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M's trade Morrow, get a League of their own

MARINERS: Deal is finalized, bringing right-handed reliever and prospect to Seattle

RYAN DIVISH; The News Tribune | • Published December 24, 2009

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Slowly but steadily, the remnants of the era under former general manager Bill Bavasi are being removed from the Seattle Mariners.

On Wednesday, another player – and a major reminder of that time – was dealt away as current general manager Jack Zduriencik finalized and announced the trade of former first-round draft pick Brandon Morrow to the Toronto Blue Jays. In return, the Mariners will receive hard-throwing right-handed reliever Brandon League and minor league outfielder Johermyn Chavez.

“It was not an easy decision,’’ Zduriencik said. “We had debated this thing for over a month.”

Zduriencik pointed to the number of phone calls – “at least 15” – that he and new Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopolous had during the past the month.

“And at the end of the day, I think that he fit their need real well and Brandon League, I think at this moment in time, fits our need,” Zduriencik said.

While Mariners fans might raise an eyebrow at a need for more bullpen help, a closer look reveals some possible reasons.

A year ago, Seattle’s bullpen was solid with the likes of Sean White, Shawn Kelly, Mark Lowe and closer David Aardsma. They were heavily relied upon as the Mariners battled with injuries, inconsistency and poor performances from the starting rotation. Pitchers such as White, Lowe and Aardsma all set career highs in innings pitched and appearances. It took its toll.

White was shut down at the end of the season with shoulder problems, and Kelly missed extensive time early in the season with an oblique strain and was never quite the same pitcher when he returned.

“From our estimation, it was the fact that we were a little bit uncomfortable with the current status of our bullpen,” Zduriencik said. “Last year, that was a big part of our success.’’

The addition of League, who pitched in a team-high 76 games for the Blue Jays last season, will only give manager Don Wakamatsu another hard thrower in a bullpen already filled with them.

“We feel we have added an experienced power arm to go along with our current bullpen,” Zduriencik said. “He has a ‘swing and miss’ pitch and a high groundball rate. He is a good fit for our bullpen and our ballpark.”

League, who was at his home in Honolulu enjoying the warm weather after leaving the Seattle area, admitted that the idea of being a Mariner finally hit him as the plane was landing on his flight across the Pacific.

“It’s definitely exciting, whenever you see a team make a lot of moves and you know that they have one goal in mind and that’s to win,” Leauge said. “I’m flattered they considered me in those moves and made me part of their organization.”

League will be reunited with pitching coach Rick Adair, who was League’s pitching coach at Double-A New Hampshire in 2004.

“I have a lot of great memories of Rick,” League said. “We ended up winning the whole league that year. He helped me out with my mechanics and the mind-set of being a late-inning guy.”

The other piece in the trade, Chavez, is a 20-year-old native of Venezuela. At 6-foot-3, 225 pounds, he’s big and strong, and he hit .283 with 21 home runs and 89 RBI for the Single-A Lansing Lugnuts this season. Chavez likes to swing, but he doesn’t always make contact, striking out 173 times last season.

“You’re never really sure about players you get that are in A ball,” Zduriencik said. “But he’s 20 years old, and when you look at a guy that played in the Midwest League and hit 21 home runs, there is a degree of impressiveness.”

The trade signifies the end of Morrow’s time in Seattle – a time in which he was constantly compared to two-time Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum.

Although Lincecum was a Washington native, played for the University of Washington and was the NCAA pitcher of the year, Bavasi bypassed Lincecum with the fifth-pick of the 2006 draft and selected Morrow.

And while Lincecum rocketed to stardom with the Giants, Morrow bounced back and forth between being a reliever and a starter. After spending the 2007 season in the bullpen, he began the transition to starter in winter ball that offseason in Venezuela. But the Mariners signed Carlos Silva and traded for Erik Bedard, and Morrow was moved back to reliever.

“I think that was the biggest blow,” he said. “I come out of Venezuela after pitching well and all ready to come in to start and they sign Silva, trade for Bedard, and I didn’t have a spot.”

Even with Morrow’s changing roles and inconsistency, Zduriencik said he still has faith in Morrow.

“I think Brandon Morrow has a lot of ability and has a chance to be a very good big league pitcher in this league,” Zduriencik said.

The Mariners, though, couldn’t afford to wait.

Ryan Divish: 253-597-8483

ryan.divish@thenewstribune.com

WHO M's GAVE UP

BRANDON MORROW

Age: 25 (born July 26, 1984, in Santa Rosa, Calif.)

Resides: Phoenix, Ariz.

Height: 6-3. Weight: 195

Bats: Right. Throws: Right

College: California-Berkeley

Pro entry: Selected by the Mariners with the fifth pick of the 2006 amateur draft.

By the numbers: Morrow finished the 2009 season with a 5-3 record and a 4.39 ERA in 26 appearances as both a reliever and a starter. He started the season as the M’s closer and converted his first six save opportunities. But as a reliever, he finished 0-3 with a 6.38 ERA. He lost the closer job after back-to-back blown saves in Texas on May 13-14. Started the conversion back to a starter at both major league and Triple-A levels in June. In major league starts, he was 2-1 with a 3.68 ERA. In 10 starts with Triple-A Tacoma, he was 5-3 with 3.60 ERA, including a stretch of six games where he was 5-0 with a 1.63 ERA.

WHO M's GOT

BRANDON LEAGUE

Age: 26 (born March 16, 1983, in Sacramento, Calif.)

Resides: Honolulu, Hawaii

Height: 6-2. Weight: 205

Bats: Right. Throws: Right

College: None

Pro entry: Selected by the Toronto Blue Jays with the 59th pick (second round) of the 2001 amateur draft out St. Louis High School in Honolulu.

By the numbers: He appeared in a career-high 67 games last season. He finished with a 3-6 record and a 4.58 ERA, with nine holds and 76 strikeouts in 742/3 innings pitched. He also induced 2.33 ground balls for every fly ball, which placed him eighth among American League relievers in that ratio. He had nine wild pitches last season.

JOHERMYN CHAVEZ

Age: 20 (born Jan 26, 1989, in Turmero, Venezuela)

Resides: Turmero, Venezuela

Height: 6-3. Weight: 225

Bats: Right. Throws: Right

College: None

Pro entry: Signed by the Toronto Blue Jays as non-drafted international free agent on July 15, 2005, by Rafel Moncada.

By the numbers: Chavez played his second straight season at Single-A Lansing (considered low Class A). After struggling in 2008, he showed some improvement, leading his team in hitting (.283), home runs (21) and RBI (89). He also raised his on-base percentage from .272 to .334. But he did strike out 173 times. He has been named the Blue Jays’ minor league player of the year for two different teams, earning the honors with rookie-level Gulf Coast in 2007 and with Lansing this year.

Ryan Divish, The News Tribune