T-Mobile Park (Photo by Susan Dennis, via Flickr)
In the NFL, there’s a football team currently named WFT. The reaction all fans and some players expressed were those same three letters. Just arranged in a different order. The Seattle Mariners agreed to trade relief pitchers Rafael Montero and Kendall Graveman to Houston for Abraham Toro and reliever Joe Smith. Let’s look at this deal now that there’s been time to sleep on it.
Soon after the trade news broke, Seattle Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto added some perspective to the trade. Acknowledging that the Toro for Graveman deal may look bad now. However, it may not look so bad come Friday, when the trade deadline ends. The M’s are already linked to Whit Merrifield of the Royals and Max Scherzer of the Nationals. If Dipoto can land both or one of those guys, M’s fans won’t be upset.
The Mariners didn’t just stop with one trade yesterday. They agreed to send minor leaguers catcher Carter Bins and right-hander Joaquin Tejada. In exchange for left-handed Pittsburgh starting pitcher Tyler Anderson. Anderson was initially traded to Philadelphia, but there was an issue with the medical check on one of the players headed to Pittsburgh. So Dipoto took this opportunity to land Anderson.
On the surface, Smith looks like a terrible get. However, looking under the top sheet, we see Smith has a career 3.11 ERA, 3.58 FIP, and 1.18 WHIP. This is a player that is currently having a bad year. If the Seattle Mariners can fix Smith, he’ll be another late-inning weapon.
Toro is the big get for the M’s. He’s a young player with only 275 total major league at-bats. The results don’t look good. However, young players need time to develop. He’s listed as a third baseman but has some time at both second and first base. Even a rumor that if Carlos Correa leaves Houston, Toro will be their starter at third base. Moving Alex Bregman to shortstop. We’ll get into what Toro’s acquisition might mean for other M’s players a bit later.
Talk about waiting for the tease—lots of debate amongst fans on what the Seattle Mariners will or should do with Kyle Seager. The team has an option on Seager’s contract at the end of the year. It’s a $15 million option. Since Ty France was acquired, the speculation is that he’d be starting the third baseman in 2022.
However, France has played very well at first base, and now with the addition of Toro, there may be real competition for the starting spot between the two. It appears that the team has made its decision on Seager’s future. Or has it? Again, the club needs a second baseman. France and Toro can both play there. So, maybe Seager is back next year. This trade gives Dipoto some flexibility.
Now for the big piece. Kendall Graveman is having a great year. It’s a great story. But, now, he’s a trashcan. His departure hurt not only the fans but the Seattle Mariners clubhouse as well. Many players had tears in their eyes and were angry at this news. In addition, some players voiced their displeasure that they had to learn about this news on their phone and not from Dipoto.
Graveman took the closer’s job away from Rafael Montero. Graveman is 10/12 in save’s this year. He’s been dominant in his appearances. The issue that most fans don’t know about or remember is his health. Graveman has a benign bone tumor in his neck. At this point, in modern medicine, there is no cure. He just has to suffer through the pain. This pain limit’s his availability. Limited availability and closer don’t typically go together.
There are two schools of thought with Graveman. Either talk between Dipoto and Graveman implied that Graveman would not be signing an extension or resigning with Mariners after this year. Or Dipoto has every intention of going hard after Graveman in free agency. Thus, getting Toro, Smith, and resigning Graveman. Now, who wouldn’t love the latter situation?
Alright, M’s fans. Dry your tears and move forward. The deal is done. The Seattle Mariners are still right in the thick of a wild card race. In back to back series against division opponents, the Mariners took four out of seven games. On Friday the M’s open up a three game series against Texas before going onto a three game series against Tampa Bay. This team needs the fan’s support.
Even after last night’s loss, the M’s are still only two games back of the second wild-card spot. As previously mentioned, Dipoto isn’t done working the phones for more deals to help the Mariners both this year and future years. So, there might be more help on the way for this ball club. Also, one final note Dipoto was able to con Houston into taking Montero. That is a win in it itself.
Kendall Graveman, Seattle Mariners.
Does this help in your grieving of the loss of Graveman? Please share your thoughts on the trade with us in the comments.