Mariners have shown they are taking the long route

Great to be back in Seattle and looking forward to spring training after a nice couple of weeks off in South Africa and France. As usual, the Mariners timed all of their big moves and non-moves for the moment I left, giving colleague Larry Stone plenty to do. I'll schedule next year's vacation earlier, so that the team doesn't leave you hanging in suspense all winter long. One thing I think the Mariners' off-season has done is paint a much clearer picture of what the team intends going forward. And from where I sit, it really doesn't look as if the Mariners plan on making the playoffs before 2015. Instead, like their counterparts in Oakland, they appear to be shifting their focus to a few years down the road where a potentially huge financial windfall awaits. There are many ways to rebuild a team. The Angels won a World Series in 2002 with help from youngsters Troy Glaus and Francisco Rodriguez, but were a veteran team anchored by Tim Salmon, Darin Erstadt, Scott...