Seattle Mariners Tickets

2010 Seattle Mariners Season Preview After a disastrous 2008 season, the Seattle Mariners surprised a lot of people by managing to end 2009 with a winning record.

Many thought the Mariners were a franchise in complete disarray after trading a host of prospects and reliever George Sherrill to the Baltimore Orioles for pitcher Erik Bedard.

That trade was a disaster, and it became apparent that the Mariners 'win now' attitude was putting the franchise further and further away from being competitive. The team changed general managers, and it seems order has been restored.

The first goal was to start rebuilding the team, but while on that path, the Mariners hung around in the American League wild card race and looked like they could be a competitive team immediately.

The team has since changed modes, as evidenced by the big offseason trade that brings ace Cliff Lee into the great Northwest.

Lee will team with Felix Hernandez to give the Mariners one of the top 1-2 starting pitching combinations in all of baseball.

The Mariners also added infielder Chone Figgins, prying him away from the division rival Los Angeles Angels. They love his versatility and want to move him around to a couple of different positions.

They also took a chance and re-signed Bedard, who is coming off labrum surgery and won't be ready by the start of the season. The left-hander is not particularly well-liked in the clubhouse, either, an issue he had in Baltimore as well.

If Bedard can get healthy and pitch up to his standards, look out. Just imagine having a 1-2-3 combination of Lee, Hernandez and Bedard. I'm not sure there is a team in baseball that could match those three pitchers.

Speaking of risks, the Mariners traded for Chicago Cubs outfielder Milton Bradley, whose attitude is only rivaled by Bedard's. Bradley could be a very productive player, a terrible distraction, or possibly both at the same time. It's definitely a situation to keep an eye on.

The Mariners are very pleased with the progress of center fielder Franklin Gutierrez, who might already be better than Adam Jones, the top prospect given up in the deal for Bedard. They also brought in Casey Kotchman, giving them a top-notch defensive first baseman.

Seattle seems intent on making not just a run at the playoffs, but possibly the World Series. Either way, with all of the moves they made in the offseason, they will be one of the more interesting teams to watch in all of baseball in 2010.