M’S Makeover Only Beginning? If Indians Don’t Keep Paul Sorrento, Look For Seattle To Make Strong Bid

Having begun the week with their third trade in 19 days - sending reliever Bill Risley and minor-league infielder Miguel Cairo to Toronto for right-handers Edwin Hurtado and Paul Menhart - the Seattle Mariners may not be done with player moves this week.

By midnight tonight, teams must tender contracts to players who are on the roster but do not have multiyear contracts. Players who do not receive a contract are considered nontendered free agents.

“And along with just about every other team we are very curious to see who is going to be available,” said Mariners manager Lou Piniella. “We want to move quickly to get our club set as soon as possible.”

On Tuesday, the Mariners signed shortstop Luis Sojo and reserves Rich Amaral and Doug Strange to one-year contracts. Terms of Sojo’s deal were not disclosed. Amaral, converted from a utility infielder to an outfielder last season, signed for a reported $400,000. Strange, used mainly as a pinch-hitter and third baseman, is getting $350,000.

Seattle is interested in acquiring a left-handed-hitting first baseman. Should Cleveland not offer a contract to Paul Sorrento, look for the Mariners to make a strong bid for him. Sorrento hit 25 homers and had 79 RBIs in 104 games in 1995.

The Mariners also will be out to add experienced pitching, especially in set-up relief, where they have lost Jeff Nelson (to New York along with Tino Martinez) and Risley. And perhaps one more veteran starter.

“It’s easier and cheaper to sign middle relievers and veteran starters than young starters,” Piniella said. “It is the single biggest rationale for making the deal with Toronto.”

Even without adding a veteran-to-be-named, the Mariners have revamped the starting group behind ace Randy Johnson and right-hander Chris Bosio.

Last year, the names were left-hander Dave Fleming in the No. 3 slot with two others to come from Jim Converse, John Cummings, Tim Davis, Roger Salkeld and Bob Wells.

This year, Fleming’s slot has been filled by Sterling Hitchcock, who came along with third baseman Russ Davis from the Yankees. As it stands, the fourth and fifth starters would come from the lineup of Bob Wolcott, Salomon Torres, Rafael Carmona, Hurtado and Menhart.

“I like this group a lot better,” Piniella said. “No question it’s a more solid group of young talent. The two new kids have good arms and have some major-league experience. We’ll have to put the rotation together in spring training, but that’s what spring training is for. And I think we’ve done a good job assembling this group. It isn’t easy to acquire good young pitching talent, and Woody (Woodward, the Mariner general manager) has done a good job here.”

Hurtado, 25, may be familiar to Seattle fans because he picked up two wins against the Mariners in a single week in July, the first in his final relief appearance and second in his first start, when he beat Torres 4-3. Just a year after going 11-2 at Class A Hagerstown, the right-hander, who throws a splitter and a heavy sinker, was 5-2 with a 5.45 ERA in 14 games, 10 starts.

Menhart, 26, was ahead of Hurtado on the Toronto depth chart until missing the 1994 season to elbow surgery. Because Menhart was coming off the operation, the Jays brought up Hurtado from Class AA Knoxville when Juan Guzman was hurt in May.

Acquiring two potential starters ends the idea of turning reliever Bobby Ayala into a starter. In addition, left-hander Davis will go back to the bullpen after coming to camp as a starter last year.

Baseball observers were surprised the Blue Jays would give up Hurtado and Menhart in trade, after losing pitchers Cone (trade) and Al Leiter (free agency) and, possibly, Guzman (who may not be offered a contract) from last season’s Opening Day rotation.

“When you look at their club,” one A.L. East scout said, “Hurtado and Menhart were listed as two of their five starters. They gave up 40 percent of their potential 1996 rotation, and how you rate the deal depends on how you rate Toronto’s pitching. We liked both of the kids Seattle got, Menhart a little more, although Hurtado throws a nasty heavy sinker.”

The Blue Jays made the deal to acquire Risley for a closer. According to Toronto sources, Toronto pursued veteran stoppers Rick Aguilera, Jeff Montgomery and Randy Myers. Aguilera went back to Minnesota, Montgomery back to Kansas City and when the Jays heard Myers was headed for Baltimore, they moved on Risley.

“You gotta love Risley’s arm and attitude,” the scout said. “It’s easy to project him as a closer on those factors. Now you gotta see if he can pitch effectively in the ninth.”

One question is how Cairo, whose speed and range put him into Seattle’s second-base picture for 1996, will fare replacing Roberto Alomar’s big cleats in Toronto.

But now that the Mariners have stocked their starting pool, the challenge is to replace Nelson and Risley in innings six through eight.

Ayala becomes key. “We like Ayala,” Piniella said of the reliever, who lost his closing job to Charlton and struggled the second half of the 1995 season. “We’ve got to get him untracked in spring training. We’ll work a lot on his slider.”

Beyond that, veteran Lee Guetterman and young pitchers Davis and Sal Urso will work from the left side. One idea is that someone from the group of young right-handers that does not make the starting rotation will go to the bullpen for long or middle relief.

Another is that right-hander Mike Butcher, signed last week to a minor-league contract, will work in the setup role.