The Seattle Mariners have a need in both the outfield and 3B so why not place a call to the Royals about Mark Teahan who can play both position. He might not be the best hitter around but he’s a solid player who swings from the left side of the plate. 23-year old lefty swinging outfielder Michael Saunders and lefty starting pitcher Jason Vargas would likely be more than enough to get the Royals to deal. This is a trade the Mariners should consider offering the Royals as it would help both teams.

UPDATE: This won’t be happening at Teahan has been traded to the Chicago White Sox for Josh Fields and Chris Getz.

The Mariners have lost 25-year old lefty reliever Justin Thomas on waivers to the Pirates. Thomas was the Mariners’ #23 rated prospect coming into the season according to Baseball America. He did not show it though in AAA working in 53 games (0 starts) in which he was 2-4 with 6 saves, a 4.48 ERA and a 1.77 WHIP. The Mariners were tiring of Thomas’ control issues as he walked 40 batters in 60 1/3 innings last season and they didn’t want to wait around to see if he could fix his problem. Thomas did pitch in 8 games (0 starts) in 2008 for the Mariners and he was 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA and a 2.75 WHIP. Maybe Thomas will find himself in Pittsburgh but the Mariners didn’t want to waste a roster spot on him anymore.

The Mariners have gotten out of the contracts of Adrian Beltre, Erik Bedard, Kenji Johjima and Miguel Batista so it could be a fun winter for Mariners’ fans. The Mariners will let Endy Chavez, Adrian Beltre, Erik Bedard and Miguel Batista leave in free agency. The first order of business for the Mariners this winter should be to re-sign Russell Branyan. If he decides that he wants to leave then the Mariners better be after guys like Nick Johnson, Hank Blalock, Carlos Delgado, Adam LaRoche or Aubrey Huff to play 1B. The Mariners would also like to re-sign SS Jack Wilson but without picking up his option. If Wilson goes elsewhere then the Mariners should check into signing Miguel Tejada, Marco Scutaro or Orlando Cabrera. With Adrian Beltre likely out of the picture at 3B the Mariners could look to sign guys like Mark DeRosa, Melvin Mora, Troy Glaus or Joe Crede. The Mariners could also use a LF with some thump but Jason Bay and Matt Holliday will likely be out of their range pay wise. But, Johnny Damon, Garret Anderson or Marlon Byrd might be willing to come to the great Northwest. The Mariners would likely bring back DH Mike Sweeney at the right price and they have also left the door open for Ken Griffey Jr. to return if he wants to. If those two guys don’t come back to the Mariners a perfect fit for DH would be Hideki Matsui of the Yankees. Aubrey Huff, Jim Thome, Jason Giambi, Hank Blalock and Carlos Delgado would be considered for the DH job. This winter is all about improving the hitting for the Mariners as the pitching staff looks pretty solid.

33-year old righty swinging catcher Kenji Johjima has opted out of the final two years of his contract with the Mariners worth $16 million bucks so that he can return to Japan to play. He basically didn’t want to be a backup catcher next season and he wanted to go home to play. Johjima played in 71 games last season for the Mariners and he was 59 for 239 (.247 avg, .702 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 9 homers and 22 RBIs. Johjima played four years for the Mariners playing in 462 games in which he was 431 for 1,609 (.268 avg, .721 OPS) with 166 runs scored, 48 homers and 198 RBIs. This sudden development will likely give the Mariners some more spending cash over the winter. It will be interesting to see if they bring in a veteran catcher or go with youngsters Rob Johnson and Adam Moore.

The Mariners have a $8.4 million dollar option for the 2010 season on 31-year old righty swinging shortstop Jack Wilson or they can buy him out for $600,000 bucks. The Mariners gave up five players at the trade deadline to the Pirates to land Ian Snell and Wilson so they probably want to keep him but not at $8.4 million bucks. The problem with buying him out and trying to sign him to a cheaper deal might be somewhat of a problem because there are not a lot of quality free agents at shortstop which could drive up the price. The Mariners would also face competition for him from other teams. Still, the right thing to do would be to buy him out. He only played in 31 games for the Mariners after the trade and he was 24 for 107 (.224 avg, .562 OPS) with 11 runs scored, 1 homer and 8 RBIs. Wilson’s overall 2009 numbers aren’t as bad as the ones with just the Mariners. He played in 106 games for the Mariners and Pirates last season and he was 95 for 373 (.255 avg) with 37 runs scored, 5 homers, 39 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Wilson is one of the best defensive shortstops in all of baseball so the Mariners will have to think long and hard about bringing him back. He has now played in 1,190 games in his major league career and he is 1,182 for 4,412 (.268 avg, .684 OPS) with 519 runs scored, 61 homers, 397 RBIs and 27 stolen bases.

UPDATE: The Mariners have bypassed Jack Wilson’s $8.4 million dollar option by replacing it with a 2-year deal worth around $10 million bucks. This was a good move for the Mariners as Wilson is one of the best defensive shortstops in all of baseball.