Mariners: A Trade Target From Each A.L. Central Team

Cleveland Guardians – OF Bradley Zimmer

Bradley Zimmer is a slightly similar player to Adam Engel, but he has not had the good offensive numbers that Engel has put up. Zimmer has been more available by contrast and is every bit as fast and good defensively. Zimmer had 3 DRS in 2021, in many more attempts compared to Engel. Zimmer is a lefty, compared to the right-handed Engel. Zimmer played in 99 games last year for Cleveland, amassing 1.1 WAR, and putting up a 89 wRC+.

The reason that the Mariners would target Zimmer is that when compared to Jake Fraley, Zimmer can help out in different ways that are more valuable. Zimmer can play center field, Fraley cannot, and  Zimmer is faster than Fraley. The ability to play center field is needed for the M’s in 2022, so Zimmer is a better fit for the club’s fourth outfielder going forward. Zimmer also has a much longer track record of being healthy and being a competent big leaguer than Fraley.

This is another simple swap of players who are not key cogs for their current teams but would fit better by being traded. Zimmer would be a good fit for the M’s, and Swanson would be a good fit for the Guardians. The Guardians need to add pitching help for their bullpen, and Swanson had a fairly good season for the Mariners last year. Also, Bradley Zimmer fits the Mariners need in center field for next year.

This is another even swap of players that would be dealt from players that would fit better in a new situation. The next trade target is one for the starting rotation.

Detroit Tigers – LHP Tyler Alexander

Tyler Alexander is a solid starting pitcher who could fit the Mariners fifth starter role that is currently probably Justin Dunn. The Mariners need to bring someone in to fill that role, and Alexander could certainly fill it. He started 15 games last year for Detroit, but appeared in 41 games, so he has experience in both the rotation and the bullpen.

This suggests that Alexander could come in for the first half of the year, and be moved to the 6th starter/long reliever role if George Kirby, Matt Brash, or Brandon Williamson is ready to fill his spot. In his 106.1 innings, Alexander had a 3.81 ERA, 87 strikeouts, 28 walks, and a FIP of 4.39. He overall was fairly average, but he certainly was a fine fifth starter for the Tigers last year. He could be a solid option for the Mariners at the back end of their rotation.

This trade scenario nets the M’s Tyler Alexander for prospect Kaden Polcovich. Polcovich is technically a shortstop, but he profiles as a second base, third base, and shortstop utility type player. He is not a star prospect, but Alexander does would not net a top prospect. The Tigers would be buying in on someone who made it to AA last year and is going to be 23 next year. The Tigers could use Polcovich in a few years when they should be a better team than now.

The Mariners could certainly use the services of Tyler Alexander, even if he is not the most popular option for the team in 2022, but he would be able to fill some innings that the Mariners need. The next target comes from the Royals, and is be a former top prospect who could help the M’s infield in 2022 and beyond.

Kansas City Royals – INF Adalberto Mondesi

Adalberto Mondesi was once a highly thought of prospect for the Royals, ranked as high as 37th by MLB Pipeline in 2016. Since then, Mondesi has struggled for the Royals and has moved from shortstop to third base. He is not a traditional third baseman, but he provides a unique skill set and strengths that the Mariners could use to their benefit. While he is not the biggest name or slugger, he could be an option for the Mariners if they miss out on Kris Bryant or Trevor Story.

The comparison for a scenario where the Mariners acquire Adalberto Mondesi can be found in the current heartbeat of the Mariners club, J.P. Crawford. Crawford was acquired after being a top prospect for the Phillies and struggling in the big leagues a bit. They have very different tools and traits, but the premise is the same. Mondesi could benefit from a change of scenery, and the Mariners may have the chance to give it to him.

The Mariners may be able to change something with his approach to improve his offensive and defensive skills. Mondesi has had up and down years in the field, but a Spring Training with infield coach Perry Hill should turn him into at least average, with the potential to be above average. Working with the hitting coaches in Seattle could also help him develop, as he is only 26 years old. Being around Crawford might also benefit him, as he would be at a similar point in his career.

The biggest problem with Mondesi is his health. He has been placed on the injured list 5 times dating back to 2019, costing him to only play in exactly half of all possible games the last three seasons. That is not a good number, but he has shown flashes of being a very exciting and valuable player.

