The Mariners may not need to zero in on Gunnar Henderson if they decide to go shopping with the Orioles this winter.
Baltimore and Seattle have followed a similar script in some ways. Each club came into the decade with the look of an ascending contender built around young, homegrown talent.
Each has also fallen short of the expectations that came with that promise. Both teams have reached the playoffs only twice this decade, and with their playoff odds sitting below 10%, 2026 already looks like another year that could slip away for Seattle and Baltimore.
The difference now is in how each team appears to be approaching what comes next. Seattle has been leaning into the future, promoting top prospects and keeping an eye on possible additions this offseason. Baltimore, meanwhile, could be forced into a different kind of winter - one that includes moving talent, even its biggest name, if the infield becomes too crowded.
That could open the door for the Mariners to find help in more than one spot.
Seattle’s own infield picture is crowded, but not especially convincing. Michael Arroyo has been called up recently, yet the group as a whole hasn’t matched the expectations around it.
Colt Emerson’s rookie season showed plenty left to learn. Brendan Donovan has been stuck in a frustrating run of injury trouble.
Josh Naylor’s first year of a five-year deal has also fallen short, with a 99 OPS+ over 577 plate appearances.
The Mariners already have long-term money tied to Emerson and Naylor, but the roster still looks like it could use more depth and flexibility. That’s especially true if it helps wake up a lineup that has been punchless for stretches.
Baltimore has a possible fit in Jordan Westburg, a useful second- and third-base option whose season ended after Tommy John surgery. He’d likely come at a more manageable cost and could still offer some upside once he returns.
Coby Mayo is another name that belongs on Seattle’s radar. After a rough start to his big-league career, he turned things around in the second half, posting a .889 OPS that ranks second among third basemen with at least 140 plate appearances, trailing only Alex Bregman at .958. Mayo wouldn’t be cheap because of his club control, and landing him could require the Mariners to part with one of their prized starting pitchers.
That would run against the way Seattle’s front office has usually operated, but this season may have changed the calculation.
If the Mariners are serious about getting back into the playoff race, this winter is shaping up to be a big one. Baltimore is only one source of possible upgrades, but it’s a rich one. With a strong farm system, Seattle has the pieces to be aggressive - if it’s willing to trade some of tomorrow for a better shot today.
In Other News...
Mariners Offseason Bet Looks Worse As Playoff Hopes Fade
Seattles playoff picture has thinned to the point where even a strong finish would have to do a lot of heavy lifting. At 67-78 and 6.5 games behind the Guardians in the Wild Card race, the Mariners are staring at an uphill climb, and the season-long issues on offense have been a major reason why.
Josh Naylor was brought back on a five-year deal as part of the clubs attempt to add dependable production, but his numbers have not matched the standard he set in his best year with Cleveland. In a season where the lineup has already fallen short of expectations, that kind of underperformance has only made the Mariners offseason bet look tougher to justify as the games run out. [Read more 🡒]
Josh Naylor Has Become A Real Mariners Offseason Dilemma
Josh Naylors first season with the Mariners has given the front office a real winter conversation to have. The 29-year-old has still done a lot of the contact-driven work that has defined his game, but his overall offensive output has slipped from the levels hes established in the past. Home runs, RBIs, slugging percentage and OPS are all down, and for a lineup that expected more impact from that spot, the gap has been hard to ignore.
The odd part is that the underlying shape of his at-bats has not changed all that much. Naylor is still making plenty of contact and keeping strikeouts low, but his aggressive style has led him into more pitches outside the zone, and the quality of the contact has suffered because of it. For Seattle, that creates a tricky offseason question: how much weight to give the steadiness of his approach versus the reality that the production hasnt matched it. [Read more 🡒]
Cal Raleigh's Surge May Not Be Enough To Avoid Mariners History
Cal Raleighs late-season surge has given the Mariners something to feel better about, even if it arrived after a long stretch of offensive frustration. Through Aug. 1, his season had been dragged down by a 70 wRC+ slump, but since then he has looked much more like the middle-of-the-order threat Seattle needed, with a 169 wRC+ and 10 home runs along with four doubles.
Still, the bigger picture has not disappeared. Raleigh is sitting at .184 after 458 plate appearances, and the Mariners are staring at the possibility of one of the rarest kind of club history if that number holds. Evan White remains the only qualified Mariner to finish a season below .200, and Raleighs recent improvement may be enough to keep him from joining that particular list, but the margin is thin enough to keep the question alive. [Read more 🡒]