What if …?

There’s been a lot of crying lately about the players the Mariners let get away in recent years, and how they surely could help this year’s club.

Maybe they could, but not every ex-Mariner is performing as well as some perceive, and there are definite reasons – right or wrong – the M’s traded them or let them go. Do you really want these guys back?

• Ken Griffey Jr.: Just get that idea out of your head, no matter how appealing it is.

Griffey has home-run pop, no doubt, but he’s barely hitting over .240. And the M’s won’t begin to entertain thoughts of having Griffey back until they’re sure his moodiness doesn’t affect the rest of the team.

• Carlos Guillen: OK, we’ll give you that one … for now.

Guillen was batting .311 for the Tigers entering the weekend, playing well at shortstop and making everyone wonder what the Mariners saw in Rich Aurilia that they didn’t see in him.

Let’s revisit this one in August.

And remember, the Mariners got a couple of solid young shortstops from the Tigers in the Guillen trade. Ramon Santiago was a starter for the Tigers last year and already has impressed the Mariners with his defense at spring training and during a short stint with the club this month. Juan Gonzalez is one of the offensive leaders for Class A Inland Empire with a .322 average, three triples and 12 steals entering the weekend.

• Randy Johnson: His perfect game earlier this month brought a new dose of agony to Seattle fans who still can’t understand why the Mariners traded him away in 1997.

Here’s why: Johnson didn’t want to play here anymore. Saying he felt unappreciated in Seattle, he tanked his final season with the Mariners and left the club with no choice but to trade him to Houston. Then he magically got it all together with the Astros.

• Jose Cruz Jr.: He certainly would have been a more affordable outfielder than Raul Ibanez ($2.5 million vs. $3.9 million), but his .236 batting average at mid-week certainly isn’t the answer on a Mariners team filled with those kinds of numbers.

• John Mabry: Mabes tore up the Pacific Coast League for six weeks with Memphis and, in his first week after being called up by the Cardinals, was batting .571 entering this weekend. It’s proof that Mabry can hit N.L. pitching and be productive when he plays every day. He got neither opportunity in his two stints with the M’s.

There are five former Mariners, however, I would love seeing back in the organization. Allow me to dream:

• David Bell: He is the definition of what the Mariners pursued this past off-season – players with grit, determination and a no-nonsense approach to the game. Amazing, but they let that get away three years ago when they decided Jeff Cirillo was a better fit.

• Scott Podsednik: Once he left Seattle and hooked up with the Brewers, a team that isn’t afraid to play kids, Podsednik showed what a player with blinding speed can do.

• Arthur Rhodes: Seattle has been horrible in its setup relief, and aligning Rhodes with Shiggy Hasegawa and Eddie Guardado would help solidify roles in the bullpen. It also would allow the youngsters in the pen – Julio Mateo and J.J. Putz – the comfort of pitching in less stressful situations.

• Jason Varitek: While so many are lusting over Jason Kendall of the Pirates, why not take it a step further and dream of what might have been? Varitek is a .300-hitting anchor to a Red Sox team that just might win it all.

• Alex Rodriguez: Raise ticket prices, leave the roof open to make room for his ego, then sit back and watch Alex turn this offense around.