This week’s trade sending Nolan Arenado from St. Louis to Arizona and the Cubs’ weekend signing of Alex Bregman figure to accelerate the market surrounding various trade and free agent scenarios. One club that could directly be impacted is the Mariners, who’ve spent the bulk of the winter trying to add another infielder after re-signing Josh Naylor on a five-year contract early in the offseason.
Seattle’s interest in Cardinals second baseman Brendan Donovan is no secret. They were linked to him last offseason and have been reported to be one of his most prominent suitors this winter. Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports that in addition to Donovan, the Mariners have had “ongoing” discussions with the Cardinals about left-handed reliever JoJo Romero throughout the winter. Seattle already added one southpaw arm for the bullpen, acquiring Jose A. Ferrer from the Nationals in December, and they have a second outstanding option in Gabe Speier, who enjoyed a breakout year in 2025 (and was just added to the Team USA roster for the upcoming World Baseball Classic).
Adam Jude of the Seattle Times reports that Donovan is the Mariners’ top target on the trade market but adds that the M’s also have interest in Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner. The veteran Hoerner’s name has come up in trade speculation since the Bregman signing, though it seems unlikely a deal will actually come together. Chicago appears willing to listen as a matter of due diligence but would presumably need to be overwhelmed and receive substantial big league talent to trade Hoerner coming off a .297/.345/.394 season that saw him swipe 29 bases, win his second Gold Glove and finish sixth in the National League with 6.2 wins above replacement, per Baseball-Reference (or 15th with 4.8 fWAR, for those who prefer FanGraphs’ version of the statistic).
[Related: Giants Aggressively Pursuing Second Base Upgrade]
At this point, the fit between Donovan and the Mariners has been explored at length. He’s an affordable ($5.8MM in 2026) high-contact bat with good on-base and defensive skills who can handle either of the two currently unsettled positions in the Seattle infield: second base or third base. The M’s have plenty of highly touted prospects who could emerge at those positions — Colt Emerson, Cole Young, Michael Arroyo among them — but Donovan could also move to an outfield corner if those promising young players force the issue. He’s under control through the 2027 season via arbitration.
Romero was previously linked to the Mariners, but that was before the team acquired Ferrer. It’s notable that Jones implies there have been talks even after that swap. The 29-year-old lefty has been a mainstay in the Cardinals’ bullpen for three-plus seasons now and has steadily shown year-over-year improvement. In 2025, he tossed a career-high 61 innings with a career-best 2.07 earned run average. Romero saved eight games, tallied 24 holds and blew only one opportunity. He fanned a slightly below-average 21.6% of his opponents against a bloated 11.4% walk rate that stands as a major outlier relative to the career 7.7% walk rate he carried into the ’25 season. The lefty also kept a hefty 54.5% of batted balls on the ground.
The Cardinals signed Romero to a $4.26MM contract for the upcoming season — his final year of club control. While last year’s hiccup in terms of command is of at least some concern, the broader track record is quite strong. Since joining the Cardinals, Romero boasts a flat 3.00 ERA (3.61 SIERA) with a 23.4% strikeout rate, 9.1% walk rate, 53.7% ground-ball rate, 57 holds and 12 saves. The Orioles and Yankees are among the others to show interest in Romero, though it’s a veritable certainty that the field of interested clubs is much larger than just these three.
Echoing previous reporting from The Athletic’s Katie Woo, Jude suggests that at least a pair of top-100 prospects — switch-pitcher Jurrangelo Cijntje and outfielder Lazaro Montes — have been discussed in talks with the Cardinals. The exact permutations of those talks remains murky. There’s no firm indication that St. Louis has sought both in the same package for Donovan, just as there’s no certainty that Seattle has offered both. It’s certainly possible that Romero’s name has come up as part of a package talk involving one or both those ballyhooed young players. Whatever shape those negotiations have taken, they (obviously) have yet to culminate in a deal.
