Erik Bedard Is Almost A Seattle Mariner Again

Erik Bedard’s contract with the Mariners, which had been pending a Friday physical, is now official, as he’s passed his examination. The deal will pay him a $1.5m base in 2010 with $7m in assorted playing time incentives. It also comes with an $8m mutual option for 2011, but given that mutual options have to be exercised by both parties to be picked up, it’s unlikely that this will come into play. Generally, if a player is bad, the team won’t pick up his option, and if a player is good, the player won’t pick up his option.

Bedard isn’t expected back until the middle of the summer, and it’s an open question whether he’ll ever get back to what he was before, let alone whether he’ll get back by July. However, there is now the very real possibility that the Mariners will spend half their season with a Felix Hernandez - Cliff Lee - Erik Bedard threesome heading the rotation.

Bedard is on the road back from a torn labrum, which was repaired last August. He has optimistically suggested a possible return as early as May, but a more realistic scenario is that, if Bedard is able to get back into game shape at all, he won’t be ready to make a real contribution until the second half of the season, putting him in line to pick up 10-15 starts down the stretch.

Bedard’s contract has a $1.5m base with a number of incentives based on innings pitched and time spent on the roster. It is also, of course, not yet official, as the physical has yet to take place.