The Mariners’ third-base search just got another name.
On Saturday, the Korean Baseball Organization posted Hanwha Eagles third baseman Roh Si-hwan, opening the door for MLB clubs to sign him. He now has 30 days to reach a deal.
Seattle is still waiting to hire a manager this offseason, but the front office’s other business keeps moving. Free agency opens at 2 p.m. PT on Monday, and the Mariners are expected to be in the market for at least one corner bat or infielder.
Left field looks like one possible opening. The Mariners are expected to extend a qualifying offer to Randy Arozarena, a one-year deal worth about $23 million, and he’s likely to turn it down in search of a longer, richer contract in a deep free-agent class.
If that happens, Seattle’s internal options for 2027 would point toward Brendan Donovan or Michael Arroyo. Arroyo, though, had offseason elbow surgery and won’t be back until April.
That leaves Donovan as the likeliest in-house answer in left field, which would push the focus elsewhere. With J.P. Crawford also headed for free agency, third base and shortstop could both be open.
The third-base market, though, is thin. Seattle has already been tied to another international option in Teruaki Sato, who was posted by the Hanshin Tigers of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball and can also handle the corner outfield spots. Roh Si-hwan now joins that conversation.
The 25-year-old has spent eight seasons with Hanwha from 2019-2026. He also represented Team Korea at the 2022 Asian Games, where Korea won gold, and played for his country in the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
At the plate in 2026, Si-hwan hit .283/.360/.505 with an .865 OPS in 127 games. He added 21 doubles, two triples, 29 home runs and 96 RBIs, and he has now put together five straight seasons with at least 20 homers.
Seattle has shown interest in KBO bats before. In 2024, the Mariners made a push for utility infielder Hyseong Kim before he signed with the Dodgers. Kim has since bounced between Los Angeles and Triple-A, and in 114 games he has hit .271/.318/.361 with a .679 OPS, along with nine doubles, two triples, four home runs, 28 RBIs and 18 steals in 20 attempts.
Kim’s four-year, $12.5 million contract offers a rough benchmark. If Si-hwan lands anywhere near that range, it would fit inside Seattle’s expected $30-35 million in available payroll, even after accounting for the 20 percent posting fee owed to Hanwha on a similar deal.
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