SB Nation Seattle - Meet Your 2012 Seattle Mariners: Lucas Luetge, John Jaso, Casper Wells, Munenori Kawasaki, & More

Meet Your 2012 Seattle Mariners: Lucas Luetge

2012-04-18T15:00:31Z

Relief Pitcher Lucas Luetge #44

25 years old; Experience: rookie

If you are like me and you follow the Seattle Mariners a bit more than fairly regularly, then when Lucas Luetge made his Mariner debut earlier this year you probably said, "Who in God's name is that????" and then furiously rifled through all of last year's official programs from the few Rainier games you went to and then stayed up all night and lost a lot of sleep over this mysterious Mariner and what this man was doing on your team. Where did he come from? Who sent him? What is his purpose?

Well, to answer those panicked questions that kept me up at night, Lucas Luetge came from Texas by means of Rice University. He was sent over by the Milwaukee Brewers and his purpose is to remain on the 25 man roster for as much of the season possible. Luetge was picked up by the Mariners in the off-season's Rule 5 Draft, meaning he is automatically on the 25 man roster and cannot be sent down to the minors - just flat out waived and cut if it doesn't work out.

That is the beauty of Rule 5 Draftees. Sometimes there is a diamond in the rough there, and perhaps the Brewers just didn't have space for Luetge on the roster at that moment. Luckily for him, the Mariners have plenty of space in the bullpen for pitchers who can hopefully cut it.

Luetge doesn't exactly throw the ball too hard. His fastball tops out at around 90 mph when the weather is nice and warm (like spring training) and he likes to use his slider a fair amount. He had a pretty decent strike out rate with the Brewers farm system, averaging about one per inning. The key with Luetge is that he is a southpaw, one of the few existing in the bullpen. He will be called upon in key situations and hopefully he thrives under extreme pressure of trying to keep the Mariners around .500. If he does he should do all right this year. If not, well maybe he can try his luck with another team.

Meet Your 2012 Seattle Mariners: John Jaso

2012-04-17T15:00:16Z

Catcher John Jaso #27

28 years old; Experience: two years

Post Dan Wilson era, the catching position has been somewhat of a black hole for the Seattle Mariners, constantly filled by a rotating cast of loveable, but not good, characters who wear masks and block pitches poorly (re: Rob Johnson and Miguel Olivo). This past offseason, Jack Z pulled his magic once again, trading Josh Lueke and a player to be named later for John Jaso.

Unfortunately for Jaso, Jack Z later dealt for Jesus Montero. With Miguel Olivo on the team, it really seemed like Jaso would be left as the third string catcher - not even Rob Johnson status. Then luckily for Jaso, it became clear that Montero wasn't going to be the primary catching option and would be getting his reps at designated hitter mostly.

It should hopefully be clear to the organization's future that Olivo doesn't have much of a place in it. Even though the Mariners went out and acquired Montero, it is still unclear how much the team is going to let him catch. Jaso should be expected to catch 30 or 40 games, barring injuries to either Montero or Olivo. It is up to him to show that he belongs in the major leagues. In 2010, Jason didn't hit for a whole lot of power with the Rays, but he put up a very respectable OBP of .372, which is probably more than all Olivo years combined. Jaso is a patient hitter, so even when he isn't hitting as well (like he was in 2011), he is still able to be far from useless at the plate - and that OBP is what separates him very nicely from Olivo. The catching position is in a bit of flux for the Mariners, so it remains to be seen how much of it will have Jaso in the picture. For 2012, it will unfortunately not have as much as it should, as Olivo will still be taking the most squats behind the plate.

Meet Your 2012 Seattle Mariners: Casper Wells

2012-04-15T15:00:04Z

Outfielder Casper Wells #33

27 years old; Experience: one year

Last season, a synapse snapped in Jack Z's brain and he went on a rampage acquiring every single young outfielder he could in all of major league baseball. One specific man, a man by the name of Casper Wells, made the cut onto the juggernaut that is the Seattle Mariners outfield. Wells was acquired last year from the Detroit Tigers as part of the Doug Fister trade.

Wells is a solid outfielder with theoretically a dependable bat. He showed flashes of that last year, hitting a home run in four straight games between August 13^th and August 16^th until Brandon Morrow had enough of those shenanigans and hit him on the tip of the nose to end the streak. Wells' Spring Training was largely unimpressive unless you count striking out impressive, which in that case Wells had a very impressive Spring Training.

Throughout most of his career in the minors, Wells has shown a very balanced approach to the game. He doesn't hit for too much power and doesn't steal too many bases. He has always had a pretty decent OBP (except for his less than glamorous 2010 year) which helps boast his all around value on the basepaths. He is a solid fielder who doesn't make a whole lot of bad decisions.