The best tool in Mondesi’s bag is his speed. He stole 32,43, and 24 bases from 2018-2020 for the Royals. He is one of the fastest players in baseball and one of the best baserunners. He would immediately be the best runner on the M’s roster and give them legit 20 plus steal potential. That is something that they currently don’t have and it would be a boost to the team.

The potential to be a 2-4 WAR player as he showed in back-to-back seasons in 2018 and 2019. Mondesi put up a 2.8 WAR season in just 75 games and had a 113 wRC+. In 2019 he had a 2.4 WAR season in a career-high 102 games but had an 81 wRC+. If the Mariners can unlock something in Mondesi, he could emerge as a solid young player. He is a free agent after 2023, so the Mariners would only acquire him for two seasons, therefore keeping a trade cost down.

In this trade scenario, the M’s would send Taylor Trammell and Wyatt Mills to the Royals for Mondesi. From a Royals perspective, they are getting a young outfielder who has a small amount of big league time and was once a highly regarded prospect. Trammell would be in the mix to play in the Royals 2022 outfield and has many years of club control remaining. Mills is a bullpen piece who probably would have seen more action if he was not on the Mariners last year.

The combination of Trammell and Mills gives the Royals two potential mid-tier players, not stars, but competent players to fill around young players like Bobby Witt and Nicky Lopez. The Mariners would be buying in on Adalberto Mondesi and believe that they can turn him into something better. An interesting idea with Mondesi would be to see if he could play center field with his speed. That would be a way to boost his value even more for Seattle.

Minnesota Twins – 2B/3B Jorge Polanco

Jorge Polanco is the best player out of this group of five A.L. Central division players, but he is not known by many. He had one of the most underrated seasons last year, hitting a career-high 33 home runs, a career-high wRC+ of 122, and he also had a career-high slugging percentage of .503. Those numbers helped him earn a WAR of 3.9 last year in 152 games for the Twins. He was one of the best second basemen last year and could be a huge boost for the Mariners.

Overall, Polanco is a fringey defensive infielder who can play all three infield spots besides first base. He played 120 games at second base last year, and ideally should play there but could play third base if the Mariners decided he would be better there. His bat is what the Mariners would love to add most of all. He had a huge breakout year in 2021, and he probably won’t be quite as good in 2022, but he still could be great.

It is very reasonable to estimate that Polanco could have similar offensive value to Mitch Haniger. Both hit over 30 home runs last year, nearly 100 RBI each, and similar slash lines. The bonus of Polanco is that he is a slightly better hitter for average than Haniger. Adding Polanco would be a huge boost for the M’s and he would not be a short-term add either. He has two years left on his contract, but then two option years after that, keeping Polanco through 2025.

His contract is also not expensive, only costing just over $35 million including his option years. This is all that makes Polanco a potentially huge get for the Mariners, but he would certainly be most costly to acquire out of the players so far.

This deal certainly would take some of the Mariners higher thought of prospects, but it would not be in vain. The way that the Mariners can sweeten the deal for the Twins and not just offer prospects is by adding Abraham Toro to the package since he has big league time. This deal does have bulk, but the Mariners do not give up some of their prospects with the highest ceilings.

Toro has not done a ton in the big leagues, but he has several years left and could turn into the type of player that Polanco is now. Stoudt and Dollard are both good pitching prospects, but profile as back end of the rotation starters more than middle of the rotation arms. Mercedes is a lottery ticket who is most likely a bullpen arm who pitched in Modesto last year.

The package may seem like a lot, but Polanco will cost a lot because of his production and his fairly cheap contract. The Mariners could do a similar deal where they traded maybe players like Brandon Williamson and Zach DeLoach for Polanco, but those players have more upside and are more coveted by the M’s front office.

This gives both sides something good. The Mariners get Polanco, and the Twins get a player to immediately replace Polanco, Stoudt who could be in the big leagues this summer, Dollard is probably a year behind him, and Mercedes a year or two behind Dollard. The Twins get four players who fit into waves for them to impact their club for years to come. The Mariners would get a second baseman to lock down that spot for years to come as well.

Overall, the American League Central Division offers the Mariners a world of possibilities to trade for. They could upgrade their outfield depth, their pitching depth, and their infield with both upside plays and established players. The Mariners will have several opportunities to be an even better team in 2022, and it will depend on the types of players they acquire once this labor negotiation dispute is over and the lockout is lifted.