The Front Row with JASON ELLIOTT Jan. 28, 2012

Tuesday's news of Prince Fielder signing with the Detroit Tigers probably felt like a punch in the stomach to an already disappointing offseason for a lot of Seattle Mariner fans.

But in the long run, did signing Fielder really make enough sense for the team?

FIELDER HAD put up some huge numbers while in Milwaukee, even leading the team to the playoffs a couple of times.

All you've really got to do is remember the Seattle career of Milton Bradley and Adrian Beltre and figure that Fielder's numbers may not translate to Safeco Field.

When the team acquired players such as Jack Wilson, Casey Kotchman, Chone Figgins and Erik Bedard, some may have expected good things (myself included), but those things never happened.

The Mariners struggled through a few years on offense and traded away Doug Fister, who helped the Tigers get into the playoffs last season.

Chances are, Fister will be starting a lot more games for the Tigers in the playoffs later this year.

It's true, Fielder likely could have helped increase ticket sales and added some excitement to the team, but that's about it.

This team is still young, relying on Dustin Ackley for its offense and Felix Hernandez to be perfect each time he takes the mound.

So while the team swung and missed on Fielder, they didn't on a couple other veterans, with the signing of Kevin Millwood and Oliver Perez.

Millwood was part of a great pitching staff in Atlanta, but is also the same guy that left a team last season and was thought to have retired.

Perez played the first part of his career in Pittsburgh before being traded to the New York Mets.

THEN AGAIN, who knows with this team?

Most of the guys in the Opening Day lineup didn't finish the season with them.

Players like Jack Cust and Wilson didn't even see the end of July.

By the end of the season, the team seemed more like the top players of the Tacoma Rainiers than the Mariners - with Ichrio, Franklin Gutierrez and Hernandez thrown in.

With the youth of the team, who knows what they've got for this year.

Trading Michael Pineda, who was an all-star last year for a minor league catcher - maybe not a great idea, but if it works, then who's to argue with success.

So many questions surround this team, signing one player to a huge contract wasn't going to fix a bad offense. Nor will moving the fences in a few feet like some in the our newsroom have suggested.

Fans will get a chance to watch Fielder a couple times a year when the Tigers come to Seattle.

If you want to see what could have been during the regular season, make sure to arrive early to watch battling practice.

Because unlike the front office, it could be the only time the Mariners don't swing and miss this season.

Jason Elliott is a sports writer for the Coeur d'Alene Press. He can be reached by telephone at 664-8176, Ext. 2020 or via email at [email protected].