FanHouse Yuniesky Betancourt

The Seattle Mariners, trying to shore up their defense and acquire young talent at the same time, dealt enigmatic shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt to the Kansas City Royals for two minor leaguers. Betancourt, once considered a staple at short for Seattle, played his way out of the favor of management with his impatient hitting, defensive lapses and lackadaisical play.

He was placed on the disabled list with a strained right hamstring and was expected to return to the big club this weekend, but he was unexpectedly removed from the starting lineup Thursday for Triple-A Tacoma, leading to trade speculation. Betancourt batted .250 with two homers, 22 RBI and a putrid .278 on-base percentage, the primary reason why he was shipped out of Seattle.

Fantasy baseball draft season is coming, so you best be prepared by delving through every major player on each team. Fantasy FanHouse is here to help with a quick once-over.

Meet the...
Team who someone predicted would win the World Series last year. Seriously. When you stop laughing, you can check out the link (he's the top one listed -- though when you see his other atrocious picks you won't be surprised). Was I any better? Glad you asked. I actually took Mr. Downey to task before Opening Day. You can check the rest of my stuff if you wish, as there were some misses in there.

Anyway, it's safe to say expectations are a slight bit lower heading into '08.

Once we stumble into the first few weeks of fantasy draft season, we have the luxury of trolling through some average draft position charts (ADP, henceforth). One of the problems is that most of the early-to-mid February drafting is being done by hypothetical fantasy fanatics, so there aren't a ton of skewed averages.

Of course, recently-retired Jeff Kent has found a way to get drafted in 1.6 percent of the leagues on Mock Draft Central (MDC, henceforth), so they're worth a look. We'll use the ADP per position* on MDC for the rest of our analysis here. Most of the guys listed are not to be targeted in shallow to medium-sized leagues, as they are later-round steals for the deepest of fantasy leagues.

*positional ADP in parentheses

You know, getting traded once can probably be quite the ordeal for a baseball player. If you've been in a city for a while, you've more than likely bought yourself a home, and maybe you're married with kids so packing up all your stuff and moving across the country can't be easy. Both Aaron Heilman and Garrett Olson have gone through this type of thing recently, as Heilman was sent from New York to Seattle in the J.J. Putz deal, and Olson left Baltimore for Chicago in a trade for Felix Pie only ten days ago.

Well hopefully neither player put down a security deposit on an apartment in either of their new cities because they've both been traded again. This time, for each other.

The hammer of justice that is Bob Watson has made a decision, and Ivan Rodriguez is going to have to live with it. Ivan will have to sit out a game, and his wallet is a bit lighter this afternoon, thanks to bumping home plate umpire Mike Winters on Friday night in Seattle.

"If I did [bump him], I just did it barely," Rodriguez said on Thursday. "I didn't do that on purpose. There was no reason to take me out of the game there."

You did, Ivan. We all saw it. Though I tend to agree that you didn't do it on purpose, whether intentional or not, if you bump an umpire or make any kind of physical contact you will get tossed. It's just the way it is, and has always been.

Rodriguez did have a right to be angry though. After Yuniesky Betancourt swung and missed during a hit and run, he fell over the plate and got in Pudge's way as he tried to throw out Adrian Beltre at second base. Beltre never did come around to score, rendering the argument and ejection meaningless, but Winters still blew the call pretty damn badly if I do say so myself.

Rodriguez or the Tigers have not said when he'll serve the suspension, but it's doubtful he'll appeal. Considering catchers get a day off pretty regularly as it is, an appeal would be rather pointless.

Previously at FanHouse:
Ivan Rodriguez Could Be Suspended

Ivan Rodriguez could face a suspension after making inadvertant contact with home plate umpire Mike Winters on Thursday night in Seattle.

Pudge became upset because after Yuniesky Betancourt failed to keep up his end in a hit and run. After a wing and miss, Betancourt leaned out in front of the plate and interfered with Rodriguez's throw to second to try and get Adrian Beltre. Seeing the play live, Pudge had every right to be angry.

