Cover Major League basball for 28 years and there are two questions asked by family, friends and fans – who was the best player you ever covered, and which one was your favorite.

For me, the answers go both are the same: Ken Griffey Jr.

There wasn’t much he couldn’t do on a baseball field, and what he couldn’t do he figured out and did that, too. Junior was as athletic an outfielder as anyone who ever played, and absolutely fearless.

Watching him grow up was a joy, and his passion on the field was matched by

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Anyone who watched more than a couple of Seattle Mariners games last year likely saw Adrian Beltre make a sensational play at third base.

Coming off his 2007 Gold Glove award, Beltre has been honored now as the best-fielding third baseman in Major League baseball by the folks at the Fielding Bible.

That’s no small award – it comes from a panel of 10, including Bill James, and is chosen based on numbers, not popularity.

If you want to know the other winners, how the awards were chosen and who voted, here’s the website.

Congrats

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When the Mariners fired Bob Fontaine, then offered Benny Looper a job they were all but certain he wouldn’t accept – and watched him walk away – they lost two good baseball men.

Chances are, before new general manager Jack Zduriencik completes his remake of the Seattle front office and major and minor-league coaching staffs, a lot of other good baseball men will go, too.

That’s not a bad thing.

When Pat Gillick stepped down as Mariners GM, he hadn’t lost his passion for the job or – as the Phillies proved with their championship Wednesday –

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The shuffling within the Mariners front office continues. GM Jack Zduriencik announced that longtime Mariner executive Benny Looper has decided to no longer remain with the organization.

As part of the restructuring Looper, who was vice president of player personnel, was offered a job in the pro scouting department. However, he declined the position switch and opted to look elsewhere. Here’s the release from the Mariners including quotes from Zduriencik and Looper.

BENNY LOOPER DECLINES OPPORTUNITY TO REMAIN WITH CLUB

SEATTLE, WA – Seattle Mariners Executive Vice President &

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Anyone who remembers Greg Dobbs as a Seattle Mariner has to be delighted by his success in Philadelphia – he was a guy who worked hard, never complained and took his lumps here.

And when he got a chance to play for Pat Gillick and the Phils, he made he most of it.

This was a guy who worked with outfielders on the off-chance he might be used there, and who copied every one of Adrian Beltre’s drills at third base one spring.

Dobbs didn’t figure to play in Beltre’s spot – he simply wanted to be

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Sat down for the first time today with new general manager Jack Zduriencik, and learned he’s been a busy man.

In less than a full week on the job, Zduriencik’s fired scouting director Bob Fontaine and hired two men he worked with in Milwaukee, Tony Blengino and Tom McNamara.

And two long-time Mariners executives, assistant GM Lee Pelekoudas and director of international operations Bob Engle have agreed to stay on.

"The process of reorganizing the Mariners baseball operations staff is on-going,"Zduriencik said, and will probably take at least another three weeks. As a part of that process,

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Sorry, I didn’t get this up sooner, but I was away from my phone and laptop for an hour or so (dentist).

Anyway, Jack Zduriencik has relieved Mariners vice president of scouting Bob Fontaine of his duties. Here’s the official press release from the Mariners.

MARINERS VP OF SCOUTING BOB FONTAINE RELIEVED OF DUTIES

SEATTLE, WA – Seattle Mariners Executive Vice President & General Manager of Baseball Operations Jack Zduriencik announced today that Mariners Vice President of Scouting Bob Fontaine has been relieved of his duties.

“On behalf of the Mariners, we thank

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The day the Seattle Mariners hired Bill Bavasi, he got a cryptic telephone call from his brother Peter.

"Congratulations," Peter said. "How does it feel to be the future former general manager of the Seattle Mariners?"

Both men laughed, but each knew reality when they heard it. The same day Bavasi’s hiring was announced, a new website appeared on the internet – ‘FireBillBavasi.com’.

Jack Zduriencik is the Mariners new GM, and while there isn’t yet a website calling for his demise, some columnists, bloggers and talk radio callers have been luke warm at best in their reactions.
…

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