Similar reactions may have been heard on the left coast when Seattle Mariners fans found out their young stud pitcher Michael Pineda was headed east. The Yankees and Mariners have reportedly completed a four player exchange with their young studs as the centerpieces.

As first reported by the Seattle Times’ Larry Stone, the Yankees sent Montero and pitcher Hector Noesi to the Mariners for Pineda and pitcher Jose Campos. Noesi was one of the Yankees promising young starters on the rise, and showed some of his mettle as a reliever at the Major League level last season. Campos is a 19-yr old right-hander with potential (Evaluator John Sickels rated him as the #5 M’s prospect for 2012 and had this to say, “Grade B: We need to see him at higher levels and his secondary stuff needs refinement, but his upside is very high, he throws hard, and already throws strikes.”), but will not have an impact for quite some time.

Clearly this deal was about the Yankees need to boost their starting rotation and the Mariners need for a big bat. After being rebuffed in their attempt to acquire Felix Hernandez, the Yankees went after his young teammate (Pineda will be 23 next week).

Pineda’s rookie season of 2011 saw him finish 9-10, 3.74 with a 1.10 WHIP and 173 strikeouts in 171 innings.  The 6’7″, 260 pound native of the Dominican Republic limited AL hitters to a .211 batting average and gave up just 133 hits. He also held right-handed hitters to a .587 OPS with a torrid fastball and nasty slider. According to Fangraphs.com, Pineda averaged 94.7 mph on his fastball, the fourth best mark in the AL.

Pineda dominated in pitcher-friendly Safeco Field (2.92 ERA in 12 starts) and was much better in the first half before tiring down the stretch. In fact, the Mariners limited his innings per start over the final two months of the season.

With the Yankees lacking pop from the right side, Montero got the call to the bigs in August and produced a .996 OPS in 69 plate appearances.  Among Montero’s 17 hits were four home runs and four doubles, and he drove in 17 runs.  Montero has good power to the opposite field and averaged 18 home runs in his first four full seasons in the minor leagues.  He was nearly dealt to the Mariners at the 2010 trade deadline for Cliff Lee, but Seattle opted to obtain Justin Smoak from Texas instead.

In Montero, the Mariners get a player with 30 home run potential, even if their ballpark is not suited to a hitter’s needs. There were mixed feelings within the Yankees organization as to whether or not the 6’4″ Montero could make it in the Major Leagues as a catcher and that certainly played into the decision to deal him. With 1st base occupied (Mark Teixeira) and the DH slot needed to give the Yankees aging stars (Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, etc.) a rest, there wasn’t much room for Montero to flourish. With Seattle, he’ll get that chance.

Brian Cashman told the Bergen Record’s Bob Klapisch that he believes he took a big gamble.  ”I gave up a ton (for Pineda). To me, Montero is Mike Piazza. He’s Miguel Cabrera.” He may have taken a risk, but this deal appears to be a “win-win”, with both teams profiting. It also puts the Yankees back on top as the favorite in the AL East.

Cashman wasn’t done dealing on Friday night though. A short time after the trade was reported, word came that the Yankees and free agent pitcher Hiroki Kuroda had agreed to a one year contract, pending a physical, worth $10-11MM. Kuroda was thought to be seeking a $13MM deal.

Kuroda, who turns 36 in February, came over from Japan in 2008 and was 41-46 in four seasons with the LA Dodgers, despite a 3.46 ERA. He’s coming off a 13-16 season with a career low 3.07 ERA and a 3.7 WAR, also tops in his four seasons.

With the two acquisitions, the landscape of the Yankees’ starting rotation changed drastically. Prior to Friday evening, the Yankees five man squad was made up of ace CC Sabathia, 2nd year man Ivan Nova, the erratic A.J. Burnett, Phil Hughes, and surprise 2011 stand out, Freddy Garcia. Hughes’ immediate future is now up in the air and he could be used as trade bait to bring back a bat. The Yankees would most certainly rather trade Burnett, but the $33MM owed to him is an albatross around Cashman’s neck.

The Yankees would be looking for a short term, low salaried player. CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman reported tonight that Carlos Pena was among the bats that were piquing the Yankees interest.

Drew Sarver is a senior writer  for BaseballDigest.com.  You can also read his work at his blog, My Pinstripes. He can be contacted at mypinstripes@gmail.com and can be followed on Twitter at @BD_Sarver and @MyPinstripes.

Our featured bloggers that provided us with the in depth Report Card series that has just concluded are back to give everyone an in depth look at what the off season holds for the major league teams they cover.  A look at what each team needs, what each team has already gained and lost, and some of the youth in each team’s system will be examined in these articles.  You can find all of the author’s information at the bottom of the article.

Key Free Agents Leaving
David Aardsma is probably the biggest name to be released by the Mariners this off-season.  Aardsma was the Mariners closer in 2009 and 2010, before losing the 2011 season to injury.  Brandon League took over, and as expected, the Mariners waived goodbye to Aardsma.  Aardsma may return as a minor league free agent.

Adam Kennedy was signed before 2011 to provide some infield depth.  Kennedy started at least 23 games at every infield position, except he never played shortstop in 2011.

In the bullpen, Chris Ray and Jamey Wright are both free agents.  Between them, they pitched over 101 innings in 89 games.  Wright turned in one of his best statistical seasons for the Mariners.

Key Areas Needing Improvement
The Mariners are like a leaking ship that has plenty of holes.  Fortunately, it appears they have enough talent to fill those holes in-house (or on-ship) without having to dive too much in the free agent market.  The Mariners need to upgrade their overall offense.  They were last in the AL in batting average, runs, hits, total bases, RBIs, slugging, and on-base percentage.  Gm Jack Zduriencik does have ties to former Brewers slugger Prince Fielder, so the rumors are out there that the Mariners may go over Fielder to improve the offense instantly.

The Mariners will also look to bolster their bullpen, whether it’s to bring back Chris Ray and Jamey Wright, or elsewhere.  Overall, Seattle’s bullpen was not that bad statistically, so an extra arm or two could do wonders for the team.

Finally, the Mariners have a need at catcher.  Starter Miguel Olivo had a terrible offensive and defensive year.  Even though the Mariners need all the offense they can get, the team may be ok with a defensive catcher that doesn’t hit much, to give the pitching staff confidence.

Pieces That Are In Place
The infield is mostly set with 2009 third round pick Kyle Singer probably taking over at third, and hopefully providing more offense than Chone Figgins’ .188 batting average last year.  Brendan Ryan should enter 2012 as the starting shortstop while 2009 first round pick Dustin Ackley will start at second.  As of now Justin Smoak and Mike Carp will probably split time at first, with the non-starter still adding to the lineup at DH.

The outfield is set in right with Ichiro, and in center with Franklin Gutierrez, but left field should be an open competition.  Carlos Peguero and Mike Carp made some starts in left, as did trade deadline Casper Wells. Michael Saunders and Trayvon Robinson made spot starts.  Casper Wells probably has the inside track, having had starting experience with the Detroit Tigers

Possible Trade Pieces Within The Organization
The Mariners have some trade pieces at the major league level, but those pieces fit the profile of the youth movement the Mariners are going through.  Guys like Ackley, League, Carp, Smoak, and Singer are probably untouchable.  Ichiro would be an interesting name, but the chance of him getting moved is very slim.

In the farm system, the Mariners have some pitching prospects.  Taijuan Walker, Danny Hultzen, and James Paxton are arguably the top three pitching prospects, and could be packed in some combination should the Mariners have the chance.  Currently, the pitching rotation is fairly set, so the Mariners might not be scared to move a prospect if the price was right.

Nick Franklin is probably the top positional prospect.  He could play some short at some point, so he might not be moved.

Moves Already Completed
The Mariners addressed their need for a defensive catcher by trading for John Jaso from the Tampa Bay Rays.  Jaso won’t be a free agent until 2016.

2012 Rookie Outlook
The Mariners have given playing time to many of their top prospects like Ackley and Singer.  Because of the age of the team, no prospects are expected to be given must playing time, unless injuries arise.  Their top pitching prospects are more of the starting variety, but the rotation looks set as of right now.  If Charlie Furbush does not hold down the last rotation spot, the team may look to either Paxton or Hultzen, with Paxton having a bit more experience in the minors.

Nick Waddell
www.seamheads.com

These report cards were written by twenty nine talented individuals across the internet that keep a close eye on the team they cover.  It was the first of our “Featured Blogger” series.  The second part, an Off-Season Outlook, will be brought to you the remainder of this week.  The same writers will return in the Spring to provide a 2012 Season Preview about the teams.

