Teixeira’s Decision Will Affect Mariners

by ~ December 20th, 2008 at 12:07 am

The chances of the Seattle Mariners signing free agent slugger Mark Teixeira are right around zero percent unless something extremely unexpected happens, but that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t be paying attention.  Teixeira’s final destination could influence what kind of free agent slugger GM Jack Zduriencik can bring to Seattle.

In the last post, I talked briefly about how Seattle appears to be making the right call in their search for a power bat as they are “waiting for bargains to develop.”  Basically, with a little luck Seattle can catch one of the high profile DH/LF/1B types begging for a job and willing to sign for much less than they wanted.

Upper Tier: Milton Bradley, Bobby Abreu, Adam Dunn, Jason Giambi, Pat Burrell

Lower Tier: Eric Hinske, Jim Edmonds, Ken Griffey, Garret Anderson

If I’m interpreting things right (or, alternatively, if things go how I’m hoping), Zduriencik is going to wait the market out and nab whoever is left of these guys later on this offseason at a price that is below market value.  As stated, Teixeira can significantly affect who is available.

Some of the teams that are potentially in on Teixeira don’t have one of the names listed above as a possible backup plan; teams like the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees and possibly the Baltimore Orioles.  If one of those teams sign Teixeira it doesn’t benefit Seattle one bit, because the market for the names listed above doesn’t get any smaller.

On the other hand, the Washington Nationals and Los Angeles Angels are both planning on acquiring an impact bat even if they miss out on Teixeira.  If one of these teams lands Teixeira, the market for the guys mentioned above shrinks by one team, and gives Seattle more leverage in negotiations with one of them about a month or so from now.

Basically, I’d say we should be rooting for the Nationals to sign Teixeira.  That way, the market for the DH/1B/LF guys decreases and gives the Mariners a better chance.  Plus, the Angels don’t benefit from having Teixeira in their lineup.

Unfortunately, I think Tex is going to sign with the Orioles or Red Sox, but you never know.

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  • BoiseM

    So if it’s the Yankees that land Texiera, then the Angels jump on ManRam??? The market for Man Ram seems to be just the Angels, Dodgers, and the Yanks

    I’d rather see Texiera land out east if ManRam is the Angels fallback plan.

    Any chance the Yanks go for Texiera …and ManRam? I know Manny prefers to play for NY. They potentially still have money to spend still, since they’re not paying Mussina, Giambi, Abreu, and Pettite. That seems like the worst case scenario for us getting a bargain slugger.

    I’d sure like Tex to make up his mind so the chips start falling into place.

  • http://bleedingblueandteal.com Jon Shields

    Rotoworld:

    The Angels confirmed Sunday that they have pulled out of the bidding for free agent Mark Teixeira’s services.

    This seems much less like a bargaining ploy than Boston’s “we’re not going to be a factor.” If they’re truly out of it for Teixeira, then they immediately become one of the favorites to sign Manny Ramirez. Pat Burrell could be another possibility. Adam Dunn, Bobby Abreu and Jason Giambi would seem to be less likely fits. If the season started tomorrow, the Angels would likely have Kendry Morales at first, Gary Matthews Jr. in left and Vladimir Guerrero and Juan Rivera splitting time between right field and DH. Dec. 21 – 7:09 pm et

    Best case scenario for us getting a bargain slugger at this point might be for the Nats to get Tex (sounds unlikely right now) and the Angels to pick Manny. Then, the market shrinks by two teams.

  • http://myspace.com/tr1ckz pmbaseball7

    Thank god he won’t be in our division. I hope he goes to the Nats. The AL West is going to be wide open in ’09, even if the Angels sign Manny or Burrell.