It appears Russell Branyan had a one-and-done career with the Mariners.

The Mariners are on the verge of acquiring first baseman Casey Kotchman from the Red Sox, possibly for a mid-level Minor League prospect, and would move into the position Branyan played last season.

It would give the Mariners a totally different look.

Whereas Branyan was a long-ball threat, leading the team with 31 home runs in 431 at-bats, he also struck out 149 times.

Kotchman puts the ball in play more often, striking out 166 times in 1,674 career at-bats. He also has walked 157 times, which is  an attractive ratio to club officials.

In addition, defense is a strong part of Kotchman’s game. He has committed just eight errors in 3,853 total chances at the big-league level.

The acquisition would be like a punch in the stomach for Branyan, who had the best overall year of his career with the Mariners and expressed a strong desire to return to Seattle in 2010 and beyond. But he rejected the Mariners’ one-year offer and remains available on the free-agent market.

Branyan was hampered by a herniated disk the second half of the season.

It is believed that the Kotchman deal will be completed later this week, possibly on Friday. The 26-year-old, the Angels’ first-round selection in the 2001 First-Year Player Draft, made $3 million last season and is eligible for salary arbitration.

— Jim Street

A Happy New Year to the reader(s) of this blog.

Some of you (well, at least one) might have been wondering why there has been a lack of activity at Street’s Corner for the past month or so.

I would like to say it has all been about vacation time, but the truth of the matter, I have been on the 45-day disabled list — with high blood pressure that scared me, my family and my doctor, all of whom old me in no uncertain terms to back off from work-related activities for awhile.

So, as a good patient, I took everyone’s advice but kept abreast — from afar — the wheelings and dealings of the Z-man. He has pretty much done a roster turnover from the dreadful pre-Z-man days, from the first-round selections in recent First-Year Free Agent Drafts to the trades that didn’t work out (er, Erik Bedard comes to mind) and the plethora of free-agent signings that never panned out.

I doubt that the Z-man is finished his work and the next few weeks could be almost as busy as the post-Winter Meetings roster moves.

Adding another veteran starting pitcher and one or two productive bats should still be high on his to-do list. Getting ace right-hander Felix Hernandez’s signature on a long-term contract would be cheered throughout Mariner Nation.

Even so, the acquistions of Chone Figgins via the free agent market, along with left-hander Cliff Lee and left fielder Milton Bradley via trades, are positive moves. I had a telephone conversation with Ken Griffey Jr., who was on his way to Hawaii for the holidays, and he fully endorsed the swap with the Cubs that brought Bradley to the Mariners and sent right-handed pitcher Carlos Silva to Chitown.

Griffey stopped in Seattle on his way back home from the Islands and besides hoisting the 12th-man flag at Qwest Field prior to the Seahawks’ season finale on Sunday, was expected to have a physical — the final step in the one-year contract he signed in November.

The turning of the calendar page four days ago hastened the countdown to Spring Training. Pitchers, catchers, players coming off injury, and writers report to camp in Peoria on Feb. 17.

This will be my 40th — and final — Spring Training as a full-time baseball writer, and it seems like only 100 or so years ago that it all started in San Jose. Unless the Mariners get into the World Series — stranger things have happened, haven’t they? — my final day on the beat will be on Oct. 31.

The game plan is to dress up as Bobby Ayala and go trick-or-treating.

— Jim Street

It has a little more than a year since Dave Niehaus was inducted into the Hall of Fame joining some of the greatest announcers of all-time.

I just received in the mail a CD that brilliantly captures Dave’s long and illustrious career, including a 33-year stint as “The Voice of the Mariners”.

The CD, written, produced and narrated by veteran MLB announcer Pat Hughes, takes a 54 minute, 45 second journey through Dave’s career. It includes a young-sounding Niehaus behind the microphone for the Mariners’ first-ever baseball game played at the Kingdome in 1977, the unforgettable 1995 and 2001 seasons, the no-hitters tossed by Randy Johnson and Chris Bosio, and other memorable moments in franchise history.

