FanSided

Mariners Buy Low Trades with the Yankees to Improve the Offense

By Curtis Christianson |
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - APRIL 07: Dylan Moore #25 of the Seattle Mariners in action against the Chicago White Sox at T-Mobile Park on April 07, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - APRIL 07: Dylan Moore #25 of the Seattle Mariners in action against the Chicago White Sox at T-Mobile Park on April 07, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
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SEATTLE – JULY 7: Dylan Moore #25 of the Seattle Mariners bats during the game against the New York Yankees at T-Mobile Park on July 7, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. The Yankees defeated the Mariners 5-4. (Photo by Rob Leiter/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
SEATTLE – JULY 7: Dylan Moore #25 of the Seattle Mariners bats during the game against the New York Yankees at T-Mobile Park on July 7, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. The Yankees defeated the Mariners 5-4. (Photo by Rob Leiter/MLB Photos via Getty Images) /

The Mariners overperformed many expectations in 2021. Many projection systems said they would only win 70 some games. They ended up winning 90 and did this even with some subpar performances from some players in their lineup for most of the season. If the Mariners add a few bats to their lineup they can become closer to league average and make the Mariners serious playoff contenders.

Dylan Moore hit .181/.276/.334 in 332 at-bats. The Mariners gave him and others including Jake Bauers, Shed Long Jr., Sam Haggerty, Jose Marmolejos, Taylor Trammell, and Jake Fraley lots of at-bats and opportunities in 2021. If the Mariners want to make the playoffs in 2022 they need to bring on some players who can have a higher offensive floor and not struggle so much for long parts of the season.

The New York Yankees had a disappointing first half of the season and came back to make the Wild Card game and ultimately lost to the Red Sox who are now in the ALCS. They may want to go after some big-name free agents in the off-season and punt on some talented players who haven’t reached their ceiling in New York. The Mariners could be a team to capitalize on this and make a trade or two with the big-spending Yankees.

BALTIMORE, MD – SEPTEMBER 06: Gleybar Torres #25 of the New York Yankees runs to second base during a game baseball game against the New York Yankees at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on September 6, 2020 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MD – SEPTEMBER 06: Gleybar Torres #25 of the New York Yankees runs to second base during a game baseball game against the New York Yankees at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on September 6, 2020 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

Mariners Trade 1: Torres and Frazier

This trade gives the Mariners an option at second base in Gleyber Torres who is very talented and could benefit from a change of scenery. Gleyber Torres slashed .259/.331/.366 last season for the Yankees and had a 93 OPS+. He would give the Mariners a much more proven option at second base and could benefit greatly from being away from the spotlight of New York.

Players can struggle mightily in New York under the immense pressure of fans expecting to win the World Series every year. Gleyber Torres can come to Seattle and just focus on himself and being a league average or better player. He can easily fit into the Mariners lineup and help them hit left-handed pitching better which the team struggled with in 2021.

Clint Frazier would give the Mariners another outfielder who could hit left-handed pitching better as a right-handed hitter. He played well in small sample sizes in 2019, 2020 but could also get more playing time in a less prominent outfield in Seattle.

The Yankees would be getting a reliever coming off of a good year and are always looking for relievers. They would take Yusei Kikuchi because money is never an issue and they are swapping underperforming players here. They also get Jake Fraley who could take on Brett Gardner’s role or replace Clint Frazier as an extra outfielder and be a potential platoon option off the bench for them.

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – OCTOBER 03: Dylan Moore #25 of the Seattle Mariners reacts after his double against the Los Angeles Angels at T-Mobile Park on October 03, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – OCTOBER 03: Dylan Moore #25 of the Seattle Mariners reacts after his double against the Los Angeles Angels at T-Mobile Park on October 03, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images) /

Mariners Trade 2: Torres for Moore and Steckenrider

Here the Mariners get their second baseman for the next few seasons as Gleyber Torres is under contract through 2025. He has been a two-time all-star and would give the Mariners an experienced player who has been to the playoffs as the Mariners push towards ending their drought.

Gleyber Torres is going into his age 25 season next year and could benefit from the Mariners offering tweaks to his swing or approach. The Mariners have been able to get players like Jake Fraley to hit the ball harder more often so they should be able to help Gleyber Torres do the same thing. His expected numbers on Statcast showed that he had a higher expected slugging percentage than he actually had.

The Yankees would make this deal because they get Drew Steckenrider who gives them a back-end arm for their bullpen. They also get Dylan Moore, who even though he struggled a lot in 2021, is a versatile bench option. He would give them speed off the bench and would be a decent backup option for them at multiple positions.

Dylan Moore could play several positions for the Yankees: second base, shortstop, third base, left field, and even right field if needed. He could add speed off the bench with several sluggers in that lineup. The Yankees might also be able to tweak his offensive approach to get more out of him.

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – JULY 06: Miguel Andujar #41 of the New York Yankees waits for a pitch the game against the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park on July 06, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. The New York Yankees won 12-1 (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – JULY 06: Miguel Andujar #41 of the New York Yankees waits for a pitch the game against the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park on July 06, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. The New York Yankees won 12-1 (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images) /

Mariners Trade 3: Andujar as the main piece

In this trade, the Mariners get Miguel Andujar who has played third base and left field. He had a great season in 2018 playing the whole season at third base. Injuries and up and down performance have limited his playing time severely in New York since then. The Mariners also get a left-handed reliever who gives the Mariners another lefty reliever option out of the bullpen.

Miguel Andujar is only going to be 27 next year and had nearly a 3 WAR season in 2018 when he played a full season at third base. He lost his spot in 2019 to Gio Urshela after tearing his labrum and injuries have been plaguing him since. The Mariners would be buying very low on a player with the upside to be a solid contributor.

Joely Rodriguez is a left-handed reliever who had a good season for the Rangers in 2020 and got traded to the Yankees in the Joey Gallo trade. He throws a fastball around 94, a slider in the mid-80s, and a changeup in the high 80s. He has a chase rate in the 97th percentile on Baseball Savant. He could give the Mariners a reliever who could challenge Anthony Misiewicz for the left-handed reliever role in the bullpen in 2022.

Next. Finding a Mariners Trade Partner in the New York Yankees. dark

The Yankees get an up and down reliever in Wyatt Mills who has some potential after lots of time back and forth between Tacoma and Seattle in 2021. Taylor Trammell gives them someone the Yankees could develop into an outfielder for them who could benefit from the short right-field porch in New York.

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