The Mariners’ trade deadline problem is pretty clear: they need hitters who actually put the bat on the ball, and they need them from the right side. Not a splashy name.
Not a long-shot project. A real major league bat who can lengthen the lineup and give them professional at-bats instead of empty trips to the plate.
That’s why three names stand out: Taylor Ward, Seiya Suzuki and Miguel Andujar. Each would address the same basic issue in a different way, and each would bring Seattle something it has been short on for too much of the season.
Ward is the straightforward option. He’s in the middle of a solid prove-it year with the struggling Orioles, and the numbers show why he makes sense.
He’s hitting .253/.384/.356 with five home runs, 22 RBI and a 111 OPS+. Against lefties, he’s slashing .303/.449/.434.
That isn’t superstar production, but it would still be an upgrade over any right-handed batter currently on the Mariners roster. He works counts, gets on base and doesn’t need to chase power to matter.
Because Ward is a rental, the price shouldn’t get out of hand. Seattle doesn’t need to blow up its system for a 32-year-old bat who would likely be used in a platoon role at DH anyway. The appeal is simple: he makes pitchers work and gives the lineup a more stable presence.
Suzuki is the name with the most upside. He’s hitting .266/.350/.449 with 12 home runs, 39 RBI and a 126 OPS+, and he’s also slashing .290/.403/.484 against lefties.
More importantly, he can play every day, so this wouldn’t be a platoon patch job. He gives the Mariners a hitter who can do damage without turning every plate appearance into a boom-or-bust gamble.
On top of that, he’s a strong right fielder, which only adds to the appeal. If Seattle can add power and keep a player with an FRV in the 85th percentile in right field, that’s a pretty clean fit.
Andujar is the fallback. He’s not as polished a match as the other two, but he could be the most realistic if Seattle wants a right-handed bat without walking into a bidding war.
He’s hitting .259/.300/.420 with five home runs, 17 RBI and a 98 OPS+. The bigger selling point is the contact profile: his 18.8 percent whiff rate sits in the 81st percentile, and his 15.7 percent k rate is in the 80th percentile.
Defense isn’t his calling card, though the Padres have tried him at first base a couple of times. Still, as a Rob Refsnyder replacement, he makes sense.
He’s affordable, his platoon split is pretty even, and he can fill a bench role while taking DH at-bats without needing regular playing time to justify the move.
The Mariners also have something the other teams want: pitching. That doesn’t mean they should get reckless, but it does mean they shouldn’t pretend they have no leverage. They have already floated the idea of using Kade Anderson and Ryan Sloan in the second half, and if that’s on the table, then the conversation gets bigger fast.
Are we really supposed to believe none of these teams would have interest in Luis Castillo?
That doesn’t mean Castillo should be moved just to move him. And a straight 1v1 deal of Castillo for Ward or Andujar is off the table. But if Seattle is truly willing to consider young arms helping later in the season, it has to be honest about what that opens up.
However they get there, the goal is the same. All three hitters would give the Mariners more contact, more competent at-bats and a better shot at not wasting another strong pitching season while the lineup keeps asking for help that never shows up.
In Other News...
Mariners Finally Get An Encouraging Brendan Donovan Injury Update
Brendan Donovan is inching toward a meaningful step in his recovery, and the Mariners have reason to feel better about where things stand than they did a week ago. He has been working back from a left groin muscle strain tied to offseason sports hernia surgery, and Seattle is preparing for him to begin a formal rehab assignment in the minors soon as the club keeps gauging his readiness during the current homestand.
The next checkpoint comes after the break, when the Mariners should have a clearer sense of whether Donovan can rejoin the mix shortly after that stretch. His return would give Seattle another versatile option across the diamond at a time when Dominic Canzone and Luke Raley are still day-to-day, while the bullpen has also seen some shuffling with Cole Wilcox added and other relief help expected later in the season. [Read more 🡒]
Mariners Prospect Jonny Farmelo Is Finally Giving Fans A Reason To Believe
Jonny Farmelo has spent much of his early pro career trying to get back on the field, so the latest stretch has felt like a welcome shift for the Mariners No. 6 prospect. After injuries slowed his development in previous seasons, Farmelo has started to show the kind of all-around impact that made him such an intriguing young player in the first place, with a hotter bat and a steadier presence at the plate.
June offered the clearest sign yet that the progress is real. Farmelo put together a 1.041 OPS for the month, reached base in 22 of 24 games and continued to look more selective and more comfortable making contact. The raw production has been impossible to ignore, but so has the way hes getting there, and Seattle has to like that this surge looks like more than a short-term spike. [Read more 🡒]