M's, Feller, and More From Cyberspace

Several things have been going on in the baseball world that I've wanted to write about, but me and my urge to spread holiday cheer to people I see face-to-face on a regular basis have kept me away from the blogosphere.

Luckily, several great writers have already said lots of what I'd like to talk about. So, instead of stealing their ideas, I'll link to them:

• The Mariners made some minor league signings this week. Both Shannon Drayer and Greg Johns wrote about them. I am glad to see Ryan Langerhans back, and I've also always been a fan of Royce Ring. However, Ring is a specialty lefty, and signing him signals a philosophical shift in the organization. Don Wakamatsu wasn't too keen on specialty relievers. Lastly, I now feel fine about cutting Rob Johnson loose with Chris Gimenez coming to camp.
• I might have to change the name of my blog, since Johns also uses "Mariners Musings" on his MLBlog. Not that it's copyrighted, but I dunno. I respect Johns. My url is seattlemarinersmusings, so I might just go with that (except with spaces).
• Kirby Arnold wrote a nice piece on Dan Cortes, and all the wild promise he is showing in winter ball. I think he's still too wild, but that isn't the vibe the front office or beat writers seem to be giving. Arnold also goes into some detail about the bullpen situation, and other noteworthy M's playing ball right now.
• If you would rather read about a Hall of Famer, instead of a bunch of prospects/fringe players, I highly recommend Joe Posnanski's piece on the recent passing of Bob Feller. He was an amazing pitcher, with a personality to match, and Posnanski is a writer up to the challenge of capturing what makes him a legend.
• I feel like the Cliff Lee signing is worth a whole post, but what is there to say? He's filthy rich, but not as filthy rich as he could have been. I should have known all along that if Cliff Lee was the mythical pitcher that I had come to know and love, he would spurn the Yankees for somewhere else.
• Indirectly related to Cliff Lee, as Dave Cameron already pointed out, whoever gets Joe Blanton from the Phillies is probably getting a bargain. I wouldn't mind seeing the Mariners inquire.

Okay, now the musings has caught back up to the baseball world. I can move forward with writing original content again.