After grabbing headlines by signing Robinson Cano, the Mariners could now turn their attention to veteran starter Bartolo Colon, according Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune and a report from Enrique Rojas of ESPNDesportes.com
The 40-year-old Colon was excellent last season pitching for the AL West Champion Athletics. He posted a record of 18-6 over 30 starts and gave Oakland the second lowest ERA in the league over 190 innings. He finished sixth in the AL Cy Young voting with 12 percent of the votes. His 2.65 ERA was the lowest mark for a pitcher over 40 since Roger Clemens 1.87 ERA with the Astros in 2005.
Colon would step into a strong rotation headed by 2010 Cy Young award winner Felix Hernandez and 2013 breakout star Hisashi Iwakuma. Both pitchers topped 200 innings last season with ERA's more than 20 percent better than league average. The notoriously pitcher-friendly dimensions of Safeco field would likely be a benefit for Colon who relies heavily on control and contact.
If this deal were to happen, with Colon sliding behind Hernendez and Iwakuma in the rotation, the new look Mariners could feature one of the top rotations in the game.
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