This year’s Featured Bloggers are listed below along with their website and the link to their Report Card:

American League East
Baltimore Orioles - Austin Gisriel, Seamheads
Boston Red Sox – Michael Lynch, Seamheads
New York Yankees – William Tasker, The Flagrant Fan
Tampa Bay Rays – Yossi Feins, The Rays Rant
Toronto Blue Jays – Peter DeMarco, Some Thoughts On Baseball

American League Central
Chicago White Sox – Terry Keshner, Planet Back
Cleveland Indians – David Henderson, Tribe Cards
Detroit Tigers – Nick Waddell, Seamheads
Kansas City Royals – Todd Fertig, I-70 Baseball
Minnesota Twins – Von Hendry, Seamheads

American League West
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim – Bryan Grosnick, Roto Hardball
Oakland As – Jason Leary, Junk Ball
Seattle Mariners – Nick Waddell, Seamheads
Texas Rangers – Dan Edmonson, Chicken Fried Baseball

National League East
Atlanta Braves – Andrew Martin, Baseball Historian
Florida Marlins – Eddie Gilley, Eddie Gilley Blogspot
New York Mets – AC Wayne, Mets Public Record
Philadelphia Phillies – Matthew Buesing, Fire And Ice Sports
Washington Nationals – Aaron Somers , District On Deck

National League Central
Chicago Cubs – Robert Harris, Blue Batting Helmet
Cincinnati Reds – Gary Schatz, Full Of Schatz
Houston Astros – Michael Barr, Fan Graphs
Milwaukee Brewers – Paul Heinz, Paul Heinz.com
Pittsburgh Pirates – Ryan Sendek, Analysis Around The Horn
St. Louis Cardinals – Daniel Shoptaw , C70 At The Bat

National League West
Arizona Diamondbacks – Patrick Lagreid, Baseball On My Brain
Colorado Rockies – Michelle Hoag, Rockies Woman
Los Angeles Dodgers – Paul F Sullivan, Sully Baseball
San Diego Padres – Michael Metzger, Padres Trail
San Francisco Giants – Julian Levine, Giants Nirvana

Bill Ivie is the Assignment Editor for BaseballDigest.com and the founder of i70baseball.com, an official Baseball Digest website covering the Cardinals and Royals.

“Like” Baseball Digest on Facebook!

Follow Baseball Digest on Twitter!

BaseballDigest.com aims to keep up that tradition.  This season, we bring you a Report Card on each team in Major League Baseball from writers that cover that team directly.  At the bottom of each write up, you will find the writer’s name, website, and any other pertinent information.  

Before the 2011 season, the Seattle Mariners were viewed as more of a rebuilding team for Eric Wedge’s first year in the Pacific Northwest, mainly built around young ace Felix Hernandez.  The Mariners didn’t surprise anyone by finishing fourth in the AL West, but they did surprise a lot of people by ripping off a seventeen-game losing streak in July.  The Mariners were 43-43 before that losing streak, and never fully recovered, finishing 14 games below the .500 mark at 67-95

Rotation: B+
Despite the Mariners starters going 49- 75, they were sixth in the AL with a 4.04 ERA.  Starters also pitched the fourth-most innings (1021.1), and third-best batting average against (.252).  They had the second-most strikeouts with the third fewest walks in the AL, and the fourth-best WHIP.  The biggest downside to the starters, despite giving up the fifth-most homer runs in the AL (113) was that they had the worst run support in the AL (fourth-worst in MLB).  Mariners fans have a lot to look forward to in terms of starting pitchers because of the steps taken by the rotation this year.  All-Star Felix Hernandez turned in another good year in a so far stellar career leading the team in strikeouts, and leading the starters with a 3.31 strikeout-to-walk ratio.  Jason Vargas did not have a flashy year, but had decent, solid numbers.  Michael Pineda (who was signed as a free agent at age 16), showed why he was signed with some well-pitched games at the young age of 22, even being named to the All-Star team.  Former first round pick Blake Beavan, who came over from Texas in the Cliff Lee deal in 2010, notched 15 starts and showed some promise.

Doug Fister was the M’s best pitcher, but he was traded at the deadline to the Detroit Tigers for a package including pitchers Charlie Furbush and former first rounder Chance Ruffin.  Furbush made 10 starts, but was up-and-down.  He showed some promise in some games, and was rocked in others.

Overall, the rotation pitched well, but was doomed by the lack of run support.  M’s fans should be happy with the job the rotation did, and look forward to the future.

Bullpen: B
Like the starters, the relievers had good stats while not getting run support.  The Mariners bullpen had the third-best ERA and the lowest number of walks in the AL.  The relievers even limited opposing batters to a .249 batting average, gave up the fewest home runs in the AL, had the third fewest blown saves, and sixth-best WHIP.

Closer Brandon League saved 37 games for the Mariners and made the All-Star game.  It was League’s first chance to be a full-time closer after David Aardsma (who was the 2010 closer) missed the season due to an elbow injury.  David Pauley turned in a 2.15 ERA before being shipped to Detroit in the Doug Fister deal.  Veteran Jamey Wright led all relievers with 48 strikeouts.  Mid-season acquisition Chance Ruffin showed some promise in 14 innings of work.

BD Report Cards brought to you by Seamheads

Catchers: D
Starting catcher Miguel Olivo had more home runs (19) and more RBIs (62) than last year, but his batting average dropped to .224, on-base percentage dropped to .253 and slugging dropped to .388.  He was worst or second-worst in offensive stats of all catchers with at least 400 plate appearances.  His fielding percentage (.988) and errors (11) were the worst in the league as well.  Backup Josh Bard was just that, a backup.  He added little offensively, and had the same fielding percentage as Olivo.

Infield: C
Chone Figgins, Brendan Ryan, Dustin Ackley, and Justin Smoak were the primary infielders from left to right.  Figgins signed a large deal before 2010 to play in Seattle, but only played in 81 games with a .188 batting average.  After four years in St Louis, Brendan Ryan took his game to Seattle and had a career-high in RBIs (39) walks (34).  An interesting and useless fact about Ryan is that in his first two years in St. Louis, he had 9 doubles each year.  For the past three years, he has had 19 doubles per year.  Dustin Ackley, draft second overall in 2009, was called up in mid-June to take over second base from Jack Wilson.  He responded by hitting .273, with 6 home runs, and 36 RBIs.  He also led the team with a .348 on-base percentage.  Another 2009 draft pick, third-rounder Kyle Seager, was called up in August to take Figgins’ place and played decently while hitting .258.  Justin Smoak, a trade piece in the Cliff Lee deal in 2010, showed some power with 24 doubles, 15 home runs, and 55 RBIs, but only a .234 batting average to show for it.  He also struck out 105 times.  Free-agent acquisition Adam Kennedy, a career .275 hitter before this season, hit .234.

Fielding, the Mariners were lost at sea.  Brendan Ryan led the team with 15 errors.  Chone Figgins was third with 11, in only a half-season worth of work while Justin Smoak was fourth with 7.  Kennedy did play well defensively, mainly spending time at first and second.

Outfield: D+
Overall, Seattle had the worst batting average in MLB, and the outfield didn’t make anything better.  Even Ichiro, who never hit below .303 since he arrived in the league in 2001, hit .272.  Franklin Gutierrez missed time due to injury.  Youngsters Carlos Peguero, Trayvon Robinson, and Michael Saunders all got playing time in the outfield, but none showed any offensive prowess.  Even Casper Wells who was hitting .257 with Detroit, only hit .216 in Seattle with about the same number of at-bats.    In terms of fielding, all outfielders had fielding percentages under .990. At times, the Mariner outfield appeared to be on a boat adrift at sea.

Top Offensive Player
Dustin Ackley was the best of a bad lot.  His on-base percentage led the team, and the .273 was best for the starters.  Ackley gets the nod over utility man Mike Carp (who played a lot of first base in August) because of Ackley’s extra-base power.  Ackley hit 16 doubles, and 7 triples, to go along with 6 home runs.  Ackley’s numbers weren’t eye-popping, but were solid enough for a 23 year old in his first partial season of work at the big league level, and with less than 2 years minor league experience.

Top Pitcher
Surprisingly, naming a top pitcher is difficult for the Mariners.  Many pitchers pitched well in 2010, but it comes down to two: Doug Fister and Felix Hernandez. Honorable mention goes to young Michael Pineda, but the Mariner’s best pitcher as King Felix.  Fister was traded to the Tigers at mid-season, but not before being saddled with a 3-12 mark due to awful run support, contradicting his 3.33 ERA.  Hernandez gets the nod for his 14-14 record, 3.47 ERA, and 222 strikeouts.  Felix had the fourth-worst run support (only better than Tim Lincecum, Doug Fister, Paul Maholm, and Jered Weaver), yet still had 14 wins.  In 7 seasons (six full as a starter), Hernandez has 2 All-Star games and a Cy Young award to his name.

