We take a quick break from our regularly scheduled steroids coverage to note that the Seattle Mariners have inked right-hander Carlos Silva to a 4-year deal worth $44 million. Silva is an innings pig who doesn’t allow many walks or strikeouts. In fact, his career K/9 of 3.76 is disturbingly Eiland-esque.
Usually I whine about these types of contracts, but this seems to be the going rate for league-average pitchers. Assuming Silva’s poor strikeout totals don’t portend an early demise, that’s about what Seattle can expect from him over the duration of his contract.
Don’t hate the player, hate the stupid market…

When Mike Hargrove stepped down as manager of the Seattle Mariners, could anyone have anticipated his next move? Hargrove reportedly has signed on to manage the Liberal BeeJays, a semi-pro team in Kansas.
First off, who calls their team the BeeJays? Second… well, there is no second. This is just a weird story, is all…

Mike Hargrove has resigned as manager of the Seattle Mariners. Strange that after suffering through two losing seasons, Hargrove would choose now — with his team at 44-33 — to walk away.
David Pinto points to an old article suggesting that Hargrove and Ichiro Suzuki may have been at odds. I have no idea whether this is true, but it’d be a shame if a clash of egos is what led to Hargrove’s departure.

As part of Darren Rowse’s latest group writing project, and because Roger Clemens is in the news again, here are five Clemens moments that we’ll never forget:

April 29, 1986: At age 23, Clemens strikes out 20 Seattle Mariners in a game at Fenway Park. The Boston Red Sox win the game, 3-1, and Clemens enters the history books. [More at Baseball Almanac]
October 10, 1990: Clemens is ejected in the second inning of ALCS Game 4 against the Oakland A’s, who complete the sweep of Boston en route to their third straight World Series. [More at ESPN.]
September 18, 1996: Ten years …read more

Seattle Mariners right-hander Felix Hernandez left in the first inning of Wednesday night’s contest against the Twins due to “tightness in his right pitching elbow.” Uh-oh.
Mariners manager Mike Hargrove offers some comforting words:
Gut feeling, I think Felix will be OK. I have nothing to base that on.
Did I say “comforting”? Sorry, my bad.
Tough break for a franchise that really doesn’t have much going for it. Here’s hoping Hernandez is okay and will be able to resume dominating American League hitters again real soon.