Seattle allowed July 31st to pass without making any big moves. The Mariners picked up LHP Doug Creek from the Devil Rays for cash but otherwise were uninvolved in the bevy of deals made at the deadline. As we discussed when Tampa designated Creek for assignment, he's a quality left-handed reliever with very good numbers as a specialist. Considering they didn't have to give up any players, Seattle was wise to secure Creek now, even if they might have been able to sign him for slightly less than they're now paying him and without compensating Tampa after he passed through waivers.

In order to make room for Creek on the 40-man roster, the Mariners waived LHP Mark Watson. Seattle acquired Watson from the Cubs for future consideration in mid-June. The Brewers signed Watson as a nondrafted free agent out of the University of Wisconsin in 1996. Milwaukee traded him to Cleveland for Ben McDonald in 1998. Then in 2000 the Mariners claimed him off waivers from the Indians. Seattle released him in May of last year, after which Watson re-signed with the Indians. In the off-season, Chicago signed him to a minor league contract.

The 28-year-old lefty spent the early part of his career working as a starter but moved to relief in 2000. Watson possesses good dominance skills but has struggled with his control, leading to his frequent movement from franchise to franchise and limited major league time. Colorado snatched him off waivers from the Mariners, so it's unlikely he'll have a chance to further develop his skills in the near future. With the departure of Dennys Reyes, the Rockies will likely promote Watson before the end of the season.

Watson spent a short time on the major league team while with the Seattle organization, replacing Julio Mateo on the roster shortly after the Mariners picked Watson up from the Cubs. However, Seattle demoted Watson three days later in order to make room for Jeff Nelson's return from the disabled list. The Mariners limited Nelson's work in the first month after his return, but he recently seems to have return to his pre-bone chip removal form.

Seattle recalled Mateo to replace Ryan Franklin on the roster during Franklin's DL trip in early July. Franklin developed strep throat and the Mariners wanted to both avoid infecting the rest of the team and have an extra arm available while he was ill. Mateo returned to the minors when Franklin rejoined the team.

Watson received a second call-up when the Mariners placed Rafael Soriano on the disabled list in early July. After an impressive first run in the majors, Soriano developed a strained shoulder. Soriano treated the strain with rest and then resumed throwing, so that he was ready to return at the end of July. Nonetheless, the Mariners decided to option him to AA at the end of his rehab assignment rather than return him to the majors.

While with the major league team, Soriano posted a 32:16 K:BB in 47.1 IP with 45 H and 8 HR allowed. He certainly needs to cut back on the home run balls, but otherwise his number look acceptable. If they have to place a member of their rotation on the DL, Seattle will likely recall Soriano. He'll also probably return to the majors when rosters expand in September.

Watson spent 12 days in the majors during his second call-up. The Mariners demoted Watson in late July in order to make room for LHP Brian Fitzgerald on the roster. However, Fitzgerald was only active for three days before Seattle returned him to the minors to make room for Creek on the major league roster. With John Halama now set in the rotation, Creek will join Arthur Rhodes in the bullpen and provide Seattle with some consistency in their second lefty reliever. Unfortunately, Creek's wife has suffered complications with her pregnancy and remains hospitalized in Tampa.

The only change the Mariners have made involving the offensive players on their roster in the last two months was to waive Gene Kingsale to make room for Edgar Martinez's return from the DL in mid-June. Seattle lost Kingsale on waivers to San Diego. Martinez suffered a setback in the first week following his return from hamstring surgery. However, he rebounded after about a week and has returned to his pre-surgery form.

Despite a fairly well-rounded team, Seattle probably should have done more prior to July 31st if they wanted to make a real push at the series. They could still be displaced in their division and lose the wild card. While I fully supported the trade that brought Jeff Cirillo to the Mariners, his poor production this season has been a real drag on the team. Cirillo has 83 H, 13 2B, and 6 HR with a 21:45 BB:K and 8/11 SB% in 346 AB for a .240 BA, .291 SLG, and .329 SLG. I still think he'll rebound before the end of his career, but he's not helping Seattle now. Therefore, the Mariners really should have tried to move Cirillo in a package for Scott Rolen. Seattle easily could have put together a package that would have outdistanced the Cardinals, including Soriano and OF Jamal Strong. With Ichiro Suzuki established in leadoff spot, and Mike Cameron and Chris Snelling likely filling the other two starting outfield jobs, Strong is expendable. Additionally, regardless of the distance between Seattle and Indiana, they probably could have talked Rolen into signing a contract extension.

The Mariners still have an opportunity to improve their bench over the next month through waiver trades. If he really wants to help his new team, Rule 5 pick Luis Ugueto should make an effort to trip over something or develop migraines before August 31st so that he can be placed on the DL and Seattle can add someone more useful to their potential playoff roster. Ugueto's appeared in 46 games this season but only has 17 AB, in which he has 3 H and 1 HR with a 2:6 BB:K and 6/8 SB%. As long as he's healthy, the Mariners must leave him on the active roster or return him to Florida.

Ugueto hadn't played above A+ prior to this season and he really needs more time in the minors before he'll be ready to take on a substantial role in the majors. Consequently, Seattle's basically playing short a roster spot in order to keep him. While that may work during the regular season, they need to find a way around it for the playoffs; rosters on August 31st determine the players eligible for the playoff roster. Rule 5 picks have been known to develop a variety of maladies that allow them to be placed on the disabled list so their teams can more effectively use their roster spots, and the Mariners would be silly not to find a way to put Ugueto on the DL.