Seattle has taken strong steps this off-season to reverse their reputation for sending their free agents out into the cold. The Mariners re-signed 1B-L John Olerud on Friday, giving him a two-year, $15.4M contract. Then, for an encore on Saturday, LHP Jamie Moyer re-signed, accepting a $15.5M, three-year deal that could be worth up to $21.5M if he reaches all the incentives.

They had already re-signed DH Edgar Martinez, C-R Dan Wilson, and RHP Shigetoshi Hasegawa, while C-R Pat Borders just agreed to a minor league contract and LHP Norm Charlton has been offered arbitration. Of their free agents, only Jose Offerman, Ruben Sierra, and Ismael Valdes were cut loose, and none of these three had spent more than a year with the organization.

Since discussing Edgar Martinez's contract last month, reports of the yearly breakdown of that deal have become available. The contract calls for a $4M guaranteed salary and includes $500,000 bonuses when he reaches 350, 400, 450, 600, and 650 plate appearances, as well as $750,000 bonuses for 500 and 550 plate appearances. Altogether, he could earn $8M next season if he collects all of the incentives.

I felt $4M was probably a bit expensive for the production they're likely to receive from Martinez but accepted the contract due to the emotional value Edgar holds for the organization. However, I don't think it was necessary for them to make the incentives quite so numerous, as he has a solid chance at achieving most of them.

Borders' return was expected, and given he shouldn't be blocking anyone else, I don't see significant harm in retaining the 39-year-old as a AAAA catcher. However, I think they're asking for trouble by offering Charlton arbitration. Seattle made the move to cover for the likely departure of John Halama, as they will almost certainly either trade or non-tender Halama because the Mariners don't want to pay the raise the arbitration-eligible player will receive in 2003.

Nevertheless, while Charlton worked out at the Mariners' facilities last season, he did not accumulate any minor league statistic and failed to recover from rotator cuff surgery in time to play with the major league club in September. Consequently, the 39-year-old could very well spend significant portions of the season back on the disabled list, and given his injury history, he didn't deserve more than a minor league contract and Spring Training invitation. If Seattle was interested in Charlton, they should have agreed to a contract before December 7th.

I think Seattle is making a big mistake with Halama, leaving room for the penny-pinching ways of Mariners' ownership to really cost the club. Without Halama, the team has no depth if one of their starters suffers an injury, and they don't have the luxury of dropping a few games while scrambling for a replacement in a division as deep as the AL West.

Returning to Olerud, his contract splits the $15.4M evenly between 2003 and 2004, giving him a $7.7M salary in each of those years. I really like this signing since Seattle had no real internal options with which to replace Olerud at first or provide a counteracting boost in production elsewhere on the field. The additional power of Jim Thome and Jason Giambi lifted them above the rest of the AL first basemen in 2002, but Olerud led a second tier of Rafael Palmeiro and Carlos Delgado.

Provided he remains healthy, I see no reason for the 34-year-old to experience a significant drop in production over the course of the next two seasons. He's always displayed an excellent walk rate, and his plate discipline should assist him in maintaining his power through the remainder of his career, giving Seattle a dependable player at an equitable price. Olerud's said he believes this will be his last contract as he doesn't want to move his kids around after they start school, but I think the Mariners probably will want him back in 2005 and should be able to persuade the Seattle native to return.

Jamie Moyer made small waves by acting as his own agent this off-season, although I think he still found a fairly strong deal for himself. Moyer will receive a $1.5M signing bonus, $6M in 2003 and $6.5M in 2004. All of the incentives apply to the final season of the contract in which he'll receive a base salary of $1.5M. Up to $1.5M can be added to that salary in incentives based on his 2003 starts, and an additional $4.5M in incentives is tied to his 2004 IP.

While I highly doubt an agent would have negotiated a contract like this one, I think it could work out well for both sides. Despite the interest from other organizations, I believe the 40-year-old preferred to remain in Seattle, where his family has made their home for the last six seasons. Among their other contributions to the Seattle community, Jamie and his wife Karen created and developed several Mariners' cookbooks, including "Starters & Closers", recently profiled on the Food Network's "Ballpark Cafe 2" special, which benefit's children's cancer research.

His age is the primary obstacle to future success, but he's remained quite healthy for the past two seasons and there's no reason to suspect any immediate injury troubles. Considering his performance this past season, he will likely justify most of the cost of the entire contract in 2003 alone, so even if declines in the last two years of the deal Seattle won't have significantly overpaid. Moyer isn't a dominant pitcher, but he's been highly effective in limiting baserunners and provides the Mariners with a strong left-handed starter. Additionally, given the injury problems among Seattle's pitching prospects, the Mariners don't have a lot of starters poised to take spots in the major league rotation.