Seattle Mariners Trade a Day: Getting Involved in NL Central Race

The Seattle Mariners continued their trend of playing quality baseball yesterday so we will continue to follow our trend of pumping out these “trade a day” articles for your amusement.

While Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto has been pretty consistent in stating that they need a player to build around, consistently stating Mitch Haniger as such a player, the idea that he isn’t willing to listen on any player is simply untrue.

Remember at the beginning of this off-season? Dipoto specifically named Haniger, Marco Gonzales, and Edwin Diaz as “building blocks” for the next Mariners contender. Well, a few weeks later, Diaz was headed to New York and the next face of the franchise came in the deal.

So we know Dipoto will trade anybody… so long as his price is met. In fact, we know he listened on Mitch Haniger, but reports indicate that only one team should any level of serious interest in Haniger.

The Mariners may try to re-bait the hook and shop their current “franchise player” this summer. The offense has functioned without him in June and the outfield is a position of strength for the team.

Moving Haniger would also add significant talent to the minor league system and perhaps an MLB replacement as well. There are plenty of teams that are a fit for Haniger, but the question is will any actually pursue the 28-year-old?

If there is a market, one team that makes a lot of sense are the St. Louis Cardinals. The Cards are currently just 3 games back of the NL Central-leading Cubs. The Cards offense has been decidedly mediocre in 2019 ranking 21st in runs scored and 15th in outfield fWAR.

The price will continue to be the sticking point, as the Cardinals don’t have the best farm system right now. But they do have several young, MLB pieces and enough in the system to put out a competitive offer. Here is our proposal:

Let’s start with the most familiar name, Tyler O’Neill. Mariners fans should remember O’Neill, a one-time top prospect in Seattle’s system before he was traded to St. Louis for Marco Gonzales. After much handwringing from fans, it has turned out to be one of Dipoto’s biggest wins. But O’Neill still has time to prove he can hit big league pitching.

Nothing much has changed in his profile since he left Seattle. He still swings and misses too much. He still has plus power and is still jacked. O’Neill is basically the same guy who was here, but with 181 pedestrian PAs against big league pitching.

In those chances, O’Neill has slugged 10 home runs, but has whiffed 41.4% of his PAs and posted a measly .298 OBP. He is currently in AAA, working his way back from an injury. Defensively, O’Neill is average in a corner with a strong enough arm to stick in RF.

Jose Martinez is destined to be an AL player. The 30-year-old has proven he can hit while also proving he can’t field. He is “Domingo Santana in left field” bad in the outfield, and grades about as well as Daniel Vogelbach at first. But what can he do? Hit.

The Cardinals just don’t have a place for him without the DH and first base being filled by Paul Goldschmidt. He has no future in St. Louis, but isn’t a free agent until after 2022 and has 2 options remaining.

To wrap up the deal, Seattle lands Steven Gingery and Junior Fernandez, two arms that couldn’t be more different. Gingery is a pitchability lefty who is working his way back from Tommy John Surgery. When healthy, Gingery sits 89-92 with one of the better changeups in all the minor leagues.

Gingery’s ceiling will depend on his curveball, which is fringe-average but has flashed in the past. With it, he could be a #3 but will likely settle into a #4 or #5 type. Wade LeBlanc may be a fair comp.

Fernandez is a hard-throwing righty who touches triple digits and mixes in a quality changeup. He throws strikes but has subpar command. In AAA he has struck out 58 hitters in 44 innings while walking 19. He is going to be bullpen arm, albeit a multi-inning one, as his slider lags far behind his other two offerings.

In this deal, Seattle gets a potential everyday OF, a first baseman with a plus hit tool, a high-floor lefty, and a potential high-leverage reliever. Losing Haniger would be tough, but this package gives you a chance to add impact talent that is all close to helping you at the big league level.