Clement must win every day job to stay with Mariners
Seattle Mariners’ manager John McLaren has openly stated that Jeff Clement won’t be kept on the big-league roster without securing an every day job with the team.
“We won’t carry Jeff Clement as an extra catcher,” McLaren said. “If we carry him, it’s got to be as an everyday player. With his talent, there’s too high a ceiling for him. He needs to play.”
The club has closed all doors on switching Clement to first base, but aren’t looking over the fact that he could serve as the team’s designated hitter. With Kenji Johjima still hanging around, it’s hard to see Clement winning the catching job outright, so being the team’s designated hitter would have to be his only way to make the team out of Spring Training. The Mariners seem to like Jose Vidro with that job, so it seems as if Clement is destined for Tacoma.
Filed under: Seattle Mariners