Lookout Landing was where I saw this item first.
R.A. Dickey loses out to Baek's option status, but remains in the organisation as the Mariners traded C Jair Fernandez (i.e. a warm body) to the Twins for the rights to his contract. He'll start the year in Tacoma.I had not seen this anywhere else, so I headed to Geoff Baker's Blog, where Larry Stone had this confirmation.
Fernandez had a pretty good shot at being on the Rattler Opening Day roster after playing 52 games for the Rattlers last season. He spent a lot of time on the DL and was the Timber Rattler player who had the oddest injury of 2007: He twisted an ankle getting out of the way of a pitch in Fort Wayne.It was a weird scene this morning at Cashman Field, with the Mariners' brass huddling in the bowels of the stadium, and a mixture of elated and devastated players as they learned their fate to start the season.
The most dejected was R.A. Dickey, who in a weird twist found himself optioned to Class AAA Tacoma. Here's how that came down: the Mariners swung a deal with the Twins, sending catcher Jair Fernandez to Minnesota in exchange for the Twins rejecting Seattle's offer to return Dickey to their organization. As a Rule 5 selection, the Mariners had to offer Dickey back to the Twins before sending him to the minors. Dickey also was available via waivers to the other 28 clubs, but surprisingly was not grabbed by anyone. Dickey, who pitched great all spring, was truly stunned and disappointed to be going to the minors, but took it like a pro.
This spring, Fernandez spent a lot of time in big league camp to help out with the catching duties. Now, he's not in the organization anymore.
I wonder if he is will be joining the Snappers in Beloit or head to Florida for a bit before going somewhere else in the Minnesota system. Wherever he is going, the Rattlers wish Jair good luck.
The Baseball Cube page for Fernandez.
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