[nfbwatlk] Mariners' Trades

Thu Jul 30 00:11:10 UTC 2009

Well, the new general manager is making some of us happy by actually
doing something before the trade deadline.  Here's a Seattle Time
Article about this:

The Seattle Times <http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/text/>  
Mariners 

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Wednesday, July 29, 2009 - Page updated at 04:30 p.m. 

Mariners acquire Jack Wilson, Ian Snell from Pirates 

By Larry Stone 
Seattle Times staff reporter 

The Mariners have acquired shortstop Jack Wilson and right-handed
pitcher Ian Snell from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for shortstop
Ronny Cedeno, minor-league catcher/first baseman Jeff Clement and
minor-league right-handed pitchers Nathan Adcock, Brett Lorin and Aaron
Pribanic.

"This was an opportunity for us to acquire a veteran shortstop, a former
All-Star player, with leadership qualities and above-average defensive
skills," Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik said in a statement
released by the team. "As we move forward over the next few years it is
nice to know that we have solidified the shortstop position.

"We also acquired Ian Snell, a talented pitcher with major-league
experience who now has an opportunity to restart his career after a very
successful reassignment in Indianapolis."

Cedeno will join the Pirates. Clement has been assigned to Class AAA
Indianapolis. Pribanic and Lorin have been assigned to Class A West
Virginia of the South Atlantic League and Adcock will join Class A
Lynchburg of the Carolina League.

Wilson will take over as the Mariners' regular shortstop. He was due to
fly into Seattle today from San Francisco, where the Pirates played last
night, but was not expected to arrive by game time. Zduriencik said
Snell is likely to start out in Tacoma but will probably soon join the
Mariners' rotation.

The Mariners made a second deal today, trading outfielder Wladimir
Balentien to Cincinnati for right-handed pitcher Robert Manuel.

Manuel, a reliever, was picked last year by MiLB.com <http://milb.com/>
as the best reliever in the minors. He appeared in three games for the
Reds this year, for a total of 4 1/3 innings, and didn't allow a run. He
was 3-4 with a 2.70 ERA at Class AAA Louisville.

Balentien had been designated for assignment on Sunday after hitting
.213 in 155 at-bats with the Mariners this season.

Wilson, 31, is in the final year of a three-year, $20.2 million contract
that pays him $7.25 million this season. He has an $8.4 million option
for 2010 with a $600,000 buyout.

Wilson has spent his entire major-league career with the Pirates. Since
2006, Wilson has the fourth-highest fielding percentage among all
major-league shortstops (.980). He was an All-Star in 2004 and is
hitting .267 with four homers and 31 runs batted in this season, with 18
doubles.

Snell, 27, is 2-2, with a 0.96 ERA in six starts with AAA Indianapolis
this season, striking out 47 in 37 1/3 innings. He started the season
with the Pirates and was 2-8 with a 5.36 ERA in 15 starts before being
sent to Indianapolis. Snell was a 14-game winner for the Pirates in 2006
and considered one of the NL's rising young pitchers until struggling
the past two-plus seasons.

Cedeno, 26, had taken over as the Mariners' shortstop following the
trade of Yuniesky Betancourt, but was struggling at the plate. Cedeno is
in the midst of an 0-for-26 slump and his average is sitting at .167. He
arrived from the Cubs in the offseason with Garrett Olson in a trade for
Aaron Heilman.

"Ronny is a solid major-league defensive-oriented shortstop," said
Pittsburgh GM Neal Huntington in a Pirates release. "We feel we can help
him become more productive with the bat, while his defense helps our
pitching staff."

Clement, 25, was the third overall pick in the star-studded draft of
2005, a left-handed-hitting catcher out of USC. But he has had knee
problems that have kept him from catching for much of this season. He
has been playing DH and first base for Tacoma but is reportedly healthy
again and ready to resume catching in the near future.

Clement was hitting .288 with Class AAA Tacoma with 14 homers and 68
RBI. He had a .366 on-base percentage. In 75 games with the Mariners in
2007-08, Clement hit .237 with seven homers and 26 RBI.

"Our scouts have consistently projected Clement to be an everyday
major-league contributor with the power to hit 20-plus home runs,"
Huntington said. "He has been an extremely highly-regarded prospect
since he was drafted and has performed consistently since then, showing
the tools to be a quality offensive player."

Adock was 5-7 with a 5.29 ERA in 21 games, 19 starts, with High Desert
in the California League this season. Lorin (5-4, 2.44 in 16 starts) and
Pribanic (7-6, 3.21 in 17 starts) were both pitching with Clinton in the
Midwest League.

Adcock was a fifth-round draft choice in 2006; Lorin was a fifth-round
pick in 2008; Pribanic was a third-round pick in 2008.

"Aaron has been highly regarded since he was drafted in the third round
out of the University of Nebraska in 2008 by Seattle," Huntington said
of Pribanic. "He put up excellent numbers in his first full professional
season. He has a heavy four-seam fastball that reaches up to 93 miles
per hour and a two-seam fastball with significant sinking and tailing
life low in the zone that has allowed him to get ground balls."

Of Lorin, he said: "Brett has been noted by our scouts for his plus
makeup, competitive nature and desire to win and succeed. He complements
his solid fastball that can touch the mid-90s with a curveball that has
shown tight rotation and the form to project to an above-average
major-league curveball."

And of Adcock: "Nathan has shown our scouts quality pitching instincts,
including a curveball that was ranked the best in Seattle's system by
Baseball America. Despite pitching in the worst pitcher's park in
baseball in High Desert of the California League, Adcock has shown the
ability to get ground balls with an advanced three-pitch mix and the
ability to locate his 91-plus mile per hour fastball, which are crucial
tools in a major-league pitcher."

Copyright (c) 2009 The Seattle Times Company 