Still, Winters didn't call interference on Betancourt which prompted an argument from Rodriguez.

"Rodriguez was ejected because during the argument he got too demonstrative and in so doing inadvertently bumped into me," Winters said. "That's why he was ejected."

I have no idea if I-Rod will also be forced to wear a skirt.

This play was only one of two odd incidents in last night's Seattle victory over the Tigers. In the 5th inning Adrian Beltre hit a bases loaded single to tie the game at two, and as he tried to take second base on the throw home, Carlos Guillen missed the tag and he was called safe. Beltre then came off the bag, and again Guillen missed a tag on him. Beltre got to his feet and started towards third, as Guillen swung and missed with his glove a few more times.

Eventually Richie Sexson scored what proved to be the winning run for Seattle, but when the Tigers appealed the play at second before the next pitch, Beltre was called out. Bruce Froemming said Beltre never touched second, which is odd seeing as how Froemming called him safe at second. After viewing replays, it was clear that Guillen never did tag Beltre, but also that Beltre did in fact touch second base.

Just a very odd play, one that left both teams a little unhappy.

Previously at FanHouse:
David Wells Gets Suspended, Thinks He Might Be Wearing a Skirt Soon

On Friday night Eric Gagne did something it seems like he hasn't done in forever. Really, it's only been since June 6th of last season, but Gagne recorded his first save as a member of the Texas Rangers.

"I was trying to stop shaking. I was nervous out there," Gagne said. "It's been two frustrating years. Now, I'm back on track."

The Mariners did all they could to rattle Gagne. As he made the journey from the bullpen to the mound they played the scene from Miracle where Kurt Russell (Herb Brooks) makes the stirring motivational speech to the US hockey team on the scoreboard. There were a couple of flaws in this idea.

One being that this is baseball. Not hockey. I thought the differences were pretty apparent, but I guess not. Second, the Mariners aren't dirty Communists. Well, maybe Yuniesky Betancourt used to be one, but it probably wasn't by choice.

Finally, it's a motivational speech. What made the Mariners think it wouldn't serve to motivate Gagne? Gagne said afterwards that he was just playing "Welcome to the Jungle" in his mind, and he used it to bring the Mariners hitters to their sha-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-knees! Knees!! He then made the devil horns sign with his right hand and bellowed "Salute the Dark Lord!"

Ok, he didn't do the whole hand thing, but it would have been a lot cooler if he did. You have to admit.


Previously at the Fanhouse:
Eric Gagne Slaps Dodgers Fans In The Face
Eric Gagne To Start Season On The DL
Eric Gagne Makes His Rangers Debut
Eric Gagne Is Back
Yuniesky Betancourt Has Come A Long Way

Yuniesky Betancourt's journey to Seattle, Washington was a long one. Three years ago the 25-year old was floating on a makeshift raft from Cuba to the United States. On Wednesday he received the award for his struggles as he signed a three-year extension with the Mariners.

"It is a pretty big change, and I want to thank the organization for giving me this opportunity and not having to go anywhere else," Betancourt said through an interpreter. "This is the first team that I signed with, I like the city, I like the team and I really enjoy my teammates. It would be really sad if I had to leave."

"I was surprised at how fast this came together," he said, "but this is where I wanted to be, so there was no reason to wait any longer. I'm sure [my family is] very happy, but up until today, I didn't know much about it."

Betancourt always impressed the Mariners with his solid defense, but in his first full season as a Major Leaguer he also showed that he's becoming a complete player. Yuni hit .289 for Seattle last season with 42 extra base hits and 47 RBI.

Under his current contract, he currently makes $450,000 annually, and the extension will keep him in Seattle through 2011, with a club option for 2012. Terms of the deal weren't disclosed, but Yuni should be able to afford a better boat if the desire to return to Cuba ever surfaces.

Ironically, it's because of Betancourt's raft trip to the States that he won't be able to play in Seattle's next game on Friday in Cleveland. That's because he'll be in Miami to testify at the trial of Gustavo Dominguez. Dominguez is the man accused of smuggling Betancourt and 52 other players from Cuba to the United States.