According to Kat O’Brien, the Mariners must think the Yankees are complete and utter fools. A few days after acquiring Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte for pennies on the dollar, the Mariners are holding back on dealing all of Jarrod Washburn’s contract to the Yanks because they want Hank Steinbrenner to step in and demand the Yanks acquire the starter. Clearly, the Mariners have not been paying attention. While Hanks is adept at running his mouth, all his words do are garner headlines. No moves or signings have been consummated or rushed after Hank issues his diatribes. It’s actually rather effective, and the Mariners are deluding themselves if they feel Hank is going to cause a sea change in thinking over Jarrod Washburn. MLBTR speculates that the M’s want Brett Gardner or Melky Cabrera.

According to Jon Heyman, the Yanks and Mariners “may be close” on a deal to bring Jarrod Washburn to New York. The move would be a strict salary dump; the Yanks would take on all of Washburn’s contract and would not send anyone to Seattle. Washburn, a clear upgrade over Sidney Ponson or Darrell Rasner, is scheduled to start tomorrow afternoon’s Mariners-Blue Jay. So keep your eye on the game in Toronto; if Washburn is scratched or removed early, expect him in the Bronx sooner rather than later. We’ll wrap up today’s excellent 10-3 victory over the Red Sox later.

Update: Via MLBTR comes word that the M’s are holding up the deal because they want, according to Ken Rosenthal, a “top prospect.” They could probably draw out a prospect from the Yanks but not a top one in a salary dump. Keep your eye on tomorrow’s probables and the M’s-Jays game for more indications of a possible trade.

As rumors continue to mount about a Jarrod Washburn-to-the-Yanks deal, a few developments late last night have me thinking that this won’t be a quick or easy deal. In fact, these sticking points could portend the collapse of a deal with a team notable for its unwillingness to trade. Ken Rosenthal reports that Washburn’s limited no-trade clause may complicate things. Jarrod could veto a deal to the Yanks, according to Rosenthal’s sources, and while one way to placate the lefty would be more cash, the Yanks aren’t going to be too willing to kick more money into Washburn after they pick up his hefty contract.

Meanwhile, Jon Heyman reports that the Mariners may want the Yankees to take Jose Vidro too. Vidro would be dead weight on the Yanks, and his contract complicates these talks as well. Of course, right now, this is all just rumor and conjecture from unnamed sources, but it goes a long way toward illustrated why we as a fanbase shouldn’t put too much stock into these various reports. The Yanks may be kicking the tires on Washburn, but it takes a lot more that interest to seal a deal when millions of dollars are at stake.