However, with the sudden emergence of Mike Carp last year and the insistence on shoveling Chone Figgins out as much as possible to salvage the slightest bit of use out of his contract, Wells time in the outfield will be sporadic at best. The left field platoon seems that it will eventually end up Carp/Figgins when everyone is healthy, so that leaves Wells to try and impress Eric Wedge into forcing himself in there over either Carp or Figgins. It remains to be seen, but the outfield is crowded with Michael Saunders being the defacto fourth outfielder, so don't expect to rock your Casper Wells jerseys in Safeco too often this year.

Meet Your 2012 Seattle Mariners: Alex Liddi

2012-04-14T15:00:14Z

Infielder Alex Liddi #16

23 years old; Experience: one year

If you have heard of Alex Liddi and know anything about him then you are one of the biggest die-hard Mariners fans ever. Most likely, the only thing you know about Liddi is that he is the first Italian actually born in the motherland to ever play major league baseball. That little piece of trivia is exactly that - a piece of trivia. In case you haven't ever been to Italy, or even heard of it, baseball is not a very commonly played sport over there. So Liddi might be blazing a trail in the future, but for now that trail is overgrown and impassable. But somewhere out there, over in Italy, some young kid is holding a baseball bat starting at an Alex Liddi rookie card while all of his friends engage in a friendly game of futbol.

Liddi had a solid spring and was actually quite surprisingly made the roster over Carlos Peguero. Peguero also had a good spring training, but Peguero is also Peguero and has no business on a major league roster. Liddi doesn't necessarily either, but after his year stint with the Rainiers last year it was clear that Liddi had nothing left to prove in his constant embarrassment of AAA pitchers. He ended his 2011 minor league career with a .259/.332/.488 line while mashing 30 home runs and driving in 104 RBIs. He had a very limited call-up time after the rosters are expanded in September and didn't do a whole lot with it, although he still hit three home runs in only 44 at bats.

The power is definitely there for Liddi, but there is a big difference between clobbering minor league pitchers and jacking home runs off of the likes of CC Sabathia. Liddi definitely hit for power in his short stint last year, but when he wasn't hitting for power he was just flat out missing the ball. He struck out at a clip of 38.6% which is a number even Mark Reynolds can laugh at. For Liddi to have any usefulness with the Mariners, he needs to cut down on the pitches he takes hacks at and clobber the pitches worth clobbering. Since he has a whole ton of minor league options left, barring some horrendous infield meltdown/catastrophe/trainwreck of injuries, Liddi will probably have another limited stay with the Mariners riding the bench and occasionally filling in the infield when necessary.

Meet Your 2012 Seattle Mariners: Munenori Kawasaki

2012-04-13T15:00:23Z

Infielder Munenori Kawasaki #61

30 years old; Experience: rookie (of the Japanese sorts)

The Seattle Mariners are like the New York Yankees of Japanese players - or at least they are for Munenori Kawasaki, who signed a minor league contract with the Mariners because he wanted to play here so bad. Or at least that is what will have to come off it. Most likely he signed with the Mariners because the only other teams who would take slap hitting speedy infielders with no power are the Oakland Athletics and soon to be AL West cellar buddies the Houston Astros.

As such, signing Kawasaki was pretty much a no brainer for the M's. He was a solid player in Japan, a lifetime .297 hitter who was best known for his glove and his speed. To the Mariners he brings someone who can spell Brendan Ryan at short when he inevitably injures himself and won't be a huge detriment at the plate - theoretically.

There isn't a whole lot else to Kawasaki's presence on the Seattle Mariners other than maybe some new Japanese fans who just hated Ichrio for no reason but love Munenori Kawasaki might buy a Seattle Mariners cap now. He isn't projected to do much else than hit decently and potentially steal a few bases if he gets on base. The one drawback that Kawasaki does have is he is a quantity over quality base stealer, and gets caught far too often for someone of his speed. Hopefully his frightening diminutive nature will take opposing pitchers by surprise and Kawasaki can provide more infield singles if Ichrio starts to let fans down with those exciting hits.

Meet Your 2012 Seattle Mariners: Kyle Seager

2012-04-12T15:00:19Z

Infielder Kyle Seager #15

24 years old; Experience: one year

Just add Kyle Seager into the long list of soon to be or current Seattle Mariners who are able to provide just an inkling of hope, that after a decade of depravity this motley crew might be able to churn out just enough wins to make it into the playoffs one of these years. This playoff push of course pretty much completely relies on all of these young pieces actually producing at the major league level. Out of all the prospects or players entering their first full year of service, Seager seems best set to be a lasting contributor.

Seager was drafted in 2009 in the third round and pretty much for the get go got himself pushing through the minor league ranks at a pretty good clip. He started 2011 in AA ball, and after absolutely shredding pitchers in AA and AAA the Mariners called him up last year where Seager got a pretty good look at the life of the major leagues. Unlike the seemingly endless parade of Mariners players who can wallop all levels of minor league pitchers but struggle on a consistent basis at the major league plate. Last year, through 53 games Seager hit .258/.312/.379 with three home runs.

Those aren't exactly numbers that will knock the socks off of your grandfather while he updates his scorecard, but they aren't half bad considering Seager opened 2011 in AA. Seager didn't show flashes of extreme power throughout his minor league career. He topped out at 14 home runs in A+ call in 2010, but he has good bat control and doesn't swing at too many bad pitches.

