32-year old switch hitting DH/LF Milton Bradley was supposed to give the Mariners a solid middle of the order bat, but that just hasn’t happened so far this year. Bradley has played in 55 games for the Mariners so far this season and he is 39 of 190 (.205 avg, .650 OPS) with 22 runs scored, 7 homers, 27 RBIs and 6 stolen bases. At the time of the trade with the Cubs I thought it favored the Mariners big time figuring that Bradley would hit the ball while Carlos Silva would suck for the Cubs. But Silva has started 14 games for the Cubs this season and he is 8-2 with a 3.01 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP. The Mariners should have known from Bradley’s past that he would be more trouble than he is worth.

The Mariners have designated 31-year old righty swinging catcher Eliezer Alfonzo for assignment. Alfonzo played in 13 games for the Mariners this season and he was 9 of 41 (.220 avg, .537 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 1 homer and 4 RBIs. The Mariners DFA’d Alfonzo so they could activate 32-year old switch hitting catcher Josh Bard off the D.L. Bard played in 8 games for the Mariners before getting injured in which he was 6 of 22 (.273 avg, .916 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 1 homer and 4 RBIs. Bard will be pushing Rob Johnson for at bats.

The Mariners have signed 24-year old righty swinging OF/1B David Winfree to a minor league deal. Winfree has played in 62 games in AAA-ball so far this season and he is 61 of 236 (.258 avg, .688 OPS) with 28 runs scored, 5 homers and 37 RBIs. He has now played in 715 games in 8 years in the minors and he is 724 of 2,696 (.269 avg, .754 OPS) with 352 runs scored, 87 homers and 426 RBIs. The Mariners are leaving no stone unturned in an effort to improve the offense so I like this signing for them. The Mariners have also released 33-year old lefty swinging shortstop Ramon Vazquez. Vazquez played in 35 games in AAA-ball for the Mariners and he was 27 of 125 (.216 avg, .599 OPS) with 13 runs scored, 1 homer and 10 RBIs. He wasn’t out of work long as the Astros have signed him to a minor league deal.

The Mariners have placed 36-year old righty swinging DH Mike Sweeney on the 15-day disabled list with back spasms. Sweeney has played in 30 games this season for the Mariners and he is 26 of 99 (.263 avg, .802 OPS) with 11 runs scored, 6 homers, 18 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. This hurts the Mariners as Sweeney has been one of their best hitters when healthy. The Mariners have recalled 27-year old righty starter/reliever David Pauley to replace Sweeney on the active roster. He will serve in long relief for the Mariners for the time being. He made his season debut yesterday working 2 scoreless innings allowing 2 hits, walking 3 batters and whiffing 2. Pauley has also pitched in 15 games (14 starts) earlier this season in AAA-ball and he was 1-6 with a 3.68 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP.

The Mariners have acquired 34-year old lefty swinging 1B Russell Branyan for 23-year old lefty swinging outfielder Ezequiel Carrara and 21-year old switch hitting shortstop Juan Diaz. This is the kind of trade that contenders make not last place teams with a 31-43 record. This is a great sign for Mariners’ fans as the team hasn’t given up on the season despite being 14 games behind. Branyan has played in 52 games for the Indians this season and he is 45 of 171 (.263 avg, .819 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 10 homers and 24 RBIs. Branyan played in 116 games for the Mariners last season and he was 108 of 431 (.251 avg, .867 OPS) with 64 runs scored, 31 homers and 76 RBIs. Branyan will be a huge improvement over Casey Kotchman at 1B. Lefty swinging outfielder Ezequiel Carrara was the Mariners’ #15 rated prospect heading into this season according to Baseball America. He played in 64 games in AAA-ball this season for the Mariners and he is 57 of 213 (.268 avg, .654 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 0 homers, 18 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. Switch hitting shortstop Juan Diaz was not one of the Mariners’ top 30 prospects coming into this season according to Baseball America. Diaz has played in 70 games in A-ball this season for the Mariners and he was 75 of 254 (.295 avg, .779 OPS) with 39 runs scored, 7 homers, 41 RBIs and 8 stolen bases. The Mariners will also get either $1.1 million bucks from the Indians to pay Branyan or they will get a player to be names later. This was a good trade for the Mariners who are desperate for offense right now.