Seattle serves up international flavor

The United Nations is on the East River in New York City. But if you ask Seattle fans where the world body actually gathers to meet, some may tell you it's at Safeco Field.

The Mariners have done a marvelous job in recent years mining the international market, gathering top-flight talent from Canada, the Dominican Republic, Taiwan, Holland and even Italy. International Director of Scouting Bob Engle has spared no expense in building Seattle's prospect base with parts from all around the globe, and the results have been impressive.

Throw in what Vice President of Scouting and Player Development Bob Fontaine has been able to accomplish and, well, the M's appear well stocked for the foreseeable future. And though the club has brought in several players to compete for the outfield vacancy created by trading Adam Jones to Baltimore in the Erik Bedard deal, don't be surprised if another youngster, Curacao native Wladimir Balentien, gets a long look this spring.

Here's a preview of what the M's have coming up this season, both on the domestic and imported side.

Phillipe Aumont, RHP
The Quebec native is an interesting player to watch simply because his exposure hasn't been as great as some other first-rounders. The Mariners took him 11th overall last year and he signed late, so he didn't get a chance to pitch in the system over the summer. He's played in showcases and All-Star games and with other traveling teams, but he never had the structure of pitching for a school team because his high school didn't offer baseball.

That said, the 6-foot-7 hurler has a mid-to-high-90s fastball and a decent enough off-speed pitch, though he may not be as developed as others who have received more intense coaching at a young age.

"He's a very humble kid," Director of Player Personnel Greg Hunter said. "He pitched for the Canadian National Team last year, but overall he hasn't been pitching all that long. He didn't get a lot of competitive innings last year, so he's feeling his way through it. He works hard, though, and he's a competitor."

ON THE VERGE Here are some players on the brink of breaking into the Major Leagues:

• Wladimir Balentien, OF -- The Curacao native's steady ascent continued last season with a stellar season at Triple-A Tacoma, where he hit .291 with 24 homers and 84 RBIs. He's cut down significantly on his strikeout total in each of the last three seasons (160-140-105), while raising his OBP from .337 to .362. He has nothing left to prove in the Minors, so it will be interesting to see where he begins 2008 in light of the trade that sent Adam Jones to Baltimore. • Jeff Clement, C -- Injuries to his knee and elbow limited Clement in 2006, but he returned in full force last season. The third overall pick in the 2005 draft hit .275 with 20 homers and 80 RBIs in 455 at-bats for Tacoma. He's got the tools to be an above-average Major League catcher, but whether he gets that chance in the immediate future -- Kenji Johjima is blocking his path in Seattle -- is another matter.

Hunter said it hasn't been decided where Aumont will begin this season. He could go straight to Wisconsin in the Midwest League or he could stay in extended Spring Training. Either way, Hunter said the club wouldn't hold Aumont back other than to monitor the amount of innings he throws.

Nick Hill, LHP
The Mariners took the former Army star in the seventh round last year after he pitched in relative obscurity for much of his career at West Point. The fact that neither of the New York teams or even Philadelphia latched onto this kid is surprising. Based on what he showed in his debut last summer, Seattle may have gotten the steal of the draft.

Hill had a 0.51 ERA in 35 innings at short-season Everett last year and did not allow a homer while the opposition hit .197 against him. He's smart and has displayed good command, boasting a 5-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio (45-to-9) in the Northwest League. He'll move to a full-season team this year and should have no problems with the increased workload after finishing last season with a scoreless streak that lasted nearly 21 innings.

"With his makeup and ability he has a good chance to move, and we've pushed prospects in the past," Hunter said. "He still has to go out and perform, but he's a guy who could move pretty quick."

Hunter said the club, as far as he's aware, isn't going to lose Hunter to active military duty during the season.
Audio: Hill closes it with 10th strikeout

Matt Tuiasosopo, 3B
He's a baseball player crammed into a football player's body and has the pedigree to match that description. His father and brother have played in the NFL and it was assumed he'd follow their lead after the University of Washington offered him a scholarship to be its quarterback. But Seattle stepped in and made him a better offer, choosing him in the third round of the 2004 draft.

The Mariners are still waiting to see if Tuiasosopo will pan out, though he made strides last season at Double-A West Tenn. He hit .260 with nine homers and 57 RBIs in the Southern League, a marked improvement from the .185 he hit in 216 Texas League at-bats in 2006. Still, the raw tools of his game remain just that -- raw. Tuiasosopo won't turn 22 until May, so there's no need for concern just yet. And he does play a solid third base, which is a bonus. The big question is will he develop into a big-league hitter, which Hunter believes won't be an issue.

"He's done pretty well for a guy who was a high school hitter," Hunter said. "He has some baseball experience, though not like a California or Florida guy. But baseball was not totally foreign to him. He's athletic and comes from a football family. So baseball was kind of secondary -- plus there's the weather in the Northwest."
Audio: Tuiasosopo gets RBI in All-Star Game

Greg Halman, OF
Halman was not proving to be much of a Dutch treat through the midway point of last season. The native of the Netherlands had appeared in 106 games and was hitting .222 through 392 professional at-bats. That included hitting .182 in 187 Midwest League plate appearances, forcing the Mariners to send him back to the Northwest League, where he had played in 2006.

