The Mariners have informed Kyle Seager that they won’t be exercising their $20MM club option on the third baseman’s services for the 2022 season, The Seattle Times’ Ryan Divish reports. Seager will instead receive a $2MM buyout and enter the free agent market.
The team has yet to announce the move, but the front office informed Seager and his representatives at Jet Sports of the decision earlier this week. That notification followed the typical process for moves of this sort; after trying but failing to reach Seager personally over the phone, president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto contacted Jet Sports. Assistant general manager Justin Hollander then formally notified Seager of the buyout via email, as is standard procedure.
It brings an end to the longtime relationship between Seager and the Mariners, as he played 11 seasons for the M’s after being selected in the third round of the 2009 draft. This long tenure has placed Seager among the likes of Edgar Martinez, Ichiro Suzuki, and Ken Griffey Jr. near the top of many of the franchise’s all-time statistical lists, as Seager has hit .251/.321/.442 with 242 home runs over 6204 plate appearances in a Mariners uniform.
Seager’s time in Seattle didn’t include any postseason appearances, however, and his performance did naturally dip as he got older. Seager generated 13.8 fWAR over his first three-plus seasons, and then after signing a seven-year, $100MM extension in the 2014-15 offseason, has compiled 21 fWAR over the life of that contract. (By Fangraphs’ valuations, Seager has been worth $267.5MM over his 11 seasons.) Among the many inflammatory comments made by former Mariners CEO Kevin Mather in his infamous rotary club speech back in February, Mather praised Seager for being a good clubhouse leader but also referred to the third baseman as “probably overpaid.”
It seems like Mather’s opinion might have extended throughout upper management, given by Dipoto’s rather odd avoidance of the team’s longest-tenured player. As Dipoto revamped the Mariners’ roster over the last few years, Seager was the last veteran remaining, in large due to a provision in his contract that would have turned the 2022 club option into a player option in the event of a trade. In short, there didn’t seem to be much of a chance that the Mariners would exercise Seager’s option, and they will now move on to looking for a new third baseman (if Abraham Toro isn’t given a clear crack at the everyday job).
Seager turns 34 this week, and he’ll now make his first trip into the open market after a mixed bag of platform year. Seager slashed only .212/.285/.438, with a career-high 24% strikeout rate and 29.6% whiff rate — disturbing numbers for a player who has been a pretty solid contact hitter for much of his career. Seager’s hard-hit ball rate was also below average, though on the plus side, he did hit a career-best 35 home runs. His third base glove has also remained strong in the eyes of the Outs Above Average (+4) and UZR/150 (+3.9) metrics, though Defensive Runs Saved (-3) wasn’t as impressed.
Editor’s note: This post has been updated to reflect that the Mariners’ front office followed the standard procedure for informing Seager his club option was being bought out, as Divish expressed in a follow-up thread.
Congratulations, Kyle Seager for escaping without any compensation burden attached!!
The right move, a relatively obvious one.
Dunno if can expect a Hunter renfroe like turn a round with him. Seager not 1 to go other way a ton before, then Renfroe wasn’t either until 2021. Get him to go other way some and stick to 3/1/b and he may be able to get 6-8m on a 1y deal.
L
@MisterLOL
You mistyped, Mister LOL
Ol
Hahab
Someone will overpay for him.
Not with the better options out there.
Because you are bald
Thanks for clarifying your previous comment.
Baltimore what are waiting for
He should come to mets for league minimum as a role player
Is that code for new starting 3rd basemen ?
I don’t think anyone wants to play for the Mets especially for league minimum, when no one wants the GM job
Presupposing someone is getting a major league deal at not a lot of money, Why would a player on a one year deal care that the team doesn’t have a GM yet?
I think he meant player/POBO
For the record, I want the Mets GM or President of Baseball Operations Job. I have won several roto leagues and have a Stanford degree in econ. I am only willing to take the job if they let me telecommute. I will not meddle with the field manager and I do not mind if the owner overrules my recommendations on bigger expenditures. Contact me through MLB Trade Rumors. Really.
