Willie Nelson

...sounds a lot cooler than "Jeff Bloomquist" as a title for this post.

Willie signed a 2-year deal with the Mariners today, avoiding arbitration.

Rotoworld says: "Willie Bloomquist's two-year deal with the Mariners is worth $1.525 million. He gets a $50,000 signing bonus, $625,000 this year and $850,000 in 2007. He can earn $150,000 om performance bonuses this year based on plate appearances and $250,000 in 2007. In addition, his 2007 salary can escalate by up to $250,000."

(I'm not bothered by this contract; I don't think it's that bad. 125 Bremertonians per home game at $30 per average ticket will make up $300k above replacement cost in gate sales. I sit next to way too many Bloomquist fans at Safeco to believe there's less than 125 per game. I'm glad they'll still have their cult hero to cheer for next year, unlike those little kids in my section who were in tears when Boone got axed.

EDIT> Or, as I said in a comment on Lookout Landing, "To put it in perspective, for $650k you could either have a 2-bedroom house in Greenlake, or you could have Willie Bloomquist.")

Nelson, as in Jeff, signed a minor league deal with the St. Louis Cardinals yesterday.

MLB.com says: "The deal is a Minor League pact with an invite to Spring Training, and ESPN.com reported that Nelson would make $800,000 if he makes the big league club."

So, I guess we're keeping Shotgun Willie, and Jeff Nelson is On The Road Again.