Time to trim Wedge

The Seattle Mariners’ biggest problem right now is Eric Wedge.

(General manager Jack) Zduriencik made a huge error bringing in a guy who had been out of baseball. Some ex-managers could step right in and do the job, but this guy seems more interested in grooming himself to look like Fu Manchu than managing.

The Mariners should have gone after Clint Hurdle because they knew him in 2010 as a Texas Rangers coach.

And why did Seattle give Jack Cust $2.5 million for one year? Zduriencik should eat Cust’s salary, let him go, and continue to season another Tacoma Rainiers outfielder. And for (Chone) Figgins, get him off the roster and send him to the Arizona Instructional League as a first-base coach.

As an example of Wedge’s bad calls, during Tuesday’s game against Toronto he pitched to Jose Bautista late in a tied game with two outs and a man on second. Common sense tells me that you walk Bautista, but he pitches to him and the Blue Jays get a run and win the game.

The M’s should immediately fire Wedge and hire Booby Valentine, a smarter baseball man and a no-nonsense kind of manager. Wedge is not bringing out the best baseball in Seattle.

Jack A. Abel

Spokane