Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe talks about the Mariners, Adam Dunn, Wily Mo Pena Pena, Anthony Ranaudo and Josh Byrnes in his Sunday article:

Cafardo “raised an eyebrow” when Seattle Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik traded outfielder Ezequiel Carrera and shortstop Juan Diaz for Russell Branyan. The Mariners don’t seem to be going anywhere and Ezequiel led the Double-A League with a .337 average as a lead off hitter and had 27 steals.

Adam Dunn of the Washington Nationals could help a lot of teams with his powerful bat. There have been rumors that the Chicago White Sox could use him as their designated hitter. Cafardo says the Nationals could land a few prospects for Dunn. Another team interested could be the Los Angeles Angels.

Wily Mo Pena, outfielder for the Bridgeport Bluefish of the independent Atlantic League, lost 25 pounds, has six home runs and 29 RBIs in 32 games. He’s ready to play anywhere.

Anthony Ranaudo, right-handed pitcher from Lousiana State University and the 39th overall pick in this year’s draft was advised to not sign with the Boston Red Sox right away by agent Scott Boras. He was told to go to the Cape Cod League where he could better show off his arm. Three starts, 16 strikeouts, and two walks in 17 2/3 innings later made him a more valuable player. Cafardo now says he’s in line to “make serious money.”

Former Arizona Diamondbacks GM, Josh Byrnes, could find himself with a television gig at some point. Cafardo says he’s a guy that could resurface, even in Boston as an assistant again. In the meantime, he doesn’t have to do much since he has five year s remaining on his eight-year contract and also has an ownership stake in the team.