For the record, you may tell them Fred Park supports this innovative idea 100 percent.
They may contact me at any time for verification and further illumination. They know my number.
Only thing attractive about the Mets is the is the is the OK I’ll get back to you
League minimum lol hes still decent hes just not worth 20 mill
The Yankees have a 3B that hit 35 hr with 101 rbis. who?
Then he would be the besty besty and could make more field goals
Go to the mets to win the trophy for “disabled list war”?
wow look, more horrid reporting
I heard he already turned down the Mets when they called him to be the President of Baseball Ops, so I doubt he would go there to be a role player for league minimum.
The only thing attractive about the Mets is the is the is OK I’ll get back to you
New York today resembles much of the cesspool dumpster fire it was in the 70’s. The only thing attractive about the Mets job would be if you could do it remotely from somewhere nice
Do you live in New York? If not, you’re speaking in ignorance. I live in Manhattan and it’s a great place to live. Your characterization has no basis in reality.
Your post would carry more weight if you said you were living in the Bronx. NYC is more than Manhattan. It’s not quite like the 70’s early 80’s but large areas of nyc are not the “great place to live” you proclaim.
You cant see the garbage piling up from your penthouse? Or do you just look the other way?
🙁
Hopefully teams learned from the Manny Machado fiasco that signing friends and family does not guarantee the player you actually want will sign with you. So if you really want Corey don’t sign Kyle first…
Both Seager bros will be FA; what are the chances they sign somewhere together?
Lemme think, one in thirty? Those are the raw chances, unless the brothers prioritize playing together.
I think 1/900 but that depends if they are dependent or independent events. It’s 1/30 Corey signs anywhere and 1/30 Kyle.
Zero percent. One brother’s situation has nothing to do with the other.
If the team is one you name in advance, then the probability that both of them end up on that team is (1/30^2). If one of them signs with a team, the probability that the other ends up on the same team is (1/30). Of course that assumes it’s a completely random event, which of course it isn’t. FWIW, no causation comes into it if we’re talking randomness. Their situations don’t need to be connected at all.
The team signing Corey will be a contender looking to compete for a championship right away. You’d have to assume the team already has a good third baseman, certainly one better than Kyle, Regardless of Kyle’s 2021 stats, he would not be seen as the answer at 3B for a legitimate contender, especially for the money he’ll likely be seeking. If the Corey team was signing a second FA, they’d want to do much better than Kyle.
1/29 & 1/29. You can cross the M’s off the list for both.
Yes you could certainly hone the probabilities to something better than random. Even randomly the chances are hardly more than zero. Applying some known factors it gets even smaller, probably.
Actually 1/870 because it’s not 1/30 after one is signed
True but they have other teams to compete with in the player pool, and Kyle might be what they’re able to get at that position after having signed Corey.
I personally think they won’t end up on the same team, but I do think Kyle is going to get a contract that many if us would view as favorable. Especially if there are more teams wanting to compete this next season. I don’t see a rebuilding team signing him unless they can get a good deal at one year, but I also don’t see Kyle wanting a one year bargain contract. Might be all he can get but we’ll see.
Hmm. Pretty sure that math isn’t right. The probability of a 50-50 event happening twice in a row is 0.25, and it doesn’t matter which of the events occurs the first time.
Generally I agree, except if the Dodgers re-sign their Seager to a long-term contract it decreases the likelihood of the brothers playing for the same team. Philadelphia could sign both of them.
I still think Dodgers will bring back both Seager and Taylor.
slim to none
I have a brother and we get along great. I’d have no interest though in working with him.
You two never played ball together growing up?
Actually very, very slim considering that I don’t even think there is a team out there needing both a third baseman and shortstop.
Rotary Club is a proper noun, Mark.
So Kris Bryant is going to Seattle
Certainly seems like the plan. Whether they can get him or not is another story. They could also move Toro to 3rd and find a 2B.
