I've brought up Bartolo Colon's name several time this offseason as a guy the Mariners should try to sign. The offseason is entering it's final stages and I think it's time to rule Colon out as part of Seattle's 2008 rotation.
3 reasons:
- He is looking for $8-9M guaranteed annually and a multiyear deal, according to Bob Dutton.
- Impacto Deportivo reports that Colon has yet to hit 90 MPH in winter ball.
- There has been no official reports of any type of negotiations between Colon and the Mariners since November.
The third is probably the most obvious reason that Colon will not land in Seattle, but since when have I needed an official report to speculate? The fact that Colon has yet to hit 90 on the radar guns indicates he may not be fully recovered or may be pitching with pain. He has put together some nice outings down there, but I would be reluctant to sign him until I knew his arm strength was where it should be. Even if it was, signing him to a multiyear contract would be risky. I can deal with $8-9M, considering I predicted about $10M earlier this offseason, but he is no longer low risk if you can't dump him after 2008. I can't see anyone signing him to more than a single season, at least until he shows off a few low-to-mid 90s heaters.
I don't see the Mariners going after Colon. He could be great, but if Mariners are going to add another starter it's going to be (or at least should be) someone proven and healthier.
Besides, his offseason conditioning hasn't been going so well, as you can see from the picture below.
Just kidding.
2 comments:
Yeah, as an Angels fan, I'm pretty fed up with Colon myself. Your picture above isn't too far off--I mean the man's out of shape for sure. His devastating fastball has become average at best and he's at the age where, as a pitcher, there is a great chance he will get banged up.
I'll be VERY interested to see where he ends up, however, and for how much. I think it's pretty clear he'll be leaving the AL West.
Farid
http://thetradingblock.blogspot.com/
I agree Jon. IF Colon was healthy he could potentially be a big help for our rotation. 1 year for 8-10 million is a low risk/high reward situation. But if Colon apparently isn't even able to hit 90 mph, then one should seriously question if he is indeed healthy.
Anyone heard anything about David Wells or is he hanging it up?
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