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On Wlad And Saunders

Please acknowledge me.

More photos » by Ted S. Warren - AP

Please acknowledge me.

It's usually weird when you hear that a once highly-touted 25 year old has been designated for assignment. But don't be alarmed. The M's aren't cutting Wlad outright; they're just preparing to trade him sometime in the next several days, which is something they were already going to do anyway. There was no way Wlad was surviving the deadline as a Mariner. No way. It's been clear for a while that he doesn't have a place here, and we've heard his name linked to guys like Josh Willingham and Ian Snell. This move simply confirms what we already knew was going to happen.

Some people will complain that Wladimir Balentien has been treated unfairly, but (A) he has a .619 OPS over 434 career PA's, and (B) he hasn't. The latter is more important. Fans always fall all over themselves demanding more playing time for young players, but young players are not created equal. They have certain skillsets, and realistically it doesn't take that long to evaluate whether or not a guy is worth keeping around for the long haul. The Mariners have clearly taken a long look at Wlad and decided that, no, he's not. He hasn't shown a good eye, he hasn't shown an ability to make contact, he hasn't played great defense, and his power hasn't shown up often enough. What's there to be excited about? Even if he were to blossom into, say, a .250/.320/.460 bat, that wouldn't make him a special piece, and being that he's out of options, the M's have chosen to cut ties and move on. They could certainly end up looking bad if Wlad turns into Carlos Lee, but you have to think that the odds are in their favor on this one. This is a front office that specializes in player evaluation, and their evaluation of Wlad has not been positive. Who can blame them?

And so he'll go away in a trade that brings back another piece of more use to this organization. Remember, just because the M's are fed up doesn't mean there aren't any other teams who'd be willing to give Wlad an opportunity. He's still a 25 year old with a lot of power potential. He's both young and in possession of an overrated skillset, and that'll be enough to pique someone's interest. We'll just have to wait and see whose, and what we'll get back.

As for Michael Saunders, it's been made very clear that he's here to start. I guess this goes in the books as the first 2009 move in which the M's are looking more towards the future than the present. Not that Saunders couldn't be an upgrade over Ryan Langerhans right now, but given the overall picture, that's unlikely; it's a slight downgrade in the immediate that lets the team get a good look at a solid young player while allowing Saunders to get his feet wet. Everyone in the Mariner clubhouse thinks they're still in this. Technically, they are still in this. And this is a front office and a coaching staff that highly value the sort of experience a young guy can get playing in the Majors in a pressure situation. It's why Wakamatsu wanted Morrow to develop as a starter with Seattle instead of Tacoma. You can work on your ability in the minors, but struggling and succeeding in the bigs tells you a lot about a guy's character, and that's one of the last things the team needs to evaluate on Saunders. They know he can hit. They know he'll be able to field. Now they just need to know if he can handle the big leap, and there's only one way for them to find out.

I'm excited. I like Ryan Langerhans, and I'm thrilled to have him around, but I've made no secret of my affection for Saunders, and I can't wait to find out what he can bring to the table. This is a 22 year old average to above-average defender who's come back from injury to hit .310/.378/.544 in AAA. He's a lefty, he can hit for power, he can draw a walk, and his ability to make contact has improved significantly from where it was a year ago. There's very little superstar upside, and Saunders isn't going to get any awards or honors named after him, but 6+ years of Randy Winn-level production for cheap has a lot of value, and this weekend he'll get to begin what should be a long and underrated Major League career. That's awesome, and I wish him all the luck in the world.

This is the first of what could be a series of interesting days for the Mariners. One prospect is gone, one prospect has arrived, and we may be on the verge of landing a long-term shortstop. While it sucks that we should probably go ahead and wave goodbye to the 2009 pennant race, the fun isn't over. No; the fun is just beginning.

0 recs  |  Comment 17 comments |

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I'm much more excited about this team than I was before bed last night

This is really fun

I want to poop at your house - Thingray

by tootthekazoo on Jul 25, 2009 11:49 AM PDT reply actions   0 recs

Its only fun if shit happens.

I don’t remember the last trade deadline when the team made moves I was excited about, aside form firing people.

De Gutibus non disputandum est

by Bearskin Rugburn on Jul 25, 2009 11:52 AM PDT up reply actions   0 recs

If the Pirates want Wlad for Ian Snell

I am going to send Huntington a thank you card.

De Gutibus non disputandum est

by Bearskin Rugburn on Jul 25, 2009 11:51 AM PDT reply actions   0 recs

Langerhans is one of the best defensive outfielders in the bigs

Saunders has all the tools to be pretty good, but from my understanding (and someone please correct me if I’m wrong) he’s still somewhat raw. I’d expect him to be somewhere in the vicinity of average (maybe 0 —> +5) with +10 upside?

by Jeff on Jul 25, 2009 11:59 AM PDT up reply actions   0 recs

No kidding

I want to poop at your house - Thingray

by tootthekazoo on Jul 25, 2009 12:12 PM PDT up reply actions   0 recs

I know they pay millions for the broadcast rights

and if I’m at the negotiating table for the network I would argue for the same thing, but MLB gave away the store with that “window” rule. They voluntarily mandated that less of their product be broadcast in the markets where that product is available (see National Football League). Dumb dumb dumb.

by lemonverbena on Jul 25, 2009 12:18 PM PDT up reply actions   0 recs

I wonder

if Wlad’s passport hadn’t been dropped into “some water”, and he hadn’t then ripped pages out of it, if things wouldn’t have progressed differently. Even if taken at face value, that story demonstrated to the new front office and coaching staff that he was a knucklehead who didn’t take his career very seriously. He got a late start and Endy was well established once Wlad finally got to Peoria.

Bu-bye, Wlad. Your 3-year-old cousin dropped your career in the toilet.

by lemonverbena on Jul 25, 2009 12:09 PM PDT reply actions   0 recs

Randy Winn HRs 2001-2008:

6
14
11
14
20 (6 with Seattle, 14 with San Francisco)
11
14
10

For an average of 12.5 per year. Excluding this year and his first 3 years where he didn’t appear to get regular playing time. Do you think Saunders could eclipse 20 HR at any point? Winn hit 14 HR in his first 58 games with San Francisco to achieve that. I’d be happy if Saunders could hit 15 on average, I think.

Addicted To Quack [dot] com; Good luck in the WNBA, Kamyron!

by qrsouther on Jul 25, 2009 12:36 PM PDT up reply actions   0 recs

Exciting.

Also – man, Randy Winn went on a tear in the second half of that 2005 season as a Giant.

Addicted To Quack [dot] com; Good luck in the WNBA, Kamyron!

by qrsouther on Jul 25, 2009 12:39 PM PDT up reply actions   0 recs

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