Halman responded by hitting .307 over the remaining 62 games of the season, collecting 16 homers and driving in 37 runs. And while those numbers were impressive, consider when and how they were obtained and also the fact that he struck out every 2.8 at-bats. Halman was highly touted when he signed in 2004 and, at the age 20, he is still young. He has the ability to hit home runs but needs to cut down his swing at times.

"He's a tools guy with a lot of ability," Hunter said. "He just needs to continue working on all aspects of the game and on his concentration level."
Audio: Halman hits game-winning single

Adam Moore, C
The Mariners certainly aren't hurting for prospects behind the plate, and Moore is another reason why. Defensively he is more than adequate, and his eight errors in 755 chances left him in the middle of the pack among California League backstops last year. He also finished second in the league by throwing out 32 percent of would-be basestealers, falling short of Lancaster's Mark Wagner by two percentage points.

Moore also blossomed at the plate in his first full season, hitting .307 with 22 homers and 102 RBIs, third best on the circuit. While hitting has never been an issue for Moore, it will be interesting to see how he fares this season in the Texas League, where the pitching is much tougher and the environment isn't as hitter friendly.

"He had a good year at High Desert and he's a good all-around player," Hunter said. "He's a good catcher and he can swing the bat. He has leadership qualities, too."
Audio: Moore delivers go-ahead homer

Yung-Chi Chen, IF
The Mariners put Chen on their 40-man roster last year, a sign of what they think of his ability despite the fact he suffered a shoulder injury that limited him to just five games with Tacoma. A veteran of the World Baseball Classic, the Taiwanese native is a scrappy player who excels at the plate, as evidenced by his .306 career average in nearly 1,200 Minor League at-bats.

Chen returned to action last year in the Arizona Fall League and hit .339 in 59 at-bats for the Peoria Javelinas. He can get on base, though his speed isn't marvelous. He won't drive in a bucket of runs, either, though he did have 80 RBIs with Wisconsin of the Midwest League in 2005. He'll likely go as far as his bat will take him, and for this year, at least at the beginning, that will likely be back at Tacoma.

"After missing last year and coming back, he had a good Fall League," Hunter said. "He'll go to Triple-A unless he makes the big-league club. He'll get to play second and a little third base this year, but mostly second.

"Chen just hits and hits. He hits at every level. Every time he goes out there, he gives you a good at-bat. He's not flashy but he has produced. You have to hand it to him."
Audio: Chen laces run-scoring single

Carlos Triunfel, SS
Talk about the fast track -- Triunfel turned 18 last month and already has a full season of organized ball under his belt, including a half-year in the California League. The youngster hit .288 in 50 games for High Desert as a 17-year-old, driving in 22 runs and stealing a handful of bases despite suffering a broken thumb in May.

He began the season in the Midwest League and hit .309 in 152 at-bats. Following the thumb mishap, he returned at the higher level and showed the poise and confidence of a player several years older. From a defensive standpoint, he's still a bit of a project, having committed 20 errors in 270 chances for High Desert. At that clip he would have led Cal League shortstops had he been there the entire season. Overall, he had 36 errors in 462 total chances between his two stops.

The Seattle front office would sign up for those numbers in an instant, though, considering what they have in Triunfel, who could turn out to be one of the best players in any team's system this year.

"He's tremendous," Hunter said. "He has a lot of ability. He's a strong, athletic guy who needs to keep working on his all-around game because the ability is there. And he's in a key position in the middle of the infield. He has power and strength, all the things you like to see. So there's a chance he's a guy who can move fairly quickly."
Audio: Triunfel caps 6-for-6 performance

Juan Ramirez, RHP
It would be unfair to take a quick glance at Juan Ramirez's line from his time in Everett last year and say, so what? He was, after all, only 3-7 with a 4.30 ERA in 15 starts. Oh, but dig a little bit. The Nicaraguan won't turn 20 until August and had a better effort than the initial glance might reveal. For instance, he struck out nearly a batter an inning (73 Ks in 75 1/3 innings) and held the opposition to a .211 average, which included right-handers hitting .185.

The youngster has a good low-to-mid-90s fastball and could prove to be a dominant factor this year in the Midwest League. If he can keep his walk total in check -- the higher he climbs, the more selective batters will be -- there's no reason his record won't catch up to his other numbers in 2008.

"He's got good life on his fastball, but he needs to work on commanding it and he needs work on his secondary stuff," Hunter said. "He's a good-size right-hander, which you love to have in your system. And you really can't look at the win-loss record early in his career. Sometimes other things stick, and with him, from a scout's perspective, there's a lot to work with there."
Audio: Ramirez snaps off a curve

Michael Saunders, OF
Another Canadian makes our list, joining Aumont. The British Columbia native put together a solid 2007, spending most of the season in the California League, where he hit .299 with 14 homers and 77 RBIs. He proceeded to hit .288 when he was bumped up to the Southern League, but that was in only 52 at-bats, far too small a body of work to make any serious evaluations.