This year, Seager pretty much played his way onto the line-up through Spring Training and although the Mariners are absolutely determined to run Chone Figgins out as much as possible to salvage some millions out of his worthless contract, Seager should still see a solid amount of playing time. With the Mariners already dealing with some outfield injuries, Seager has been able to see quite a bit of time at third base. As of now, he is the "prospect" with the best chance of maintaining his spot on the active roster longest throughout the year. Seager does have some upside, and if he can put the numbers he did throughout the minors, high batting average and on base percentage, he should have a healthy career ahead of him. Hopefully that healthiness happens while in a Mariners uniform.

Meet Your 2012 Seattle Mariners: Michael Saunders

2012-04-11T15:00:14Z

Outfielder Michael Saunders #55

25 years old; Experience: three years

Michael Saunders is the kind of player that is maddening to fans, more maddening to his manager, and probably most maddening to the scouts. The fans hear of this guy who can seemingly do it all at such a young age. The manager gets a kid who has been doing it all in AAA, and the scouts are the people who are sure he can do it in the major leagues. But year in and year out, Saunders has failed his big league opportunity. On pretty much any other team, Saunders wouldn't have gotten another major league chance. But the Seattle Mariners aren't any other team. They are the Seattle Mariners, where hope springs eternal and opportunities knock on your door, and your neighbor's door, and your landlord's door until they find someone who knows how to hold a baseball mitt.

Saunders has shown he can hit for power throughout his minor league career. He is a serviceable outfielder with a good arm and he gets good reads/jumps on balls. His biggest problem has been that his hitting has never translated to a serviceable level in the major leagues. In 2010, through 100 games Saunders was able to hit 10 home runs. But he did it while batting a paltry .211 with an OBP of .295. That year was his best year with the Mariners.

The biggest problem with Michael Saunders is he has a tendency to preform well enough in Spring Training that it is clear he either belongs on the roster or is the first person to be called up. This might be Saunders last year to show he belongs consistently on a major league roster. For that to happen, Saunders needs to desperately cut down on his strikeouts and just learn how to put the ball into play better. With the injuries to Franklin Gutierrez and Mike Carp to open the season, Saunders has his best opportunity to show he belongs in the future plans of the club right now. At best, he could be a pretty decent outfielder with some solid pop and a good arm. At middle ground, he could be a pretty good fourth outfielder. At worst, he will be what he has been the past three years - which isn't very much. But is his career doesn't take off with Seattle; Saunders is young enough to probably catch a contract with another major league team. Those players then tend to find their swing and be super fantastic (hello Michael Morse anyone?) so lets hope he finds success with the Mariners.

Meet Your 2012 Seattle Mariners: Hisashi Iwakuma

2012-04-10T15:00:38Z

Relief Pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma #18

30 years old; Experience: rookie (in the Japanese player way)

This year there was one major player coming from Japan, and then there was Hisashi Iwakuma, giving it the old college try. In 2010, Iwakuma tried to come over to the States. The Oakland Athletics won the bidding process but weren't able to agree on a contract in the 30 day timeline, so Iwakuma went back over to Japan. This time around, the Mariners pounced and signed him to a very team friendly $1.5 million contract laden with incentives.

Iwakuma isn't exactly going to turn a lot of heads like his fellow Japanese "rookie" Yu Darvish, but he should be pretty solid. Should is the key word here because at the beginning of Spring Training it seemed a foregone conclusion that Iwakuma would open the season in the rotation. The rotation spot was his to lose and he did that as Spring Training wore on. He lost that rotation spot to the likes of Blake Beavan, and unfortunate little tidbit because Blake Beavan isn't very good.

The plus of having Iwakuma in the bullpen is that assuming he isn't a total stinker, and not in the endearing way that you call your three year old niece a stinker, he should be able to burst right out of the bullpen into the starting rotation at the first sign of immediate trouble. Considering that the Mariners bullpen is King Felix, Jason Vargas, old man Millwood, the rookie Hector Noesi, and then - ugh - Blake Beavan, there is primo opportunity for Iwakuma to find himself starting a few games and reaching those incentives for a bigger payday.

I'm starting to tire of talking about how pitchers like Iwakuma will benefit by pitching at Safeco Field because pretty much all pitchers benefit by pitching at Safeco Field (except for Blake Beavan for reasons unknown to statistics and science). Injuries have taken a toll on Iwakuma's fastball and it now sits in the high 80s for the most part. Every now and then he can put the juice on it and hit the mid 90s. His out-pitch is his splitter which he often shoves down the throats (or the bats) of the opposing batters, generally resulting in a lot of groundouts. Assuming that the infield behind Iwakuma stays relatively decent defensively, then it goes that Iwakuma should put up pretty decent numbers for the Seattle Mariners at a rather cheap rate. He is a solid addition to the team that can hopefully also provide bizarre zen-Ichiro-like comments every now and then.