David Aardsma News

Don Wakamatsu had a whirlwind first year as manager of the Mariners. The soft-spoken former big league catcher led his team to a dramatic turnaround, going 85-77 a year after the club finished with the worst record in the American League at 61-101. The 24-game improvement was the best in the Majors in 2009 and garnered Wakamatsu recognition in the ...

Update 1 p.m.: The Mariners must also make a decision on whether to offer salary arbitration to their non-ranked free agents -- Russ Branyan, Endy Chavez, Mike Sweeney, and Miguel Batista .

It's obvious that this Pedro dude here sorely lacked the proper amount of coddling that mommies tend to give in those early, vulnerable years.

There were many contributors to the Mariners' Major League-best 24-game improvement in the win column last season, and that's reflected by the number of nominees the team has for the This Year in Baseball Awards for 2009.

Mariners bullpen coach John Wetteland was taken to a hospital near Denton, Texas, on Thursday afternoon for what Denton County officials called a "mental health issue." The Denton County Sheriff's office told CBS they took a call from the Bartonville area around 12:30 p.m. on Thursday on a possibly suicidal person.

Seattle Mariners bullpen coach John Wetteland was resting at home in Denton, Texas, on Thursday night after a trip to a hospital.

Mariners bullpen coach John Wetteland said that "elevated blood pressure and heart rate" led to his hospitalization in Texas on Thursday, and added that he was "resting safely at home." Wetteland was taken to the Denton Regional Medical Center near Dallas on Thursday after police were called to his house, according to the CBS affiliate in Dallas.

Ken Griffey Jr. is coming back to Seattle for another season. Seattle's Ken Griffey Jr.

We love to complain about our closers, but that is only because we hold them to such high standards.

What David Aardsma loved most about the Seattle Mariners of 2009 was the hope they carried into 2010.

The first full season right-hander Phillippe Aumont spent as a relief pitcher taught him all about the thrill of getting the final out of a game -- and even more about the pain caused by taking a blown save too seriously.

They celebrated like a playoff-bound team, despite the fact that their season had just come to a close.

Jack Zduriencik correctly calls 2009 "a year of redirection" for the Mariners. But after all the hugs and pies and victory laps of Sunday, the big question is: Which direction do the M's head now? So many questions.

Ken Griffey Jr., the man who carried the spirit of a resurgent Seattle Mariners team that won its 85th game Sunday, rode the shoulders of his teammates on a postgame parade lap into an uncertain future.

Update 9:51 p.m.: Mariners win 6-4, Hernandez raises his record to 18-5. But David Aardsma made everyone sweat in the ninth, giving up two runs.

Taylor Teagarden got to show the Texas Rangers what he can do. The Rangers' rookie backup catcher came through with a go-ahead single off David Aardsma and Texas scored three runs with two outs in the ninth inning to beat the Seattle Mariners 7-4 Friday night.

The Mariners had a shot in this one, but their two biggest bullpen arms couldn't get it done.

Mike Sweeney followed a two-out error with a tiebreaking two-run single in the fifth inning, and the Seattle Mariners beat the Oakland Athletics 4-2 Thursday night.

TORONTO Once they'd won the first game on their last trip of the season, the Seattle Mariners had 79 victories for 2009 with five left before flying home.

TORONTO What began as sheer domination became a grind, and Felix Hernandez proved he's a pitcher capable of doing both on any given night.