Russ Branyan has been signed by the Mariners to a one-year deal.
Branyan has always been the kind of hitter who makes the most of his hits. Secondary average, I believe Bill James calls it.
Two years ago, he hit .228 yet almost reached the .500 mark in slugging (.498). This past year, he had a .250 average but slugged .583 with a .342 OBP. Mr All-or-Nothing can pretty much be counted to three things: whiff, walk, or hit a home run.
That is assuming he is in the lineup. In the 11 seasons he’s been in the majors, he’s never batted more than 378 times.
The Mariners say they plan to use Branyan as a firstbaseman, thirdbaseman and, of course, DH.