Top 10 Seattle Mariners free agent targets to consider
Ed Stein
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Trevor Bauer.
MLB’s annual free agent frenzy is about to begin. Here are 10 players Seattle Mariners General Manager Jerry DiPoto should consider when the fun begins.
Christmas comes early in 2020. Seattle Mariners fans, are you ready?
Free agency is about to start. The M’s rebuild is in full swing with a fine young core of players developing into every day Major Leaguers. Just because the team is undergoing a youth movement doesn’t mean GM Jerry DiPoto can’t speed things up a little by acquiring a few free agents.
DiPoto said he expects the Mariners to contend for a playoff spot in 2021. They were in the thick of the postseason hunt up until the final week this year. If his goals are to be reached, the team needs some help to shore up their weaknesses.
Here are our Top 10 free agents the Seattle Mariners should consider.
1. Trevor Bauer – Cincinnati Reds – SP
2020 stats – 11 starts, 5-4 record, 73 innings pitched, 1.72 ERA, 0.795 WHIP, 2.7 WAR.
Trevor Bauer is at the top of almost every team’s free agent wish list after his outstanding 2020 season. The Seattle Mariners need an ace that other teams fear. At age 29, Bauer is young enough to hold that job until the younger pitchers in Seattle’s organization are ready to assume the mantle.
Can DiPoto get Bauer for under $25M per season and less than five years? Probably not. Besides, plenty of top teams can afford that price. Don’t count on him coming to the Emerald City this year. But a 2021 rotation of Bauer, Marco Gonzales, Justus Sheffield, Yusei Kikuchi, and Justin Dunn could border on top tier.