Hoerner, much like Donovan, is a straightforward fit for the Mariners. The previously mentioned Cole Young is currently in line to open the season at second base for the M’s. He’s a former first-round pick and top-50 prospect, but Young hit just .211/.302/.305 in his first 77 MLB games last year. He won’t even turn 23 until late July, so there’s plenty of time for him to develop into a quality regular, but the Mariners are built to win right now. Hoerner, a free agent next winter who’s signed for $12MM in 2026, would give the Mariners an immediate upgrade while affording them the luxury of additional development time for Young. As a bonus, Seattle could extend a qualifying offer to Hoerner next November, netting them a compensatory draft pick in the event that he signs elsewhere.
Again, the Cubs are not outright shopping Hoerner but are willing to hear other clubs out. They’re almost certainly not going to trade him for prospects who are years from MLB readiness; doing so would offset most or even all of the wins gained by bringing Bregman into the fold. It’s hard to come up with a direct exchange that would benefit both parties equally, but the Mariners are nothing if not aggressive and creative on the trade front.
At present, RosterResource projects the Mariners for just under $157MM in 2026 payroll. That’s a bit shy of the franchise-record $158MM Opening Day payroll and a ways south of the roughly $167MM figure at which they ended the 2025 campaign. Given the win-now push in Seattle and the extra revenue from a deep playoff run that saw the Mariners advance to Game 7 of the American League Championship Series, it stands to reason that ownership is willing to push payroll beyond those marks.
What about Lenyn Sosa?
He’s a downgrade
He’d probably be a downgrade actually
He’s an upgrade
UPGRAYDD
0⁰001
Bob, you must have rabies again
Bob still owes me money for those hats! Downgrade!
Just sign Bo…
I’ve been saying this since the start of the offseason
This would make to much sense actually to actually happen
That has a 0% chance of happening so why even think about it
“So you’re telling me there’s a chance…”
Back off Mariners !
Word on the street is SFG is “aggressive”.
They might start lobbing sourdough..
Jones from BND is worthless and is shut out a lot from the club. I’d take anything he says with smaller than a grain of salt.
He’s also a bank robber, so there’s that
@stan lee- That was debunked many, many years ago.
The Mariners are not going to make any additional moves for a big bat. They will wait until the trade deadline to see if they can cheap their way through the season. They ought to change the name of the franchise to the Seattle Chick’s. The fans screaming “Cheap Cheap Cheap”will be seen as a term of endearment to the owners.
Donovan and Romero for Williamson, Cjintje and a comp pick number 72 I believe it is.
Donovan can help at 2b and 3b for 2026 while also getting time at corner outfield and DH. In 2027 Donovan can move around depending on if they bring Crawford back and where they want to play Emerson.
Cardinals don’t have much need to Williamson. Personally, I’d rather see:
Brendan Donovan and JoJo Romero
for
Kade Anderson, Samad Taylor, and whoever they’re going DFA for the other 40-man roster spot (preferably a pitcher).
They won’t be trading Kade or Sloan in any deal. They will have have rotation slots to replace Castillo and Gilbert
It needs to be shouted out to all of Cards Nation. You will not get Kade Anderson or Ryan Sloan in any deal. You don’t have a player they will trade them for straight up. Just drop those ideas.
I love how we all like to pretend that overpays when a team really wants a player don’t happen ever in the sport.
I saw on BR poasible Mariners/Rays trade of
Nick Becker and Josh Caron for Yandy Diaz.
Diaz can play DH vs RHP and play in the field at the corners vs LHP.
I bet most of you all would have said there is a 0% chance they would trade Harry Ford for Jose Ferrer as well. Of course they aren’t looking to trade Anderson but never say never when it comes to sports transactions.
Theres a zero percent chance they give up Kade for these two.
I say get Jojo and Geno!
Side note: I really hope Cijntje can make it work sticking as a switch pitcher. The game is more fun with unique players like that!
