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A great many posters here (myself included) are quick to blame Bavasi for everything that has gone wrong with this franchise over the past few seasons. But is this entirely accurate? Is this perpetual bane of mediocrity entirely Bavasi

1999

1. Ryan Christianson: With the 11th overall pick, the Mariners selected catcher Ryan Christianson, a heavy-hitting, good-defense high-schooler from California. Christianson looked like a smart pick, putting up .280/.379/.570 line in low-A ball. Then he just stopped hitting. He spent the next six seasons grinding his way up the organizational ladder, more out of the futile hope that he

2000

Due to the signings of John Olerud, Aaron Sele, and Arthur Rhodes the Mariners didn

2001

After losing their first-round pick from signing pitcher Jeff Nelson, the Mariners acquired one back after the Texas Rangers sent a wrecking ball full of cash ARod

2002

Having a true first-round pick for the first time since 1999, the 2002 Mariners

2003

Despite losing their first round pick by signing middling first baseman Greg Colbrunn, the compensatory pick they received netted them a potential All-Star.

1s. Adam Jones: While Jones was a highly-regarded prospect it was his arm that had scouts drooling. It took some big balls on Gillick

With eight years behind us, it

Excellent compilation of the Gillick drafts. I don't think I've ever took under consideration the full span of his drafts. They were pretty weak, and Putz, for all intents and purposes, was probably a "what the hell" pick that simply turned out, like throwing a buck down on a single number at the roulette table.

I don't have time to comment now, but thoughtful post there, BBJ.

wow... those were pretty bad selections.

and i agree, i have been worried for the last years about what the future brings for the mariners.

the players from FA haven't done any great thing for the Ms, and most have dissappeared after 2-3 years.

also, the lack of talent that could blossom in 3-4 years to then have a 5-7 years span to be important and relevant players.

this team also lacks an identity becayse of the heavy rotation the roster has had in the last 5-6 years.

i think the era where the M's had a young A-Rod, the greats of

Fabulous research there. Must have taken you quite a long time.

Regarding Bavasi: I've said before that he's the baseball equivalent of Isiah Thomas. Which is to say, his parents never taught him the value of a dollar (scratch that: one of his parents was Buzzy Bavasi, an excellent GM in his day, so it's just his fault), but he drafts well.

Gillick's terrible drafts were legendary. It was well-understood by the commentariat at the time that the farm system was drying up. The Mayberry fiasco was emblematic, and the reach for Garciaparra was widely ridiculed.

This is an organization that has reached some historic highs and lows with its draft picks. Look up any list of the greatest #1 overall picks ever and you'll see A-Rod and Griffey right up at the top, first and second on the list. Look up any list of the worst #1 overall busts and you'll see Al Chambers ranked equally high. The franchise's first-round picks in the pre-Gillick era have also included killer names like Patrick Lennon, Mike Campbell, Tito Nanni, Roger Salkeld, Marc Newfield and Ron Villone... six touted names, turning into five flame-outs and one journeyman reliever who used steroids.

But the first-round draftees from the Bavasi era promise to be better. Jeff Clement seems worth the hype, possibly even worth passing up Cameron Maybin and Troy Tulowitzki. Brandon Morrow seems to have a bright future. So far so good with Philippe Aumont. Matt Tuiasosopo? Well, 3 out of 4 ain't bad. (And even Tui can potentially contribute somewhere, somehow.)

We almost drafted Tulowitzki but C was a position of need so Clement was the pick.

Also with Lincecum...


Clement should get a call-up soon. He is crushing the Minors and has no reason to stay there.

Why is it taking so long for Clement to be called up???

Ex-hippie wrote:Fabulous research there. Must have taken you quite a long time.

As depressing as it was, it was actually pretty fun going back and finding out what happened to some of these players. The Schill story was probably my favorite. Dude just walked away from baseball entirely because he didn

There is a rumor that Carlos Delgado maybe released soon..
If so, M's should definitely consider him as their DH if they don't plan on calling up Clement anytime soon.

Mentioning Delgado makes me think of another Seattle near miss as I read today that the Giants are planning on moving Barry Zito to the bullpen. Yeah, he's still owed $112 million mind you...

This team is full of Carlos Delgados. Why would we need another?

Well, if they don't plan on calling up Clement.

They should take a chance at him if he is available or wait till the trade deadline to do something.

Lefty power bat which the park is best suited for.

Unless you want someone like Vidro in the DH spot, this offense will not get any better.

Scott Hatteberg is also available.

I also have no idea why Corcoran had to sent down. Wtf?

BBJ

GREAT read. Wow. Many kudos. Love the little interesting tidbits of "where are they now"