Nick Waddell
www.seamheads.com

Epstein fired manager Mike Quade on Wednesday after just a little over one season in Chicago. The Sun-Times has the story.

Dodgers fans are ecstatic that the McCourts are selling. The LA Times has the full story.

The Detroit Tigers’ Justin Verlander was the most dominant pitcher in the game en route to 24 wins. Jose Bautista didn’t match his 54 home runs of a year ago, but had another 40+ home run season. Lance Berkman looked like his career was done in 2010, but he hit 30 home runs this season and is an NL MVP candidate. Jacoby Ellsbury was the king of the AL DL a year ago, but this season was a candidate for both the comeback player of the year and AL MVP awards.

Curtis Granderson had a bust out season, topping 40 home runs for the first time in his career. Teammate Derek Jeter picked up his 3,000th hit, while another, Mariano Rivera, broke the all-time record for career saves. Across town, Jose Reyes won his first batting title in what might be his last year as a Met.  Albert Pujols had an “off” year and still hit 35 dingers and Matt Kemp met and exceeded all expectations.  With all of that in mind, the finalists for the individual awards in each league should look something like this…

AL MVP – Curtis Granderson and Robinson Cano (NY), Jacoby Ellsbury (BOS), Jose Bautista (TOR), Justin Verlander (DET)

AL Cy Young – Justin Verlander (Det)

AL Rookie of the Year – Jeremy Hellickson (TB), Ivan Nova (NY), Eric Hosmer (KC), Mark Trumbo (LA), J.P. Arencibia (TOR)

AL Manager of the Year – Manny Acta (CLE), Jim Leyland (DET), Ron Washington (TEX), Joe Girardi (NY)

AL Comeback Player of the Year – Jacoby Ellsbury (BOS), Melky Cabrera (KC)

NL MVP – Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder (MIL), Matt Kemp (LA), Lance Berkman (STL), Justin Upton (AZ)

NL Cy Young – Ian Kennedy (AZ), Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee (PHI), Clayton Kershaw (LA)

NL Manager of the Year – Kirk Gibson (AZ), Ron Roenicke (MIL), Clint Hurdle (PIT), Charlie Manuel (PHI)

NL Rookie of the Year – Freddie Freeman and Craig Kimbrel (ATL), Danny Espinosa (WAS), Javy Guerra (LA)

NL Comeback Player of the Year – Carlos Beltran (NY,SF), Lance Berkman (STL)

But baseball isn’t about the individual, it’s about the teams.

Early on the Indians, Royals, and Pirates played beyond expectation. In fact the Indians held first place in the AL Central for 85 days. The three teams would eventually fade, but the Arizona Diamondbacks did just the opposite. They were six games under .500 in mid-May, but played at a torrid pace the rest of the season to win the division title. Meanwhile Boston and Atlanta entered the final month of the season as virtual locks to make the post-season only to be eliminated on the final night of the season.

The LA Dodgers and the Mets had ownership and money issues, the Colorado Rockies and Cincinnati Reds were huge disappointments, and the Baltimore Orioles, despite much promise, finished last in the AL East for the fourth straight year. In the end the Yankees, Tigers, Rangers, Phillies, Brewers, and Diamondbacks captured their divisions while the Rays and Cardinals entered the playoffs as wild card entries.

What’s that? How did the Baseball Digest team do at predicting the post-season teams? Let’s take a look.

Well it appears, ahem, one person knew what they were talking about with the AL East. Yes, that would be me. Michael Maher, likewise, was the only one of our bunch who had the insight to pick the Tigers in the AL Central. He was also the only one to pick the Rays to win the AL wild card. Four out of seven dentist, er writers, chose the Rangers correctly in the AL West, while none of us had the Diamondbacks sniffing a title in the NL West.

Bill Ivie stuck his neck out picking the Braves to win the NL East, while everyone else selected the Phillies. Needless to say, his neck hurts. Bill’s beloved Cardinals didn’t win the NL Central as he had selected, but he was brought joy on the night of Game 162 when they made the post-season. Meanwhile Simon Sharkey-Gottlieb, Kirk Verner, and Matt Wilson all correctly chose the Brewers for the Central crown, but just like the NL West, no one got the NL wild card correct either. So the finally tally of correct predictions..drum roll please…four writers with 3 right each. Meanwhile Josh Landsburg, Mark Healey, and Bill Ivie…um, better luck next year. (In fairness, Bill did get 2 playoff teams correct, just in the wrong spots)

Michael Maher 3
Drew Sarver 3
Simon Sharkey-Gottlieb 3
Matt Wilson 3
Shai Kushner 2
Kirk Verner 2
Josh Landsburg 1
Mark Healey 1
Bill Ivie 0

Please check back after the league championship series for updated standings, and be sure to bookmark Baseball Digest to view all of our post-season coverage.

Drew Sarver is a senior writer  for BaseballDigest.com.  You can also read his work at his blog, My Pinstripes. He can be contacted at mypinstripes@gmail.com and can be followed on Twitter at @BD_Sarver and @MyPinstripes.

The PCL, pre-Major League expansion, could almost be considered “4-A” – not quite the level of play of the NL and AL, but nearly so, with some who could have played in the majors opting for the weather and other advantages of the West Coast.  In fact, there were several failed attempts to establish the PCL as a third Big League circuit.

In Pitchers of Beer: The Story of the Seattle Rainiers (University of Nebraska Press, 352 pps.), Dan Raley recounts how the team became one of the most popular in the PCL, with home-grown heroes like Fred Hutchinson and Edo Vanni and well-known stars like Rogers Hornsby and Johnny Pesky providing fodder for a breezy but well-researched narrative.

Sick, who had close ties with another beer baron, Yankees’ owner Jacob Ruppert, similarly rescued a moribund franchise, one that had hit such rock bottom that federal treasury agents had stormed the stadium and seized gate receipts to pay back taxes prior to his takeover of the team.  Thus began a colorful run as the owner who always put the team ahead of profits.  Sadly, but perhaps fittingly, Sick and Hutchinson, the two most prominent figures in Seattle baseball history, passed away within two days of each other, Hutchinson far too young at 45 to cancer.

And while the individual stories of the well-liked Joe Taylor, who had all the tools but succumbed to alcoholism, Bob Fesler, the softball-style windmill pitcher and many others make up the majority of the book, Pitchers also serves as a history of how expansion, television and other factors changed the game, particularly for the minor leagues.

The appearance of Hall of Famers such as Hornsby, Ted Williams and Babe Ruth further enliven Pitchers, especially for readers without a Seattle connection.  Shunned by the Yankees and other major league teams, Ruth inquired in 1941 about the Rainiers’ managing job, among the most prestigious in the minors, only to find out that the position had been filled just two days earlier by one of the Bambino’s nondescript teammates from years past, Bill Skiff.

That bit of poor timing on the part of the Babe notwithstanding, baseball maintained a prominent place in the Seattle landscape for decades on the minor league level, and while it met an inglorious end which coincided with an ill-fitting affiliation with the Los Angeles/California Angels in the mid-60′s, the Rainiers proved baseball could work in the Pacific Northwest, eventually leading to the Pilots and then the Mariners a decade later.

As we enter the end of the season and look forward to the playoffs for some teams and towards 2012 for others, it is time that the rookies of this season start getting some recognition and find the spotlight falling on them.

Here are three offensive players and three pitchers in the American League that qualify for the Rookie Of The Year award.  If you are not watching these guys by now, it is time to start.

The offensive rookies in the American League are a bit more clear cut.  The Royals own Eric Hosmer is putting together a solid season with a balanced attack and showing Royals fans that first base is a position they can get behind.  Angels fans would tell you that first base is definitely the position of the future for them as well as Mark Trumbo is killing the ball in Anaheim.  Toronto, on the other hand, has a catcher that is showing the he can handle the bat as well, and J.P. Arencibia is getting noticed quickly.

The Odds On Favorite For Rookie Of The Year
Sorry Royals fans, it is hard to argue with what Mark Trumbo is doing for the Angels.  He leads the American League rookies in Games Played and At Bats but there is a reason for that.  His .261 batting average and .301 on base percentage leave some room for improvement, but his power numbers are nothing to sneeze at.  With 20 doubles, 22 home runs, 63 runs batted in, and a .495 slugging percentage have him well in place to grab the Jackie Robinson Award in the American League this year.

The Runner Up
Royals fans can relax a little bit as Eric Hosmer is not too far behind Trumbo.  Hosmer is posting a .282 batting average while knocking 10 home runs and driving in 47 runs batted in.  Add in 19 doubles and a total of 93 hits and you can bet that the future has arrived in Kansas City and the future looks bright.

