Seattle Mariners Prospect Trade Target List: AL West

The Seattle Mariners are going to be active this summer on the trade market. Such is the nature of GM Jerry Dipoto anyways, but the team is still in the midst of their rebuild and the farm system needs more assets.

The Mariners farm system is much improved, particularly as top end talents are concerned. But the system still needs more talent and Dipoto will certainly be looking for depth in the system as well as some potential upside.

But while it is easy to fantasize about big-name prospects heading to Seattle, it isn’t likely. But the two “site experts” of Sodo Mojo decided to go through every farm system and highlight a few of the prospects that we think might be available for the Mariners. Let’s get started with a look at the AL West.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

Colby’s pick: 1B Matt Thaiss

The Angels are in a weird place as a franchise. They refuse to embrace a rebuild but have a pretty nice farm system. Ultimately, the plan might be to wait for the farm system to replenish the team around Mike Trout while just treading water at the big league level.

But with this exercise, we are still looking to add prospects from every team. My selection from the Angels system is the first base/ designated hitter prospect, Matt Thaiss. The Angels first round pick from 2016, Thaiss is ranked 8th in the team’s farm system by MLB Pipeline.

A pretty standard “bat first” 1B, Thaiss has some similar qualities to Daniel Vogelbach. He shows a good knowledge of the strike zone, an ability to hit to all fields, who focused more on line drives more than flyballs early in his career, but is starting to make strides as a power hitter.

Thaiss is actually an average glove at first and is probably ready to hold his own at the MLB level. The power is still a question, but Thaiss could develop into a .280/.360/.450 bat with average or better defense at first.

Ty’s pick: RHP Jose Soriano

It’s weird saying that I want a pitcher from the Angels organization, considering their history of, you know, not keeping their pitchers necessarily healthy or whatever. So before the Angels run Jose Soriano into the ground, it’d be great if, say, the Mariners swoop in and see the 20-year-old reach his high ceiling.

With that high ceiling comes a relatively high floor for Soriano as well. Now in his fourth season in the Angels’ organization since signing as a 17-year-old out of the Dominican Republic, Soriano has exclusively worked as a starter. While his secondary and tertiary pitches have improved with time, neither are plus-pitches for him yet.

But his fastball will play. Soriano’s velocity has gone up since he signed, now sitting comfortably in the mid-90s with an ability to touch an upwards of 97-98 with some room to grow still. It’s been an easy pitch for him to command and lean on, and will certainly help him fall back into a high-leverage bullpen role if he can’t effectively use his curveball and changeup at higher levels.

The curve, however, isn’t far off from being a plus for him, so his potential as a mid-rotation starter is still well in reach for him. On occasion, Soriano has shown an above-average spin on the curve and has been able to successfully utilize it more and more as he develops. His changeup still needs some work but can be an effective and deceptive pitch for him if he continues to work on his arm speed.

While the potential is there, Soriano hasn’t really shown the results and his stock is starting to take a hit for it. Like in years past, Soriano hasn’t posted the high strikeout numbers his stuff should afford him, and he’s greatly struggled to keep walks at a minimum this year. In 25.1 innings thus far, Soriano has a 4.45 xFIP with an 8.17 K/9 and 6.04 BB/9.

If confidence in Soriano has diminished within the Angels’ front office, now might be the most opportune time to inquire about him. At the very least, Soriano should wind up an above-average reliever at the MLB level, with some upside to develop into something more. It’s just a matter of what the Angels will actually look to do as the deadline approaches, or heading into the offseason

Houston Astros

Colby’s pick: RHP Peter Solomon

Unlike the Angels, the Astros will absolutely be buyers this summer. There are a few interesting fits for the Astros and Mariners, including with names like Edwin Encarnacion. The Astros farm system isn’t what it used to be but still has a lot of interesting names.

The name I chose is Peter Solomon, a right-handed pitcher from Notre Dame. Solomon has good stuff, including a fastball between 93-96 mph, with a hard curveball that flashes plus, and a solid slider and changeup.

