Well that didn't last long. Probably should have known better than to start a new thread during the Winter meetings. Hopefully this thread lasts a little bit longer than its predecessor; we don't want to flood the FanPosts box with nothing but 1000-comment rumor threads for JY to mod.

Anyways. This is the fourth part of the ongoing thread for all 2012-2013 offseason roster discussion. It's an all-purpose thread for consolidating Mariners rumors and baseball offseason discussion that doesn't fit in other threads. If you find a rumor on Twitter or some other site and it hasn't yet received its own post from Jeff or Matthew, this is the place to discuss it.

In a change from the first three of these threads, please try to avoid rosterbation in here. Discussing targets is fine, but arguments over trade proposals tend to fill the threads up really fast with arguing. We didn't get many in the last thread anyways, so I'm assuming LL is kinda spent on that front. This is probably a good thing for the sanity of the general population; hopefully the refractory period lasts a while.

So. Rumors! This is the place for them.

Have some discussion prompts.

The big one that everyone wants to discuss, of course, is Josh Hamilton. He's the big new hope. Do you think that the Mariners can land him? Do you want the Mariners to land him? (I myself am more than a little conflicted on this second point. I dunno. He's a great ballplayer and all, but having him in a Mariners uniform just wouldn't feel right, y'know?)

What of these secondary outfield rumors? They've died down a bit, but one source recently told Jason Churchill that the Mariners are closer to a big trade than they are to a big free agent signing. Do you put any stock in that, or do you think it's just rival-executive meddling?

Who the heck are the Mariners going to get to be their newest starting pitcher? What is this Derek Holland business? Is he desirable for the Mariners as is, or would he have to shave first?

Anyways--have at it. Have fun discussing and theorizing and rumor-mongering, and try not to get into any flame wars. A very merry offseason to you all!