Mariners agree to terms with Silva
SEATTLE (AP) - The Seattle Mariners have agreed to a four-year contract with free-agent starting pitcher Carlos Silva.
Terms were not immediately known, though the deal is believed to be worth approximately $44 million.
The 28-year-old right-hander, who was to be introduced to his new city in a news conference Thursday afternoon, was 13-14 last season for the Minnesota Twins with a 4.19 ERA - better than every Mariners starter other than hard-throwing Felix Hernandez.
The Mariners like that Silva pitches deep into games, generally stays low in the strike zone with a sharp sinker and doesn't walk many. All three issues hurt Seattle in its late-season collapse from surprise contention in 2007. Silva walked just 36 batters in 202 innings last season.
He joins a Seattle rotation that includes Hernandez, Miguel Batista and Jarrod Washburn.
One starting spot remains open. The Mariners are pursuing a trade for Baltimore's Erik Bedard that would likely cost top outfield prospect Adam Jones, among others. Bedard is not only good - 13-5 last season and 15-11 the year before for two bad Orioles teams - his contract status is attractive. The Canadian left-hander is still eligible for arbitration and under team control for two more seasons.
"We feel that signing Carlos addresses one of our main needs, adding a quality arm to the starting rotation," general manager Bill Bavasi said. "Our goal heading into the off-season was to identify the best available pitcher on the free agent market and we feel we got the best one."
Terms were not immediately known, though the deal is believed to be worth approximately $44 million.
The 28-year-old right-hander, who was to be introduced to his new city in a news conference Thursday afternoon, was 13-14 last season for the Minnesota Twins with a 4.19 ERA - better than every Mariners starter other than hard-throwing Felix Hernandez.
The Mariners like that Silva pitches deep into games, generally stays low in the strike zone with a sharp sinker and doesn't walk many. All three issues hurt Seattle in its late-season collapse from surprise contention in 2007. Silva walked just 36 batters in 202 innings last season.
He joins a Seattle rotation that includes Hernandez, Miguel Batista and Jarrod Washburn.
One starting spot remains open. The Mariners are pursuing a trade for Baltimore's Erik Bedard that would likely cost top outfield prospect Adam Jones, among others. Bedard is not only good - 13-5 last season and 15-11 the year before for two bad Orioles teams - his contract status is attractive. The Canadian left-hander is still eligible for arbitration and under team control for two more seasons.
"We feel that signing Carlos addresses one of our main needs, adding a quality arm to the starting rotation," general manager Bill Bavasi said. "Our goal heading into the off-season was to identify the best available pitcher on the free agent market and we feel we got the best one."