The Seattle Mariners are in the midst of one of their best seasons in quite some time. Sure, you have the 2022 campaign that saw the Mariners make the playoffs. Even they weren’t in first place this deep into the season though. The Mariners have been known to start the season off slow, but we’re in June and the Mariners are five games ahead of the Rangers. There’s only one problem, most of that success has come from the pitching staff. The Mariners lineup has been very disappointing to watch at times. That has led to the Mariners being at the top of rumors for several players ahead of the trade deadline, here are the targets they should go after.
Pete Alonso, New York Mets, 1B/DH
The New York Mets are likely to have a fire sale with how things have gone this season. If they look to move Alonso, he would be one of the best bats available. The price might be a bit hefty, but he certainly would improve the lineup. There’s no guarantee that he would re-sign so that hefty price could be for just a half-season rental. With Alonso, it would give the Mariners a little bit of flexibility. They could make him the primary first baseman and move Ty France to either second, third or DH. They could also just slot him into DH and leave France at first. That is of course if France isn’t included in the package.
Since 2019, The Polar Bear has been one of the best power hitters in the game. He’s recorded 3 40-home run seasons and had 37 in another. He’s a three-time All-Star with a career slash line of .250/.339/.523.
J.D. Martinez, New York Mets, DH
The Mariners had a chance to sign Martinez this offseason and opted to sign Mitch Garver as the DH. Garver has had a slow start to the season, while Martinez has been productive for a faulty Mets. He may not be as good as he used to be, but Martinez can still come through when it counts.
Martinez, most likely, would be a rental but at 36 years old, he wouldn’t cost as much as Alonso. Bringing someone like Martinez in would allow the M’s to have a permanent DH. Garver would have to transition to backup C/DH/1B. In order to make room, they’d have to DFA either Victor Robles (who just joined the team) or Seby Zavala, who has not been universally liked by M’s fans.
Tyler O’Neill, Boston Red Sox, Outfielder/DH
If he could stay healthy, the former Mariners’ top prospect would be an excellent option. The league saw what a fully healthy O’Neill could do in 2021 when he was with the St. Louis Cardinals. Since then, he hasn’t played more than 100 games in a season. As of now, he’s on pace for his best campaign since. The two-time Gold Glover would be a significant upgrade over Mitch Haniger both offensively and defensively.
At least for this season, two of the outfield spots are locked for the majority of the season. Julio Rodriguez is the obvious choice in CF, the 23-year old Star is having a slow start but he’ll come around. Luke Raley has had an amazing start to the season. The Mariners need to find someone to pair with them, whether that be from within the organization or not. If they opt to go outside, they should look to see what Boston may want for O’Neill. At 29 years old, O’Neill is still on the younger side and could help the Mariners for years to come.
Luis Robert, Chicago White Sox, OF
The White Sox have the worst record in the MLB (both AL and NL). There were rumors that they were looking to trade Robert this last offseason, but nothing came about. In 2020, Robert was the runner-up for Rookie of the Year to former Mariner Kyle Lewis. The latter hasn’t done much since but when healthy Luis Robert Jr. has shown that he can produce. Last season, he was named an All-Star and a Silver Slugger.
At 26 years old, Robert would be a perfect pairing next to Julio in the Mariners outfield. A lineup with those two could be dangerous for any pitcher.
Randy Arozarena, Tampa Bay Rays, OF
Another player that the Mariners were linked to this offseason. Arozarena isn’t having nearly as strong of a season as he did last year. He’s struggled to begin the season, but a change of scenery might be what he needs. After winning the Rookie of the Year award in 2021 and being named an All-Star last season, Arozarena has shown that he has potential. The Mariners could also grab some relievers in a deal with Tampa Bay.
Final Notes
The Mariners have also been linked to players like Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette. While acquiring either of them would make sense… it would also the cost the Mariners a lot. They would likely have to give up a combination of two Top 10 prospects and at least one more in the Top 30. Not to mention, the Blue Jays GM has said it doesn’t make sense for them to trade either. The trade targets listed above wouldn’t nearly cost the Mariners as much and they would still improve the lineup enough to make a difference. Several other names could be thrown into the mix including Jonathan India, Ketel Marte, Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Christian Walker.
TL//DR: With Seattle in prime position to buy, the names listed above are some trade targets for the Mariners as we approach the trade deadline.
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