32-year old righty swinging Miguel Olivo is going to take over behind the plate for the Mariners in 2011. He played in 112 games for the Rockies last season and he was 106 of 394 (.269 avg, .765 OPS) with 55 runs scored, 14 homers, 58 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. Olivo is a hacker though as he whiffed 117 times last season while only walking 27 times. The Mariners would probably be very happy if Olivo hit around .260 with 15-20 homers and 70+ RBIs in 2011, and he’s more than capable of putting up those kinds of numbers. Olivo had 9 erros and 9 passed balls in 111 games behind the plate last season for the Rockies so he has some things he needs to improve on. But, he threw out 30 of 78 (38.5%) runners trying to steal on him last season and Rockies’ pitchers had a 3.90 ERA with him behind the plate. In the American League West, you need a catcher with a good arm and Olivo certainly has one of those.

26-year old righty swinging Adam Moore came into last season as the Mariners’ #3 prospect according to Baseball America. But, he was downright awful for the Mariners last season and he will have to beat out Josh Bard and Chris Gimenez this spring if he wants to be with the Mariners in April. Moore played in 60 games for the Mariners last season and he was 40 of 205 (.195 avg, .513 OPS) with 12 runs scored, 4 homers and 15 RBIs. Moore looked really overmatched at the plate as he whiffed 63 times last season while only walking 8 times! He will have to improve as a hitter soon or his major league career is going to be a very, very short one. Moore had 4 errors and 7 passed balls in 59 games behind the plate for the Mariners and those totals are just not acceptable. He only threw out 7 of 43 (16.3%) runners trying to steal on him last season, but, Mariners’ pitchers liked to throw to him as they had a 3.64 ERA with him behind the plate.

32-year old switch hitting Josh Bard has to like his chances this spring of passing up Adam Moore on the depth chart. Bard played in 39 games for the Mariners last season and he was 24 of 112 (.214 avg, .634 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 3 homers and 10 RBIs. Bard is a better hitter than he showed last season. Bard had 2 errors but 0 passed balls in 39 games behind the plate for the Mariners. He also threw out 3 of 18 (16.7%) runners trying to steal against him last season and Mariners’ pitchers had a 4.29 ERA with him behind the plate.

24-year old righty swinging Chris Gimenez can also play 1B and the corner outfield which could aid him in making the roster. He played in 28 games for the Indians last season and he was 11 of 58 (.190 avg, .615 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 1 homer and 8 RBIs. Gimenez also whiffed 22 times while walking 8 times as he sometimes looks like he has a hole in his bat. Gimenez made 1 error and he had 1 passed ball in 24 games behind the plate for the Indians last year. Gimenez threw out 9 of 34 (26.5%) runners trying to steal on him last season and Tribe pitchers had a 4.54 ERA with him behind the plate.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE MARINERS CATCHERS IN 2011: C

The Seattle Mariners have signed 29-year old righty reliever Chris Ray to a minor league deal. Ray pitched in 63 games (0 starts) for the Rangers & Giants last season and he was 5-0 with 2 saves, a 3.72 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP. He has now pitched in 254 games (0 starts) in his first five years in the majors and he is 15-17 with 51 saves, a 4.02 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. I really like this signing for the Mariners as Ray has the arm and stuff to pitch late in games.

The Mariners have signed 33-year old lefty swinging outfielder Jody Gerut to a minor league deal. Gerut played in 32 games for the Brewers last season and he was 14 of 71 (.197 avg, .596 OPS) with 7 runs scored, 2 homers and 8 RBIs. Gerut has now played in 574 games in his first six years in the majors and he is 472 of 1,804 (.262 avg, .758 OPS) with 246 runs scored, 59 homers, 226 RBIs and 30 stolen bases. Gerut will have a really good shot of making the Mariners’ bench this spring if he looks good. This is a nice low risk/decent reward signing for the Mariners as Gerut has been a decent ballplayer over his major league career.

UPDATE: (2/27/2011) - Jody Gerut announced his retirement today saying that he didn’t have the desire to play anymore.

The Mariners have signed 33-year old lefty starting pitcher Nate Robertson to a minor league deal. Robertson pitched in 21 games (18 starts) for the Marlins & Phillies last season and he was 6-8 with a 5.95 ERA and a 1.55 WHIP. In his first 9 years in the majors, Robertson has pitched in 223 games (187 starts) in which he is 57-77 with 1 save, a 5.01 ERA and a 1.47 WHIP. The Mariners will give Robertson a shot to compete for the #5 spot in the rotation this spring. It never hurts to bring in a verteran like Robertson as the Mariners can just cut him if he doesn’t look too good in February and March.

The Seattle Mariners have signed 34-year old lefty swinging 2B Adam Kennedy to a minor league deal. Kennedy played in 135 games for the Nationals last season and he was 85 of 342 (.249 avg, .655 OPS) with 43 runs scored, 3 homers, 31 RBIs and 14 stolen bases. Kennedy has now played in 1,491 games in his first 12 years in the majors and he is 1,355 of 4,925 (.275 avg, .717 OPS) with 624 runs scored, 71 homers, 517 RBIs and 170 stolen bases. I would be shocked if Kennedy doesn’t make the Mariners out of spring training as a backup. He also might push Brendan Ryan at 2B at some point next year if Ryan struggles hitting the ball. I like this signing for the Mariners.