Something caught my eye the other day while surfing the Internet—an interesting piece of sports gossip I had yet to come across.
This article said Boston Red Sox All-Star left fielder Jason Bay currently lives about 15 minutes from Safeco Field.
On the record, let me say that Bay is most likely staying with the Sox, who have a better record and a pair of recent titles compared to the Mariners' lack of a World Series appearance.
But with bloated contracts like those of Jarrod Washburn, Miguel Batista and Adrian Beltre coming off the books, is it too far out of left field to think the Mariners don't have a shot at the guy?
Seattle improved by 24 games (61 to 85 wins) in a one-year span with a lower payroll. The club has fully bought into the Jack Zduriencik-Waka theory, and it has paid off big—that duo alone will attract better free agents to the team now that Bill Bavasi is gone.
Even if management does not increase payroll, they still have about $45 million in funny money to throw around. With that, they need some pitching (bring Washburn back, please), a new third baseman, a new left fielder and, potentially, a new catcher.
With our recent success bringing in what people deemed as scraps (Russell Branyan, David Aardsma, Mike Sweeney), the boys at the top should be amenable to giving Jack-Z a larger payroll to work with (which would increase that $45 million figure).
Simply put, the pocketbook is deep enough to make a run at free agency's top prize.
The "playing close to home" factor cannot be ignored either, and the fact that the Mariners are a winning team with a solid foundation makes them a player for Bay. They could make a $20 million-per-year offer to him and let the other factors work their magic in persuading him.
This free agent class has some marquee names. But beyond Matt Holliday, Brandon Webb and a few studs at the top, it is mostly veteran retreads.
Unless the Mariners are trying to cut payroll, a $20 million-per-year contract offer to Bay would leave them with $25 million that they would be hard-pressed to spend.
There's no reason for the Mariners to be shy. Bavasi is gone and Zduriencik has yet to make a blunder as a GM. (Even Mike Sweeney had a .281 batting average)
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