Morosi: Mariners could be impacted by Cubs’ Bregman deal

The Seattle Mariners are still searching to fill one of their greatest offseason needs.

The latest on potential Seattle Mariners trade target Brendan Donovan

The offseason started with a major win for the M’s when they re-signed first baseman Josh Naylor early. A trade for left-handed reliever Jose Ferrer and the addition for veteran platoon bat Rob Refsnyder followed. But Seattle’s stated need for another infield bat has remained unanswered.

The Mariners in December were reported as one of two finalists for Cardinals utilityman Brendan Donovan, who could play second or third base with Seattle, but St. Louis has yet to deal its versatile left-handed hitter.

MLB’s offseason is starting to pick up some steam, though, most notably the Chicago Cubs’ recent signing of three-time All-Star third baseman Alex Bregman.

Bregman was never among the free agents expected to sign with the M’s, but his new deal could have an impact on them, according to MLB Network insider Jon Morosi.

“Now there could be a Seattle story here still part of it, which is that with Bregman now being a Cub, they may have the ability to trade either Matt Shaw or Nico Hoerner, either one of whom would be certainly of interest to the Mariners,” Morosi told Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob on Tuesday.

With Bregman now in Chicago, the Cubs have somewhat of a logjam in their infield. They have Michael Busch, who hit 34 homers last season, at first base. Two-time All-Star shortstop Dansby Swanson is locked in to a long-term deal through 2029. Hoerner, a two-time Gold Glove winner, is the incumbent second baseman. And Shaw is a former top prospect and third baseman entering his second season.

The Cubs could decide to keep that group together for a run at a World Series this year, but dealing Hoerner, who has one year of club control remaining, could also be an option.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan recently reported the San Francisco Giants have engaged the Cubs in trade talks for Hoerner, who the Mariners were in pursuit of last offseason.

Morosi thinks Hoerner would still be a great fit for Seattle.

“I actually think a right side of the infield of Hoerner plus Naylor would be excellent. So let’s see how it plays out,” he said. “The Brendan Donovan thing … maybe now there’s a little bit more freedom for (the Cardinals) to actually make that trade now that (Nolan) Arenado has been moved. They can allocate a little more bandwidth to trying to trade Donovan, but it sure seems like that’s a stalemate.”

“Perhaps, in another optimistic lens, the availability of Hoerner could shift the calculus ever so slightly on what the asking price is for Donovan, and maybe that starts to move things forward,” Morosi added.

Hoerner slashed .297/.345/.394 with 29 doubles, seven home runs, 61 RBIs, 29 stolen bases, 39 walks and 49 strikeouts while producing 4.8 fWAR over 156 games last season. His 7.6% strikeout rate was the third-lowest among qualified MLB hitters, and his 14 outs above average while playing second base were first in the league.

Morosi said he believes the Bregman deal means Hoerner would be available. He also expects him to be a cheaper addition in terms of trade capital than Donovan since Hoerner has one less year of club control.

“He does some things with relation to contact, putting the ball in play, very good defender. Things that the Mariners value and have valued for a while are things that Nico Hoerner does exceptionally well,” Morosi said. “He fits this team. In some ways, he fits this team at least as well as Donovan does, and maybe even better.”

Hear the full conversation at this link or in the audio player in this story. Listen to Wyman and Bob weekdays from 2-7 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app. 

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