Last year, coveted free-agent pitcher Carl Pavano toured Seattle, fell in love with the town, and said he would have signed with the Mariners if only the city were located on the East Coast. Based on Pavano's underachieving, injury-riddled season with the Yankees ? he gave them four wins in the first year of his four-year, $40 million contract ? that very well might have been a blessing for the Mariners. Now Pavano's former Florida Marlins teammate, A.J. Burnett, is on the free-agent market, replacing Pavano as the "best available arm" in the estimation of most observers. And the Mariners, even more desperate for pitching help than they were a year ago, are interested. They're not alone; Burnett's agent, Darek Braunecker, said that 70 percent of the teams in baseball have contacted him, which works out to 21 of the 30. Braunecker said that "mutual interest" has been expressed between Burnett and the Mariners, and that he will meet with Seattle personnel next week at the general managers meeting in Palm Springs, Calif. Teams can talk only about parameters of deals until Nov. 11, at which time they are free to talk about salary. "We'll get a chance to visit face to face in California, see where they are and what degree of interest they have in him," said the Little Rock, Ark.-based Braunecker. "They've made contact, which is the first stage of the process; we'll have a lot better sense after the meeting."