For three years the Mariners have tried (mostly unsuccessfully) to nurse an injured Erik Bedard back to health and recoup some value from the trade that sent Adam Jones and Chris Tillman to Baltimore in February of 2008.
During that time Bedard has gone from 28-year-old ace to 31-year-old question mark, sitting out all of this season following shoulder surgery, and the Mariners declined his $8 million option for 2011 only to re-sign him to a non-guaranteed one-year contract prior to last night’s non-tender deadline.
With basically zero risk involved it’s tough to blame the Mariners for taking another chance on Bedard, who has yet to cease being very effective in between injuries. He’ll compete for a job in spring training. If healthy he’ll likely claim a spot in the rotation. And if not, the Mariners can finally cut bait after getting 30 starts in four years.
