Scott Servais, Seattle Mariners.
Trevor Bauer.
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.
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.
Brad Hand.
46 games, 170 at-bats, .300 batting average, 5 home runs, 25 RBI, .300/.364/.476/.840, 1.5 WAR.
Brantley is the absolute perfect hitter for the Seattle Mariners to add. As Kyle Seager began to slip last year, Kyle Lewis started getting fewer good pitches to hit. This team needs a bonafide lefty threat in the lineup.
There are three to four potential .280 or better hitters on the club, Kyle Lewis, Dylan Moore, Ty France, and hopefully, Jarred Kelenic. All of them bat right-handed, as do catchers Luis Torrens and Tom Murphy; and first baseman Evan White.
Brantley is the ideal man to put in the middle of the order to both protect the young hitters and break up the righty cluster. Also, he doesn’t have to play the field as this team has a multitude of outfield prospects who have arrived (Lewis), should be on the team in 2020 (Kelenic) or are on the way (Julio Rodriguez and Taylor Trammell).
Maybe Brantley takes a little less to come back to the city where he was born. If so, DiPoto should pounce.
23 games, 2-1 record, 22 innings pitched, 16 saves, 29 strikeouts, 2.05 ERA, 0.773 WHIP.
As badly as the Seattle Mariners need starting pitching, they are desperate for a reliable closer. Nothing is more demoralizing to a team, especially a young one, than losing late leads. Both Yohan Ramirez and Andres Munoz have the raw talent to be quality MLB closers, but their time is still a few seasons away.
Over the last four seasons, Brad Hand has 105 saves, including a 2020 league-best 16. It’s important to note that he converted 100 percent of his opportunities this year. It’s unrealistic to expect Hand to be perfect. Judging by his recent track record, excellence is well within his grasp.
Taijuan Walker, Seattle Mariners.
11 starts, 5-3 record, 53.1 innings pitched, 2.70 ERA, 1.163 WHIP, 1.3 WAR.
Taijuan Walker has plenty of reasons to thank the Seattle Mariners. After all, they are the team that drafted him and helped him develop into a Major League pitcher. They also took a chance on Walker last winter by giving the 28-year-old a guaranteed contract after Arizona parted ways with him. Finally, the M’s traded Walker to a playoff-bound team just before the 2020 deadline, where he greatly improved his market value by posting a 1.37 ERA in six starts.
He’s nowhere near staff ace material. Rather Walker is a mid-rotation pitcher who can give his team five to six solid innings every start. If the M’s can’t get their ace, which is likely, Walker provides the next best option to strengthen the starting rotation.
28 games, 27.2 innings pitched, 1-0 record, 1 save, 9 holds, 23 strikeouts, 2.60 ERA, 1.12 WHIP.
As the Detroit Tigers closer for 2018 and 2019, Shane Greene had 54 saves. After arriving in Atlanta at the 2019 trade deadline, Greene recorded one save. He had a rocky first two weeks with the Braves but has been an excellent setup man since then. In 2020, he pitched in 28 games, and aside from one horrible outing against the Mets, he had a 1.32 ERA.
Greene doesn’t exactly mow ’em down, which is why Atlanta used Marc Melancon as their closer. He does have a heavy sinker and slider, which gets Green plenty of ground ball outs. Maybe he isn’t the prototype closer, but an out is an out. Another thing in his favor, Greene shouldn’t be very expensive.
Did not play in 2020.
Getting the negatives out of the way, Chris Archer didn’t throw a pitch in 2020. The year before, he was absolutely horrible, going 3-9 with a 5.19 ERA in 23 starts. That was due to shoulder and neck issues, which required surgery last March.
When healthy, Archer throws a hard slider and classic 12-6 curveball. In this buyers market, he doesn’t have much leverage and should be a low-risk option. DiPoto took chances on Walker and Kendall Graveman last year. Archer is in the same boat this year.
Jeremy Jeffress (Photo by Ben Voigtschild, via Wikimedia).
5 starts, 20.1 innings pitched, 1-1 record, 26 strikeouts, 6.64 ERA, 1.213 WHIP.
A Big Maple return to Seattle? It could happen. As Mariners fans know, James Paxton has the pitching arsenal of a top of the rotation starter. When he’s on, his fastball and cutter are plus pitches, not to mention the nasty changeup he throws. They also know Paxton has trouble staying healthy.
Due to a back injury, the 6-4 lefty didn’t make his 2020 debut until August 28 and was absolutely ineffective over five starts this season. It looks like he can be had for a bargain. Then again, with such questionable durability, he doesn’t hold much value if he can’t take his regular turn.
56 games, 190 at-bats, 7 home runs, 25 RBI, .278/.343/.428/.771, 1.1 WAR.
Since coming to the Majors as a 19-year-old in 2012, Jurickson Profar’s career had more downs than ups. It feels like he’s been around forever, which is understandable because Profar spent most of his years in the A.L. West.
Like many current M’s players, Profar can play several positions. He’s probably a better fielder than Dylan Moore, but that’s not what makes him attractive to Seattle. Profar is a switch-hitter with 20+ home run power. That’s rare these days.
Am I in love with the idea of signing Jurickson Profar? No way. Do I think he provides a few valuable things the Seattle Mariners need? You bet.
22 games, 23.1 innings pitched, 4-1 record, 8 saves, 3 holds, 17 strikeouts, 1.54 ERA, 0.943 WHIP, 1.2 WAR.
Seattle needs arms in the pen. Jeremy Jeffress proved himself to be an effective reliever since arriving in the show in 2010. He has a career ERA of 3.08, and since 2012 he’s had a full season ERA over 3.60 only twice, and under 2.66, four times. At 33-years old, Jeffress doesn’t have the same zip as he did in his younger days but still throws a hard splitter that gets plenty of outs.
55 games, 196 at-bats, 5 home runs, 25 RBI, .281/.370/.449/.819.
The perfect complement to Ty France and Dylan Moore. He’s the left-handed version of the current M’s duo. Basically, Tommy La Stella is a platoon guy with doubles power and a decent glove at second. For a team short of lefty bats, La Stella is a good fit.
Who do you think the Seattle mariners should pursue in free agency? Let us know in the comments section below or on social media.