As rumors continue to fly about Mariners players leading up to Tuesday night's trade deadline, manager Eric Wedge doesn't think his team is distracted.

What helped is that most of the players mentioned in rumors were veterans like Jason Vargas, Kevin Millwood and Brandon League — traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers late Monday — have been through this before.

"I think it's always a little different the last week, the last couple of days, before the trade deadline, but that's in every clubhouse," Wedge said. "The veteran clubhouses usually handle it best because they've been down that road before. Our guys have been all right, for the most part."

Wedge hasn't felt the need to address the team about dealing with the speculation.

"At times, I speak through you guys (the media)," he said. "It's just part of being a big leaguer, being a pro. It comes with the territory. It's not going to change from year to year. It's always going to come around at the same time. You just have to handle it."

League, in particular, had seemed to be in hot demand. The Mariners also traded reliever Steve Delabar to the Blue Jays for outfielder Eric Thames on Monday.

Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweeted that the Yankees had interest in shortstop Brendan Ryan, but were rebuffed by the Mariners. Reliever Tom Wilhelmsen is attracting a lot of interest, though the Mariners are reluctant to deal their closer.

Notes

• Wedge hopes the Mariners have turned a corner. They are are 14-11 in July, and 12-6 since the All-Star break.

"I think the guys are playing a little more tension-free," he said. "They understand a little better how to walk that line, understanding the sense of urgency yet being able to relax and work through that."

• One player currently thriving is Mike Carp, who had at least one RBI in the last five games, the longest streak for a Mariner since Carp had an RBI in six straight games last August.

"It's about getting in a rhythm," Carp said. "I had no chance to get going this season. I was hurt all year. I'm finally starting to feel healthy and move past the injury. I'm feeling pretty good lately."