Fri 2/20/15 8:15 PM

Saunders signed a minor league contract with the Mariners on Friday that includes an invite to spring training, Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune reports.Not much good can be said about Saunders' 2014 season -- he went 0-5 with a 6.70 ERA and 2.07 WHIP over 43 innings -- but the one positive is that he held opposing lefties to a combined .616 OPS. That number was basically identical to his career mark against left-handers (.617 OPS), and with Seattle rather thin on southpaws in the bullpen, it's possible Saunders could work his way into a specialist role with a strong spring.