I would keep developing him as a starter but could also see him in the pen late season to help. Definitely an interesting player!
Question: can a switch-pitcher throw x2 more pitches in a game because he spreads most of the stress and fatigue over two arms? Or is the stress on the rest of the body more significant than I’m picturing it?
Example: He throws a full complement of pitches (100 as a SP or 30 as a RP) right-handed. Can he throw 100 or 30 more from the left side?
It’s possible. It’s really just a question of matchup’s and fitness. Pirchers are limited on number of pitches due to stress on their arm, whereas his lower body might fatigue throwing from both sides but the stress would be limited to his arm and rotationally abdomen and back.
The Cards can almost name their price for Donovan.
Seattle does line up very well on a trade with all their top 100 prospects. Putting a table setter in the M’s lineup for their big bats would make the M’s quite formidable. But Seattle’s top prospect, Colt Emerson finished last year with AAA and he’s probably viewed as a mid season call-up. Impasse with those 2 teams.
Yeah DLaw, it does seem like if the Cards trade Donovan, they are going to get a haul. Between their possible high asking price and the possible bidding war between at least the Mariners, Giants, and Red Sox, if not more, the Cardinals can wait things out and get the deal that they want for him.
The days of stupid trades is beyond us. There is a reason that Jim Bowden has a radio gig now instead of an actual MLB job. Seattle, Boston, SF, etc are not going to just pay whatever the Cards demand. At this point, i think we have seen they will not get what they want. Either the Cards cave to a reasonable ask or Donovan starts the season with StL. Which is dumb, since he will lose a lot more value at that point.
The only way he loses value is if he is not playing his usual baseball the first half of the season. Otherwise teams have clearer needs to add at the trade deadline. My concern with that approach for STL would be injury and lack of any protection in the batting order so the rate stats may look even worse for Donovan mid season than what would be desired. Herrera, Burleson, Donovan, Wetherholt, Winn, Nootbar, Gorman, Walker, VScott3. Some potential there, but not a huge slugging group.
The problem about waiting for the deadline is that your not getting 2 yrs anymore. Not even 1.5 yrs. Your getting 1.3 yrs, a year and 2 months. Thats why his value drops.
That completely ignores the fact that 1) the urgency of an addition at the deadline rather than the off-season increases by quite a bit and 2) there are a lot less players available due to so many teams being in contention now.
The loss of value due to less control is more than balanced by a he above reasons, as long as Donovan plays up to his normal standard and stays healthy, his value will not diminish between now and then.
I get that, but it also has more FOMO at the trade deadline and clubs in contention with more dire need. No one is desperate in January to add a utility guy. In January clubs are looking at Donovan as a starting second baseman. In July he is sought after more as a swiss army knife that can cross off multiple areas of need. I’d hold on to him unless the offer meets the ask. Unlike the other Stl trades this winter Donovan is cheap, good and a fan favorite. The novelty of taking the family to a ballgame will always be there in Stl, but unless you like watching player development there is not much on the field for fans to cheer for this season.
I hope Seattle doesn’t get either of them.
Excited for 60 mil Walker this year?
Excited to see a bounce back.
35 in March. We’ll see.
May the Schwartz be with you
Have fun getting swept by a caped Robles again!
Yean and I hope that Framber signs anywhere but back with Houston….
A lot of Astros fan don’t want Framber back but for a different reason. He has great career numbers against Seattle if I remember right.
Poor memory
My grandparents don’t understand how I feel.
Tell them about your preferred pronoun.
Man, why do so many young people these days think pronouns are important? I think it’s nonsense.
Well, they still teach it in school. Do they not?
I take back my comment. Not sure what I was thinking at the time.
It’s fine, people make mistakes from time to time. That’s another thing they teach in school. 🙂
Yup, we all make mistakes. It’s part of being human.
About the pronouns, I don’t actually have a problem with it. I try to mind my own business.
