A couple more tidbits to close off the work week.

Dickey has the scoop

R.A. Dickey, on being removed from the 40-man roster: “Their explanation for me was they wanted to clear some roster spots and pursue some free agents position-player-wise. There’s obviously a need there.”

The Mariners don’t need four open spots for the Rule 5 draft, that’s for sure.

The free agent rumors have been all over the place so far, making it impossible to determine what kind of team GM Jack Zduriencik is planning on building.  Will it be a team that is a sure-fire contender, a potential dark horse, or a rebuilding cellar dweller?  Time will tell, but at this point it could be any of the three.

That means Seattle could be pursuing all kinds of free agents, as you’ve probably figured out by now.  They could go for starts, could go for role players, and will probably dabble a bit in both.

Shortstop market

Top free agent shortstop Rafael Furcal may not become an Oakland Athletic after all.  According to Ken Rosenthal, Furcal and his agent rejected the A’s 4-year, $35-40M contract offer.  The A’s seemed like a lock for Furcal, but now he’s back to square one.

I wouldn’t feel totally comfortable going four years for Furcal, or ponying up the money he is reportedly after, but I can’t help but think about how nicely he’d fit in the lineup behind Ichiro.

On the Jack Wilson front, the Pirates are looking to get Matt Joyce or Jeff Larish from the Tigers in return for the shortstop.

That is crazy!  Wilson is not worth either of those players, in my opinion.  I’ll admit that I probably overrate Joyce a bit because I’ve managed to develop a mancrush on him this offseason, but Larish isn’t anything particularly special, and even he isn’t worth it.  Wilson isn’t that good.  He’s a good glove, and Yuniesky Betancourt in the batter’s box, and way overpaid.

If I’m Zduriencik, I’m calling Detroit first thing in the morning and wiggling my way into these talks.  I can see the Tigers overpaying for Betancourt, and Putz would be of interest to them as well.  I would love to have Joyce in the Mariners’ 2009 outfield, and Larish would add some okay 1B/3B depth to Seattle or Tacoma.  While the Tigers farm system is very weak, they do have some interesting youth on their 40-man roster worth asking about, even beyond those two.

Kevin Millar

Millar, speaking about his free agent status to the Baltimore Sun:

“Obviously, I’m in a holding pattern along with the other 170 free agents out there,” Millar said. “Of course, I’d love to tell you today that I’m going back to the Orioles, or I’m going to the Seattle Mariners. But you need a couple of pieces to start falling. You just have to wait this out, but I’d love to go back to Baltimore.”

This isn’t a rumor, obviously, but Millar mentioned the Mariners because he surely knows they have an opening at first base, more or less.

Problem is, Millar doesn’t offer much at age 37.  He still walks a ton, registering over 70 bases on balls in each of his last two seasons, but that’s about his only attribute worth noting at this point.  He’s lost his ability to hit for a respectable average, is a below average defender, doesn’t have enough pop left to make it in Safeco Field, and he wouldn’t be a good platoon partner for Russell Branyan as his splits have been very balanced throughout his career.  No thanks.