A National League scout once told me a shorthand way to see where a team ranks entering a season is to compare it position by position against its most serious competition.

Some teams, he said, are built around pitching and defense, others around thunder – but few teams win when their overall talent simply doesn’t match up with teams in their own division. Exceptions? Sure, just look at teams like Minnesota, San Francisco or Tampa Bay.

Still, in the jittery lead up to spring training, it’s interesting to match the  Seattle Mariners and the two best teams in the American League West.  …

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Take a few weeks off, suddenly the Seattle Mariners can’t stop making news, from the Michael Pineda - Jesus Montero trade with the Yankees to signing journeyman Kevin Millwood to inviting every young player in their farm system to spring training.

Yes, a bit to catch up with, so let’s start with some of the youngsters you’ll be reading about.

The Mariners have invited these nine prized rookies to camp among the 25 non-roster invitees this spring: RHP Taijuan Walker, LHP James Paxton, INF Nick Franklin, OF Vinnie Catricala, RHP Erasmo Ramirez, RHP Stephen Pryor, RHP Forrest Snow, C Jesus …

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It’s official: Jesus Montero is a Mariner, and Michael Pineida a Yankee.

The trade of two top young players was finalized today, giving the Mariners offense a much needed boost with the addition of Montero, but at a steep cost. Pineida, in his first full season in the majors in 2011, flashed signs of being a dominant pitcher and made the all-star team.

“With this trade we feel we have acquired a premium offensive talent that has the potential to hit in the middle of our lineup and grow with our other young players,” said Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik in …

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Add another name – Kevin Millwood – to the candidates hoping to fill out the Seattle Mariners rotation.

MLB.com reports Millwood’s sister announced the deal on her Facebook page. CBSSports.com later confirmed it, saying Millwood signed a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training.

Millwood, who turned 37 last month, made nine starts with the Colorado Rockies last season, going 4-3 with a 3.98 ERA. He threw 54 1/3 innings in the majors – his lowest total since his rookie year in 1997 – after spending most of the season in the minor leagues.

In his …

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At one time, Oliver Perez was a pitcher that caused a lot of uncomfortable at-bats. The Mariners hope that he can be that player again.

Seattle announced this afternoon that they signed the 30-year-old left-hander to a one-year, minor-league contract.

Perez, plagued by control issues throughout his nine years in the majors, did not pitch in the majors last year. He spent the entire season with the Double-A Harrisburg Senators in the Washington Nationals organization, going 3-5 with a 3.09 ERA (26 ER, 75.2 IP) with 58 strikeouts in 16 games, covering 75 2/3 innings.

This winter, he has …

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The Mariners announced two more inductees – Randy Johnson and Dan Wilson – to the team’s hall of fame. Johnson and Wilson will become the fifth and sixth members when they are inducted in a ceremony on July 28 before the Mariners-Kansas City Royals game.

The four current members of the Seattle Mariners Hall of Fame are Alvin Davis (1997), Dave Niehaus (2000), Jay Buhner (2004) and Edgar Martinez (2007). The Hall of Fame was created to honor the players, staff and other individuals that greatly contributed to the history of the Mariners franchise.

Wilson played 12 of his 14 …

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The Mariners made sure they won’t have any arbitration cases hanging over their heads this spring, agreeing to deals with pitchers Brandon League and Shawn Kelley, and left-handed pitcher Jason Vargas on one-year contracts.

By agreeing to terms with the three players, the Mariners have no remaining arbitration-eligible players.

League, 28, ranked third in the American League with 37 saves and was selected to play in his first All-Star Game. He went 1-5 with a 2.79 ERA in a team-high 65 appearances.

In two seasons with the Mariners, League is 10-12 with a 3.14 ERA (49 ER, 140.1 IP) …

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Looking for a bat to drop into the heart of their lineup, the Seattle Mariners have apparently made a blockbuster trade – pitcher Michael Pineda for New York Yankees rookie catcher Jesus Montero.

Neither team would confirm or deny the reported deal, which likely  included secondary players from both teams.

If true – and reports surfaced from a handful of sources all afternoon – the Mariners have given up a hard-throwing young starting pitcher for a 22-year-old right-handed hitting Venezuelan with 61 big-league at-bats. After dominating throughout the minor leagues, Montero hit .328 with four doubles, four home runs, 12 RBI …

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