Sodo Mojo’s Mariners Trade Deadline Plan

Trade #3: Josh Harrison for Max Povse

One of the most requested improvements to the Mariners 25 man roster is the replacement of Andrew Romine as the utility man. We have written about a few possibilities in the past. While Asdrubal Cabrera, Derek Dietrich, and Yangervius Solarte were all discussed, we ultimately settled on Josh Harrison after a spirited debate.

Harrison is a 31-year-old utility man for the Pittsburgh Pirates. While primarily a second baseman, Harrison has logged 300 innings or more at 2B, 3B, RF, and RF. He also has 200 innings of SS experience under his belt.

The 2018 season has not been all that kind to Harrison thus far, who is hitting .256/.292/.350 in 241 plate appearances. Harrison is also due roughly $5 million for the remainder of 2018. He also has 2 team options for 2019 and 2020 for $10.5 and $11.5 million respectively. The 2019 option includes a $1 million buyout and the 2020 option has a $500,000 buyout.

So we have an aging, expensive, potential rental player going from the NL to AL, who wouldn’t play much in a perfect world. Why do we want him?

Sure, his 2018 hasn’t been great. But from 2014-2017, Harrison hit .290/.331/.428 with a 162 game average of 12 homers and 17 steals. In addition to a substantial upgrade to Romine offensively, Harrison is also an excellent base-runner.

Having a weapon like Harrison off the bench in the playoffs is valuable. So too is being able to give guys like Kyle Seager, Dee Gordon and Jean Segura rest down the stretch. It is actually Harrison’s contract that makes him an option for Seattle, who might be willing/more able to add salary at the deadline.

In his Baseball Things Podcast, Hero Sports Prospect Insider reported that an Asst. GM of an NL East team told him that the Mariners have made it known they have no salary cap. They are open to everything, including taking on large portions of contracts from sellers.

To acquire Harrison, the Mariners would part with 6’8″ RHP, Max Povse. Povse has struggled for most of his tenure with the Mariners but has recently started seeing better results in AA Arkansas.

The Pirates have a long history of taking talented pitchers and helping them turn their careers around. Povse fits that mold. The fastball/changeup combo is enticing to work with, as is his 103 strikeouts in just 92 innings.

The Mariners improve their utility spot for at least the remainder of this season, and potentially for 3 seasons left to come. If the Mariners can fix Harrison at the plate, he could be flipped this off-season, or down the line.

Harrison is a fan favorite in Pittsburgh. However, if the Pirates don’t think they can compete in 2019, why not save $10 million? The Pirates aren’t a franchise that can afford bad contracts, so even saving $5 million in 2018 can be as valuable as Max Povse.