It’s one “My-oh-my” after another and a few “Fly, Fly Aways” for good measure, not to mention a few “Get out the Mustard, Grandma. . .”

“A Commemorative Tribute to Dave Niehaus”, is the latest in a series of CD’s written and produced by Hughes, the Cubs’ radio play-by-play voice since 1996, and someone I have known and respected since 1978, when he was the “voice of the San Jose Missions” of the Pacific Coast League, and I was a still relatively-young reporter with the San Jose Mercury News.

Hughes also has produced CDs honoring the legacies of Hall of Fame broadcasters Red Barber, Marty Brenneman, Jack Buck, Harry Caray, Harry Kalas and Bob Uecker.

Talk about stocking stuffers — this would make a great one for any Mariners fan and check it out at www.baseballvoices.com.

— Jim Street

Right-handed reliever Chris Jakubauskas received a phone call today that shocked the dickens out of him.

It was from the Mariners, who informed him that he had placed on waivers and claimed by the Pirates.

Major League teams faced a 9 o’clock (PT) deadline for setting their 40-man roster heading into the Winter Meetings next month and Jakubauskas was not on it.

He was told that it was unfortunate, but to protect another player, he had to be put on waivers.

“The game is what it is,” Jak said. “It’s a numbers game and my number is one that didn’t get called. It was kind of shocking. I didn’t see it coming. I guess bittersweet is the best way to describe it. I still have a job, but it’s tough when you develop so many friendships with another team and then have to leave.”

Jakubauskas, a product of Independent Leagues, reported to Spring Training last February as a non-roster invitee and a tiny chance of earning a spot on the Opening Day roster. But he kept getting hitters out and landed a spot on the 25-man roster. He spent most of the season with Seattle, posting a 6-7 record and 5.32 ERA in 35 appearances, including eight starts.

His knowledge of Pittsburgh and the Pirates is limited, so Jakubauskas said he already has placed a call to former Buc shortstop Jack Wilson to get some information.

“It’s kind of an interesting way to start a weekend,” he added.

The Mariners will announce later today the updated version of the 40-man roster.

— Jim Street

It’s a long way from Class A to the Major Leagues, but after the way outfielder Joe Dunigan performed in the Arizona Fall League, I would not be at all surprised if he reaches the big leagues much sooner than you might think.

I just returned from a couple of days in Peoria to watch and talk to the seven Mariners’ prospects who played for the West Division champion Javelinas and came away with a strong impression of the 22-year-old outfielder from Chicago.

Dunigan, selected in the fifth round of the 2007 First-Year Player Draft, was one of 55 players in the AFL this year that never played higher than Class A, and he shined big-time.

The left-handed hitter batted .280 with three home runs and 14 RBIs in 75 at-bats, finishing among the team leaders in home runs and RBIs. Javelinas manager Kevin Bradshaw, a skipper in the Tigers organization, said Dunigan was the most improved player on his team, which will play for the AFL title on Saturday in Scottsdale.

Oh, Dunigan still has plenty of work to do before he’s MLB-ready — he made six errors in 22 games — but he seems to have a bright future.

Dunigan had a breakout season at Class-A High Desert last season, batting .294 with 30 home runs and 104 RBIs. He, Alex Liddi (.345, 23 home runs, 104 RBIs) and Carlos Peguero (.271, 31, 98) were the offensive stars on a team that went 83-57.

Dunigan said competing against older players, many with Triple-A and even some Major League experience, was a great experience.

“I don’t think the mechanics of my swing are any better, but my approach is much better,” he said. “What I have learned more than anything is the importance of the neck up. I go up there with a better approach, knowing that the pitchers are not going to throw a first-pitch ‘cookie’ down the middle just to get ahead in the count.”

I also talked to pitcher Josh Fields, who had a terrific AFL season. A story on him will be posted on the Mariners’ website later today and on Sunday, there will be a story on Bradshaw’s take on the seven Seattle prospects that played in the highly-regarded development league.