He Deserves A Look
Toronto’s young backstop, J.P. Arencibia may not be hitting for a good average, his is only .216, but what he is hitting is going a long way.  He is second to Trumbo for the most home runs by a rookie in the American League with 18 and pairs that with 52 runs batted in.  The drop off from there is tremendous, however, as he only posts 13 doubles and 3 triples, leaving him with a .452 slugging percentage.  His on base percentage plunges below .300 and he is striking out at an alarming rate.  The Blue Jays have a solid power hitter on their hands, they just hope he can learn some patience.

If it seems the offensive rookies are a bit sparse in the American League, the pitching prospects across the league are enough to get any baseball fan excited about the future.  The Royals put their share of pitchers into any conversation with Aaron Crow, Danny Duffy, and Tim Collins.  Jeremy Hellickson and Ivan Nova are both posting double digit wins for the Rays and Yankees, respectively.  Jordan Walden, meanwhile, is closing games at a solid pace for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.  Up north in Seattle, Michael Pineda is racking up the innings, and strikeouts, at a rapid pace.

The Odds On Favorite For Rookie Of The Year
Speaking of Michael Pineda, he is running away with this category in 2011.  He leads all rookies with 130 innings pitched and 133 strikeouts.  He has only walked 43 batters and given up 12 home runs.  He is posting a 3.53 earned run average and has won 9 games for a team that is struggling to win games as it is.  Pineda is showing some dominance at times and not showing any signs of slowing down, at least until his pitching arm falls off.

The Runner Up
It is Jordan Walden of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim that is equally as impressive as Pineda.  Walden has posted 25 saves in 32 chances, posted a 3 wins, 3 losses record.  Over the course of 45 innings pitched, he has struck out 48 hitters and only walked 18.  With only one home run allowed and a 2.80 earned run average, the Angels have a closer they can count on for a long time to come.

He Deserves A Look
Call me old fashioned, but I still like a pitcher that wins games without giving up a ton of runs, even if he is not striking out everyone he faces.  For that reason, take a look at the Rays’ pitcher Jeremy Hellickson who has won 10 games  over 7 losses while posting a 3.15 earned run average.  He is going deep into games with 122.2 innings pitched and has struck out 79 hitters while walking 45.  He will not bring home any hardware, but he’s worth keeping an eye on.

Around the league there are pitchers and hitters that will look to capitalize on solid rookie seasons and avoid the Sophomore Slump.  While these players are showcasing themselves around the American League, it is important to take a look at one player that is not on this list that will mean something more to our i70baseball fans.  Here is our honorable mention.

i70baseball Honorable Mention
The honorable mention here goes to a player that is pitching impressively despite not being in a key role, which will keep him out of discussions based on stats.  Aaron Crow may be the closer of the future in Kansas City after pitching his way to an earned run average below 2.00 and striking out 49 hitters in 51.1 innings pitched.  Crow has allowed five home runs this season.  He has scattered 37 hits over his innings of work and taken the mound 43 times.  Crow will keep fans excited to see the bullpen doors swing open in Kansas City for many future seasons.

As the season comes to an end, keep an eye on these seven players and their impact on their teams and the league when the dust settles.  One of these players will take home a Jackie Robinson Award and etch their name into the history books.  The rest will attempt to build on a solid rookie campaign and make a career out of it.  Time will tell how well these names will become known.

Bill Ivie is the editor at I-70 Baseball as well as the Assignment Editor for BaseballDigest.com.
He is the host of I-70 Radio, hosted every week on BlogTalkRadio.com.
Follow him on Twitter here.

After a deal for Rich Harden fell through at the last moment, the Boston Red Sox took a risk on another brittle pitcher, the Seattle Mariners Erik Bedard. To land the talented, but often disabled lefty, the Red Sox and Mariners got the Los Angeles Dodgers involved for a three team deal.

In addition to Bedard, Seattle also sent right-hander Josh Fields (the pitcher, not the former White  Sox third baseman) to Boston. The Red Sox dealt catcher Tim Federowicz, and pitchers Juan Rodriguez and Stephen Fifer to the Dodgers for outfielders Trayvon Robinson and Chih-Hsien Chiang, who Boston then spun to the Mariners. Despite some time on the DL, Bedard appeared to return to his old form this season and is a low risk move for Boston. He’ll eventually take the place of Andrew Miller in the rotation, with Clay Buchholz likely out for the season with a back injury, but for now Boston will employ a six man rotation.

San Diego Padres set up man Mike Adams and  closer Heath Bell both heard their names thrown around in numerous rumors all week. As things came down to the wire on Sunday it was first announced that Bell had been dealt to the Texas Rangers, but it turned out it was Adams that was being sent to Texas. He’ll team with another pickup, Koji Uehara, to strengthen the Rangers’ pen. In return the Padres received pitchers Robbie Erlin and Joe Wieland.

The Pittsburgh Pirates and their fans are having the time of their lives right now. Normally the Pirates are sending veterans to other teams in July, but after acquiring Derrek Lee from Baltimore on Saturday, the Bucs picked up outfielder Ryan Ludwick from the Padres on Sunday. The Pads will get a player to be named later or cash.

The Dodgers and Cardinals finalized their deal for Rafael Furcal. The shortstop and cash went to Missouri for outfielder Alex Castellanos.

Arizona added to their bullpen by sending slugger Brandon Allen and pitcher Jordan Norberto to Oakland for reliever Brad Ziegler.

Deals can still be made as the calendar turns to August, but players must pass through waivers in order to be moved.

Done Deals

Boston – Kansas City: The Red Sox have added to their depth by picking up Mike Aviles from the Royals for infielder Yamaico Navarro and pitcher Kendal Vez. In Aviles, the Red Sox get a player who can play 2B, SS, and 3B, all positions that have seen players banged up this season. He also swings a decent stick. Aviles fell victim to the youth movement in KC and was sent to the minors at one point this season. He could face a demotion again when Red Sox shortstop Jed Lowrie returns from the DL.

Texas – Baltimore: The Rangers spoke with a number of teams about relievers and were hoping to land the Padres’ Heath Bell.  But the asking price was too high for the pitchers that Texas most coveted. So instead, the Rangers went a cheaper route by sending corner infielder Chris Davis and pitcher Tommy Hunter to the Orioles for Koji Uehara.

It’s a low risk move for both teams. Uehera is good, but not outstanding. He’s a strikeout pitcher despite not having overpowering stuff, but also can’t be used on back-to-back days due to his tendency to get banged up. Davis has been a productive hitter in the minor leagues, but hasn’t been able to put it together in “The Show”. He strikes out way too much and can’t hit left-handed pitching. Unless the Orioles deal Derrek Lee, Davis will probably only see occassional playing time at DH and 1B.

Hunter is a #4 starter at best. He pitches to contact and isn’t going to blow anyone away.  The Rangers’ number one pick in 2007, Hunter got off to an 8-o, 2.31 start last season, but went 5-4, 5.07 in his final 14 starts plus one relief appearance. Hunter is also an injury risk and missed a good chunk of this season with a groin injury.

Detroit – Seattle: The Tigers wanted to shore up their starting rotation for the stretch run and feel they did so by picking up Doug Fister from the Mariners. Fister can’t be judged by the 3-12 record he amassed with a bad Mariners club. In 21 starts, Fister allowed less than a hit an inning and walked just two hitters per nine innings while he struck out 5.5 batters. He also allowed just four home runs and had a 2.8 WAR with the Mariners.

Reliever David Pauley accompanied Fister to give the Tigers some depth in their bullpen. In return, Seattle received pitcher Charlie Furbush, outfielder Casper Wells, third baseman Francisco Martinez and a player to be named later.

Furbush is a 25-yr old left-handed strikeout pitcher that was used as both a starter and reliever by the Tigers. No word yet if he’ll replace Fister in the rotation or Pauley in the pen. Wells is a fourth outfielder that can play all three outfield spots, but doesn’t hit much.  Martinez is a highly touted third baseman, but only the second best hot corner man in the Tigers organization. The 20-yr old Venezuelan is still developing his power, but had pretty good splits (.282/.319/.405) for Single-A Erie.

Arizona – Washington: The Diamondbacks added to their rotation by sending infielder Zach Walter, a former 9th round draft pick, to the Nationals for veteran starter Jason Marquis. The soon-to-be 33-yr old joins his sixth organization after 1+ seasons in the Nation’s capital. Marquis was 8-5, 3.95 in 20 starts this season and averaged six innings each time out. With a WHIP over 1.4 and 0.8 WAR, Marquis is a shaky back-end-of-the-rotation starter. He missed most of last season with elbow surgery.

Rumors

Ubaldo Jimenez: The Rockies have reportedly lowered their demands since they have yet to make a deal.  The Red Sox, Reds, and Indians are said to be negotiating the most, while the Yankees are still in play.

