The Mariners’ trade deadline approach hinges on one question
ESPN MLB insider Jeff Passan shared why he thinks the Mariners will ultimately decide to go for it at the trade deadline.
Watch: Why Jeff Passan is still Optimistic about the Mariners | 20 mins
It’s been an up and down season for the Seattle Mariners, who enter July just a game over .500 and trailing the Texas Rangers by a slim margin for the AL West lead.
And that complicates things when it comes to the Aug. 3 MLB trade deadline that is fast approaching.
Stacy Rost: Two things to watch with Mariners in coming weeks
The Mariners have about as deep of a farm system as there is in the game to deal from, but also a major league roster that has not played up to expectations so far this season. That leads to a question that their trade deadline approach hinges on.
“We’re more than halfway through the season right now, and this has been a .500 team – like, as simple as that. As average as you can possibly get,” ESPN MLB insider Jeff Passan said Tuesday on Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk. “And is that a team where giving up a prospect to go chase something this year is worth it?”
With so many teams still considered in the postseason race, the asking price for available players on the trade market could be prohibitive.
“I think the question with the Mariners is more of one like, is it worth it for the inventory that’s out there (on the trade market) and for the prices that are going to be asked? But at the same time, if you’re (Mariners president of baseball operations) Jerry Dipoto and (general manager) Justin Hollander, you also have to ask yourself, has this team earned us pushing this season?” Passan said.
“Like, does it really make sense after the lack of what this team has shown us to continue on and give up future value? Or do we just – not pack it in this year, but maybe not operate as aggressively as we might because we might be putting good money into a lemon? Because to this point, that’s what the Mariners have been. They’ve been a lemon. They haven’t looked anything like what we expected when the season began.”
Those are some tough words from Passan. But there’s good news if you’re hoping for the Mariners to go big as a buyer at the trade deadline again.
For one, they have a month before the deadline to go on a run and solidify themselves as a contender. And second, they’re playing in both a division and an American League as a whole that are wide open. To that point, even though the Mariners briefly fell under .500 last weekend and ceded the AL West lead to Texas, they’ve maintained a wild card playoff spot.
So going back to the original question – are the Mariners a team worthy of “giving up a prospect to go chase something this year?” – Passan shared what he thinks is the likely answer: “I think you can make the argument for the Mariners that it is.”
Passan explained that the Mariners’ biggest strength – starting pitching – should help tip the scale on deciding to go for it if the right opportunity arises before the trade deadline.
“The argument is that, you know, we can pitch with anyone. And if we can pitch with anyone, we’re going to be in games. And if we’re in games in a league as wide open as the American League right now, where the best team is clearly the New York Yankees, and they just got swept for four games by one of the worst teams in the Boston Red Sox this week – if that can happen, then surely we should absolutely push on this season.”
Hear the full conversation with Jeff Passan in the podcast at this link or in the player below. Catch Brock and Salk from 6-10 a.m. weekdays on Seattle Sports.
Seattle Mariners news and more
• Latest updates on four Mariners working back from the IL
• Where Mariners can look for help at trade deadline
• Morosi: Seattle Mariners’ slumping offense needs stars to step up
Related
The ‘huge ceiling’ of M’s prospect Lazaro Montes is about more than his power
Mariners’ playoff hopes alive and well thanks to their play vs Astros
The AL playoff race is messy – and could be lots of fun
Raleigh, Arozarena homer as Mariners beat Astros 3-2
Tommy John, namesake for pioneering elbow surgery, dies at 83
Morosi on Mariners’ Colt Emerson: ‘The book is not closed’
Comments
2 Comments
It's far easier to see Seattle trading from the major league roster than coughing up elite prospects for rentals or players with limited control.
There are a few other questions before we go out on the trade market.
1. What's going on with Victor Robles? Is he hurt? Why would Refsnyder (until he went on the IL) playing instead of Robles, when Robles was hitting 40 points higher, is a better defender, and can clearly steal more bases. AND he's a right-handed bat who does hit left handed pitching. If Robles is healthy, do we really need to trade a top prospect to get someone marginally better?
2. Speaking of right handed bats, Brennen Davis in Tacoma, 26, 6'1", former 2nd round draft pick, is a right handed bat. Davis “batted .353 and crushed it with four homers and a 1.274 OPS” during spring training. How hurt is he? He went on the 7 day IL but has been there for a month. If Davis is healthy, do we really need to trade a top prospect to get a RH bat just marginally better?
3. The obvious pitcher to trade is Luis Castillo, large contract, still has another year on it, so not a rental for a team needing pitching in 2027. But let's don't blow up the clubhouse as we've made the mistake of doing a couple of times now. Trading "The Rock" has those kind of implications....but if we could get Aroldis Chapman in that deal, it's a maybe. On the other hand, might Kade Anderson break in as a high-end lefty out of the pen?
4. Whatever happened to our batters "controlling the zone," racking up the pitch count on opposing pitchers, taking walks, and hitting to the opposite field. Canzone and Cole Young seem to be the only ones tuned in.
5. If we decide to give up a prospect or two, WHO?
Certainly not Anderson or Sloan or Celesten or Farmelo. Hopefully not Montez (we gave up "Big Pappy" after leading the minor in homers once, let's don't do that again). And Arroyo is looking more and more like a potential star, as well.