Seattle Mariners Have Reportedly Discussed Signing All-Star 3B in Free Agency
According to Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times, the Seattle Mariners have reportedly discussed the idea of signing free agent third baseman Matt Chapman, who is still on the open market.
The following comes from MLBTradeRumors, but links to the original article (subscription required):
With Matt Chapman still available as we enter late February, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times writes that “the Mariners have discussed the possibility of” signing the free agent third baseman. It isn’t clear if these discussions could be due-diligence explorations within the front office, or whether or not president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto might have reached out to Chapman’s camp about a potential contract.
A few things here:
1) The M's don't seem likely to pony up for Chapman. Seattle's offseason has been marred by a lack of spending, and though they have made several trades, they've done so in a very money-conscious matter. At the outset of free agency, it was thought that Chapman could get $150 million, and even if that lowers, Seattle still likely isn't willing to do what it would take.
If Chapman settles for a one-year deal, then maybe the M's could get involved, but in a non-hitters park like T-Mobile, Chapman likely wouldn't find the success he'd want in order to hit the market again next offseason.
2) The M's right now have a platoon at third base. Luis Urias and Josh Rojas seem penciled into play there and though Chapman's resume is better than the combined resume of those two, it's not a landslide, as evidenced by MLBTradeRumors:
Since the start of the 2021 season, Chapman has posted a 110 wRC+ over 1824 plate appearances, while Urias has a 107 wRC+ in 1219 PA and Rojas a 99 wRC+ in 1410 PA. Urias and Rojas both hit so poorly in 2023 that it obscures their very solid numbers in the previous two years, albeit in less playing time than Chapman received as a true everyday player with the A’s and Blue Jays.
3) The Mariners were to go out and spend more money this offseason, Cody Bellinger would seem to make more sense. Perhaps even Blake Snell, who is a Washington native, in order to help the pitching depth.
It's fair to check in with Chapman's camp but this one doesn't seem to have much weight to it.
The 30-year-old Chapman is a .240 career hitter with 155 homers. He's an All-Star and a four-time Gold Glove winner who has spent seven years with the Oakland Athletics and Toronto Blue Jays.
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