Hiroku Kuroda: The Dodgers right-hander really doesn’t want to leave LA, but has reportedly told the cash-strapped team that he’d be willing to accept a trade to the Rangers, Red Sox, or Yankees.

Josh Willingham and Ryan Ludwick: The A’s and Padres outfielders are still being talked about and are expected to be moved at some point this weekend. Right now it appears A’s GM Billy Beane is asking too much for Willingham.

Heath Bell: Unless the Padres lower their demands, the team’s closer won’t be going anywhere.

Denard Span: The Nationals have been working for days to try to land the Twins’ outfielder. A rumor spread earlier this afternoon that the Twins were trying to get the Yankees involved in a possible three-team deal.

Rafael Furcal: The shell-of-himself shortstop is close to being sent from the Dodgers to the Cardinals.

Update 7:20 PM

Hiroki Kuroda has refused to waive his no-trade clause and will remain an LA Dodger. The ramifications of Kuroda off the market is that the Rockies can now boost their asking price back up for Ubaldo Jimenez.

Drew Sarver is a senior writer  for BaseballDigest.com.  You can also read his work at his blog, My Pinstripes. He can be contacted at mypinstripes@gmail.com and can be followed on Twitter at @BD_Sarver and @MyPinstripes.

Dayan Viciedo, RF, Charlotte Knights, International League, White Sox – Viciedo has raised his average every month since the start of the 2011 season. He finished June hitting .371, 43 hits, nine of them doubles. He’s begun July at an excellent pace. He’s gotten nine hits in his last ten games, hitting .325. July also saw him being selected to play in the Futures Game. Overall, he leads the league with 62 RBI and 16 home runs. Highlight: Hard to choose between the July 1st two-home run-game or the July 7th three-RBI-game.

Michael Maness, RHP, Batavia Muckdogs, New York Penn League, St. Louis Cardinals – Maness has a 0.32 ERA in three starts in July, allowing just 2 earned runs in 28 innings. In four innings of relief he had a 0.oo ERA. Since June 19th he’s walked just three batters. Highlight: On July 1st he went six innings, allowing a run (unearned) a hit, and a walk.

Darin Gorski, LHP, St. Lucie Mets, Florida State League – Gorski has dominated the league all season. He has not had a loss yet and collected 9 wins. He’s also leading the league in strikeouts with 102 and his 1.82 ERA is the FSL lowest. Between June 12th and mid-July he has been a revelation: 9 hits, 10 earned runs, 29 strikeouts in 37 innings. He finished June with a 0.79 ERA. Highlight: A one-hitter on June 27th against the Charlotte Stone Crabs.

Tyler Townsend, 1B, Frederick Keys, Carolina League, Baltimore Orioles – Townsend is on the 7-day DL, but before July 13th he was on an offensive tear. Between June 1st and July 11th he put together a seven-game hit streak. He leads the league with 50 RBI. He’s also collected 23 doubles and 13 home runs. Highlight: On July 9th he had a 3-hit, 4-RBI game. He also hit a home run and drew a walk.

My eye on… Anthony Gose, CF, New Hampshire Fisher Cats, Eastern League, Toronto Blue Jays

Gose is putting up good numbers for the Fisher Cats, hitting .256, with 39 RBI and 9 home runs in 88 games this season. 

“I think he’s definitely gotten himself in place to be a better player,” said Fisher Cats manager Sal Fasano. “Defensively he’s doing ok. I think he’s got the potential to be Gold Glove caliber in the outfield. If he can consistently bring it on a day to day basis it can be.”

In a a game in early July, Gose exhibited quick thinking and feet on the bases, laying a bunt down, as well as getting a hit off of Phil Hughes. His speed and ability to use it smartly showed improvement. He appears to be translating his tools into skills.

“He’s gotten better on the bases. I think his getting caught percentage is a lot better than last year,” Fasano said.

Gose is in his first season at the Double-A level and exhibiting good pitch recognition and even better patience at the plate than earlier in the season.

Second Round

Neither Oakland nor the Angels had a second round pick this season.  Those picks went to Tampa Bay (in compensation for signing FA Grant Balfour) and Toronto (in compensation for signing FA Scott Downs) respectively.

Seattle – Bradley Miller, SS, Clemson. Seattle may have addressed their future needs at shortstop.  Miller was a C0-Captain of the Clemson Baseball team in 2011; his season ended yesterday when UCONN knocked the Tigers out of the NCAA tournament.  He is a First-Team All-American, and hit .419 overall this past season (including playoffs).  He has a good eye and good speed on the basepaths.

Texas – Will Lamb, LHP, Clemson. The Rangers announced drafting Lamb as a left-handed pitcher, but he also can hit the ball with authority.  In 59 regular season games he hit .348, with 11 doubles, 4 triples, and 3 home runs.  As a pitcher, in 2011 he appeared in 10 games (4 starts) and got hit pretty good, posting a 5.11 ERA in those 24 innings pitched.  In fact, he only threw 98 innings total in 3 years of college ball.  Some reports call him very athletic, but he’s an interesting second round selection as he will be a project to unlock his pitching potential.

Third Round

Seattle – Kevin Cron, 1B, Mountain Pointe AZ High School, and Carter Capps, RHP, Mt Olive College. Kevin’s older brother C.J. went to Los Angeles with the #17 pick, and his father is a former major league player, so there is good potential here.  Like his brother, he plays first base but can also catch.  The younger Cron was ranked the #5 high school prospect in the state of Arizona this season.

Capps is a right-handed pitcher, the 2011 Division II National Pitcher of the Year, and runner-up for Division II National Player of the Year.  Capps threw 118 innings this past regular season, striking out 129 hitters while walking only 18.  Opponents hit .191 against him.  He is scheduled to play in the Cape Cod League this summer for Harwich, so assuming that plan stays in place Seattle will get an early evaluation on how he fares against Division I competition.  On paper he looks like a beast.

Oakland – B.A. Vollmuth, 3B, Southern Mississippi. Vollmuth was taken in the 32nd round three years ago (Houston) but opted for college instead.  At Southern Miss he has been a three-year starter, and this season led the team in HR.  Oakland’s power production from their corner infielders has lagged the past few years, so picking a slugging first baseman makes a lot of sense.  Vollmuth might be a tough signee; his history proves he is willing to walk away from the negotiating table, and the this story on his selection implies his signing bonus amount will weigh heavily on his decision to sign or return for his senior year.

Los Angeles of Anaheim – Nick Maronde, LHP, Florida. Maronde was a starter on last year’s Gator team but spent most of 2011 coming out of the bullpen (31 appearances, 1 start).  The Angels will definitely groom him as a starter.  He is reported to hit 96 on the gun with his fastball, and have good movement on his secondary pitches.  This past season he stuck out 59 hitters in 38 innings, and opponents hit .179 against him.

Texas – Kyle Castro, RHP, Pleasant Grove HS, CA. There’s not a lot of data available on this righty from Northern California.  This story from late May talks about how he fared during an early CIF playoff game against a rival high school.  He is a multi-sport athlete, so in keeping with Texas’ second round draft pick he is an athletically talented guy who some growing to do.

The 2011 MLB Draft concluded Wednesday with rounds 31-50.

Mike Metzger is a senior writer covering the AL West for BaseballDigest.com.

The similarity in numbers between 2011 and 2007 are striking (for this discussion, O Swing% means swings at pitches outside the strike zone, and O Contact% means contact on swings at pitches outside the strike zone. Z Swing% and Z Contact% are the same concept for swings on pitches in the strike zone).  In 2007 Figgins’ O Swing% was 22.3%, a career high and 7 points higher than in 2006.  His O Contact% also jumped up that season, finishing almost 18 points higher than in 2006 (also a career high).  Most of his other swing numbers remained constant, except for two:  His Z Swing% also hit a career high (70%, 8 points higher than 2006), and he saw a career low percentage of pitches in the strike zone (41%).

By being more aggressive at the plate, he hit .330/.393/.432 in 2007, posted his career high in OPS+ (117), and finished 20th in the MVP voting.

After coming to the Mariners in 2010 he began swinging more at pitches out of the strike zone, but his overall swing and contact numbers were consistent with the rest of his career.  In 2011, his O Swing% and O Contact% have again jumped up to career highs (25.4% and 86.5%, respectively).  However, unlike 2007, this season his Z Swing% has not seen a similar jump.  He’s still only swinging at 60% of pitches in the strike zone, almost the same as he did in 2010 and 10 points lower than he did in 2007.

