The Seattle Mariners were the clear winners of the Major League Baseball trade deadline. Not only did they check every box on their wishlist, but they also gave up comparatively little to do it.
In the lead-up to the July 31 trade deadline, the Mariners were targeting improvements at first base, third base, and the bullpen. They landed all three.
In two separate trades with the Arizona Diamondbacks, they brought in first baseman Josh Naylor and third baseman Eugenio Suarez. In a deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates, they acquired left-handed reliever Caleb Ferguson.
In exchange, they gave up none of their most coveted prospects, giving them the flexibility to not only improve this season but also protect their future as well.
But the future will have to wait, because with their new acquisitions, the Mariners are focused on the now.
Coming out of the deadline, the Mariners took three of four games against the Texas Rangers. They entered the series tied with the Rangers for the last wild card playoff spot and left it two games up and just three games behind the slumping Houston Astros.
With the playoffs in reach and the trade deadline behind them, here are three keys for the Mariners to make it back to the postseason.
Pray the bullpen and pitching staff hold together
With an upgraded lineup packed with players who can hit for power and get on base, the team’s concerns now turn to an unfamiliar place: the pitching staff.
Less than 24 hours after the trade deadline, key reliever Trent Thornton went down with a torn achilles trying to close out the first game of the series against Texas. Two days later, Matt Brash gave up a pair of runs in the tenth inning in an extra innings loss to the Rangers.
With no ability to improve through trades, the Mariners are now going to have to rely on call-ups, castoffs, and the same arms that have been up-and-down all season.
After calling up reliever Jackson Kewar to replace Thornton, the Mariners are out of impactful bullpen reinforcements. Troy Taylor, Taylor Saucedo, Casey Lawrence, and Sauryn Lao are all in Tacoma with major league experience. Still, none would be called upon to pitch in high-leverage innings in the major leagues. Bryce Miller will likely be back in the starting rotation soon, and with Emerson Hancock and Logan Evans also available to start, the team does at least have some innings eaters available to them. When rosters expand to 28 on September 1, at least one of the two open roster spots will likely go to a reliever, if not both.
Hope the new look offense clicks
Don’t look now, but Cal Raleigh is in a slump. Over the last month, he is batting .195 with 33 strikeouts. His strikeout-to-walk ratio has been 2:1 throughout the season. Over the last month, it’s been 3 to 1, as he has reverted to the mortal version of himself. He’s not the only one in a funk. It’s a small sample size, but in his first four games back in a Mariners uniform, Eugenio Suarez went 2-for-17 with five strikeouts. Shortstop JP Crawford surged to start the season and then fell off a cliff in July. In July, he hit just .223 with a .279 on-base percentage. While the Mariners now wield one of the most potent lineups in baseball on paper, they will need to translate that to actual results if they hope to hold off the teams chasing them in a tight AL Wild Card race. The front office made the moves to win, and with a lineup featuring six 2025 all-star selections, it’s now on the players to get the job done.
Tweak the back end of the roster
The Mariners will have some interesting roster decisions to make soon. First baseman Donovan Solano lost his job to Naylor and hasn’t played in a game in two weeks. He bats right-handed but actually hits worse against left-handed pitching than he does right-handed, meaning he can’t even pinch-hit for Naylor against tough lefties. While he recovered nicely from a brutal start to the season, the unfortunate reality is that there is no place for him on the team. He’ll likely be gone when Luke Raley returns from injury sometime in the next few weeks, but there is no sense in punting a roster spot in the interim. The team should call up either Leo Rivas or Samad Taylor, both speedy utility players currently in Tacoma, to fill the spot as soon as possible. Victor Robles, the opening day right fielder, is working his way back from injury and may be ready at some point in September. When he returns, he would likely form an outfield platoon with either Rayley or Dominic Canzone. If there are any open roster spots left when rosters expand on September 1 to 28 men from 26, assuming the team doesn’t use both spots on pitchers, the team has some options with who it plugs in. Both Rivas and Taylor offer speed and utility. Ben Williamson, who filled in ably at third base until Saurez arrived, would be an ideal late-inning defensive replacement. Harry Ford would offer right-handed pop off the bench and would allow the team to carry three catchers.
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