FanHouse Ryan Feierabend

This spring the Seattle Mariners have about 10 pitchers who are competing for the fifth spot in their starting rotation because that's the type of thing that tends to happen when you go 61-101. You need to mix it up and try new things. Ryan Feierabend was one of the many hopefuls on the staff, but odds were that he was going to end up in the Mariners bullpen because of the surplus of southpaws Seattle has starting already.

Well, now it looks like Feierabend might not be pitching anywhere this season. Feierabend had an MRI on his elbow this week and will now be visiting Dr. Lewis Yocum to see if surgery is necessary.

Footprints in the Snow is FanHouse's look at the paths to be forged by MLB teams this winter as they look ahead to 2009.

The Mariners went into 2008 as playoff contenders in the eyes of some, and a sub-.500 team that wasn't going to be able to score enough runs to compete in the minds of others. The latter camp was closer in its expectation, but nobody could have foreseen just how far Seattle would fall.

The offense was bad, as expected, finishing 13th in the AL in runs, OBP, and SLG. The more surprising issue was that the pitching, a unit which looked to be solid at the outset of the year, fell apart as well. Offseason acquisition Erik Bedard and previously dominant closer J.J. Putz both battled injuries, and weren't particularly impressive when they did pitch. They also got some abysmal performances from the back end of the rotation, with Carlos Silva, Ryan Feierabend and Miguel Batista combining for a 6.55 ERA in 308 innings.

It's worth noting that all the blame for the run prevention issues shouldn't fall solely to the pitchers, as the Mariners were 13th in the AL in defensive efficiency.

On Deck is FanHouse's look at the day's most intriguing matchups

Chicago White Sox (43-55) vs. Detroit Tigers (59-38)-2:05PM Est.

The White Sox and Tigers are two of the four teams that will be playing a double header today. For the Tigers, playing five games against the White Sox in four days could be the best thing to ever happen to their division lead. Jeremy Bonderman doesn't hurt either, and he'll be starting for the Tigers in Game 1. Bonderman is 10-1 on the season, but only 5-6 in his lifetime against the White Sox. Of course the last time the White Sox took place in a double header, they ended up allowing 32 runs to the Minnesota Twins. It'll be up to Javier Vazquez to try and keep the Tigers under 20 this time around. Vazquez has been fantastic for Chicago, winning his last five starts, and looks to keep his streak alive against Detroit. Gavin Floyd and Virgil Vasquez have both been called up and will start the second game of the double header this evening.

Mariners fans aren't used to seeing their general manager Bill Bavasi in buyer mode at the end of July, but thanks to a strong first half they find themselves in new exciting territory. The Mariners are looking to add another starting pitcher to their rotation and have been scouting a couple pitchers for a while now.

For instance, Bavasi sent Dan Evans to Boston to have him watch Javier Vasquez pitch against the Red Sox on Thursday and Jose Contreras later today. Contreras is definetely available, and Vasquez could probably be had if the right deal was offered.

He's had a few preliminary talks with other teams, and they all keep asking about the same player, Adam Jones. They can keep asking, but Bavasi isn't going to budge when it comes to Jones.

"There's the obvious one. But he's not going anywhere. There's nobody good enough available."

The reason the Mariners don't want to trade Jones is because of his potential, and the fact they plan on bringing him up and playing him in the outfield at some point this season. It doesn't mean that Seattle won't be able to pull off a deal though, because they still have other intriguing prospects in Wladimir Balentein, Ryan Feierabend, and Jeff Clement they'd be willing to part with.