*their
Sadly, grandparents just don’t understand that you get so doggone jiggy with it.
Please review the mlbtr comment policy that was posted yesterday.
I’m willing to risk having black holes at 2nd and 3rd until the deadline because we need to give guys like Young a chance to prove themselves, also Arizona is likely to be bad and be trade partners with us yet again with Marte
I agree with you Sad & Tormented. Marte will have his 10 & 5 no trade clause kick in by then but he may wave it to play for a contender. Still, the Mariners need at least one more bat if not two, and a quality bullpen arm. if you get Donovan or Hoerner or don’t want to pay the asking price, then at least sign Willy Castro or Luis Rengifo if the price is right. Both can play multiple positions where the Mariners need depth and possible help.
You guys need to set your sights higher than that. You’re a contender, not a rebuilding team with the luxury of seeing if TWO prospects “prove themselves.”
When the prospect is one of the best in the majors, maybe that’s an exception.
They’d have to have a fallback if they go with inexperience. I don’t think Young is even a lock to make the opening day roster.
Same!!
You can’t go into the year relying on Young, Williamson and Emerson to start the year. Need some experience. If Hoerner and Donovan don’t get done who else is available? Willi Castro? Moncado? Bohm?
Lenyn Sosa doesn’t have a spot with the White Sox and I don’t think he would cost a ton
Sosa looks like a good match. Though how can the White Sox not find at bats for a guy who hit 22 bombs, 75 RBI’s and batted .264 at 2B? I know they have some good young infielders but they have huge holes all over that line-up and have to be able to find a spot for him n THAT line-up. Yeah, he may very well help the Mariners,. Can play 2B, 3B, and 1B. Sounds like a great match. Nice idea!
As a Sox fan. I’m with you. I’d prefer they get him an OF mit and throw him in LF but that hasn’t been any reports of that happening.
Strikes out WAY too much.
If you do the Astros will take over again.
It’s weird to me that some people seem to view Donovan as if he’s a superstar. He’s not. He’s a really good utility player, but two years of control isn’t worth the haul they’ve been allegedly asking.
It’s also weird that nobody seems to give much attention to his splits (most people probably never even bothered to look). He’s a platoon bat with no power.
Hoerner doesn’t offer power, either, but he offers elite plate discipline (better than Donovan’s), he’d address Seattle’s need for a leadoff hitter, and nobody offers better defense at second base. Seattle’s defense ranked 26th last season via FanGraphs; 27th in OAA.
I don’t think Chicago is bent on moving Hoerner. The return would have to address another need significantly.
It seems likely Seattle is waiting for prices to come down, which isn’t likely happening, so perhaps they’d be wise to get Emerson, and even JP, familiar with second base; sign or trade for insurance at third, such as Andujar.
*Cue someone telling me that Andujar can’t play third or how Donovan isn’t a platoon bat and is a great clubhouse presence, etc.
Donovan is an Utility guy much like Tommy Edman is an Utility guy. Not playing up the middle unless in a dire pinch, slower with a little less glove, a little more doubles type slugging but he is in the lineup basically on the daily somewhere on the field. What that is worth varies depending on the team. It is valuable but wasted on Stl currently, but a contending club has a lot more demand for that type of player. He is not going to put up 8+ war out of a utility spot like Zobrist did. He is going to get on base though and with some slug around him he will score 90-100 runs in a season.
Donovan isn’t a platoon bat and is a great clubhouse presence, etcetera.
He’s a good everyday second baseman and a good leadoff hitter. Additionally, he’s defensively-versatile, is in the 96th percentile in wiff rate in ’25, has a solid walk rate, solid slug rate, and has a projected value of about $15m per year, despite costing half that combined over the next two seasons, which are team-controlled.
He’s not a superstar and anyone who says so is a cotton-headed ninny muggin sillybones, but he has a lot of value as an MLB-proven complementary piece. Any team with needs that fit Donnie’s profile would be lucky to have him for two top 100 prospects.
