so says John Hickey of the Seattle Post Intelligencer (what a name for a paper!)...here's the blurb and the link where it can be found:Bill Bavasi doesn't know if the Baltimore Orioles will trade left-handed starter Erik Bedard before spring training, now less than three weeks away.
The Mariners general manager is similarly uncertain about the Pittsburgh Pirates' Ian Snell and even the Twins' Johan Santana.
What Bavasi seemed to indicate Thursday was the Mariners have made their final offers on the pitchers they are interested in acquiring in trade, and that those offers may be the best the respective teams will receive from anyone.
The trading and free-agent signing season has dragged on longer than normal, but the Mariners are willing to let it play out a little longer if it brings them the top-end starting pitcher they need. Bedard is the Mariners' first choice, just not the only one.
"We've stayed involved with all of them," Bavasi said of his quest. "It's been a real odd market. I've never seen one this slow for premier guys. Clubs are real reluctant to move young players.
"We are not one of those, but there is a limit. I would have thought (a drop-dead date) would have been a month ago. But if the (players you want) are still out there, you find a way.
"We're talking about a real rare animal. For us, the most important thing is a top-of-the-rotation starting pitcher. Not a No. 2 or No. 3 or No. 4. But there is a limit to what we will move."
Bavasi said the club has provisional offers on the table for all of the pitchers of interest.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/baseball/348727_mari25.html