So the first major difference between this season and 2007 is not that Figgins is swinging at (and making contact with) more pitches outside the strike zone, but that Figgins is ONLY swinging at (and making contact with) more pitches outside the strike zone.  Basically he’s trying to hit a pitcher’s pitch, with predictable results.  That is a fixable flaw.  For seven full seasons Figgins has had one of the better batter’s eyes in the league; if he decides to trust his eye again, he should see both his OBP and AVG start to rise.

The other major difference between this season and 2007 is Batting Average on Balls In Play.  BABIP is some combination of luck and skill, but whatever comprises the stat Chone Figgins has posted great numbers throughout his career.  Since 2003 the yearly league average for BABIP has been between .291 and .303.  Figgins’ average BABIP over those same seasons is .340, and he has always finished above the league average.  In 2007 Figgins hit .391 on balls he put into play.  This year he’s currently hitting .212.  This is also fixable, if by nothing else than ‘regression to the mean’.  Figgins is not a .212 hitter when he puts the ball in play, and won’t hit this poorly all season.  The law of averages won’t allow it.  Of course, tweaking his approach at the plate as discussed above will not hurt; it might accelerate his return to productivity.

No doubt, Figgins is in a horrible slump right now.  Getting a few days off from his manager to regroup is a good thing.  Hopefully he takes advantage of that to reevaluate his approach at the plate.  If he looks back at the last successful season he was more aggressive at the plate, he can find the key to breaking out of this slump.   The answer is there.  There’s no reason why he need remain one of the wost hitters in the league all season.

Mike Metzger is a Senior Writer covering the AL West for BaseballDigest.com.  He can be reached @metzgermg on Twitter.  Mike writes about the Padres and Cardinals in his spare time.

Texas.  The most obvious reason Texas came back to the pack is the loss of Josh Hamilton for 6 weeks.  Losing Nelson Cruz on May 3 did not help matters either.  Rangers went 15-21 without Hamilton and 7-9 without Cruz (those periods overlap).  The pitching looks consistent, posting a 4.07 xFIP in Mar/April and a 4.09 so far in May (through Tuesday).  But that’s heavily weighted to the starters; Ranger starters have a 3.88 xFIP this season, while their relief corps is second-worst in the league (4.61).  Losing two of their best hitters, and a struggling bullpen, has dragged Texas down to earth after a sizzling start.

Los Angeles. One could say the offense has been troublesome.  Mark Trumbo and Howie Kendrick are tied for the team lead in HR.  If you predicted that would be the case heading into the Memorial Day Weekend, stop by the office to pick up your prize. As compared to 2010, Angel power has dried up; they hit 32 HR in May of last year, but only 13 so far this season.  Further, as Jonah Keri pointed out last week, they are striking much more often than in years past, which may partially explain why a team with the fourth highest BABIP in baseball is 16th in runs scored.  The Los Angeles bullpen is one of only 4 (Texas is in this group too) with a negative WAR on the season.  The Angels are a half game behind Texas mostly because their starting pitching is third-best in the AL (again based on xFIP).  Their struggles appear to revolve around their offensive production and ineffective bullpen.

Seattle. Seattle’s season needs to be couched in terms of success instead of discussing.  A team not expected to hit has not hit; they are in a virtual dead hit with Minnesota for worst offense in the AL based on wOBA (MIN – .286; SEA – .287).  Their starting pitching appears to be for real.  The Mariners have the second-best starting corps in the league as measured by xFIP (only Oakland’s is better).  Michael Pineda has put early concerns he was not ready for the major leagues to rest and is currently a leading candidate for Rookie of the Year.  Surprisingly the Seattle defense has not been that good; they are currently second-worst in the league, a bit of a surprise for a team boasting Brendan Ryan and Franklin Gutierrez (although Gutierrez just returned from the DL last week).    Minnesota snapped the Mariner win streak at six last night, but the Mariners rode that streak to within 1.5 games of the divisional lead.

Oakland. They are almost an exact of the Mariners – their pitching is slightly better than Seattle’s, their defense slightly worse, their offense virtually the same (.291 wOBA).   .  The much publicized and discussed public tiff between former closer Brian Fuentes and manager Bob Geren aside, little offense and sparkling pitching is the formula from last year so no surprises there.   Last year the A’s were the second-best defensive team in the American League. I believe their troubles with the leather are why they are in last place in the AL West.

Summary. The season prepares to roll into June and no AL West team has distinguished itself from the rest of the field.  It’s the only division in baseball where each team has at least a 10% chance to make the playoffs as of today.  Which team is best able to address its flaw (Texas – bullpen; Anaheim – bullpen, offense; Seattle – offense, defense; Oakland – offense, defense) will win the division.  Today the Texas Rangers remain the odds-on favorite to win the division, but that can change at any moment.  After all, who predicted everyone in the division would be within 2 games of each other at the end of May?

Schedule

Of their 39 games through Wednesday, the Mariners have played seven different teams, including the aforementioned Indians.  They got swept in Cleveland, but are .500 against the rest of the league.  Against those six other teams, 3 are over (Oakland, Texas, Kansas City) and three under (Toronto, Detroit, Boston) the .500 mark.  Their early success is not a product of playing a weaker schedule relative to the rest of the league.  In fact, one could argue the American League is a shining example of parity so far in 2011; 10 of the 14 teams are within 3 games of .500 either way entering Thursday’s games.  So their schedule has not been overly favorable.

Offense/Pitching/Defense

Using Fangraphs team data, again through Wednesday’s action, I took a look at how the Mariners rank in these 3 areas as compared to the rest of the AL.  Offensively, Seattle’s .290 wOBA puts them just ahead of the hapless Minnesota Twins (.290). Oakland is just ahead of Seattle at .296.  Los Angeles sits sixth at .322, and Texas second with a .345 wOBA.  The Mariners struggle offensively.  That is not the main reason behind their success.

By UZR/150 they are the worst defensive team in the AL (-12.4).  Los Angeles is the best team in the West (6.3) and 4th best in the league.  Oakland and Texas struggle catching the ball almost as much as Seattle does (-7.5 and -4.1, good for 12th and 11th respectively in the AL).  Although the Mariner defense has not helped them stay competitive, relative to most of the division it has not significantly handicapped them either.

Both of baseball’s Western Divisions enjoy reputations for excellent pitching, and the xFIP numbers for the AL West support that notion.  Oakland has the best staff by this metric in the AL (3.56), with Seattle (3.74) and the Angels (3.83) third and fourth respectively.  Even Texas (4.01), with all their staff churn, has thrown the ball reasonably well.  Seattle’s excellent pitching makes sense; they have generated little offense and have shot themselves in the foot defensively on numerous occasions, so being able to pitch well has been essential.  It also helps to have Felix Hernandez and Michael Pineda in the rotation.

Anything else we can look at?

Baserunning

Since they struggle getting men on base, they must be running those bases with above average skill.  The numbers bear this out. Bill James Online analyzes each team’s baserunning tendencies, breaking them down by base stealing and baserunning (first to third, first to home, second to home), then coming up with a combined number.  The Mariners don’t steal many bases, but they do run the bases efficiently.  Seattle is fourth in the AL (and 9th overall) in Baserunning, with 90% of that advantage coming from how they run the bases once aboard.  The Angels have a reputation for base running excellence, but Seattle deserves it so far in 2011.

• Going first to third % (times successful divided by opportunities presented): LAA 42.6, SEA 39.6, TEX 28.2, OAK 16.7
• Goind second-to-home % (times successful divided by opportunities presented):  SEA 61.8, OAK 60.7, TEX 60, LAA 56.8

When they do get men on base, they are aggressive about getting them around and in.  They have to be.  Seattle is maximizing their chances to score by taking the extra base whenever they can.

Summary

Seattle sits 3 games out of first largely due to superior pitching, which has made up for their league-worst defense and the third-fewest runs scored (117) in the league, and superior baserunning.  If their offense improves a bit – and as USS Mariner pointed out, they are currently hanging around without their everyday CF and dismal starts from Chone Figgins and Jack Cust – they will continue to surprise in the AL West.

It did not happen that way.  The Mariners slipped to another 101 loss season in 2010.

From a high of 794 runs scored in 2007, Seattle scored 123 fewer runs in 2008.  It stood to reason, given they went from an 88-win team to a 61-win team.  Yet even though they rebounded in 2009 to win those 85 games, they actually scored fewer runs than the previous year (640 total).  Last year they allowed virtually the same number of runs to their opponents as they did in 2009 (698 to 692), but set a franchise record for the fewest runs scored in a full season by only plating 513 runs, a 127 run drop from 2010.

Seattle struggled all around the diamond.  Other than Russell Branyan (acquired in June from Cleveland), Mike Sweeney (who went to Philadelphia in August), and Ichiro, no Mariner position player posted an OPS+ over 100.  Following the season General Manager Jack Zduriencik made moves to improve the offense, notably making Justin Smoak the everyday first baseman, Michael Saunders the everday left fielder, and acquiring Jack Cust to become the team’s designated hitter.  Chone Figgins was moved back to third, both in preparations for the expected arrival of prized prospect Dustin Auckley mid-season to play second and with the hope a more familiar position would awaken his bat.

