Mariners Close In On Silva
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
According to FOXSports.com, the Mariners are closing in on a four year deal with Carlos Silva. If you read my last couple of posts concerning the Mariners, I have kept saying that they are looking to land a big pitcher. Silva is there guy, but I wouldn't say he is the best pitcher to go with. Although Silva is going to a team that hit .20 points higher as a team with 35 more homeruns, his K/9 rating was 3.97, the lowest of any A.L pitcher, so to have to hold on to him for four years, seems like they are little desperate. However, he has had success at SAFECO Field going 3-1 with a 3.18 ERA in 28.1 innings. I think Silva would have been smarter going to an NL team, but the Mariners are more willing to cough over the cash, and I think he will be whole lot of the same pitcher, making more money then a lot better players. I think this falls under one of the worst signings of the off season, for now, and we will see if Silva can break out now that he is with a better team. Personally, I expected the Mariners to make a big trade rather than sign someone for that money. They spent the money on Jarrod Washburn two years ago and he has only struggled, so you would think they would play smart with their cash and save it for next year when better pitchers like Johan Santana, CC Sabathia, or Brad Penny.
2 comments:
Wow...first off you think Silva will do better now that he is with a better team? The two teams may be comparable, but thats the absolute most you can give to the M's. The Twins have a much MUCH better track record the past 5 years.
Santana most likely won't be a free agent, most expect he will be traded this offseason. Secondly to think the M's can even compete with the other teams in the market for an ace is ridiculous. They may have the money, but they need to prove they can win again this year to contend for any ACE status pitcher. Those types of pitchers usually dont need to concern themselves with the $$ amount as there will be plenty of large offers, they want to contend for a WS, which other teams have a much better chances.
The reason they go after Washburn and Silva is because they have a much better chance of landing them. These lower tier pitchers usually look to land a huge pay day which only comes from 1 or 2 teams, instead of an ACE who can pick between 6-8 teams at the least who all have very large offers on the table.
Safeco Field is a pitcher's park...Minnesota certainly is not...and the M's have an improving infield defense, which works in favor of a ground ball pitcher like Silva. In addition, the M's have a heck of a bullpen. Silva is also only 28, about the age when pitchers begin to put it all together. Given these factors, I think signing Silva makes sense, and would not be surprised to see him go 15-9 with a 3.95 ERA or something close to that.
What does NOT make sense is to trade the farm system for Eric Bedard, when the M's are really probably a year away from being highly competitive. I think they would be smarter to pick up some out-of-favor young pitchers with good stuff and potential high upsides, and see if they can get lucky with one like they did with Miguel Batista last year. Scott Olsen of Florida, Dan Cabrera of Baltimore, Edwin Jackson of Tampa Bay all might fit this scenario. Sean Marshall of the Cubs might also be available. Yeah, these guys aren't Bedard, but if one comes through with 10-12 wins, the M's are much improved both this year and in coming years.
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