Saunders was also a highly touted hockey player during his secondary-school years, so he's obviously a gifted athlete. Now it's just a matter of seeing if he can bring all his tools together at the Double-A level and beyond. He has excellent speed (he stole 29 bases last year) and can more than hold his own in the outfield.
Audio: Saunders slugs walk-off homer

Bryan LaHair, 1B
A big, bashing left-hander, LaHair has made a slow, steady climb through the organizational ranks, putting together a solid season at Tacoma in 2007 (.275, 12 homers, 81 RBIs). He also smacked 46 doubles, but his struggles against lefties (.193 with 42 strikeouts in 140 at-bats) remain an area of concern.

If the Mariners needed a lefty off the bench, LaHair could probably fit that bill right now. And on a lesser team, he might even be the starting first baseman. There's no reason to believe he couldn't go to the Major Leagues and do what Mike Jacobs has done in Florida. Still, if he remains in Triple-A for another full season (he'll be 26 this year), he could be headed down a path similar to that of Craig Brazell.

"I hate to say it's going to be a make-or-break season, because he's done a nice job of hitting throughout," Hunter said. "He's right there knocking on the door. He just needs an opening and when it's there, take advantage of it."
Audio: LaHair lifts one over the right-field fence

Alex Liddi, 3B
Liddi, 19, hails from Italy, further enhancing the M's reputation as a team that truly spans the globe in search of talent. He hit .240 in his first full season of organized ball last year at Wisconsin, collecting 123 strikeouts in 400 at-bats. He did drive in 52 runs, though, and had 39 extra-base hits. Whether he returns to the Midwest League for some seasoning or makes the move to the hitter-friendly Cal League remains to be seen.
Audio: Liddi lashes an RBI base hit
Audio: Liddi delivers in the 13th inning

Justin Thomas, LHP
The former fourth-rounder had some problems early last year with a tender elbow and then struggled in the second half of the season, going 2-4 with a 7.44 ERA over his last 11 starts. Overall, he finished 4-9 with a 5.51 ERA in 24 starts, but the club loves his fastball and his potential. And he's a lefty, which should be enough to make anyone happy.
Audio: Thomas gets a called third strike

Aumont, a member of Team Canada, has yet to make his pro debut. Taken with the 11th overall pick, he signed late and headed to instructs before joining his national team for IBAF World Cup action. He throws a plus fastball and slider and has a good feel for the mound despite limited pitching time. ... 3B Matt Mangini, the club's supplemental first-round pick out of Oklahoma State, is a pure line-drive hitter whose power output has been limited due to back trouble. He hit .291 at Everett in his debut. ... OF Denny Almonte (second round), a switch-hitter out of Florida Christian High School, struggled a bit in his introduction to pro pitching, batting .161 in 18 Arizona League games and .100 in 20 at-bats at Everett. ... CF Danny Carroll (third round) batted .323 with 27 steals in the Arizona League. An All-Star selection, he finished fourth in batting and third in steals. ... RHP Nolan Gallagher (fourth round) had a disappointing season at Stanford, but posted an 0.84 ERA in six starts at Everett before moving up to Wisconsin, where he went 0-2 with a 4.58 ERA in four more starts. ... Aaron Brown (ninth round), a 6-foot-6 right-hander out of Houston, posted a 1.95 ERA and six saves at Everett. ... The most interesting pick by the Mariners, and maybe the entire draft, was the 23rd-round choice of RHP Brodie Downs out of Modesto Junior College. Now 28, he had left baseball for several years after high school before returning to the sport. The Mariners have accelerated him to see what he's got, and he finished the season at Tacoma after posting a 1.96 ERA in 11 games of relief at West Tenn. ... RHP Jacob Wild (26th round), a University of Pacific product, posted a 1.88 ERA in 17 games -- four starts -- in Arizona to lead the organization in ERA. At 23, he was a bit old for the league, so look for him to be accelerated down the line.
Audio: Mangini legs out RBI triple
Audio: Gallagher strikes out the side
Audio: Brown notches save with a K

Organizational Player of the Year -- Carlos Triunfel
Triunfel will garner a great deal more attention this year based on what he did in his rookie season. Then again, based on how he performed last year under the circumstances, there's no reason to believe he won't excel and garner some serious accolades.

Cy on the Farm -- Nick Hill
Picking Hill for this award is going to shock a few folks. But he's poised, mature and conjures up some images of former Major Leaguer Rick Reed.

Remember the Name -- Austin Bibens-Dirkx
It has yet to be determined whether Bibens-Dirkx will see his career reach fruition. One thing is easy to predict, however. After reading this paragraph, it won't be difficult to remember the name of the former 16th-round selection (2006). By the way, he was 3-1 with eight saves and a 4.42 ERA in 31 games for High Desert last year.

"We've got some impact players. There's always work that needs to be done and we have to develop them. But we have some guys who could be impact players. Is there room for improvement? Of course there is, absolutely. But I'm excited about what we have." --Director of Player Personnel Greg Hunter