Today the Mariners signed Roberto Petagine to a minor-league contract and invited him to Spring Training. Personally, I really like the move. Granted, Petagine's no spring chicken, but before joining the Red Sox last season, his stats make him look like the Japanese League's version of Barry Bonds. In Japan's Central League, from 1999 to 2003, Petagine hit .317/.445/.633 - numbers very close to those put up by Hideki Matsui. So, needless to say, it would be a travesty if Petagine lost a job on the M's bench because of Greg Dobbs...not that he's directly competing with Dobbs, because neither is on the 40-man, but I picked on Dobbs because he was one of the M's lefty bench bats last season. I really hope that Petagine gets a spot on the M's bench. If they choose to go with a 12-man pitching staff, like they did last year (nooooooo!), then there are only four bench spots available. You know Bloomquist will have one, one is for the backup catcher, one will probably be for Morse, and the final spot is for Matt Lawton. Petagine's only real chance to make an impression will come at the beginning of the season. Remember, Lawton will not be allowed to play the first 10 games because of his steroids suspension from last year. Petagine's defense isn't bad (he won the equivalent of Gold Gloves in Japan) and I would be willing to bet that, given the chance, Petagine would be the best bat on the M's bench next season. 

Not to be outdone, the Rangers signed a quality left-handed hitter to a minor league deal, as they inked Erubiel Durazo today as well. Durazo is three years younger than Petagine and has proven himself to be a good hitter in the Major Leagues, hitting .281/.381/.487 over his seven-year career. However, the reason Durazo came for such a cheap price is because he is recovering from Tommy John surgery that ended his 2004 season. If healthy, he should hit very well in their ballpark and will be a fine addition to their bench, if he makes the team.

Granted, Petagine hasn't had the same opportunities to succeed as Durazo. The most at-bats Petagine has seen from a MLB team in a season is 124 by the Padres in 1995. Most of Petagine's at-bats in the United States have come at the AAA level, where he has absolutely destroyed everything that comes his way. It's good to see Bavasi doing things like this (I wonder if Mat Olkin had anything to do with this signing), especially since at the BP/USSM feed and at FanFest, he said things that make it seem like he believes the difference in AAA and MLB stats is much bigger than it really is. Overall, I'm very happy with this signing and will be rooting hard for Petagine to make the MLB roster!