A year ago, Jack Zduriencik flew to the winter meetings with Seattle Mariners fans and every other general manager in Major League Baseball wondering what he planned to do about a team that had lost 101 games.
When Zduriencik flew home, he’d changed the direction of a franchise and pulled off the trade of the offseason – landing Franklin Gutierrez, Endy Chavez, Jason Vargas, Mike Carp and Aaron Heilman, who in turn was dealt for Garrett Olson.
One move gained five players who contributed to what became an 85-win team.
No one wonders about Zduriencik or his approach today, and he has flown to the 2009 winter meetings in Indianapolis, which begin Monday, with a reputation for knowing what he wants and finding a way to get it.
Predecessor Bill Bavasi tried building around power – Richie Sexson, Adrian Beltre, Scott Spiezio, Miguel Olivo, Jose Guillen, Carl Everett – and the Mariners floundered.
Zduriencik’s approach may be best exemplified by the yet-to-be-announced signing of free agent third baseman Chone Figgins.
Under Zduriencik, Seattle has embraced pitching and defense, a style that plays wells in Safeco Field, and players whose tools include more than the ability to hit a baseball a long way.
What Zduriencik did in his first year was trust his scouting instincts and those of the men around him – assistants Tony Blengino and Carmen Fusco – and fill holes with players other teams might have overlooked.
Gutierrez, for instance, was a right field platoon player in Cleveland. David Aardsma was a middle reliever in Boston. Russell Branyan was a 33-year-old power hitter who’d spent much of 2008 in the minor leagues.
So when Zduriencik says he’s going to Indianapolis having done his homework, Mariners fans and other general managers believe him.
“Every club evaluates their talent a little differently, and some rate players higher than others, some lower,” Zduriencik said.
That’s typical Zduriencik – tossing out what would appear to be a vanilla response that, upon review, resonates. What he has done in Seattle, and what he will continue to do this week, is find players to fill holes, just like every other GM.
Zduriencik, however, has a scouting system in place that has what amounts to depth charts: players on other teams, in other farm systems, that Seattle believes can do more than they’ve done.
In Figgins, the Mariners are about to land the first big free agent of the Zduriencik era, a player with an obvious history of success on a winning team.
What he’ll more likely do next is what he’s done throughout his first full year on the job – target athleticism in the field, the ability to throw strikes from the mound. The Mariners’ success in ’09 was bolstered after the huge J.J. Putz trade with small acquisitions like those of Aardsma, Ian Snell, Branyan, Mike Sweeney, Jack Hannahan, Ryan Langerhans and Bill Hall.
Zduriencik remade the 25-man roster last year, and he’s at it again.
“We’re juggling a lot of balls, seeing what our club looks like,” Zduriencik said. “We’ve done our work, now we’ll see what happens.”
With Figgins expected to fill a hole at third base and Jack Wilson ensconced at shortstop, Zduriencik will look for a first baseman – and yes, it could mean signing Branyan to another one-year contract – a left fielder and more pitching.
“Left field is a little up in the air, and we’d like to add a right-handed bat,” Zduriencik said. “That could be at first base or DH, depending upon what happens. Everyone wants to upgrade their pitching. We like ours, but you always look to shore up and upgrade.”
The Mariners also are open to acquiring minor league talent.
“We’d like our minor league system to be a feeder system for the ballclub,” Zduriencik said. “We’re not there yet.”
On the free agent market, Zduriencik is open to high-risk possibilities such as Rich Harden, Ben Sheets, even Erik Bedard; he is willing to take a chance – at the right price – on a pitcher with a history of success and injury.
He’s also armed with ammunition on the trade front, with hard-throwing right-handers Brandon Morrow and Mark Lowe, with a second baseman with power in Jose Lopez, who’ll make $2.3 million next season with a $4.5 million club option for 2011.
Lopez alone won’t bring much in return, largely because of his mediocre fielding and an on-base percentage of .303. Still, packaged with other players, he could be dealt for players whose abilities are better suited to the team model Zduriencik is following.
After what he did at the winter meetings a year ago – that three-team, nine-player trade – Zduriencik built an act that may be impossible to follow. If he comes up with another multi-player deal this week in Indianapolis, no other GM would be surprised.
There’s one more base to touch this week for Seattle – Felix Hernandez. No, he’s not on the trade table. Zduriencik plans to meet, at least informally, with Felix’s agent, Alan Nero.
Zduriencik may not come home with a contract extension on his ace, who’s under team control through 2011, but his plan is to set the groundwork and push the process along.
larry.larue@thenewstribune.com
blog.thenewstribune.com/mariners/
Top 10 Free Agents
Player Comments Best bet
John Lackey The only true top-of-rotation guy available.Angels
Matt HollidayLineup need a jolt? Best hitter on the market.Angels
Jason Bay Second-best hitter on the market.Red Sox
Rich HardenA health risk, but teams are all over him. Dodgers
Hideki MatsuiConsistent, productive, clutch – and now a DH.Yankees
Nick Johnson Little power, but seems this winter’s 1B of choice. Giants
Randy WolfDependable, mid-rotation starter in shallow field.Brewers
Miguel TejadaNot much of a SS any more. Can still hit. Athletics
Adrian Beltre Great glove, great guy, could surprise with bat. Angels
Jim ThomeA DH en route to the Hall of Fame? Needs right fit. Indians
Larry LaRue, The News Tribune
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