M's get Jesus Montero

[The Q]

The New York Yankees made their all winter long finally awaited move for a pitcher, agreeing to trade for right-hander Michael Pineda from the Mariners in exchange for top prospect Jesus Montero, CBSSports.com's Jon Heyman reports.

The Seattle Mariners will also get right-hander Hector Noesi, while right-hander Jose Campos goes the Bronx Bomber.

Pineda, 22, went 9-10 with a 3.74 ERA for the Mariners last season, striking out 173 batters in 171 innings.

Montero, also 22, played in 18 games for the Yankees last season, hitting .328/.406/.590 with four home runs and 12 RBI in 18 games and 69 plate appearances.

Noesi will be 25 later this month and went 2-2 with a 4.47 ERA in 30 appearances for the Yankees in 2011, including two starts.

The deal is pending physicals.

What are your thoughts on this one M's fans?

[CrushingYourHead]

I don't love it, but it is dealing from a position of strength. If Montero can contribute anything half-decent at catcher (40-50 games), it starts to look alot better...

What I do love about the deal is it should put all the Fielder shit to bed. I was starting to worry to M's would throw the bank at that guy, even though we already have 2 lefty 1B's. Smoak can't hit right-handed worth a damn. Boras is gonna squirm now

[The Q]

It's tough because you know how talented Pineda is but the offense has been so pathetic the Mariners could simply not have trotten out the same horrible lineup another season.

The wildcard in this is how quickly Hultzen becomes ML ready. There is a bit of a dropoff from Felix to the rest of the rotation but I'm optimistic that Hultzen, Walker and Paxton will help close that gap.

[richardhodges]

It makes sense to swap the positions and is nice to see the Mariners doing something. I don't think the Mariners will miss Pineda THAT much.
And in Montero the M's get something rare in baseball, a catcher who can hit.

[Brandon]

The Mariners will definitely miss Pineda, but they had a surplus of stellar pitching and a NEED for a catcher/DH and one who can HIT. This trade fulfilled both teams' needs perfectly.

Pineda will be sorely missed, but I think Montero will make a mark big enough to soften the blow of this one