Some thoughts on the Mariners’ end to their trade with the Braves on Sunday night, in which Seattle traded outfielder Jarred Kelenic, left-hander Marco Gonzales and first baseman Evan White for right-hander Jackson Kowar and minor league righty Cole Phillips:
• Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh was right at the end of the season when he criticized the team’s lack of spending. While the World Series champion Rangers spent more than $800 million on free agents over the last two winters and the Astros also had a top-10 roster in 2023, the Mariners are barely making it through the current offseason.
The trade of third baseman Eugenio Suárez to the Diamondbacks and Sunday night’s deal will save the Mariners a total of $42 million in future commitments. The team also declined to extend a $20.325 million qualifying offer to outfielder Teoscar Hernández.
This is a franchise that Shohei Ohtani should keep an eye on, but which signaled early in the process that it would not even be involved in the tender. This is a team that now appears perfectly primed to sign Padres outfielder Juan Soto, but will almost certainly shy away from adding to his $30 million-plus salary for just one year of control Club is guaranteed.
So much for the momentum the Mariners supposedly gained from ending their 21-year playoff drought in 2022. Her estimated 2024 salary is currently just under $115 million, according to Fangraphs. The final numbers for last season are not yet known, but according to Fangraphs, the Mariners finished with around $140 million, likely putting them 18th in the majors.
• Here’s what Raleigh told reporters last weekend:
“We have to commit to winning, we have to commit to getting the players you see on other teams — great pitchers, great hitters. We have to do that to keep up. We’ve done a great job of developing some players here and within the farm system, but sometimes you gotta go out and buy something… Look at the other (Rangers) locker room, they’ve added more than anyone else and you’ve seen where it guided them this year.”
Raleigh spoke to reporters again the next day to clarify his comments and apologized to his teammates if they noticed he was directly confronting them. But his position was made clear, and as it turned out, truer words were never spoken.
The shame in all of this is that the Mariners should be well-positioned to field legitimate contenders in the AL West. They led the American League in ERA last season. With Raleigh, shortstop JP Crawford and center fielder Julio Rodríguez, they are strong at three of the four upper middle positions. And yet they operate like a small franchise, even if they were in 10th place in terms of participant numbers in 2023.
Cal Raleigh caused a stir with his comments about the Mariners’ direction this season. (Kim Klement Neitzel/USA Today)
• What’s next? The Mariners are well-positioned to trade for affordable hitters. In the Suárez trade, they acquired backup Carlos Vargas, a strong pitcher with command issues. As part of the Kelenic deal, they received Kowar, the Braves’ returnee from the Royals for right guard Kyle Wright, and Phillips, a prospect who likely would have been a first-rounder out of high school in 2022 had he not undergone Tommy John surgery would have.
That’s three pitchers they’ve added to an already impressive roster of prospects. The Mariners appear to be building enough depth to trade one of their emerging starters, perhaps Bryan Woo or Bryce Miller, for a hitter with comparable long-term control. Controllable starters are currently the game’s most valuable asset.
Earlier this offseason, the Mariners inquired about both Rays left fielder Randy Arozarena and third baseman Isaac Paredes, according to sources briefed on the conversations. At this point, they were unable to move forward with these discussions due to financial constraints. Perhaps these discussions can now be accelerated.
The Rays have 16 players eligible for arbitration. Arozarena, who remains under the club’s control for three more seasons, is expected to earn $9 million. Paredes, who has been under control for four more years, is expected to earn $3.2 million. These are the types of players the Mariners will likely look to acquire.
• Finally, a word about Kelenic. Some New York-based writers noted on sent closer Edwin Díaz, second baseman Robinson Canó and Cash.
Former Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen was heavily criticized for giving up on Kelenic, who was one of the game’s top prospects at the time. But so far Kelenic has not lived up to expectations, and he raised questions about his maturity when he broke his left foot kicking a water cooler in July.
However, the Braves view Kelenic as a player who still shows promise. The Mets drafted him sixth overall in 2018. He’s still only 24. And he’s still under the club’s control for five more seasons.
It would only be the Mets’ luck if Kelenic still ended up tormenting them, almost like a junior version of Chipper Jones.
(Top photo by Jarred Kelenic: Bob Kupbens / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)