Changes in store for M’s

Thirty-seven games into their season, the Seattle Mariners see a season at risk — and they’re about to dramatically change their roster in an effort to reverse course.

No, they’re not going to acquire Carlos Beltran or Johnny Damon. Nor are they going to fire manager Bob Melvin or move Freddy Garcia in a blockbuster deal.

That might come later.

What the Mariners will do, according to multiple sources with the team, is reshape their major-league roster dramatically in hopes of salvaging 2004.

In the next few weeks, Seattle could change its infield, outfield, starting rotation and bench — with each move made not just with this season in mind but the Mariners’ future.

What are the most immediate possibilities?

•Shortstop Rich Aurilia is gone, if not in trade then as a possible release.

•First baseman John Olerud faces the same situation with one added possibility — if he’s not traded or released, he could be sent to Seattle’s bench.

•Pitcher Gil Meche is on the trade market, a bargain for a rebuilding team that wants a potential front-end starting pitcher and is willing to move talent to get it.

•Outfielder/reserve Quinton McCracken has been made available, and if there are no takers, could be released.

The Mariners want to get younger and more athletic, they want to send a message to the team — and its fans — that there is hope this season.

If they make all or any of those moves, who replaces Aurilia, Olerud, Meche and McCracken?

•If Olerud is no longer the first baseman, Seattle’s options are wide open. If they want to bring up an infielder — say, rookie Jose Lopez — they could move Scott Spiezio from third base to first.

If they choose to acquire or bring up an outfielder, left fielder Raul Ibanez could move to first base.

•With Aurilia gone, the team believes it would be better defensively with Ramon Santiago playing the position, better offensively if Jolbert Cabrera or Lopez takes over.

•If Meche is dealt, the Mariners would hope to get a player capable of helping immediately — he could be an infielder or outfielder — and then dip into Class AAA Tacoma for a No. 5 starting pitcher. That could mean big-league experience for pitchers like Bobby Madritsch, Clint Nageotte and others.

•By moving McCracken, who has only 13 at-bats all season, the Mariners would open a roster spot for a more versatile reserve — probably Hiram Bocachica.

The Mariners have won 13 games, and know that if the situation doesn’t dramatically change by the trading deadline, this could become a roster in transition.

If he’s not signed to a contract extension, Garcia will go as the July 31 deadline approaches. If the team hasn’t shown the potential to climb back into the race, Garcia won’t be alone.

Among the problems confronting the Mariners today is the knowledge that, by doing nothing now, they might get more value in trade — a team in need of a shortstop as August closes in, for instance, might be willing to part with prospects for Aurilia.

But doing nothing now almost certainly surrenders the season.

Aurilia, Olerud, Meche and McCracken aren’t just scapegoats for a poor start. The Mariners think replacing any or all of them would open the way to the fastest turnaround.

Aurilia, 32, has struggled all season facing unfamiliar pitchers. A career National Leaguer with a .278 average, he’s hitting .240 in Seattle and hasn’t homered in 121 at-bats as a Mariner.

Worse, for both he and the team, his style of defense at shortstop — which relies more on his positioning than his range — has been undermined because he doesn’t know American League hitters.

If they can trade Aurilia, the Mariners are willing to pay some of his $3.5 million contract. If they can’t trade him, they’re likely to release him.

Olerud, 35, had one of the worst seasons of his marvelous career in 2003, batting .269 in 152 games. This year, Olerud is at .246 in his first 118 at-bats.

A gifted defensive first baseman, Olerud was once a middle-of-the-lineup hitter. Now, he’s batted as low as eighth in the Seattle order. To put a younger bat in the outfield or infield, the Mariners could bench Olerud, trade him — with his permission — or release him.

Meche, 25, was the comeback player of the year in 2003, a 15-game winner after missing the two previous seasons with injuries. In the first half last season, Meche went 10-5 with a 3.61 earned-run average — a delightful surprise for the Mariners.

In the second half, however, Meche was 5-8 with a 6.08 ERA, and thus far in 2004 he’s 1-3 with a 5.63 ERA.

No one questions Meche’s arm or his electric stuff, which includes a 95 mph fastball. Nor is there much doubt that another team — the Kansas City Royals or Tampa Bay Devil Rays, for instance — would love to have him.

The Mariners have stuck with Meche through injuries and slumps, and while they acknowledge his potential, they have begun to question whether he’ll ever reach it.

Trading Meche makes room for the young pitching in Tacoma and beyond, and could bring an immediate return in talent.

McCracken, 33, is simply a decent player on the wrong team, and belongs in the N.L., where fourth outfielders are used far more frequently in double-switches.

With Seattle, he’s a pinch-runner. Someone like Bocachica, who can play the infield and outfield and has more offensive skills, would be far more valuable on the Mariner roster.

The Mariners’ front office is in agreement — they will not rush young players like Lopez, Justin Leone, Madritsch or Nageotte before they think they’re ready.

But standing pat is no solution, and the Mariners aren’t about to do that, either. What they’re about to do is begin making changes.