Man, if anyone had the audacity to say to my face “you’re a cottton-headed ninny muggin sillybones” that would be the end of the conversation right there. Them’s are fightin’ words. I wouldn’t stand for it.
I’m struggling to decide if a “a cottton-headed ninny muggin sillybones” is an compliment or an insult to an “Ignorant Son-of-a-b”……
My probation officer came up with my MLBTR screen name. Come to think of it, not sure if he was being serious or not.
I think you should call your probation officer “a cotton-headed ninny muggin sillybones” .
Let me know how that turns out.
Nothing but love for all you s scallawags! Let’s go Cardinals!
I also think we have seen peak Donovan. He will likely maintain similar production for two more years but I don’t see him suddenly getting better and surpassing it. The odds are better that he starts trending down. (Also Andujar shouldn’t be trusted at 3B maybe MAYBE LF but only when necessary. Sorry Stevil had to be that guy.) I do like his bat. Red Sox and Yankees have a lot of lefties in their rotation now so we need righty bats. That’s why I love the signing of Refsnyder.)
Donovan would make the team better. I’m not denying that. I simply don’t believe that the cost to acquire him would likely be worth what he would give them.
I think too much is made about Andujar’s defense. I’m not talking about a regular role. I’m talking about a supporting role. Being able to pinch-hit for Williamson and take over for an inning or two, and occasionally starting to give him a breather, would be perfectly fine.
And I’m not suggesting only Andujar. There are several other utility types that would make sense.
Look at Jerrys worst “prospect” trades. We dont know how the last 2-3 yrs of M’s trades will grade out. Freddy Peralta in the 2015-16 offseason to the Brewers. 2016 trade of Chris Taylor to Dodgers, who was toast in Seattle. Castillo trade has Edwin Arroyo as the last one standing. Marte to the D-backs (wasn’t a “prospect” at the time, 176 gm for 15 & 16 M’s seasons) could be the biggest bite back.
Some of the top prospects from “win now” trades that bit back in the last 10 yrs:
2022 6 players from Padres for Soto, regrettable????
2021 P.C.A from Mets
2017 Cease from Cubs
2015 Swanson from Dbacks
2015 PTBNL (T. Turner!) from Padres
Obviously more have been traded but the prospects that turned into All-Stars for their new team from a “win now” trade is a very small group.
Some of the top prospects from “win now” trades that didn’t bite back in the last 10 yrs:
15 Zobrist to A’s & WS Royals, 15 Cueto to WS Royals, 15 Hamels to Rangers, 15 Price to Jays, 16 Sale to Soxs, 16 Miller to Indians, 20 Betts/Price to WS Dodgers, 20 Snell to Padres, 21 Turner/Scherzer to Dodgers, 21 Arenado to Cards, 21 Soler to WS Braves, 22 Castillo to Seattle, 2015 had some good vets to get.
I’m sure there are other trade(s) I’m forgetting but I’ll also leave out the pain of re-living stupid Seattle trades, again.
Obviously there’s the “untouchable” list but beyond that list Ive changed the thinking to shipping the youngsters out for a ring that will live in a box for most of the yr.
Most prospects don’t live up to the hype.
I could read all that, but feeling like I’m being waterboarded by the internet simply isn’t on my bingo card for the evening.
I’ll dumb it down then to your cotton-headed ninny muggin sillybones level.
Prospects = overvalued + overvalued prospect trade = ring cause overvalued prospect trade ≠ bite your cotton-headed ninny muggin sillybones hand.
Is that still to much to read/comprehend with the big words since you already made your “reading” quota for the day looking for the answer to your question in Playgirl Q&A?
Q: Are you talking about baseball? Do they let girls play baseball? Are they called playgirls?
