Chris Seddon up, Sean White down?
The TNT’s Ryan Divish is reporting that Rainiers LHP Chris Seddon has been added to the 40 man roster and his heading north to join the Mariners. Not sure about the corresponding move, but it looks quite likely that Sean White’s lost his spot in the bullpen.
Seddon was a minor league free agent the M’s picked up from the Marlins organization. He’s been a decent innings eater, but a drop in his walk rate led to a half-decent FIP of 4.12 this year. His ERA is even better, thanks to a low BABIP and a marked improvement in his ability to get righties out. His stuff isn’t overwhelming, but with a reduced walk rate and a bit of improvement in his GB rate, he’s made himself a decent option to replace Garrett Olson. Man, I’m really selling this, aren’t I?
This is the latest step in what’s been a month or two of constant churn in the Tacoma bullpen. The M’s picked up all manner of indie leaguers, ex-MLB relievers and ex-prospects and given them each a bit of time to make an impression. Most haven’t worked out, as they’ve demoted a few guys to AA, and released Billy Traber (to make room for Dustin Ackley). This is what depth is for, and while it’s nice to see them make these moves quickly, I’d really like to see a bit more separation between the fill-in guys and the MLB bullpen. As it is, Seddon isn’t much different from 3-4 guys in the M’s pen, and that’s yet another example of why 2010 hasn’t gone to plan.
Here’s a video of an interview Mike Curto did with Seddon, and here’s a picture of Seddon in action. Here’s Divish’s blog post on the move.
