Tuesday, November 22, 2005

It's official

Johjima is a Mariner! 3 years, $16.5 million.
 
I don't know why, but this signing really has me excited. I think it's a creative and ballsy move on the part of the Mariners to fill a hole at position that was garbage for the team in 2005. Most important, they didn't have to sacrifice any prospects or draft picks. I suppose the argument against this singing is that it's a lot of money to spend on a guy who hasn't played a day in the majors. But you know what, I don't think Bavasi would make a move like this if they didn't really believe Johjima was the real deal. Big Bill has to be feeling the heat after the last two seasons, and if he didn't think this was a signing that would have an immediate impact I don't think he would have done it. I like the out-of-the-box approach here and am interested to see what else Bavasi has up his sleeve.
 
2006 lineup as of 11/22/05 (as I see it):
 
Ichiro RF
Reed CF
Beltre 3B
Sexson 1B
Ibanez LF
Johjima C
Lopez 2B
Morse? DH -Eeeeew.
Betancourt SS
 
They need one more bat. I like the Delgado trade possibility, but I have my doubts about whether that will happen. I've heard some Brad Wilkerson trade rumblings, that intrigues me for sure. Jacque Jones would fit in well too.
 
Now the real question is....where would you take Johjima in your fantasy draft?

4 comments:

  1. I like the signing too. People say it is a risky signing, however so Was sexson and they struck solid gold with him. I think time will tell on beltre as well. I think this is a great signing to bridge the gap between now and Clement!!

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  2. As long as Johjima's leg is healed, I think this signing is excellent. His defensive skills are supposed to be excellent, and he will probably provide some extra offensive punch. If he can catch 130-140 games, give the team 15-20 homers, and have a .350+ OBP, many Mariner fans will be delighted.

    This shows me that while the Mariners have a plan (acquire starting pitching and LH power) they are also willing to upgrade at other positions if opportunities arise.

    I read something about the Rockies probably having interest in Torrealba. Other than Todd Helton, I'm not sure about how good their LH power-hitting OFs are... Cory Sullivan hit .294 in a substantial number of ABs but didn't have much power. Brad Hawpe did slightly better. Stat-wise the most impressive to me was Jorge Piedra, who had a .933 OPS, even though it was only in 112 ABs (8 2B, 6 HR, 16 RBI). Colorado's pitching mostly looks like crap at the major-league level, maybe with the exception of ex-Mariner Brian Fuentes... Do the Rockies have any decent prospects we could get in a trade?

    I dunno about Brad Wilkerson... HRs dropped off from 32 in '04 to 11 last year, runs scored from 112 to 76... I guess his average stats over the last three years are pretty decent. He's only 28, and he bats LH anyway.

    Also, writers Dayn Perry and KEn Rosenthal seem to think the time might be right for the Mariners to trade Ichiro. Their reasoning is that he is overvalued, he is likely entering the downward phase of his career, and that is is dissatisfied in Seattle. Perry thinks teams would be lining up to acquire Ichiro, and that the Mariners could get some good players for him... the team is serious about rebuilding, so why not?

    I'm not sure I agree altogether with what some of the writers are saying. Anyway, if we keep Ichiro I'd rather see him playing CF and batting second in the lineup...

    Anyone have any guesses as to what kind of players the Mariners could get in exchange for Ichiro from teams like the Yankees, Mets, Red Sox, Dodgers?

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  3. Just a quick note. There is no way the amrierns will trade ichiro. No way at all. I have heard a ton of rumors about it but I think hell would freeze over sooner than they would deal him.

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  4. I think you are both right. Snave I think it'd be worth looking into, but I just don't see the M's moving him. Who knows though-it would be fun to propose some ideas.

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