Mariners Should Slam the Door on Any Lazaro Montes Trade Talk
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Lazaro Montes continues to launch baseballs into orbit. On June 11, Montes launched a three-run homer for Double-A Arkansas, pushing his season total to 19. And as we barrel toward the trade deadline, his name is getting tossed into fake trade machines by every fan base that thinks Seattle should go all in.
No…That should be the Mariners’ answer before a team even finishes the sentence. If another front office calls Jerry Dipoto and tries to make a serious offer that starts with Montes, the conversation shouldn’t be complicated. It should end with a dial tone.
The Mariners should be willing to buy. And they should be willing to move real prospects for real help. But Lazaro Montes should not be part of that conversation.
Crushed. Lazaro Montes 3-run HR for his 19th HR. Locked in. pic.twitter.com/c5lRkdXpti
— Mariners Minors (@MiLBMariners) June 11, 2026
The Mariners Cannot Keep Searching for the Bat Lazaro Montes Might Become
Montes isn’t the perfect prospect. He’s not Konnor Griffin, or any of those 5-tool guys. The strikeouts are very real. There are still adjustments coming, and there will be stretches where he gets exposed. But that’s what comes with a young slugger. And even so, the Mariners really need to be honest with themselves.
Montes is exactly the kind of hitter Seattle rarely develops. He has true impact power. It’s not “maybe he hits 20 homers” impact. This guy can be a game-bender if you play your cards right.
Coming into his June 11 game, Montes was slashing .240/.351/.553 with a .904 OPS. The batting average tells you there is still some roughness here. The slugging percentage tells you why everyone should be paying attention anyway.
The Mariners can live with development risk when the reward is this loud. They cannot keep complaining about the lack of thump in the organization and then turn around and shop their future cleanup hitter..
The Mariners’ Future Lineup Gets Much Louder if Montes Hits
Montes in isolation isn’t even the most exciting part. It’s what would happen when the Mariners are ready to put him with the rest of the core.
Imagine a version of this lineup with Julio Rodríguez, Cal Raleigh, Josh Naylor, Cole Young, Colt Emerson, and then adding Montes as another hammer. Obviously not in that lineup order. But that’s six true threats at the plate. It would be a beautiful thing.
The Yordan Alvarez comparisons are easy to understand, even if we should be careful with them. Montes is not Yordan. But the shape of the dream is obvious: a huge left-handed bat who can live in left field or at DH and make every pitching mistake feel expensive.
The Mariners don’t have many players in the system with that kind of offensive ceiling. So trading the loudest power bat in the system? For a short-term deadline fix?
That’s how you create the kind of regret that shows up in highlight packages for another team and haunts your fan base for years.
There are prospects you consider moving because the right deal forces the conversation. Then there are prospects where the answer should be very simple.
Don’t do it, Jerry.
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Tremayne Person is the Publisher for Mariners On SI and the Site Expert at Friars on Base, with additional bylines across FanSided’s MLB division. He founded the Keep It Electric podcast in 2023 and covers baseball with a blend of analysis, context, and a little well-timed side-eye just to keep things honest. Tremayne grew up a Mariners fan in Richmond, Va., and that passion ultimately led him to move to Seattle to cover the team closely and become a regular at home games. Through his writing, he connects with fans who want a deeper, more personal understanding of the game. When he’s not at T-Mobile Park, he’s with his dog, gaming, or finding the next storyline worth digging into.
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