I get caught up in the countdown to pitchers and catchers as much as the next baseball fanatic, but every year it turns out to be a letdown.  The same thing that happens the days following pitchers and catchers also occurs and pretty much every day in Peoria, Arizona– men employed by Major League Baseball teams play catch, take a little BP, get haircuts– but it isn’t covered by the press until that first reporting day.  I appreciate the service those reporters provide, but I’ll appreciate it more if I’m ever able to get my expectations in check.  I don’t know what it is I’m hoping for; I just know it’s more.

Thankfully, Spring Training is in full swing, which means a few more meaningful stories.  One of the early developments in camp is the competition in left field between Michael Saunders and Milton Bradley.

Manager Eric Wedge, via Geoff Baker:

Wedge won’t place a favorite on the left field job. He told us he doesn’t think Saunders needs to prove he can play every day in spring training.

The team instead will see what stage Saunders is at and determine at that point how he can best help the team. Bradley will get a shot at the every day job in left, especially if he can return to the form he displayed during his last “contract” year in 2008.

“I think it’s safe to say that if he’s healthy, he can have the greatest impact out there for us,” Wedge said.

I’m sure many of viewed Saunders as the favorite coming into camp.  There were — are — plenty of reasons that lead to that assumption, including Bradley’s abysmal 2010, his offseason arrest and the Mariners’ need to figure out if Saunders is part of their next contender.

I don’t disagree with Wedge. A truly healthy Bradley would be a decent bet to outproduce Saunders at the plate without giving up much if anything in the field.  That would be best for the team’s chances in 2011.  It wouldn’t, however, be the best move for 2012 and beyond.

But while Wedge’s comments surprised and intrigued some people, I’m not sure how much has changed since the offseason.  Baker, again, in a follow up post:

Wedge was asked where Bradley fits into his plans.

“I see him in left field and DH both,” he said. “Jack (Cust) is obviously going to get the bulk of time at the DH spot. But with Milton being a switch-hitter, that helps him.”

If Bradley does enough to make the team and if Saunders does the same, I suspect we’ll see an arrangement similar to the one we’ve been expecting all along.  That is, Saunders in left, Cust at DH, and Bradley drifting between as a part-time platoon partner.  Bradley would have plenty of at bats if he were able to pick up (say) a quarter of the DH at bats and a similar fraction of the left field at bats, more or less depending on how good he is this season.

If Bradley comes alive and forces his way into a more prominent role it could get interesting in a hurry.  Does Saunders get locked into bench spot as he continues down the Gross/Gerut/Langerhans career path?  Or do they send him to a crowded outfield situation in Tacoma to continue working on his swing with Alonso Powell?  Neither one does much to help us determine whether Saunders can be relied upon in 2012.

I like Saunders a lot.  He has outstanding physical tools and showed some previously untapped power last season.  But if the Mariners were in a good position to win I wouldn’t mind pigeon holing him into a platoon role or using him as the fourth outfielder.  I just don’t have enough faith in the swing to make enough contact, especially against lefties.  Seeing him struggle to make contact and get chewed up by lefties at detriment to the team would be tough, especially if he didn’t come out an above average left fielder.

Luckily for Saunders, I don’t think the Mariners aren’t quite at that point.  Unluckily for Saunders, I doubt that Wedge and GM Jack Zduriencik feel the same way.  This year’s squad isn’t awful, but just about everything would have to go right for them to have a shot.

Are they willing to let Saunders do some wrong?