minutes before 7 a.m. Tuesday, Julio Franco greeted a visitor to his apartment with the news that he had eaten 14 egg whites for breakfast.

But he was still hungry. A plate loaded with oatmeal awaited him, as did a banana and a glass of freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, and still Franco wanted more egg whites."

He also drinks "a liquid concoction made from beets, cauliflower, celery, broccoli, garlic, onions and an apple."

Mmmm...tasty.

"Dr. Larry Pedegana, who has served as a team physician for the Mariners since the club's inception in 1977, has informed the team that he would not be returning this season."

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/mariners/2002819514_webmari21.html

Dr. Edward Khalfayan who has worked with the Seahawks for the last 10 years will take over.

Pedegana has been the team physician since Day 1, which is pretty remarkable to me, especially considering the turnover of all kinds of personnel in the organization during the last five years.

I don't have a lot of insider knowledge on what kind of doctor Pedegana was or how effective he may have been. For a team that has gotten bit where it hurts by the injury bug, this caught my eye. Though I think the injuries have more to do with players' conditioning and technique through the Minors than with corrective work done at the Major League level.

From rotoworld: "The Red Sox and Bronson Arroyo are close to an agreement on a three-year deal worth $11 million-$12 million, according to CBS4 Boston.
An announcement could come Thursday. According to the report, as part of the deal, Arroyo will have basically a "gentleman's agreement" that he won't be traded this offseason. The Red Sox have an unofficial policy against giving out no-trade clauses. Jan. 18 - 10:52 pm et"

If this happens, I will breathe a partial sigh of relief that a dumb Reed trade becomes a little less likely.

From rotoworld.com:

"The Rockies offered Larry Bigbie to the Mariners for Yorvit Torrealba and the Indians for Josh Bard, but neither club seems interested right now.
The Mariners want pitching in return for Torrealba. The Indians are holding out for Ryan Shealy, which isn't happening. According to the Denver Post, the Rockies also have an offer out for Cubs reliever Todd Wellemeyer. Bigbie might be involved there, too. Dec. 1 - 1:40 pm et"

Too bad the Rockies aren't looking to let Shealy go either.  Other tidbits from rotoworld:

1. The Mariners are one of several teams expressing interest in Matt Morris.
2. Jeff Weaver doesn't seem to be headed back to LA, despite receiving "little interest in the free-agent market to date"
3. Seattle has contacted the Yanks about Pavano.

Willie Bloomquist has taken a lot of flack over the last few years, some deservedly so and some not. But for those who maintain he is an integral piece of the Mariner's future should atleast consider this snippet from rotoworld.com:

"Willie Bloomquist went 0-for-5 today and is in an 0-for-18 slump.

Bloomquist's speed and his ability to play anywhere make him a decent 25th man. As an everyday second baseman and No. 2 hitter, he's simply terrible, maybe the worst regular in the majors. The Mariners have absolutely nothing to gain by giving him so many at-bats. In fact, they're just driving up his arbitation price."

Well said.