Felix Hernandez

Felix Hernandez and the Mariners are working on a deal that would make Hernandez the highest-paid pitcher in baseball, according to reports. The deal has not been completed, but the expectation is that it would be for $175 million over seven years.

Hernandez’s $25 million per year average would tie him for the second-highest yearly pay in baseball with Josh Hamilton and Ryan Howard, behind Alex Rodriguez‘s $27.5 million. It would surpass CC Sabathia‘s original seven-year, $161 million deal with the Yankees.

The 26-year-old Hernandez signed a $78 million, five year-contract in January 2010. He is still under that contract for the next two years and was set to earn $20 million this year and $20.5 million in 2014. The new contract would supersede that.

Hernandez, the 2010 AL Cy Young winner, has a 3.22 ERA in eight seasons playing for a struggling Mariners team.

Former Red Sox first baseman Casey Kotchman, who was traded to the Mariners last January, refused his assignment to the minor leagues, which will make him a free agent immediately. The move was announced on Thursday, the Associated Press reports.

Kotchman hit .217 in 152 games for Seattle, adding nine home runs and 51 RBIs. The .217 batting average was the lowest of his career. His .280 on-base percentage was also the low mark of his career.

The Seattle Mariners will hire Eric Wedge to become their manager, SI.om reports.

Wedge was the manager of the Cleveland Indians from 2003-2009. He garnered the MLB Manager of the Year Award for the American League in 2007 after leading the Indians to a 96-66 record and the Central Division Title. The Indians team beat the Yankees to win the ALDS but lost to the Red Sox in a seven-game series. In Sept. 2009, the Indians announced that Wedge would not return to the team for the 2010 season, the final year of his contract. Wedge’s managerial record is 561-573 over his seven seasons with the Indians.

Wedge, 42, will be called on to revive a talented Mariners team that many analysts predicted prior to 2010 would reach the postseason. The Mariners under-performed expectations and finished the season with a 61-101 record, the second-worst record in the major leagues.

The Mariners interviewed Bobby Valentine Monday, according to the Seattle Times as their search to replace former manager Don Wakamatsu gets underway. Seattle will also interview former Astros manager Cecil Cooper and former Pirates manager Lloyd McClendon later this week.

The full list of candidates also includes former Indians manager Eric Wedge and former Blue Jays manager John Gibbons who will also reportedly interview this week. All five men have experience managing at the big league level, a stark contrast to two years ago when the Mariners hired Wakamatsu when all seven of the finalists had no previous experience at the big league level.

Valentine has 15 years of experience managing after stints with the Rangers and Mets, but he has not managed in the States since 2002. He also has a connection with the Mariners front office as he served as the Mets Triple-A manager when Mariners GM Jeff Zduriencik was the Mets farm director.

Jack Wilson will have surgery on his broken finger on Wednesday and will be out eight weeks and the rest of the season, according to Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times via Twitter.

The shortstop is hitting .249 with 14 this season in only 61 games for the Mariners. Seattle (44-70) currently sits in last place in the AL West, 22 games behind the division-leading Rangers.