Seattle Mariners: Trade for a hitter or do they?

Seattle Mariners
Seattle Mariners General Manager Jerry Dipoto.

The Seattle Mariners made a huge move to acquire Luis Castillo from Cincinnati. Now they could use another bat to help bolster their playoff run. But do they need to trade for that batter?

In a shocking move, the Seattle Mariners traded three of their top five prospects for Luis Castillo. He was regarded as the best pitcher available at the time and it was widely thought he’d go to another team. Yet, here we are with him on the Mariners. Now the question is do they go with a six-man rotation or do they remove someone from the current rotation? If it’s the latter then who? Marco Gonzales has been solid. Chris Flexen has compiled a 1.4 WAR this season. George Kirby has looked really good, even if he could use some more MLB experience.

Regardless, this is a good problem for the Seattle Mariners to have, for once. So, now that they have their starting pitcher acquired. The attention now turns to the offense and the need to acquire an impact bat. Or do they? Let’s lay out some context. The M’s have three legit outfielders in Jesse Winker, Julio Rodriguez, and Kyle Lewis. They also have Adam Frazier, Sam Haggerty, and Dylan Moore who can play out there too. Taylor Trammell and Mitch Haniger are working their way back from their respective injuries. Haniger is expected back within the next week or two. While Trammell is looking at an August return.

In the infield, the Seattle Mariners have Eugenio Suarez, J.P. Crawford, Ty France, and the previously mentioned Frazier. They also have recently acquired Carlos Santana and Abraham Toro to accompany the aforementioned Haggerty and Moore. Behind the plate, it’s still Cal Raleigh and Luis Torrens. And in case anyone forgot you can only play eight fielders to go with the pitcher. So, they have a lot of players and it might be a good idea to consolidate some of this talent by trading a few for an upgrade at a position. 

Next: Page 2 – Quality over quantity

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