When factoring in some of the injuries they’ve faced, the Seattle Mariners had a decent first half. However, sitting five games behind the Houston Astros in the American League West, the Mariners will have to get a move on if they want to be the team they were looking to be entering the season.
The only way for the Mariners to do that is if they finally acquire some offensive help.
The fan base has been asking for it over the past few years, and the front office and ownership group have simply not delivered.
Despite that, Billy Heyen of the Sporting News believes that it’ll be different this time around.
He recently made four bold predictions for the Mariners heading into the second half and deadline, predicting that Seattle would land Eugenio Suarez, who many believe will be the top offensive player available.
“A video clip at All-Star Weekend showed Raleigh embracing Eugenio Suarez in a hug. Suarez spent two seasons in Seattle before being traded to Arizona in November 2023.
“Now, the power-hitting third baseman is one of the hottest names on the trade market before the deadline at the end of the month. Bigger markets have been thrown out as his destination, but this prediction is that Suarez and his 31 homers will come back to Seattle. The Mariners have more top-100 prospects than any team in baseball, according to MLB Pipeline. And they need an upgrade on Ben Williamson at third base. Suarez is the perfect fit,” he wrote.
Mariners’ Postseason Outlook
The Seattle Mariners have every reason to go out and be aggressive. When this team is at its best, it’s swinging the bat at a decent level and arguably has the best pitching staff in Major League Baseball.
That pitching staff is a significant part of this puzzle.
If the Mariners get into the postseason and have to play a series, there’s a strong argument to be made that no other team in the league would want to play them. It’s a simple fact of the matter that the Mariners can throw five-plus guys in their starting rotation who all have elite stuff.
According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, given the strong performance of some of their top players this year, there’s a very good chance the Mariners will be aggressive, with them being expected buyers.
“I think the Mariners are going to be aggressive. And I think they should be,” Passan said.
“You don’t take years like this from superstars and waste them. Period. And I think the Mariners front office knows that. Like, we can’t ever expect a season like this from Cal Raleigh again. It’s unreasonable, right? It’s not just the numbers. It’s the fact that we are talking about Cal Raleigh being up there with Barry Bonds, with Ken Griffey Jr., with Mickey Mantle. These are luminaries in the sport, and he belongs.”
What Would It Take for the Mariners to Acquire Suarez?
For Suarez to be moved to the Seattle Mariners, whom he once played for, he’d need the Arizona Diamondbacks to trade him.
Suarez understands that this is a business, but when speaking recently, according to The Athletic, he also stated that he doesn’t want to get traded.
This isn’t the biggest deal, as long as he returns to the Mariners and does what he needs to do, if that’s how things play out.
“Every time we lose, maybe something like that pops in my mind, which is not good for me,” he said. “I don’t want to get traded.”
Mariners Predicted to Reunite With 300-Plus Home Run Slugger