More Inevitable Roster Cuts

Finally, the pitchers are getting whittled down. Gone today are Chris Smith, Charlie Haeger, Dan Cortes, and Manny Delcarmen. With all due respect to this quartet though, I wonder who goes next. These aren't terribly interesting cuts.

Chris Smith looked like AAA depth all along, and now he officially is.

Charlie Haeger, a longshot to begin with, was hurt to start spring training.

Dan Cortes couldn't throw strikes.

I suppose Manny Delcarmen is a little bit interesting, but he struggled to find the strike zone in camp too. If he stays in the M's system, they might want to think about stretching him out as a starter, just to see what happens. The odds are that it won't work, but he has three pitches he can get over the plate, and he doesn't have the kind of velocity to overpower batters anymore. At the very least, starting might help Delcarmen better develop ways to induce weak contact.

Honestly though, less than a week into the Cactus league schedule, I didn't see any of these guys making the roster. What's more interesting to me is who hasn't been cut.

Delcarmen Added To Reclamation Mix

With tepid fanfare, the Mariners added RHP Manny Delcarmen to the mix by signing him to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training. According to a report on the PI blog, he had at least one MLB contract he could have signed in the National League, but chose Seattle because of "the opportunity."

Translation: Delcarmen thinks the M's bullplen blows, so it will be easier for him to make the team.

Manny, unfortunately, is right. There is a reason that he only got a minor league deal though.