Still holding out hope for Prince Fielder

By Jim Moore

ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick tweeted yesterday that he was told the Mariners had only $3 million to $4 million left to spend on free agents.

If that were the case, Mariner fans would immediately know that that’s not nearly enough to sign Prince Fielder, who’s expected to receive a contract that pays him $20 million to $25 million a year. At that rate, if he came here for $4 million, the Mariners would only get him for two months.

Which at this point, I’d take him for two months over no months at all. At least April and May would be fun at Safeco Field.

Prince Fielder might not turn the Mariners into winners by himself, but the Go 2 Guy thinks he’d at least bring excitement back to Safeco Field. (AP)

But then we had Crasnick on “The Kevin Calabro Show,” and he qualified his tweet by saying that $3 million to $4 million might be what the Mariners have left after a potential Fielder signing, suggesting there might be a big side pot of dough for him.

Crasnick also intimated that the tweet might have been misleading the way he typed it up and threw it out there, which bothers me. When you’re a respected reporter such as Crasnick, you don’t just throw flimsy crap out there and hope that it’s true.

But when Crasnick made his tweet, it was a big deal because anything — even an unsubstantiated comment on Twitter — that has something to do with Fielder is considered news because we typically hear nothing about the fat guy’s destination.

Yes, I said fat guy. Enough with calling him overweight. He’s fat. I know fat when I see it because I see it every morning in the mirror. And by the way, I was initially excited when I heard the Mariners signed a left-handed fat guy last month only to learn that it was George Sherrill.

When Crasnick was on the show, he speculated that even if the Mariners landed Fielder, he wouldn’t be a good fit. He probably wouldn’t be happy here. It would be a short-term fix even though Crasnick admitted that Fielder will likely sign a seven-year deal.

I ask these questions: How can Fielder be a bad fit here? How can Fielder be a bad fit anywhere? Maybe to a tailor, but not to a major-league baseball team, especially one that desperately needs some pop.

Crasnick thinks Fielder wouldn’t be happy here because the losing would get to him. Listen, if he signs a seven-year deal with the Mariners, I’m going to believe that he would have signed with another team if he didn’t think he’d be happy here. And if he signs a seven-year deal for $150 million, I’m thinking he’ll be happy as hell no matter where he is.

Supposedly money can’t buy happiness, but if you give me $150 million, I’ll live in Washtucna and smile 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 12 months a year, mostly because of all that dinero but partly because I’ll only be 68 miles from Pullman.

And short-term fix? What the heck is he talking about? If Fielder’s signed to a seven-year deal, that’s not a short-term fix. Just to spell it out for you, Jerry, seven years is a long time.

Here’s another problem: Most of us Mariner fans have a Fielder fixation and this Fielder fantasy that we hope comes true. Other baseball writers such as Larry Stone of The Seattle Times confirm our speculations that Fielder, even at spacious Safeco Field, would hit 40 home runs a year and drive in more than 100 runs.

We want Fielder in the worst way because we can’t stand the thought of watching a third consecutive year of terrible offense. Crasnick rightfully says that Fielder won’t turn the Mariners into a winning team, but he’ll be a big piece to a contending team in the future.

And I agree, the Mariners won’t challenge the Angels and the Rangers in the AL West this year, but if they don’t get Fielder, they’ll be a smaller speck in the distance. They’ll be out of the race in June.

But forget the big-picture stuff, Fielder would bring excitement back to Safeco Field. And that’s what I want more than anything else — a 280-pound reason to go to the ballpark night after night or stop what I’m doing when I’m at home to watch this guy every time he’s in the batter’s box.

I love the Mariners’ pitching, but other than that, they’re as boring as the BCS championship game the other night. Fielder would put an end to boring. Imagine the splash this guy would make — a Fielder cannonball would empty the pool.
But if Crasnick’s a blind squirrel who found an acorn, and his $3 million to $4 million tweet is accurate, I’ll be disappointed but prepared to move on to Plan B because Plan B is better than doing nothing at all.

Plan B features potential free-agent signings of Carlos Pena, Johnny Damon, Vladimir Guerrero and even Manny Ramirez.

As crazy as it sounds with those aging and over-the-hill possibilities, I’d be excited to see any of them in Seattle because it would make the Mariners more interesting than they are right now.

The Go 2 Guy also writes for his website, www.jimmoorethego2guy.com. He appears weekdays from 3 to 7 p.m. on “The Kevin Calabro Show.” You can reach him at jimmoorethego2guy@yahoo.com and follow him on Twitter @cougsgo.

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