Seattle Mariners Have to Make This One Move, But They Likely Won't

This has been a dreadful offseason for the Seattle Mariners. After winning 88 games and missing the playoffs by 1.0 game in 2023, the M's have proceeded to take multiple steps back, all in the name of saving money.

Seattle, which is dealing with television rights issues, traded away slugger Eugenio Suarez and let productive hitter Teoscar Hernandez go in free agency. They also gave away Jarred Kelenic for the sake of taking Marco Gonzales and Evan White's contracts off the books.

Given the money issues, it doesn't feel like the M's are inclined to make any big moves in free agency, but there is one they should make: Sign Jorge Soler.

At this point, it feels like a middle reliever is too rich for the M's blood, so Soler almost certainly will be, but this is the move that can help jumpstart the offseason in a positive direction. By letting Hernandez and Suarez go, the M's have lost nearly 50 homers from a season ago and are devoid of power in the middle of the order.

Enter Soler, who hit 36 homers last year for the offensively-inept Miami Marlins. If he can perform in a lineup with no protection around him there, he could do the same in Seattle. The soon-to-be 32-year-old also hit 48 homers back in the 2019 season with the Royals. He's also a two-time World Series champion and if the Mariners are serious about wanting to win, having a guy who's won before is a good thing. Seattle also says it wants more contact in 2024, and Soler did hit .250 last season with a .341 on-base percentage.

He still struck out 141 times last year, but that's less than the 211 registered by Hernandez. Hernandez also only had a .305 on-base percentage so Soler has him beat by a wide margin there.

Lourdes Gurriel Jr. just signed for $42 million over three years with the Arizona Diamondbacks, so if Soler signs for something in that neighborhood, Seattle should be able to afford it.

The question is if they want to.

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