The Seattle Mariners seem likely to lose Randy Arozarena to free agency this offseason.
Those aren’t easy shoes to fill.
Arozarena has been a firm presence in the heart of the Mariners’ order for the past couple seasons. He also brings an energy and confidence that fires up the fans in the Pacific Northwest.
There really isn’t another guy quite like Arozarena out there, but if the Mariners are losing him, they have to at least consider what a replacement for him might look like.
The answer might not be out there in free agency. Instead, it might depend on Seattle’s pitching surplus to improve their roster on the hitting side of things.
Candidate to Replace Randy Arozarena
One candidate was suggested in a new article on Monday by Bleacher Report’s Kerry Miller.
The player: Emmanuel Rodriguez.
Rodriguez is a young outfielder who just made his debut for the Minnesota Twins this year.
“The Twins wouldn’t want to part with either Walker Jenkins or Kaelen Culpepper, but three guys a bit lower on their prospects list could be doable—with Emmanuel Rodriguez immediately becoming a candidate to fill the Randy Arozarena-sized hole in Seattle’s outfield,” Miller writes.
This is all in the context of Miller suggesting what he calls a “realistic” offseason trade for Mariners right-handed pitcher Logan Gilbert.
The package coming to Seattle would also including pitching prospect Riley Quick and infield prospect Ben Ross.
Rodriguez would be the centerpiece, though.
Rodriguez is 23 years old and originally from the Dominican Republic.
He’s been a top-100 prospect for each of the past four years in the rankings by Baseball America, MLB Pipeline and Baseball Prospectus.
Finally, he got to the bigs with the Twins at the end of the 2026 season. He went 8-for-45 (.178) with two doubles, a triple and two home runs. He actually had a 0.7 Wins Above Replacement in just 13 games thanks to a solid early impression with his defense.
The Mariners would have Rodriguez for the next half-decade if they made this deal, so it’d be worth considering.
Giving up Gilbert would be the tough part.
Case for Trading Logan Gilbert
If the Mariners were to trade Gilbert, it’d be because they have so much pitching depth.
He’s also entering the last year of his current contract.
“Between Emerson Hancock’s breakout, Kade Anderson’s arrival and Logan Gilbert’s projected salary of $16M in his final year of arbitration eligibility, the M’s might consider trading away the ace who was their Opening Day starter in both 2025 and 2026,” Miller writes. “At any rate, this starting rotation would still be quite formidable even without Gilbert. In addition to Hancock and Anderson, Seattle has George Kirby (through 2028), Bryan Woo (through 2029) and Bryce Miller (through 2029) for another two years. Ryan Sloan is also one of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball, and he might be a factor by the end of 2027.”
It’d be easiest to make this trade for Seattle if they can comprehend exactly what they’re getting in return. If they know they replace Arozarena’s spot in the lineup with an exciting young player, that certainly helps make the case for trading Gilbert.
Mariners Candidate to Replace Randy Arozarena Emerges