— Jim Street

The  blockbuster trade GM Jack Zduriencik participated in during the Winter Meetings last year in Las Vegas hit another high point today when the Topps Company named West Tennessee outfielder Ezequel Carrera to its Double-A All-Star team.

Carrera was one of seven players the Mariners received in a three-team, 12-player swap that also landed Seattle center fielder Franklin Gutierrez from the Indians and left fielder Endy Chavez, along with Carrera and first baseman Mike Carp, from the Mets.

Carrera, 22, of Guiria Sucre, Venezuela, led the Southern League with a .337 batting average and a .441 on-base percentage,  becoming the first player in Diamond Jaxx history to win a league batting title.

He started the season on a tear, batting .357 in April and .344 clip in May before being sidelined with an ankle injury for the remainder of the month. Carrera returned to the lineup June 19 and shook off the rust quickly, batting .316 in 11 June games. On July 8, Carrera injured his right thumb and missed 18 games but returned on August 1 and batted .361 the remainder of the season.

— Jim Street

I just checked out some of the reader comments from the Inbox, which was posted on Wednesday, and BOS13759 wrote that he noticed on the Hot Stove ticker than Mike Sweeney is a Type B free agent.

So I pulled out the official list of free agents produced by the Major League Players Association (via the Elias Sports  Bureau) and Sweeney is not a Type A or Type B free agent.

Only Adrian Beltre and Erik Bedard are ranked, and both are Type B free agents.

— Jim Street

If this had been a horse race, Mariners manager Don Wakamatsu would have finished out of the money.

But he agreed that the right person won the American League Manager of the Year Award.

The voting results were announced today and Wakamatsu finished fourth behind the AL division winners – Angels skipper Mike Scioscia, Twins manager Ron Gardenhire and the Yankees Joe Girardi.

“There’s no doubt that Mike deserved it,” Wakamatsu said. “Teams that win, those are the guys that ought to be rewarded. ‘Scios” got my vote. (The Angels) had a lot of things happen, injuries and the tragic death of (Nick) Adenhart.

“I can only imagine how difficult it would have to be handling something like that. But he held that club together.”

And that was one of the main reasons he voted for the Angels manager.

It was interesting that three of the top five vote-getters were from the four-team AL West. Rangers skipper Ron Washington finished right behind Wakamatsu.

“For whatever it’s worth, our division had the most wins,” Wak said. “Everyone knew the Angels would be good and the Rangers were in striking distance for a lot of the season.”

The Rangers were in sole possession of first place from May 6 through June 23, and either led or shared the stop spot with the Angels until July 11 when the eventual division champions took over first place for good.

“The bottom line is that if you win, you deserve the award, and if you don’t, you did a nice job,” Wakamatsu said.

In case you were wondering, Lou Piniella is the only Mariners manager to be selected as Manager of the Year. He won the award in 1995 and in 2001.

— Jim Street

The Mariners’ Felix Hernandez was the runner-up to Zack Greinke in the Cy Young Award race, receiving 80 points and two first-place votes.  The Tigers’ Justin Verlander picked up the other first-place vote.  The Yankees’ CC Sabathia and the Blue Jays’ Roy Halladay also picked up votes.

The 26-year old Greinke was named first on 25 ballots and second on three ballots of the 28 total ballots cast by two writers in each American League city.  He received a total of 134 points, based on the 5-3-1 tabulations system for first, second and third-place votes. 

— Jim Street

Mariners manager Don Wakamatsu returned the phone call I made to him last night regarding bullpen coach John Wettleland and the reports about such things as “mental health issue” and “potential suicide” were totally bogus.

Wak talked to Wetteland about an hour earlier and said, “He is doing great. There was a domestic dispute and things got blown way out of proportion.”

Wetteland and his wife, Michele, (as most couples occassionally do) had an argument and the coach’s blood pressure increased. Michele called police. Before long, the police and helicopters, along with neighbors and media were at the Wettleland house.

Wakamatsu, who also lives in the Dallas area, returned home late this morning after watching several Arizona Fall League games.

— Jim Street