The Mariners have signed 33-year old righty swinging outfielder Eric Byrnes to a 1-year deal likely worth the minimum salary as the D-Backs are on the hook for everything else. Byrnes played in 84 games for the D-Backs last season and he was 54 for 239 (.226 avg, .663 OPS) with 26 runs scored, 8 homers, 31 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. Byrnes has now played in 948 games in his major league career and he is 824 for 3,170 (.260 avg, .763 OPS) with 481 runs scored, 109 homers, 396 RBIs and 128 stolen bases. I really like this signing for the Mariners as Byrnes is capable of playing any position in the outfield defensively. He also gives them protection just in case Milton Bradley gets hurt or implodes.

Lefty starting pitcher Floyd Bannister pitched for the Mariners from 1979-1982 when the team compiled a 246-349 record (41.3% wins). That explains his sub-par won-loss record despite his solid pitching in his time in Seattle. Bannister pitched in 118 games (117 starts) for the Mariners and he was 40-50 with a 3.75 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. His best year for the Mariners was in 1982 when he represented them in the All-Star Game. Bannister pitched in 35 games (all starts) in 1982 and he was 12-13 with a 3.43 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. He only allowed 225 hits that season in 247 innings while whiffing 209 batters showing what kind of stuff he had. Bannister is #6 all-time for the Mariners in complete games (24), #4 in shutouts (7), #5 in ERA (3.75) and #6 in WHIP (1.29). It’s too bad that Bannister didn’t pitch for the Mariners after they got a little bit better as his record would have reflected that.

The Mariners decided to go in a different direction at 1B this season when they allowed Russell Branyan to walk away as a free agent after his solid 2009 season for them. The Mariners then traded for 26-year old lefty swinging 1B Casey Kotchman who will replace Branyan as the starting 1B for them in 2010. Kotchman played in 126 games from the Red Sox and Braves last season and he was 103 for 385 (.268 avg, .721 OPS) with 37 runs scored, 7 homers and 48 RBIs. The main reason the Mariners wanted Kotchman is because he is probably the best defensive 1B in all of baseball. He didn’t make any errors in 114 games at 1B last season while showing outstanding range.

23-year old lefty swinging Mike Carp will be likely waiting in the minors if needed. He played in 21 games for the Mariners last season and he was 17 for 54 (.315 avg, .878 OPS) with 7 runs scored, 1 homer and 5 RBIs. Carp also played in 110 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 112 for 413 (.271 avg, .818 OPS) with 66 runs scored, 15 homers and 64 RBIs. Carp played well on defense for the Mariners last season also as he didn’t make any errors in 16 games there.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 1B IN 2010: C

The Mariners would probably like to go with 25-year old righty swinging catcher Adam Moore as the starter in 2010. He will be given a chance to earn the job in spring training. He played in 118 games in AA+AAA last season and he was 125 for 435 (.287 avg, .777 OPS) with 55 runs scored, 12 homers and 56 RBIs. He also played in six games at the end of the year for the Mariners in which he was 5 for 23 (.217 avg, .641 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 1 homer, 2 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He didn’t make any errors but he did have 1 passed ball in his six games for the Mariners last season. Moore was unsuccessful in throwing out the only guy that tried to steal against him last season but Mariners’ pitchers liked throwing to him as they had a 2.53 ERA with him behind the plate.

31-year old switch-hitting Josh Bard will likely share time with Moore behind the plate in 2010. He played in 90 games with the Nationals last season and he was 63 for 274 (.230 avg, .654 OPS) with 20 runs scored, 6 homers and 31 RBIs. Bard is a better hitter than he showed last season as he has a career batting average of .259 with a .715 OPS and those are the kind of numbers the Mariners are expecting out of him in 2010. He made 5 errors and he had 3 passed balls in 79 games behind the plate last season for the Nationals and it’s a tad too many of both. Bard only threw out 14% of the runners trying to steal on him last season but Nationals’ pitchers had a 4.95 ERA with him behind the plate and that is actually impressive when you consider the kind of pitching staff they had last year.

27-year old righty swinging Rob Johnson will also battle for a catching job on the Mariners in 2010 as long as his hips allow him to. He had surgery on both of them during the off-season. He played in 80 games for the Mariners last season and he was 55 for 258 (.213 avg, .615 OPS) with 21 runs scored, 2 homers and 27 RBIs. Johnson needs to hit better than that if he is going to be a part of the Mariners’ future behind the plate. Johnson made 4 errors and he had a amazing 9 passed balls last season which gives him plenty of things to work on in spring training. But, his defense isn’t all bad as he threw out 29% of the runners trying to steal on him last year and Mariners’ pitchers loved throwing to him as they had a 3.22 ERA with him behind the plate.

30-year old righty swinging Eliezer Alfonzo will also likely battle for a roster spot this spring. He played in 37 games for the Padres last season and he was 20 for 114 (.175, .451 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 2 homers and 8 RBIs. Alfonzo made 1 error and he had 3 passed balls in 30 games behind the plate for the Padres last season. He threw out 38% of the runners trying to steal against him last season and Padres’ pitchers had a 4.51 ERA throwing to him. He is a longshot to win a spot on the Opening Day roster for the Mariners but he will likely play for them at some point in 2010.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE CATCHERS IN 2010: D

The Mariners have claimed 26-year old righty swinging 1B Tommy Everidge off waivers from the A’s. He played in 24 games for the A’s last season and he was 19 for 85 (.224 avg, .667 OPS) with 13 runs scored, 2 homers and 7 RBIs. Everidge also played in 107 games in AA+AAA ball last season and he was 144 for 487 (.335 avg, .958 OPS) with 80 runs scored, 20 homers and 94 RBIs. Everidge will have a hard time making the opening day roster for the Mariners but he should get a chance with them at some point in 2010. The A’s can’t be too happy with the Mariners getting Everidge from them for nothing.

UPDATE: The Mariners have designated Everidge for assignment to make room on the roster for Eric Byrnes.