Thursday, May 05, 2005
Dan Wilson Out for Year (Career?)
What looked like a tweak of the knee as he turned to hustle back to first base on a flyout may be the final play in the long career of all-time Mariner catching great Dan Wilson.
The tweak, it turns out, was a tearing of the right anterior cruciate ligament. The Mariners responded quickly, putting Dan on the 60-day DL, and adding Wiki Gonzalez to the 25 man roster (and 40-man) in his place. Wiki Gonzalez will travel with the team to Boston and New York as the backup catcher to Miguel Olivo.
Long term, it is possible to envision this being the final play in Dan Wilson's career. It is unlikely that he would be back this season, and many thought this might be Dan Wilson's final year.
This obviously is not good for the M's, as they lose a fan favorite, and an excellent mentor for Miguel Olivo. In his place, they get the catcher known as the "laziest man in baseball." Lets hope that Wiki gets off to a hot start with the bat or else the intelligent Mariner fan base probably won't have much use for him.
It is hard to envision Wiki being with the big club for very long, but I guess stranger things have happened. I would watch the Tacoma squad closely to see if Ryan Christianson gets more time behind the plate, or if Rene Rivera looks ready.
Another possibility would be a trade with another club. The M's are rumored to be in discussions for infield and bench candidates, so why not a catcher as well.
Of course, I'm sure the Mariners already have Pat Borders on speed dial. Pat is sitting in the Brewers AAA club, and I'm sure the Brewers would let him go to the M's, just for old (very old) time sake.
The tweak, it turns out, was a tearing of the right anterior cruciate ligament. The Mariners responded quickly, putting Dan on the 60-day DL, and adding Wiki Gonzalez to the 25 man roster (and 40-man) in his place. Wiki Gonzalez will travel with the team to Boston and New York as the backup catcher to Miguel Olivo.
Long term, it is possible to envision this being the final play in Dan Wilson's career. It is unlikely that he would be back this season, and many thought this might be Dan Wilson's final year.
This obviously is not good for the M's, as they lose a fan favorite, and an excellent mentor for Miguel Olivo. In his place, they get the catcher known as the "laziest man in baseball." Lets hope that Wiki gets off to a hot start with the bat or else the intelligent Mariner fan base probably won't have much use for him.
It is hard to envision Wiki being with the big club for very long, but I guess stranger things have happened. I would watch the Tacoma squad closely to see if Ryan Christianson gets more time behind the plate, or if Rene Rivera looks ready.
Another possibility would be a trade with another club. The M's are rumored to be in discussions for infield and bench candidates, so why not a catcher as well.
Of course, I'm sure the Mariners already have Pat Borders on speed dial. Pat is sitting in the Brewers AAA club, and I'm sure the Brewers would let him go to the M's, just for old (very old) time sake.