If the Phils sign Bichette, would the Mariners have interest in trading for two of Bohm, Sosa, or Stott? What would they be willing to trade to the Phils in such a scenario? Phils will need salary relief. As a Phils fan, I’d like to get back 1 top 100 prospect and two other top 10-15 prospects if giving up two of the above three players.
Only need to move Bohm in your scenario above. Perhaps include Kerkering….. but I don’t know what the return would be
All three of them are basically league average players. Bohm and Sosa with only 1yr of control. Bohm and Sosa make the most sense for Seattle and I just have a hard time seeing a deal for a top 100 player for them. Kerkering added to that mix might help, that might work. But I doubt Dombrowski will do it. He still believes that Bohm is worth Kirby or Gilbert.
I like Stott out of that group. He’s a ball player. He is smart with high baseball IQ and has the ability to get better, I believe.
Bohms a 2 WAR player and a Stott a 3 WAR player. So I would t say league avg overall. Stott is a plus defender with 2 years of cheap-ish control. I wouldn’t ask for the world but both are useful players. Especially to a team like the Mariners who don’t want to spend top dollar for a bat. I don’t think Phil’s would get a top 100 prospect for Bohm but they should for Stott. I would only throw in Kerkering for a massive return. I would have needed a Ford type prospect as he’s one of our back end guys.
Bohm was mediocre last season but a decent gap hitter both years prior. He’s essentially on a one year, $10 million contract. It would normally take a fair amount to get Stott, but if the Phillies front office is certain Aidan Miller will be ready in 2027, he could easily slot in at third with Bichette at second. I still think Bohm is the most likely to go.
I think they’re fine with Emerson and Williamson. If they fail through Memorial Day then they can revisit.
Emerson is 20 and has just 188 PAs in the upper-minors (only 27 in AAA). He played just 2 games at third last year and played just 2 innings at second in 2024.
It would probably be wise for Seattle to get him more familiar with second and third in AAA before they put him on the active roster.
Relying on TWO unproven ballplayers in key positions is a recipe for failure, and a legit contender like the Mariners should be past that on the win curve.
Assuming one or both fail, how many notable trades are made around Memorial Day? And if opposing teams smell desperation, what do you think you’re going to pay in prospect capital then?
I am expecting a Young/Williamson/Bliss/Rivas mix for 2B/3B until they deem Emerson ready and maybe add an insurance piece. They would obviously prefer pre-arb pieces to work out. The Fangraphs projections see that as adequate and probably is but easy to see how that could go wrong.
San Fran looking for a Left Handed power hitting second baseman and the best one I can think of is Jazz but the Yanks cannot afford to deal him unless they get a replacement who better fits there roster and Nico Hoerner is absolutely that fit as a RH gold glove leadoff hitter who can play second and SS. So why not a 3 way deal between the Yankees, Cubs, and San Fran?
Yanks send Jazz to SF
Cubs send Nico to Yanks
SF sends one major league arm and a top five prospect to Cubs.
In order to get the deal across the finish line the Yanks send Warren to the Cubs and in return the Cubs send a relief pitcher to the Yanks.
This leaves the Yanks short still at second base and that can be addressed later when Volpe returns or if they try to now deal Gil, Escarra, and a prospect to STL for Donovan.
@billyballz Cubs are in Win-Now mode and they are better with Hoerner. Both Nico and Jazz are one year away from free agency. I don’t see much incentive for either team to move off from their starting second-baseman just for one year.
Dear Mariners,
Cronenworth’s available.
Call me.
Love, AJ
Polanco would have been perfect uggghhh oh well. Honestly if we can’t get Donovan let’s just do Willi Castro and upgrade at the deadline. We have a good team and the pathways to upgrade are diminishing.
Jerry has shown he’ll go big game hunting at the deadline, but our April/May records have shown we aren’t usually a good team out of the gate. I’m a bit surprised Jerry doesn’t want to trade an SP then sign a Gioloto type on a friendly deal. What FA pitcher wouldn’t want to sign with the M’s?
