Mariners hope they can win over new pitcher Cliff Lee

On the same day Jack Zduriencik warned reporters "it's impossible for anyone to try to figure out or calculate" the Mariners' payroll, Cliff Lee was asked for thoughts about his next contract.

Straight-faced, he replied, "I want a 10-year deal for about 200 billion."

I may not be qualified to calculate payroll figures, but I'm fairly certain such a deal would put the Mariners over budget — for perpetuity.

Let the record show that Lee was joking — and Zduriencik laughed as hard as anyone.

Yet Lee's future in Seattle, and whether it will be just one year, or longer, was a central theme of the pitcher's introductory news conference Friday at Safeco Field.

Five weeks after Lee seemed shellshocked in a hastily arranged conference call following his trade from Philadelphia to Seattle, he was relaxed and at peace with his new home.

"Through the media, it may have looked like I didn't want to be traded to the Mariners," he said. "But that wasn't the case at all. It was just shock."

Lee said his reserved reaction to the trade reflected his emotions at the time.

"The things I said were real. That's how I felt. I could have stood up there and made up something to sound good for whoever. Instead, I said exactly how I felt and told what happened. It's not Seattle. I could have been traded to any other team and said the same thing."

One minute, Lee thought he was in the process of working out a contract extension to remain with the Phillies. The next, he was headed to Seattle in exchange for prospects Phillippe Aumont, Tyson Gillies and J.C. Ramirez.

"It's kind of sunk in," he said Friday. "I like it here. This is a pitcher's park, a defense-oriented team, and as a starting pitcher, you've got to like that. I'm looking forward to it. I think it's going to be a good thing for me and my career."

At this point, the 31-year-old Lee is essentially a rent-a-pitcher. He will be eligible for free agency after the season. The Mariners' job now is to win Lee over, just as the Phillies did, and convince him that this is where he wants to be, long-term.

The thought of a Felix Hernandez-Cliff Lee combo is enticing enough for this season; if they keep it together, it could well be the foundation of perennial contention.

And Lee is ready to be bowled over by the Mariners organization, by the city of Seattle, by the fans, by his new teammates and their golden gloves, by Felix and the rest of the staff. As Zduriencik said, "Maybe we have to romance him a bit, in a sense."

Said Lee: "I need to get a feel for what's going on. My mind-set going into last year was, 'I'm going to play out my contract and go into free agency,' but that changed when I went to Philadelphia. I got there, I liked how things were there, and I was willing to do it (negotiate an extension).

"Going into that situation, I wasn't thinking that. I was thinking of taking care of 2009. If my option gets picked up, great, I'll play out the year and go into free agency. That was my plan. But I got on that team and I changed my mind. I wanted to be a part of that. I'm hoping I get here and I have those same types of feelings."

Lee hastened to add, "It's not like, if I feel like it's not the right fit, I'm going to throw in the towel, or I'm not going to go out there and compete. Regardless, I'm going to go out here and try to give my team a chance to win every game I pitch. I'm hoping it's the right fit and things work out, but only time will tell."

The Mariners' biggest challenge might be convincing Lee and his wife, Kristen, that the distance from their home in Arkansas, with two school-age children, is not a deal-breaker.

"It's a long way from home. It's a long way from Arkansas. But we've got to make the best of it," he said. "I've always liked Seattle, too. Don't get me wrong. People ask, what are your favorite road cities, and this is one of the top couple ones."

When the Mariners might broach potential contract talks is a tricky proposition. Lee said he'd prefer to do his dealings before the season starts, but realizes he might not be able to assess the situation that quickly. Zduriencik said he will act when the time is appropriate, whenever that might be.

"Anything that would take place would be done quietly and privately, and if it looks like there's a window for something to happen, we'll judge it at that moment in time," Zduriencik said.

"What we're hoping is he rolls in here, falls in love with the city, likes what's going on with this organization, and he embraces it."

Lee is hoping for precisely the same thing.

"It's hard for me to say how much I like it when I haven't experienced it. I'm hoping I love it. I'm hoping I get to spring training, I mesh well with the team, get to know all the guys, things click, we start winning, make the playoffs, win the World Series. That's what I'm hoping. That's my plan."

That sounds like a scenario to keep Cliff Lee in Seattle. That, or $200 billion.

Larry Stone: 206-464-3146 or lstone@seattletimes.com