M’s may not pursue Matsuzaka

There seems little doubt that Japanese pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka is the most intriguing free-agent pitcher this off-season. He won the World Baseball Classic MVP award last spring and will become available for bidding next month to major league teams starved for starting pitching.

With the Seattle Mariners badly needing starters, how convenient is that? Not convenient at all, apparently.

Seattle seems inclined to let the high-dollar sweepstakes for Matsuzaka happen without it.

Last week, when Mariners baseball executives and scouts met in Arizona to map their strategy for improving the team, general manager Bill Bavasi asked for recommendations on potential free agents the M’s should pursue.

Nobody mentioned Matsuzaka’s name.

That’s not to say the Mariners aren’t impressed with the Seibu Lions right-hander. He’d definitely boost a rotation that has three openings to fill.

The bigger issue is whether Matsuzaka is worth the financial stretch it will take to get him. It may take a winning bid of $20 million or more just to gain the right to negotiate a contract with him and, with Scott Boras as his agent, it’s a good bet that he’ll get a deal worth millions over multiple years.

Matsuzaka will get No. 1 starter money with no guarantee that he’ll become that kind of pitcher in the majors.

If the Mariners pursue Matsuzaka, it likely will happen at the insistence of ownership. That’s how Japanese catcher Kenji Johjima became a Mariner last year, even though catching was low on Bavasi’s priority list going into the off-season.

Spending what it will take to land Matsuzaka could severely hamper any other moves Seattle needs to make this off-season.

Look for the M’s to pursue stateside starters.

The free-agent field won’t be deep, but there are some possibilities. Jason Schmidt, Adam Eaton (of Snohomish, Wash.) and Ted Lilly are on the Mariners’ radar.

Others expected to file for free agency are left-handers Barry Zito and Mark Buehrle, plus right-handers Jason Johnson, Brian Moehler, Chan Ho Park, Jeff Suppan, Steve Trachsel, Jeff Weaver, Jaret Wright and Woody Williams.

There’s also the Mariners’ free agent, right-hander Gil Meche. The Mariners are expected to make an offer, but they aren’t inclined to dangle the money or number of years that other teams will throw at Meche.