With how much even the crappy free agent SPs cost these days, I would much rather Dipoto hang onto his rotation with an iron grip. No way that you can come up with a pitcher nearly as good as any of their starting 5 with whatever left of their budget this winter. Trade a couple prospects for one of the good available infielders, or sign a Castro/Moncada type or two to round out the mix and let rookies be the upside guys. No need to deviate too far from the overall plan as it’s all coming together.
It is wild that our rotation would probably get $1b on the FA market right now lol. Maybe if we had some high quality SPs that were knocking on the door then we could do that plan, but Kade, Sloan and Jurrangelo are not quite there yet.
The Athletic had an interesting blurb about Cole Young being a “league model darling” in reference to his hitting abilities, so maybe we see a breakout from him early on. And Big Ben!
Upon draft day last year quite a few experts (talking heads/scouts going off of gut feeling) speculated that Anderson could make his debut as soon as this upcoming September. Basically fast tracking him like Paul Skenes and a few other top pitching prospects who’ve made their debuts in the past couple of years. I don’t know if that’s actually going to happen but if he’s really that good then I don’t see the point in slow-playing his development either and risk his arm falling off before he can produce for the big team.
With him only a couple years off of tj, and 119 collegiate innings last year, i would be surprised if we see him above AA this year, since they dont like putting young pitchers in AAA before their pro debut. I think that means even more pitching injuries then we saw this past season is the only way we do.
I think Alec Bohm could be a good fit. High contact, mashed lefties and won’t cost a ton. Admittedly after signing Naylor, Bohm isn’t a good of a positional fit, but he would still work.
M’s fan here. If they trade Montes, we riot.
“As a bonus, Seattle could extend a qualifying offer to Hoerner next November,”
For $22 Million plus? I doubt it.
Not that crazy as he was a ~5 WAR player in 2025. No way the cubs trade him tho unless the M’s go crazy and give them Laz or Kade
Kade is untouchable imo, but I don’t mind dealing Laz.
You don’t think a solid leadoff hitter with elite 2B defense isn’t worth a QO? I doubt the Mariners do that either but that’s only because they never really hand out QOs anyway no matter what.
jarred – Maybe if you’re the Mets or Dodgers.
Seattle has extended TWO qualifying offers since 2012, none since 2014 if my research is correct,
I don’t see Seattle willing to extend a QO for $22 mill or the likes for a Nico Hoerner.
I wouldn’t mind either of those players but I’m of a thought that we should sign Suarez and have him DH and play some third and use Young and Williams at 2nd and 3rd. You can do some platooning to offset if there’s an issue. Williams showed a huge improvement the second half at AAA last season and his defense is off the charts.
More and more this is looking like the best option. With Naylor and Suarez for the entire season we should win 90+ games and the division. Anything we get from the youngsters would be a bonus. Plus, our RF contingent ought to stay healthy and give us more than last year. I am looking for big years from Luke Raley and Victor Robles.
Just imagine if Logan, George, Luis, Bryan, and Bryce stay healthy all year and take every turn. Didn’t they almost do that in 2024 ??
We can dream. But it is very rare for a staff to go the whole year with no injuries. We are in better shape than most. But I feel like we could use one more starter. I am hoping Kade Anderson or Sloan makes a rapid rise through the system.
I remember you laughing at other teams pitcher injuries last offseason ignorant SOB and thought it was a little low class but then Kirby, Miller, Woo, and Gilbert all hit the IL last year. Plus I remember a couple years ago Ray and Gonzalez went down for the year early on. Maybe you shouldn’t take so much pleasure in other teams pitchers getting hurt because every team is a few unlucky breaks from losing their top pitchers.
I don’t normally do that to other team’s pitchers. I don’t recall doing that, as I know it’s bad karma and what goes around comes around. It may have been misconstrued what I said or maybe something I said came out wrong but that is something I wouldn’t normally do. I may say some stupid innanities but I am not vindictive or luxuriate in other people’s losses. Sorry if I came across that way if I did.
