With the Philadelphia Phillies acquisition of Joe Blanton the Seattle Mariners lost potentially their best suitor for ailing ace Erik Bedard’s services. 

Bedard is currently on the 15-day DL and was delayed on returning to Seattle after the All-Star break, meaning he’ll only get a single start before the July 31st trade deadline if healthy.  Pair that with the dwindling list of teams that are willing to take a risk on top of the rotation help and Bedard’s chances of exiting Seattle this season are slim to none.

That isn’t a bad thing, of course.  Bedard’s value has got to be nearing an all time low right now, so Seattle might as well hold on to him and pray that he has a healthy and effective second half, reestablishing himself as a staff ace and upping his trade value.  At that point they could try and pawn him off on someone over the offseason. 

If the organization is really hellbent on moving Bedard this year, which I doubt they are, finding someone that matches up will be a struggle. 

Perhaps the St. Louis Cardinals could match up.  They’ve been discussed before, but their front office is currently unwilling to invest in a starting pitcher with four capable starters currently on the DL.  Manager Tony La Russa wants to bring someone in, so maybe he can convince the organization to pull the trigger as the deadline approaches.  They’re apparently willing to part with top prospect Colby Rasmus which makes a potential deal even more intriguing, even if it is a slight stretch to envision a broken down Bedard pulling in a prospect of such skill and stature.  Some pretty lopsided deals tend to go down at the deadline, so keep an eye on the Cardinals.

The Tampa Bay Rays had been rumored to be seeking another top of the rotation arm to go along with Scott Kazmir and James Shields, but the consensus among trade rumor junkies is that the rumor was started to drive up the price of guys like CC Sabathia.  I wouldn’t expect the Rays to pursue Bedard, especially with David Price as their ace in the hole.  If they did, you could expect Seattle to get something decent in return, as the Rays’ farm is stocked with top talent.

As far as I know the New York Yankees aren’t pursuing starting pitching, at least not aggressively, but they should be.  If they’re serious about contending this year they would be wise to look for a rotation upgrade, in my opinion.  Sidney Ponson has been surprisingly sharp and Darrell Rasner has been decent as the fifth starter, but Mike Mussina, Joba Chamberlain and Andy Pettitte may not match up well against some of the dynamic duos and trios that other playoff teams may be running out there.  The real reason I’m intrigued by the possibility of sending Bedard to the Bronx is because Raul Ibanez could be packaged into that deal, maximising the haul for the Mariners.  Unfortunately, New York doesn’t have the greatest farm system, so such a blockbuster may not work out, but it never hurts to speculate.

The Minnesota Twins are a team that could use a legitimate ace down the stretch.  While Bedard isn’t considered that by all, Livan Hernandez is considered an ace by no one.  They have a pretty good rotation, but adding Bedard would certainly help them.  I haven’t heard anything about the Twins pursuing starting pitching, but they have been interested in Adrian Beltre, so this is another situation where Seattle could potentially maximize the haul.  Could Minnesota’s payroll handle both these players?  Probably not, but owners and GMs tend to make things happen when their teams are on the brink, though Minnesota isn’t a franchise known for being big-time buyers.  Another case of pure speculation.

The Atlanta Braves, who currently sit at 6.5 games out, could become buyers.  Bedard might be a good fit for Atlanta as he would be a definite upgrade over three-fifths of their rotation and, if they make it, they could sandwich him between righties Tim Hudson and Jair Jurrjens during the playoffs.  This is yet another situation where Seattle could send someone with Bedard, as the Braves have expressed interest in Raul Ibanez. 

There doesn’t seem to be any other teams that could match up unless a major injury occured in a contender’s rotation, which would exponentially increase Seattle chances of dealing Bedard this season.  There doesn’t seem to be any teams out there that are craving Bedard’s services, and of those mentioned above, I would put them in this order of who is most likely to make a move for him:

1.) St. Louis Cardinals
2.) New York Yankees
3.) Atlanta Braves
4.) Tampa Bay Rays
5.) Minnesota Twins

And those destinations don’t look all that promising.  This was basically a long post saying “Erik Bedard is staying put unless something major happens that severely effects the starting pitching market.”