Mariners Moose Tracks, 1/9/17: Jerry Dipoto Interviews, Mel Stottlemyre Update, and the Golden Globes

Good morning everyone! I hope you all had an exciting weekend full of Mariners trades and more. One thing that I haven’t done enough of this offseason is listen to the various Mariners-produced podcasts to hear all of the interesting things Jerry Dipoto has to say.

Yesterday I took a listen to his appearance on The Hot Stove with Shannon Drayer. The interview took place a month ago but given that Dipoto didn’t do much since then, it’s all still relevant info.

Perhaps I’m blinded by optimism, but Dipoto does a very good job at getting me excited for the season. He praised a ton of players in the interview such as Mitch Haniger, James Pazos, Carlos Ruiz, and more. He’s also super transparent about what he likes and values. That’s so much different from Jack Z where we all knew he liked bat-first, defense-last players but he would never say as much.

Here’s to hoping that his process pays off. Because if it doesn’t work in 2017, it’ll be a much steeper climb afterwards with an aging core.

Now, onto the rest of the day’s news.

In Mariners news...

• Check out Marc W’s excellent write-ups on this weekend’s trades (Gallardo link, Dyson link).
• Tyler Carmont at Prospect Insider figures out where all of these outfielders fit in the M’s lineup next season.
• The Mariners have yet to officially announce non-roster big league Spring Training invites, but minor league starter Dylan Unsworth made an announcement that he’ll be taking part come February.

• I don’t know whether this is hinting at early Spring Training or just a winter workout, but it’s great to hear that the M’s top prospect is getting back to work.

• This is another insider-only piece, but Buster Olney ranked Jean Segura as the eighth-best shortstop in the majors.
• Some good news to report: Mel Stottlemyre, Sr. has returned home from the hospital.

Around the league...

• For some odd reason, the Indians placed a clause in Edwin Encarnacion’s contract that gives him more money if the Tribe is able to draw more fans to the ballpark.
• Jose Bautista is in deep trouble until he can lower his contract expectations, writes David Schoenfeld.
• Eno Sarris at Fangraphs tries to break the stigma that Rajai Davis is a bad defensive center fielder.
• None of today’s starting pitchers are likely to make the Hall of Fame given the current standards, writes Craig Edwards at Fangraphs.
• The famously stingy Murray Chass submitted his Hall of Fame ballot with exactly zero boxes checked. Read his reasoning if you dare.
• Manny Ramirez is back in baseball...kinda. The former MLB outfielder signed a deal with an independent Japanese team.

Anders’ picks...

• The Oakland Raiders made history in a 27-14 playoff loss to the Houston Texans by forcing a rookie quarterback into the fray.
• Miss the Golden Globes last night? Here’s the complete award list.