Gillick, M's scout to watch Cuban

The Mariners will have their chief Latin American scout, Bob Engle, and former general manager Pat Gillick on hand today in San Salvador when Cuban defector Maels Rodriguez throws for big-league scouts.

Rodriguez, 24, at one time possessed a 100-mph fastball. He hasn't pitched much since being pushed off the roster of Cuba's international team, but he could become a commodity with a good showing today.


	Rodriguez

He'll hope to show that arm troubles and a herniated disk, issues that robbed him of most of his 2003 season, are history. Cuban authorities claimed -- after he defected -- that Rodriguez had lost 15 mph off his fastball. Today will tell whether Rodriguez has a sour arm or if those were just sour grapes.

The Mariners are one of at least six teams expected to look at Rodriguez, joining the Rangers, Red Sox, Yankees, Mets and Angels. There may be scouts from other organizations on hand, but with Rodriguez expected to be a big-ticket item, most mid- and small-revenue teams are expected to pass.

Two American League playoff teams, Minnesota and Oakland, will not be on hand. They are among teams that believe the right-hander is too pricey.

Engle and Gillick have seen Rodriguez throw in international competition, and it will be up to them to evaluate whether the Mariners should make an offer. Rodriguez's agent, Henry Vilars, said the Mariners have been one of the teams most aggressive in the process and said the club ranks highly with Rodriguez.

But it's not clear if Rodriguez is ready to pitch in the major leagues. Vilars has had to back off earlier hopes that Rodriguez would be worth the four-year, $32 million deal last winter's prime Cuban defector, Jose Contreras, raked in. The Yankees outbid Boston and Seattle in spirited competition, but were somewhat disappointed in Contreras last season.

PUDGE ALERT? Although there apparently has been talk about whether to pursue free-agent catcher Pudge Rodriguez, the Mariners and Rodriguez's agent said no talks have taken place.

The possibility of looking at Rodriguez opened when Seattle learned closer Kazuhiro Sasaki is leaving the team to stay in Japan. He was due $8 million in salary this year plus bonuses and a $1 million buyout for 2005.

Seattle general manager Bill Bavasi and Rodriguez's agent, Scott Boras, are old pals and talk frequently.

But Rodriguez has an offer on the table of $40 million over four years from the Detroit Tigers. The Mariners won't be able to match that.

That offer from Detroit has been on the table for a while, and Rodriguez, who helped the Florida Marlins win the World Series last year, doesn't seem eager to join a team that lost a Tigers-record 119 games last year.

The lure of playing for a team that has won at least 90 games for four consecutive seasons and has a chance to make the playoffs might serve as a counterbalance to Detroit's money.

"Pudge likes Seattle -- there's no doubt about that," a Rodriguez confidant said yesterday. "But he really hit it off with (Tigers owner) Mike Ilitch, too."

P-I reporter John Hickey can be reached at 206-448-8004 or johnhickey@seattlepi.com

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