Seattle Mariners: A trade for Carter Kieboom that is perfect for both sides

The Washington Nationals are making Carter Kieboom available for trade. The Seattle Mariners should go get him.

I love Kyle Seager. I’ll start by saying that, cause I have a feeling that I am going to make some people upset with this. The Washington Nationals have recently made Carter Kieboom available for trade, and the Seattle Mariners should trade Kyle Seager for him.

There is no arguing that Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto has been setting this team up for, what he hopes, will be a long run at the playoffs that is set to come to fruition in a couple of years. The farm system is loaded, there is little long term salary, and there are not very many old players either.

Kyle Seager is one of the last vestiges of the older players/high salaries. He re-couped some of his value last year, hitting over .270 through the first 20 games, was still on pace for homers in the mid-’20s, and actually on pace for around 100 RBIs. The 2014 All-Star finished 2020 with a 0.9 WAR.

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What Kyle Seager can’t do though, is be a part of the Seattle Mariners’ future, unlike Carter Kieboom.

I was talking to a guy the other day who knows a bit about the Washington Nationals, District on Deck Site Co-Expert Max Rayman. It doesn’t help to just hear our view (the Seattle Mariners fan), but to get it from both sides. Do you want to hear about the guy you are looking to trade for? Here is what Max had to say?

“I personally think he hasn’t been given a fair chance… we don’t have the time to allow a player to go through growing pains… Not good at all but small sample size and wasn’t given a full opportunity. He needs a team like the Mariners who have the time to allow him to go through growing pains at the plate. Nats fans are spoiled by Rendon, Soto, Strasburg, and Harper… So if a top rookie struggles at all they want him gone.”

There are a few things that I hear from that. One, Carter Kieboom needs to be on a team that can give him time to grow without too much pressure. Two, he is still talented, and the Nationals know it. Three, they would rather get something that could help them now as compared to three years down the road.

Hold on… three years down the road. That sounds like the Seattle Mariners!

The Mariners have done something slightly similar to this in the past, and it was for a separate 23-year-old, JP Crawford. In that deal, they gave up Jean Segura, Pazos, and Nicasio for Carlos Santana and Crawford. Kieboom isn’t ranked as high, nor has he ever been, as Crawford was in the MLB.com prospect rankings. Remember, Crawford was the second-ranked prospect in 2017. Kieboom was 20th in 2019, and wasn’t even ranked heading into 2020.

Kieboom is the perfect example of a player in need of a change in scenery and why not bring him literally across the country to Seattle.

He is still a stud though, and cannot be had for free. So here is my proposed deal:

We just saw the Washington Nationals trade away two players not in the top 100 of their system in order to get Josh Bell, who will immediately step in at first base. Why not add another major league bat, one that has consistent pop, and will likely increase being in a lineup full of actual major league hitters?

That’s what the Nationals could get in Kyle Seager. They have been trying to replace Anthony Rendon and have been unsuccessful in doing so. I am not saying Seager is on the same level as Rendon, but Seager will provide more than Josh Harrison who is behind Kieboom on the depth chart.

To offset some of his contract, the Mariners could cover $13 million of the next two years. This would mean that, as long as Kyle Seager picked up his $15 million player option for 2022, that the Nationals would only be paying him $10 million per year, which would be a nice contract for someone of Seager’s production.

We could also send Ljay Newsome. He likely won’t be anything more than a backend starter, but he is major league ready and could immediately be inserted into the rotation for the Washington Nationals. The Nationals are a contender, and adding two solid pieces for Kieboom would be a win for both teams. Especially with the money that comes along with Kyle Seager.

Yes, in the end, we get rid of one of everyone’s favorite Seattle Mariners. It might hurt to see him go, but adding another solid piece, one that will possibly come to fruition for the same window as the rest of the team, would be a great trade in the end. Let’s go get Carter Kieboom.