Mariners re-sign Oliver Perez, Hisashi Iwakuma

The Seattle Mariners re-signed left-hander Oliver Perez and right-hander Hisashi Iwakuma to short-term deals over the weekend before they had the chance to hit the free agent market, reports Greg Johns of MLB.com:

Oliver Perez proved to be one of the better comeback stories in baseball last season and the Mariners now are bringing him back for an encore after signing the lefty free-agent reliever to a one-year deal on Saturday...

Perez is the second pitcher re-signed by the club, after starter Hisashi Iwakuma received a two-year, $13 million extension with an option for a third year on Friday night.

Signed on a minor-league deal by the Mariners in January, Perez found great success out of the bullpen for Seattle this season, posting a 2.12 ERA, 7.3 K/9 and a much-improved 3.0 BB/9. Prior to stint in the Mariners bullpen, Perez had not pitched in the big leagues since 2010, when he was unceremoniously dropped from the Mets’ roster with $12 million still on his contract because of a walk rate that had ballooned to 8.0 BB/9. Perez will earn a base salary of $1.5 million next year, with potential performance bonuses of up to $600k more.

The 31-year-old Iwakuma’s new deal is worth $14 million in total, with $6.5 million coming in 2013 and 2014, and a $1 million buyout on a $7 million option for the 2015 season. The right-hander pitched very well for the Mariners in his inaugural MLB campaign in 2012, posting a 3.16 ERA and 7.3 K/9 across one hundred twenty-five and a third innings. Starting the season in the bullpen, Iwakuma made a seamless transition to the rotation at mid-season, putting up a Mariner-rookie record 2.65 ERA in sixteen starts.