The Mariners are in excellent shape in that division. Correa possibly leaving the Astros figures to affect the balance of power in the AL West and elsewhere. I’m rooting for DiPoto to make the right moves because those fans have waited a long time. The support they gave the team down the stretch was electric and great for the game.
I’m sure the Rangers would trade Ibanez or Solak to the Mariners to be their 2B or IKF. Either way they will probably have an awesome season if they are traded haha.
It’s a matter of time until Kyle is manning the hot corner for the Toronto Blue Jays.
He’s another lefty bay that will even the order out, and perfect hitting in the bottom 3rd of that lineup.
Plus he’s a relatively cheap option on a short term deal that will plug the hole defensively at 3 and his bat can still provide some offense that will offset the loss of Semien.
Biggio will start at 2nd & if healthy should pick up the other half of the list production. For Toronto this is really a no brainer….
They better be aiming higher than Kyle Seager.
Agree!
Good third-baseman for a long time.
I’ll have some good memories of Kyle Seager.
Orioles gotta go get him!
I would even take a swing at Moustakas, but he is too expensive and not sure what the Brew Crew would want in trade.
So Seager would be fine
Why on Earth would you want to sign a 34 year old anything if you’re the Orioles?
Because he can hold the fort until Mayo is ready
the Brewers can’t trade Moose, since he plays for the Reds.
You know I knew that, but I could not find Moose’s name on the depth chart
Nonetheless, he is being paid a lot of money and I don’t see the Orioles coughing up the coin to absorb that contract
Why do fans not understand how to tank properly?
Because tanking sucks and it has gone on long enough
Smh
It’s probably because fans aren’t that smart
Tanking is anti-competitive. It’s everything wrong about sports. It offers no guarantee of winning and is mostly done by cheap owners.
The Rangers should seriously consider signing the Seager brothers. Cory in at SS would allow IKF to move to 2b, automatically upgrading the middle infield. Kyle wouldn’t start at 3b. They’ve already committed to Josh Jung there, but he’d be an upgrade at the utility infielder/DH spot from what the team has now. Plus, he’s a proven clubhouse leader and great teammate and you have the added bonus of taking one of the biggest Ranger killers of the past decade off the board. If you can’t beat him, sign him.
Not realistic. Corey is used to winning and will get some attractive offers from contenders.
Yep!
Rangers fans should seriously consider how the Astros got good. By tanking. Learn how to tank. Tanking doesn’t mean signing the best SS on market when you’re team is god awful for year still. Makes no sense whatsoever.
Question is, can Astros-style tanking work in an age when so many teams tank? Is it working for the Orioles? They should be showing way more progress.
Teams have done a great job of selling tanking to fans, holding up the Astros as an example, but I’m not really seeing that model easily replicated. What they’ve sold is losing as a strategy as teams overall increase profits.
Yeah didn’t work well for the Cubs either. The braves haven’t been successful either I see your point.
I hate the term “tanking.” It’s rebuilding, and it does work quite well if you have a competent FO. Now if they botch all the draft picks, sure, the whole thing stinks. I’d rather my team be really bad for 3-4 years and then awesome versus 81-81 every year, though.
Moustakas is not with the Brewers, hews with the Reds.
Nice savings for the M’s, Seager is more of a part time player at this point in his career.
Don’t see how the Mariners or any other team should pay $20MM to get the type of performance he will deliver. Lots of HRs but little in addition offensively. The Mariners could do better.
Better yes! I read an article today that Dipoto has apparently been considering going after Kris Bryant. Jerry is looking for players that can play more than one position that gives him options.
Declining #s except for power, extreme pull hitter, age, cost; was time to move on. Kyle did well for Seattle.
He should go to a team and play in a stadium that we’ll help his #s.
EEK out afew more years on a team HE chooses to play for.
Lefty pull hitter? Yankees should consider him. Shouldnt cost much. Lefty power… solid defense… platoon with urshela, with urshela adding some depth at short.
Sign Corey for short… makes some sense.
DJ at 2b… that would be a decent infield.
DiPoto personally tried to contact him, but realized he didn’t have his phone number since he hasn’t talked to him in four years.