So far it is not working out that way either.  Two-thirds of the Seattle lineup are currently posting worse OPS+ numbers than in 2010, as the following list reveals (Red indicates a lower OPS+ so far in 2011 than in 2010, Green higher, Black no change.  Players at each position are based on data from Baseball Reference).

• Catcher: 2010 44 (Moore), 2011 21 (Olivo)
• First Base: 2010 73 (Kotchman), 2011 161 (Smoak)
• Second Base: 2010 84 (Figgins), 2011 51 (Jack Wilson)
• Third Base: 2010 71 (Lopez), 2011 33 (Figgins)
• Shortstop: 2010 62 (Josh Wilson), 2011 79 (Ryan)
• Left Field: 2010 86 (Saunders), 2011 118 (Bradley)
• Center Field: 2010 87 (Gutierrez), 2011 77 (Saunders)
• Right Field: 2010 113, 2011 111 (Ichiro)
• Designated Hitter: 2010 123 (Branyan), 2011 55 (Cust)

As with all statistical presentations, the 2011 numbers encompass a small sample size, as they represent barely 15% of a total season-worth of effort.  It is likely these players will rebound and hit closer to their career norms, especially Cust, Figgins, and Miguel Olivo.

Franklin Gutierrez’s return will help the lineup defensively, and will also allow Bradley to shift to a DH role, improving the offense overall.  In fact, his return in a couple of weeks may spell the end for Jack Cust, as Geoff Baker writes, unless Cust is able to rediscover his swing and begin hitting line drives with more regularity.

Until this team rebounds at the plate, and in spite of some sparkling pitching so far from Hernandez, Michael Pineda, and Doug Fister, they will continue to struggle to score runs.  Challenging for the top of the division will remain a task for another season.

Mike Metzger is a Senior Writer covering the AL West for BaseballDigest.com.  He can be reached at metzgermg@yahoo.com and followed on Twitter @metzgermg.  Mike blogs about the Cardinals and Padres in his spare time.

Replacing an injured player with someone who cannot play his position is not that uncommon a practice.  Most teams evaluate what their needs are without the injured player and promote accordingly.  The only unwritten rule most every team follows is replacing an injured pitcher with another pitcher, and an injured position player with another position player.  What is odd about this roster move, and continues to be odd a full week later, is how it left Texas with no experienced outfield depth in center.

Nelson Cruz, David Murphy, and Julio Borbon are the only three listed outfielders on the active roster.  Headed into Monday’s action they had played every inning of every game since Hamilton went down.  Mitch Moreland pinch-hit for Borbon in Sunday’s ninth inning, and would have played right in the bottom half of the frame had the Rangers tied it up.  That would have necessitated Murphy moving to center and Cruz to left.  Turns out, that’s the outfield Anaheim faced Monday night for eight innings (Borbon came on as a defensive sub in the ninth).

Except for Borbon, none of the Ranger outfielders have any real experience in center.  Should Julio get hurt that would leave a pretty big hole in the defense.  Murphy has played 43 career games there, Cruz 2, Moreland zero.  Further complicating matters are Borbon’s struggles with the bat; his current .194/.275/.306 line is ugly, and his career .281/.324/.357 line is not much better.

The top two CF in the Ranger system, Engel Beltre and Jake Skole, are not ready.  Beltre is hitting .220 in AA, and Skole, drafted in 2010, is just starting out. So what do the Rangers do?  It may be time to promote either Craig Gentry or Endy Chavez from AAA Round Rock.  There is risk with both those promotions.  Gentry is a CF by trade but has not hit much in the majors, despite hitting well in AAA.  Chavez has lots of major league experience in center, but is no improvement over Borbon at the plate (.270/.312/.367 career line), and has not played in the majors since 2009.

With no true CF on the bench, and Borbon struggling, the Rangers are using a below-average guy as their primary centerfielder, but their internal options to upgrade there are pretty limited.

Around the Division:

Seattle Mariners – Since opening with back-to-back wins, the Mariners have dropped 12 of 15.  One of the biggest problems for Seattle appears to be their bullpen, as evidenced Monday night when Josh Lueke and Chris Ray allowed 6 runs in the sixth enroute to an 8-3 loss.  According to Fangraphs, the Mariner relievers are not pitching as badly as the results would attest; their 4.28 xFIP places them seventh in the league.  Their ERA of 5.98 is second-worst in the AL, however.

Oakland A’s – Oakland acquired former Toronto reliever David Purcey Monday for minor league pitcher Danny Farquhar.  Purcey had been previously designated for assignment by Toronto.  Purcey replaces Dallas Braden on the roster; Braden went on the 15-day DL with shoulder stiffness.

Los Angeles Angels – Anaheim entered their current series with Texas tied atop the division, but got mowed down by CJ Wilson in Monday’s action, losing 7-1.

Mike Metzger is a Senior Writer covering the AL West for BaseballDigest.com.  He can be reached at metzgermg@yahoo.com or via Twitter @metzgermg.  Mike blogs about the Padres and Cardinals in his spare time.

The biggest news involves reigning AL MVP Josh Hamilton.  Hamilton, attempting to score from third on a foul ball near the Detroit Tiger dugout, suffered a non-displaced fracture of his humerus sliding into home on the play.  Hamilton noticed both Brandon Inge (3B) and Victor Martinez (C) had converged near the dugout to try and catch Adrian Beltre’s pop-up, and that the pitcher did not move to cover the plate.  Martinez got back just in time and tagged Hamilton out.

The Rangers have hummed along to start the season, sprinting to the league’s best record, so losing a hitter of Hamilton’s caliber will set them back a bit.  Hamilton is expected to miss 6-8 weeks.  The larger question surrounding the play centers on whether or not he should have slid into the plate head-first.  If the catcher is at the plate and blocking it, one would have to be insane to try and go through him leading with their hands.  This was not the situation Tuesday; it more closely approximated a steal at second or third base.  A baserunner does have better body control sliding head first from the perspective of trying to get around the tag, and on Hamilton’s attempt he might have succeeded if his slide had been away from the onrushing Martinez such that he could grab the far corner of the plate as he went by.

Which slide is safer for the baserunner is subject to debate and begs statistical analysis to determine just how many injuries occur on head-first slides, and how many on feet first.  Hall of Famer Rabbit Maranville’s career ended when he broke his leg sliding into home in 1934, and Pedro Guerrero once blew his knee out attempting to stop a feet-first slide into third during a spring training game.  We see more injuries on head-first slides because most players use that style when stealing bases.  In Hamilton’s case, perhaps the argument should center on why he tried to advance with Nelson Cruz waiting on deck.

Seattle’s 22-year old wunderkid Michael Pineda won his first Major League game, beating Toronto 3-2.  The Blue Jays are a good hitting team and a good fastball hitting team, but they had very little success against Pineda.  The Mariner righty worked the first seven innings scoreless, allowing only 3 hits and one walk while striking out 7, before running out of gas in the eighth.  The most impressive part of Pineda’s start was his ability to spot the fastball wherever he wanted, to pitch up in the zone with success, and to engender a bunch of swinging strikes with the pitch.  As USS Mariner reported, a typical good pitcher will post a 10% swing and miss percentage driven by the use of breaking balls when ahead in the count.  Tonight Pineda had a 19.2% whiff rate, almost exclusively on fastballs.  Amazing.

Aside from Texas, the hottest team in baseball is Cleveland.  They took on the Angels, and ran into Dan Haren.  Haren went the route against the Indians, allowing only a fourth inning single to Shin-Soo Cho and two walks, while striking out 8.  It is the first one-hitter of Haren’s career, and his 11th career complete game.  Haren joined teammate Jered Weaver as the first two 3-game winners in the league.  Los Angeles has played 11 games so far in 2011, with Haren and Weaver accounting for all 6 of their wins.  Cleveland had won 8 straight before being completely shut down by Haren Tuesday.

Oakland has opened the season playing 8 of their first 11 games on the road, and including Tuesday’s result they have split those 8 games (4 wins, 4 losses).  Last night third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff gave them a 5-4 lead in the sixth with a 2-run home run, but Oakland was not able to hold on to it, losing in 10 6-5.  During the game first baseman Daric Barton delivered 4 of the team’s 12 hits.  It marked only the second time in his career Barton had enjoyed a 4-hit game, the last time against the Angels 19 months ago.

Washington stated he has no intention of juggling the lineup for his first-place Rangers.  Understandable.

