Seattle Mariners Head of Baseball Operations Jerry Dipoto recently gave his predictions about the upcoming MLB Trade Deadline. The MLB playoff race is very crowded especially in the American League where there seems to be no clear elite front runner. The Mariners enter Monday at 47-44 with only a 1.5 game lead for the AL West division.
The Seattle Mariners want to get creative in how they improve at the MLB Trade Deadline. That leads to what Dipoto discussed with MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM.
He said, “I think there are enough contending teams with real holes or needs to fill that you might actually see more action with contender trading with contender – like, buyer-to-buyer type trades to fill voids.”
It is very rare for contending teams to exchange assets at the MLB Trade Deadline. However, there simply are not enough bad teams to be selling at the deadline. According to Fangraphs playoff odds, there are only six teams with a less than 5% chance at making the playoffs. Those teams are the Kansas City Royals, the Los Angeles Angels, the New York Mets, the Cincinnati Reds, the San Francisco Giants, and the Colorado Rockies.
Dipoto Gives Contenders a Reality Check for the MLB Trade Deadline
GettyDipoto owns a reputation of being on the most active baseball executives in the MLB.
With so many teams in contention to make the playoffs currently, there are few avenues to truly make linear improvements to Major League rosters. Simple prospect for veterans trades probably will not interest teams on the fringes of making the playoffs. That is why MLB contenders may have to trade from their own rosters with other contenders to make improvements.
Dipoto continued, “It’s not a common thing in history at the trade deadline, but I do think that that is something that’s going to be pretty prominent in the next four or five weeks simply because there aren’t enough obvious sellers with the kind of player availability that’s going to fill the needs of all of the contending clubs.”
How the Mariners Will Approach the Deadline
GettyThe Mariners have a few areas of strength that they can part from at the MLB Trade Deadline.
The Mariners approach the MLB Trade Deadline with a few areas of need. Dipoto will need to resolve the Mariners struggles against left-handed pitching for one. They also need to strengthen the depth of the bullpen given the injuries to Matt Brash, Cooper Criswell, and Carlos Vargas.
Seattle can deal from a couple areas of strength: the outfield and the starting rotation. When Brendan Donovan returns, the Mariners will experience some headaches trying to give all of their key players playing time. That leaves a player like Luke Raley who mainly hits right-handed pitching potentially on the roster bubble. Dominic Canzone seems to be in the midst of a step forward as a player, becoming one of the most underrated hitters in baseball. All-Star Randy Arozarena also remains untouchable after being the team’s most valuable player.
The starting rotation is the biggest area of strength for the Mariners. However, with the constant shift between the piggy-back and a six-man rotation, the Mariners may part with one of their starters to add a legitimate bat. That will also help improve the depth of the bullpen and help the Mariners moving forward getting back to a five-man rotation. Although, finding the right return for a starter may be difficult at this MLB Trade Deadline.
MLB Trade Deadline Prediction From Mariners’ Dipoto Gives New Reality for Contending Teams