Why would a GM ever have the need to contact a player? Should there ever be a need?
I don’t know. Dipoto was talking on the phone to Kelenic a few weeks ago. So, either he talks to players or he doesn’t. Which is it?
It’s truly bizarre that people are pushing the narrative that common workplace hierarchy prohibits two humans from acknowledging each other when passing each in the work place. That’s not normal. That’s personal.
It’s not simply a case of contacting. He didn’t talk to him over four years. You’re the head of baseball operations and you don’t talk to one of your starting nine baseball players for four seasons? Seems odd to me.
Already been proven to be a lie by Seager. They talked before the season in a sit down which both said happened in Spring. Seager is just a whiner
They just dumped him in an email.
And you’re a liar, Buddy.
Lord, it is a bit humorous and somehow expected that after not speaking with him personally for years, they then notify him of his departure in an email. DiPoto claims he couldn’t reach him? Yeah, right.
Nope. It’s not hard to find comments from Seager stating he talked to Dipoto before this season and other times.
There may be some substance here. I live in the Seattle area and I read a lot of articles by “unnamed” sources about going ons in the clubhouse. These reports are going to Sports beat writer Ryan Divish. Apparently, it is believed the rat or whiner is Kyle Seager, so maybe that is why Jerry Dipoto doesn’t talk to him…he’s a whiner.
Typically to maintain. Relationship. 26-40 guys play on a team put together by the man. The good GM’s usually have a convo w their guys every now and then. It’s a relationship business too.
Email has to be worse than voicemail or text. That’s just bad.
After looking to see if there’s room for a number 15 on the center field wall in Seattle, there is. But not seeing a 51 there tells me there’s little chance of a 15 going up.
He was overpaid. As is every ball player making over $5 million per year. Even $5 million is a ridiculous sum to freakin play a game.
Did you know that most people are above average?
Probably not true, BlueSkies, but I think most FUNCTIONING people fall into the AVERAGE OR ABOVE category..
Forgive me for nit-picking?
Sort of a trick-or-treat .
Probably not true? Oh boy…
BlueSkies, Is this a Yogi Berra quote?
Sure sounds like it should be, but I don’t think so. Among the variations, from Steven Wright is “half the people I know are below average.”
As is every ball player making over $5 million per year.
======================================
That’s impossible. If someone is willing to pay you $5M, then by definition, you are worth $5M.
Or they are just stupid.(and rich) That’s a possibility too.
They’re playing a highly skilled sport at a level only a tiny fraction of humans can perform at. They’re an integral part of a massive, multi-billion-dollar sports-entertainment industry, helping drive attendance, ratings, concessions and ancillary businesses, all while entertaining you and millions of other people. In the process, they help owners make tons of money while pushing franchise valuations higher and higher.
So, yes, they are worth what the market pays them.
The market paid Bauer $40MM this year. Was he worth it? Most wouldn’t think so.
A long, long time ago, around the era when multi-million dollar contracts were given out a player was asked if they were worth millions. I don’t recall the player but want to say it was a Phillie, I do remember he wore a red uniform. Anyways, his answer was so spot on “No, but if they will give you that money you will take it”
@Redstitch- I can’t help but laugh at a comment like yours’. Athletes have a skillset that not all of us possess, which is why they’re paid what they are. How many ABs do you think it’d take you to hit 30 HRS? I’d love to see it.
Furthermore it’s not just a game when you’re playing it professionally, it’s also your livelihood. You get booed, benched, demoted and/or cut. It’s quite a bit different than when John Doe goes on a 0-37 skid in his recreational league.
That’s exactly right, Outlaw.
And furthermore there was a time when guys like Yogi had to sell refrigerators and appliances in the offseason to make ends meet.
Us other guys had to stick to slow-pitch softball.
We’re so spoiled now.
The Marlins could take a flyer on Seager. It would give them a lefty power bat and allow them to move Anderson to the Outfield where he may be better suited. The Nationals could hope lightning strikes twice and see if Seager can give them a Schwarber type season and flip him at the deadline.
