Mariners part ways with Torrealba

12/08/2005
DALLAS -- The Mariners made their first trade of the Winter Meetings, honoring backup catcher Yorvit Torrealba's wishes to be dealt to a team where he could get more playing time and possibly start. Seattle shipped Torrealba to the Colorado Rockies for a player to be named later.
Torrealba, 27, combined to hit .234 with 12 doubles, 3 homers, and 15 RBIs in 76 games with San Francisco and Seattle. He did not commit an error in 68 games (60 starts) behind the plate in 2005, recording the most games and innings of any Major League catcher without an error last season.
Torrealba came to the Mariners, along with pitcher Jesse Foppert, on July 30, 2005, in a trade for outfielder Randy Winn.
Bavasi said that he was frustrated at the collapse of a trade that the Mariners thought they were close to making Tuesday night that would have sent a team three "significant" players in the Mariners organization.
"Yesterday we were much, much closer to getting something done than we were today," Bavasi said. "We don't have the developmental surplus to move freely. We hoped to make a move last night that would have given us that surplus."
Meanwhile, the Mariners made some more expected moves, declining to offer arbitration and therefore cutting ties with all five of its current free agents, including Dan Wilson, who announced his retirement at the end of last year.
The Mariners also declined to offer arbitration to pinch-hitter/infielder Dave Hansen, relievers Shigetoshi Hasegawa and Jeff Nelson, and shortstop Pokey Reese.
Reese spent the 2005 season on the disabled list and did not appear in a game with the Mariners.

Source: http://seattle.mariners.mlb.com/