Perhaps the question should have been, why is Adrian Beltre hitting fourth at all?

Other than eight games with the Milwaukee Brewers in 2005, Nelson Cruz has played his entire career in Texas.  During that career he has averaged .274/.337/.509 at the plate, or an OPS+ of 119.  Since the start of the 2009 season he’s been the second or third best hitter on the club.  Last year his OPS+ of 150 was second only to Josh Hamilton, the league MVP.  In 2009 he was second in OPS+ to Michael Young (128 to 117).  He will not remain this hot throughout the 2011 campaign, but he seems to be picking up right where he left off last season.

We know quite a bit about Adrian Beltre as a hitter.  Other than his monster 2004 with the Dodgers he has been very consistent, putting up a .274/.328/.461 line.  His years at Safeco Park, which is a difficult place to hit for a right-handed power hitter, may have suppressed his offensive production, yet his season totals are consistent with what he did in Los Angeles.  His best year since 2004 was last season in Boston, yet Beltre’s 2010 (.321/.365/.553) was not as good as Cruz’s (.318/.374/.576).

Cruz has now had back to back seasons where he punished the ball. Beltre has not been able to carry one superlative season over into the next.  Cruz’s career SLG is about 40 points higher than Beltre’s.  As a tiebreaker, Cruz is 2 years younger.

I should point out that I do not consider Beltre a weak hitter by any stretch, however based on recent performance I believe Nelson Cruz should be the cleanup hitter for the Rangers going forward, regardless of how Beltre recovers from his season-opening slump.

Around the Division:

Seattle Mariners: Back-up catcher Adam Moore was diagnosed with a torn meniscus in his right knee.  He will likely miss 2 months, possibly more, depending on what the doctors find once they open his knee.  Josh Bard and Chris Gimenez are candidates for Moore’s roster slot.  Seattle will likely make the roster move later Friday.

Oakland A’s: Oakland defeated Toronto 2-1 Thursday to salvage one of the three games against the Blue Jays.  Starter Trevor Cahill worked 8 innings, striking out seven.  The A’s play in Minnesota this weekend.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: The Angels swept Tampa Bay this week, winning 5-1 Thursday behind Dan Haren.  The franchise will celebrate it’s 50th anniversary in 2011, and for their home opener Friday plan to have Eli Grba throw out the first pitch.  Grba was the starter in the franchise’s first ever game, April 11 1961 in Baltimore.  He beat Milt Pappas 7-2.  Eli also started the first ever Angels game in Los Angeles, at old Wrigley Field, against Minnesota on April 27 1961.  He lost that day to Bill Rigney 4-2.

Mike Metzger covers the AL West.  He also blogs about the Padres and Cardinals in his spare time.

Aroldis Chapman, 23: The Cuban defector with the triple digit fastball is the most highly anticipated pitcher that baseball has seen in some time. Chapman started in one-third of his 39 minor league appearances (where he struck out 11.8 batters per nine innings) before the Cincinnati Reds recalled him last season, but he’ll strictly be a reliever for now. His 15 appearances in the Majors last season included 19 strikeouts in 13.1 IP. His pitching coach Bryan Price sums it up best:

“You don’t run across guys like this. His potential is off-the-charts in regards of what he physically can be able to do. The essential part of this equation is what he does mentally and emotionally. The way you evaluate all pitchers with great stuff is, where does their mental side of the game allow them to go? Randy Johnson was a wild, hard-throwing left-hander years ago, and he figured it out, and his temperament and mentality allowed him to be a dominant pitcher for a long time. But you have a laundry list of hard-throwing pitchers who struggled with command or haven’t taken the game seriously enough or didn’t have the competitiveness to be great. I don’t think Aroldis lacks any of those.

“He’s athletic, he’s bright, he’s aggressive and he doesn’t back to anybody. The sky is the limit. But time will tell. To say what he can do is unfair to all the guys who have done it and accomplished it. Let’s not reward someone for something they haven’t accomplished yet. But we have to honor the unbelievable talent level the kid has. It’s undeniable.”

Kyle Drabek, 23: The Toronto rookie made the jump from Double-A to the Majors this season and threw five no-hit innings in hist first Major League start against Minnesota. The son of former big league pitcher Doug Drabek, Kyle was the centerpiece of the deal that sent Roy Halladay to the Philadelphia Phillies prior to last season. Drabek is said to be one of the most fit mentally and physically among the current crop of kids and it takes a make up like that to make the jump in levels that he did. Drabek already had a fine reportoire of pitches, but he unveiled a nasty cutter in his start against the Twins. A one time emotional pitcher, Drabek has learned to control his game. His manager John Farrell had this to say about him after a spring training start. “What he showed in his last outing was very good emotional control. He didn’t show the tendency to over throw, he didn’t try to strike everybody out, he still maintained the same approach and I think that speaks volumes to what’s going on inside him. When you combine that harnessing of emotions with the physical abilities, we’ll be very pleased to have go to the mound every five days.”

Jhoulys Chacin, 23: The Colorado Rockies right-hander isn’t a rookie, he made 21 starts last year as part of 28 appearances, but he enters his second season at just 23 years of age. He had a 9-11 record last season despite a 3.28 ERA, a .224 opponents batting average, and 138 strikeouts in 137.1 innings pitched. The native of Venezuela was the 2008 Minor League Pitcher of the Year and put up excellent stats throughout his minor league career. His success has come from a low 90-mph sinker and a deceptive changeup. “From a scouting perspective, Chacin throws five pitches for strikes, including a low 90’s sinking fastball that has powered his GB/FB numbers.  The challenge for Chacin is that while he has generated swings and misses at lower levels, his stuff is not overpowering and if his command departs, it could get ugly in a hurry.”

Zach Britton, 23: The Baltimore Orioles top pitching prospect was expected to make an impact on the O’s rotation this season, just not this early. With another young stud, Brian Matusz, out with a strained oblique, Britton made his Major League debut on Sunday. He picked up the win over Tampa Bay after he threw six innings of 3-hit ball and allowed one earned run. Though he walked three, Britton also struck out six to make his first time out a success. Baseball America’s Jim Callis had Britton rated as the top left-hander in the minor leagues and felt (just as the O’s would) Britton would be best served by starting the season at Triple-A. But then Matusz’s injury came up and the O’s figured why go with anyone else.  ESPN’s Tim Kurkian recently spoke to Buck Showalter about his star of the future. “He (Showalter) likes him (Britton) a lot and not just his stuff. He likes his demeanor on the mound, which is half the battle for a young pitcher. All sorts of young pitchers have great stuff, more than don’t. But it’s the way you command it and the way you use it and react out there. He just looks a little beyond his years.”

Michael Pineda, 22: The Seattle Mariners right-hander struck out 396 batters in 404.1 minor league innings en route to be named the top pitching prospect in the organization. He had a good chance to make the club out of spring training and sealed the deal with an outstanding spring. His manager, Eric Wedge, had this to say after a late March performance by Pineda. “He (Pineda) was outstanding. You’ve seen him be very consistent all spring, but today I think he took it to another level. You look at the way he used his fastball and his secondary stuff was right there for him all day long and he pitched with it. He just really did a great job of commanding the ballgame.” Pineda’s fastball was clocked as high as 98 mph in 2010, which is pretty remarkable consider an elbow injury put a damper on his 2009 season. According to John Sickels, Pineda’s change up still needs work, but he has an effective slider and his command and control is a big plus.  Pineda made his season debut Tuesday night and took the loss despite a quality start.

Jeremy Hellickson, 24 (Apr 8th): The Tampa Bay Rays #5 starter showed what he could do in a short stint with the team last season. The Iowa native went 4-0, 3.47 in 10 appearances (including four starts) with 33 strikeouts and just eight walks in 36.1 innings pitched. Add to that a 12-3, 2.45 season in Triple-A with a 9:2 strikeout to walk ratio and you can see why the organization is excited. The favorite to win AL Rookie of the Year, Hellickson has a low to mid-90′s fastball, a plus curve and a plus changeup. His manager Joe Maddon is definitely a fan. “In spite of how he appears to be, there’s got to be some kind of nervousness going on inside. And I think having done what he did last year is definitely an aid to him mentally. I have a lot of faith in him. We all do.” Hellickson should more than make up for the loss of Matt Garza.

There you have it, just a handful of the pitchers that can have a major impact for their teams this season. Before the year is out Jake McGee (TB), Jordan Walden (LAA), Jenrry Mejia (NYM), Shelby Miller (St. L) and others may join them as the young guns take over.

Drew Sarver is a senior writer  for BaseballDigest.com.  You can also read his work at his blog, My Pinstripes. He can be contacted at mypinstripes@gmail.com and can be followed on Twitter at @BD_Sarver and @MyPinstripes.