Seattle Mariners: Three untradeable players
The Seattle Mariners are a young and dynamic team with plenty of desirable assets. They also have a few virtually untradeable players.
Anyone who follows the Seattle Mariners has to be filled with optimism about the team in 2021 and beyond. They have a young nucleus of up and coming players led by last season’s American League Rookie of the Year Kyle Lewis. Behind them is one of the deepest and most talented prospect pools in the game.
Some of those prospects will make their respective debuts in the Emerald City in the coming months. While they may not spend the whole year with the M’s, players such as George Kirby, Jarred Kelenic, and Taylor Trammell will give the fans a taste of their talents this summer.
On the flip side, there are some players on the Mariners roster who the team is, for better or worse, “stuck with” for a while. Actually, three players, Mitch Haniger, Keynan Middleton, and Kyle Seager, fit the description. That is 11.5 percent of the expected roster.
Mitch Haniger
After almost two seasons on the sidelines, all signs indicate that Mitch Haniger will be back this season. In 2019, Haniger fouled a ball off himself, resulting in a ruptured testicle. The injury and resulting side effects cost him most of 2019 and all of 2020.
Haniger hasn’t seen a live Major League pitch in two years. Throw in the $3.01M he’s due in 2021, and no team would seriously give up any decent assets for him. It’s the M’s or bust for Mitch. It will take at least three months for him to start building value again.
Jerry Dipoto reiterates that Mitch Haniger "looks great." Adds that Haniger deserves to get back to action, and that obviously the team is excited to get his bat back in the lineup.
— Brandon Gustafson (@TheBGustafson) January 21, 2021
Keynan Middleton
Speaking about irrelevant over the last two years, the Seattle Mariners signed relief pitcher Keynan Middleton as a free agent. Both GM Jerry Dipoto and manager Scott Servais were very happy with the addition.
Middleton had Tommy John surgery in 2018. Since then, he struggled to be effective. While his fastball may be back in the upper 90’s, his control is still bad. Over his career, Middleton averages 3.75 walks per nine innings. Over the last two years, that rate climbed to almost 6 per nine innings.
To make matters worse, he was named by embattled former Angels clubhouse man Brian Harkins as someone who used foreign substances to doctor the ball. While $800K isn’t much money for a Major Leaguer, Middleton either pitches for the Mariners in 2021 or gets released.
Kyle Seager
PNWS has written about Kyle Seager and his poison pill contract several times. To recap, Seager will make $18.5M for the upcoming season. The Seattle Mariners have a $15M team option for 2022. If he gets traded, the option becomes Seager’s to exercise.
Any team acquiring Seattle’s longest-tenured player is making a $33.5M commitment. That’s a pretty big chunk of change for someone who hasn’t hit over .249 since 2016. In MLB’s current economic climate, to make a deal that includes Seager, the Mariners have to eat a good portion of the outstanding amount. Something Seattle doesn’t do very often, especially not at the level required to make a trade happen.
Related Story – Mariners: Excitement, Downers and a limited Window of Opportunity
What do you think? Let us know in the comments section below or on social media.