I dunno, if Seager wants to keep playing, and do so for less money than what he’s made as a Mariner, he’s probably going to want to sign for a contender and chase rings. Marlins are a long ways away from competing.
One whale of a World Series game going on right now.
Top of the 5th.
My money’s on Atlanta, but those Astros just don’t give up.
Great series. I like both teams… I like both cities. Thank god no yankees or dodgers.
LOL
If anyone’s upset that he was officially let go via email and not in-person or by phone call, just remember that the Mariners had already said their in-person goodbyes to Kyle Seager on October 3rd. The email is like a receipt, just proof that he’s not a Mariner anymore.
With autumn closing in
Seager needs to have a very good 2022. He brought this on himself with overall bad production. His 35 home runs were good, but he has failed too many times in the last several years. Personally, I hope he rebounds with a solid season. That would be the best way to get the last laugh.
Bad production? Mariners would have been nowhere near contention without him. And they could have negotiated for him to drop his option and resign him at a different price. This has nothing to do with baseball. This was personal. Mariners’s management had a stick up their butt towards him for a while now. Don’t know who did what of course, just that our illustrious management over the years leads one to be cynical.
Wow. Interesting…. He had a terrible year by his standards … still hit 35 bombs, but his OBP is not where it needs to be even with those bombs. Still, I expect him to easily rebound and sign quickly.
Don’t know if he’ll easily rebound. He is 34 and age has been chipping away at his skillset for a few seasons. Still has power and remains a good fielder, so he’ll find a market, but it might be more limited than he believes.
If the Mets don’t want to bring up one of their rookie 3b’s next than sign Seager for one year, than trade Smith for Haniger to play RF, trade JD Davis,McNeil,Megill and another prospect ( not named Alvarez,Baty,Vientos or Allan) to Baltimore for Mullins and Means. Bring up Mauricio to play 2b and Cano as DH. That will give the Mets an OF of Nimmo,Mullins and Haniger, INF of Alonso,Mauricio,Lindor,Seager and McCann. Rotation of deGrom,Syndergaard,Means,Walker,Carrasco and (Peterson when needed). Don’t resign Conforto,Baez,Stroman they’ll be asking for the moon and stars and don’t resign Familia and Betances . I would def. resign Syndergaard,Loup and the bench players we used this year and maybe Hill for more depth in SP and RP.
Why would Seager sign a one year deal? Why would Baltimore trade Mullins and Means for that uninspiring trade package? Why would Seattle trade Haniger for Smith? None of those things have a remote chance of happening.
The Baltimore trade was stupid. Met fan saying we will take a 26 year old 30/30 player and a solid in prime rotation piece for a bunch of stuff and oh yea we won’t include any of our good prospects. Fans are so ridiculous. Means and Mullins would cost at least two of those guys maybe 3 plus a whole lot more. None of those prospects are can’t miss either.
Bro, this isn’t the show with force trades turned on. None of those trades will ever happen lol.
I can see seager as a nice little stop gap for the Mets the next year or 2 until baty or vientos is ready
I am sure that Kyle Seager is not looking for a 1-2 year deal.
That could be all he gets.
Mets
Ty France held his own at 3rd for the Padres. I hear Eric Hosmer may be available at a discount rate. By all accounts, Hosmer will benefit from the ballpark and the AL.
We have Evan White who needs to develop as a hitter in AAA next year. I don’t think they are ready to give up on him yet. If and when he developed to match his glove then the move can be made. In the meantime France played a gold glove level of defense at 1B last year. Both advanced metrics and the eye test said so. The market is full of SS types that can play 3B or Toro moves there and they play 2B.
Might not be a bad fill in for the Mets until Batty arrives.
He has been paid good. He isn’t a Hall of famer it is a smart move for Seattle
The mariners feel like the 2016 era twins…hope, that will undoubtedly turn to sorrow after a wildcard game followed by under performance, followed by a retool….. At least you got a hockey team Seattle.