With 4 average or better pitches, Solomon should be a nearly untouchable prospect for the Mariners, but Solomon has a history of injuries and control issues. If he can stay healthy and continue to refine his command, Solomon could be a mid-rotation arm. At worst, he will be a solid, late-inning arm with a power fastball/curveball combo.

Ty’s pick: RHP Tyler Ivey

Like Solomon, Tyler Ivey has four pitches he can effectively use on most nights and appears to have the makeup of a quality future starter on paper. But the jury seems to still be out on whether or not his talents are best suited in the rotation or in the bullpen, seeing action in both roles in the minors.

Ivey hasn’t gotten a whole lot of play this year, pitching just 16 innings in his first four appearances. This seems to be fairly typical for starting pitching prospects in Houston’s system, but it does play a bit into the narrative that Ivey can’t take on a bulk of innings at a time.

As Baseball Savant pointed out in their 2019 preview of Ivey, there are some durability concerns linked to his funky delivery. So far, there’s been nothing to indicate a problem for him in the near future, but it is something to keep an eye on. The command on all four of his pitches has been present, and he’s been able to hit the strike zone on a consistent basis.

Ivey doesn’t necessarily have a plus pitch yet, but his curveball and fastball have been his two best pitches over the last year and change. Both have helped Ivey keep hitters off-balance and grasping at straws, keeping well north of a 10 K/9 throughout his young pro career.

While Ivey is a hot commodity at a premium position, the Astros are fortunate enough to have an abundance of pitching talent in their system. He can be had if the Mariners so desire. Ivey fits what Jerry Dipoto has sought after over the last year: young, controllable, and either near or already at the MLB level. By this time next year, Ivey is probably pitching in the majors, either as a starter or a reliever.

Oakland Athletics

Colby’s pick: SS Jeremy Eierman

The Seattle Mariners aren’t afraid to make trades in the division, and neither are the Oakland A’s. More than likely, the A’s will be fighting for a playoff spot this summer and have an interesting plethora of talent to consider.

My choice is shortstop Jeremy Eierman. I was a big fan of Eierman leading up to the 2018 MLB Draft and was bummed to see the A’s snag him with the 70th overall pick. In college, he was a well-rounded player who could hit for power, steal bases, and had a chance to stick at SS.

However, pro ball has not been kind to Eierman, who has posted a .224/.281/.368 in his career. But the tools are still there, including his above-average power, foot speed, and plus arm. He is a good athlete and has more than enough arm to handle shortstop, though a move to third could be in his future.

The move to third would put more stress on his bat to develop. But the Mariners have a big hole in their farm system at shortstop and betting on Eierman’s talent isn’t a bad idea.

Ty’s pick: OF Luis Barrera

The Mariners have a ton of exciting outfield prospects in their system already, but Jerry Dipoto has a type. If an outfield prospect with above-average speed and athleticism is on the table, he’ll surely grab Dipoto’s attention. In this case, that would be 23-year-old Luis Barrera.

Of all the outfield prospects the Mariners currently have in-house, none are surefire center fielders in the MLB outside of Braden Bishop. Jarred Kelenic and Dom Thompson-Williams are the two most likely to stick in center, but neither has cemented the position in their profile.

Barrera isn’t likely to win any Gold Gloves in center, but he has the tools to be an above-average everyday player out there. That is if the bat can produce in the majors. If not, he’s likely destined to be a fringe major leaguer or a fourth/fifth outfielder.

He has little-to-no over-the-wall power, but his gap-to-gap potential has shone through after an underwhelming 2017 campaign. Barrera has elite speed, though he hasn’t put up elite stolen base numbers thus far in his pro career. He’s also shown the ability to work counts on occasion, hovering around a 9% walk-rate while striking out at a ~15% clip most seasons.

Barrera got off to a hot start this season with Double-A Midland before landing on the Injured List with an undisclosed injury. In 13 games, he hit .298/.365/.574 with two home runs, eight RBIs, and one steal.

Barrera’s profile feels very familiar for the Mariners, and that’s why he jumped off the page to me as someone who makes a lot of sense for them. There isn’t really a current Mariners prospect or player who directly compares to Barrera, though he does have a little Mallex Smith in him—much better defender, though.