The ink has been dry on the Michael Pineda/Jesus Montero deal for only a week, but rumors have been heard that this deal could have turned out differently for the Mariners.
LOOKOUT LANDING: Michael Pineda Could Have Been A Blue Jay
Supposedly, the Blue Jays had been approached about acquiring Pineda, and though no names were publicly mentioned, a player from Toronto’s major league roster would likely have been involved. Brett Lawrie’s name immediately came to mind.
At Lookout Landing, Jeff Sullivan posted his thoughts on this deal that never was:
It’s really easy to see this turning into a debate about how the merits of Jesus Montero stack up against the merits of Brett Lawrie, just like how people used to debate about how the merits of Jesus Montero stacked up against the merits of Justin Smoak. That wouldn’t be fair. We don’t know what it would’ve cost to get Lawrie. The Mariners didn’t turn down Lawrie and go for Montero; the Mariners had Lawrie turned down for them, and then they went for Montero. Lawrie might have been their first choice. If it’s any consolation, based on the previous example I guess this means Brett Lawrie will be a Mariner within the next two years.
For what it’s worth, I think getting Lawrie instead of Montero would’ve made the Pineda trade easier to digest initially. People in Washington love Brett Lawrie. There’s the Canadian thing, and the Danielle Lawrie thing, and the not-Chone-Figgins thing, and so on. Montero’s not an unknown, but I think in the area he’s more of an unknown than Lawrie. Lawrie would’ve been welcomed.
In the end, Sullivan says Mariners fans will probably be happy with Montero, and at this point anything else is just make-believe, and appears to wish all of this would just go away.
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