I might be low on Williamson, sure his glove is really great and all but he’s just not much of a hitter imo. Hard to say if his 2nd half adjustments in AAA are for real or if he just went down there and slayed inferior pitching after facing a bunch of MLB arms for 3 months. Still pretty young though and coukd improve with experience but he really has to pick it to mask his 80-90ish OPS+.
Mariners gonna Mariner again? It sure seems like it.
They got their big move out of the way pretty quickly though. A full season of prime Naylor is gonna be huge for them. Refsnyder and Ferrer are pretty good pickups. They really don’t have too much else to do, maybe adding one more decent infielder to the mix but that’s really it. It’s not like they were coming into the offseason with a ton of holes to fill.
JK’s Can, I agree they don’t have major holes to fill after the three moves they have made but if they cannot get a lead off hitter like Donovan or Hoerner, they do have the money to spend to go get some players who provide depth. Does not have to be sexy but some combination of Willi Castro, Miguel Andujar, Luis Rengifo would help. All three can play multiple positions. Even one more RP would be of benefit. No major holes but still some work can be done to put this team in a great position to win from day one in 2026.
@Kingdome: I feel like if they can acquire Donovan or Hoerner, that would help. If not, it does seem like the team is still in a great spot.
Respectively disagree. Need at least one more bat, especially if they don’t get Donovan.
If Donovan doesn’t happen, hopefully they’ll make a play for Hoerner.
@JK’s Can: Yeah, you’re right. Signing Naylor was already their top priority, and getting that out of the way quickly was impressive. I wish I could take back what I said.
I definitely dont want the Cubs trading Nico Hoerner, but if they have to, Seattle would be a good spot and the return better start with Luis Castillo. Dont really know how it works from there, but maybe the Cubs pay some of Castillo’s salary and get a decent top 20 Mariners minor leaguer.
Mariners are not giving up any of their starting pitchers, nor should they. That’s a huge part of why they’re even competitive in any year. Hoerner isn’t getting moved either. No way the Cubs trade him when they just signed Bregman to go for it.
I agree with you. You don’t spend to get Bregman and then get weaker by trading one of your most consistent players with the bat and the glove.
Castillo for Nico is a great trade for the Mariners
Throwing in a 10-20 ranked prospect from the mariners system is not a deal breaker
Frees up money for the Mariners in 2026,2027
Giving up any MLB pitching in a trade is a non starter. The pitching is Seattle’s golden ticket. Castillo eats 200 innings per year. He is the only one that wasn’t injured in 2025. They cannot replace him.
The M’s don’t need the money. They should be spending more than they are. I would like to see a $200M payroll in 2026. Why are the owners entitled to a couple hundred million in appreciation and profits every year?
I agree guys. As a Cub fan, I really dont want the Cubs to trade him. He is the best contact hitter on the team, is like top 5 in avg. W/RISP, steals bags, is a good baserunning and a gold glove 2nd baseman. He is what the Cubs should build around. But Hoerner was talked about last off-season potentially going to the Matiners for Castillo. He is a helluva pitcher. I hope the Mariners win the AL West division again and go even further in the playoffs. They had a great team last year. Exciting to see them playing big games in October.
Mariners – Cubs World Series 2026. (Oh and go Bears by the way. But only for the Divisionals; sorry. Seahawks-Bears in the NFC Title game would be wild.) And I’m sick of seeing us play NFC West teams.
So… No news.
I haven’t look at all the starting pitching scenarios for the Mariners but if they are set on these difficult trade negotiations expand the trade that would include going after a reliever as well. Maybe a lesser prospect thrown in the deal. Pitchers are on the field every five days not every day Donovan would be a dynamic player who would change the dynamics of the team for the better as far as replacing a worthy pitcher I believe Dipoto could work it out with time on his side.