Mariners Nearing Deal with Jason Bay

According to Mike Salk of ESPN radio in Seattle, the Mariners are nearing a dealwith free agent outfielder Jason Bay.

Bay was limited to 70 games in 2012. Image: Robert Mayer-USA TODAY Sports

Bay was bought out by the New York Mets earlier in the off-season after an extremely disappointing season and an underwhelming run in the Big Apple. He’s from British Columbia, so Seattle is about as close to home as he can possibly play and stay in the big leagues. He also attended college at Gonzaga.

It makes sense for Seattle given their dire need for offense and it won’t be much of a risk given that Bay is getting $21 million yet from the Mets. He figures to be a cheap sign.

Bay had been drawing at least some level of interest from a few other teams including the Boston Red Sox. He also made sense for teams like Cleveland and Detroit, who both need a right handed bat in left field.