Grading the Mariners’ busy trade deadline

Surprise, surprise – Jerry Dipoto’s Mariners were busy at this year’s trade deadline.

With a total of four trades spanning over the past week, the Mariners added much needed depth to a lacking bullpen and beefed up their offense with a new starting centerfielder.

Seeing the Mariners strictly add at the deadline is something we haven’t witnessed since 2014, when the M’s acquired Austin Jackson and Chris Denorfia. This was the first time the Dipoto regime has gone all-in at the end of July and for good reason.

Dipoto’s teams over the past two years have been around league average at the deadline. This has put them in an awkward position of not being willing to designate themselves as either buyers or sellers.

In 2018, the Mariners are currently in prime position to end their 17-year playoff drought, tied with the Oakland Athletics for the second American League wild card.

They’ve overachieved their way to this position, which has left them with some room for improvement. After a lackluster July that resulted in the A’s catching them in the standings, the Mariners were in desperate need of some upgrades.

Let’s take a look at what they did, starting with their first deal of the deadline season.

RHP SAM TUIVAILALA

Tuivailala was the only player the Mariners acquired who is club-controlled past 2018. Despite not having any Minor League options left, Tuivailala is an extremely affordable right-handed specialist who could develop into a bullpen cornerstone in the near future.

In his Mariner debut, Tuivailala opened eyes with a smooth 97 mile-per-hour fastball mixed with a pair of breaking balls that will definitely bend knees on occasion.

While the compensation hurts on paper, Elledge projects to be a middle-of-the-rotation reliever at best. Though Elledge will likely be a Major Leaguer sooner rather than later, the Mariners were able to trade from a place of depth to acquire someone who can help them immediately and for years to come.

Grade: A-

LHP ZACH DUKE

While his Mariner debut went horribly wrong, Duke is still a nice addition to the bullpen.

After Marc Rzepczynski failed to fill his role as the Mariners’ lefty specialist, the M’s have struggled to find another southpaw to pair up with James Pazos. This has put a lot more work on Pazos, who seems to be wearing down a bit as we head later into the season.

Duke and his multiple arm angles add another dimension to the Mariners’ bullpen, where he’ll be relied upon to face the likes of Didi Gregorius and Matt Olson in key moments.

De Jong has some potential as a starter but didn’t have a clear future with the Mariners after squandering his opportunities in 2017. At best, he’ll be a decent fourth or fifth starter for the Twins.

Dipoto and co. won’t be losing sleep over De Jong. Same goes for Costello.

Grade: B

OF CAMERON MAYBIN

It’s no secret that the Mariners’ offense has been absolutely atrocious over the last month. While the M’s were getting solid defense out of Guillermo Heredia in centerfield, they desperately needed an upgrade at the plate.

In comes Cameron Maybin, who began his 2018 campaign rather poorly. But a hot month of July got him back on the map and into the radars of various contending teams, including the Mariners.

Maybin is now the Mariners’ starting centerfielder for the rest of the season, giving them a healthy balance of solid offense and above-average defense.

The cost of Brigman is a tough pill to swallow, considering that his stock was beginning to rise due to his excellent season at High-A Modesto. But he’s not a prospect to rely on, and he didn’t have a clear path to the MLB within the Mariners organization.

Maybin, while a rental, could be the breath of fresh air the Mariners’ offense needs to finally get back into gear. If not, you may have just given up one of your better trade chips for little production.

Grade: C