Mariners - Signed Nelson

Seattle Mariners - Signed OF Brad “Cornfed” Nelson to a minor-league contract.

Nelson had a terrific spring, but neglected to save any of this year’s hits for the regular season.  A 21-year-old top prospect can survive going for 0-21, but a 26-year-old player whose primary value is his offense frequently can’t.

That being said, Nelson took a big step forward in 2008, cutting down a very long swing without losing power and putting up his best professional season.  Going to the AL definitely helps his job prospects as his defense isn’t adequate anywhere.  The projection below is disappointing, but I still think Nelson has a lot of untapped potential, much moreso than another huge guy in a similar position and underwhelming numbers, Brad Eldred.  Seattle’s a good choice for Nelson (though they could’ve just been the only team that called).  There’s a lot of DH/1B competition in Tacoma, but with the Mariners using Branyan/Griffey and Mike Sweeney alternating between back problems and ineffectiveness, Nelson could sneak some at-bats if he outhits Chris Shelton.

2009 ZIPS Projection - Brad Nelson
——————————————————————————————————————

                AB    R    H  2B  3B  HR  RBI   BB   SO  SB   BA  OBP  SLG
——————————————————————————————————————

Year-to-Date    21    0    0   0   0   0    0    2    9   0 .000 .087 .000

Rest-of-Year   305   37   71  17   1   9   37   34   65   6 .234 .311 .377
——————————————————————————————————————

Total          326   37   71  17   1   9   37   36   74   6 .219 .297 .353

Year-to-date totals include minor-league translations, if applicable.