Mariners fans think this is the starting pitcher the team should trade for

The Mariners need to make a deal for a starting pitcher at the deadline. Last year, they were able to send out Carter Bins for Tyler Anderson, and he ended up working out much better than anyone would’ve expected for the Mariners.

This year though, fans are asking for more. It sounds like Jerry and crew are looking for more as well. They know that they have a better team than last year, and getting another solid starting pitcher to add to an already strong rotation would push the team further into contention.

What starting pitcher should the Mariners look at adding as we approach the 2022 MLB Trade Deadline?

That’s exactly the question that we asked you on Twitter. There are four big-name starting pitchers out there that are on the block. It’s odd and fun at the same time, and with all of them potentially being available, striking at the right time could actually net one of them for more of a bargain than you would think.

If you’ve got the only one available, you can drive the price up. However, when there are four, there could be a worry that whoever calls you isn’t willing to give up what you want, and tells you they are gonna call one of the other teams. That might not happen, but it’s a lot more likely than last year when there were fewer top talent pitchers available.

We asked you, the fans, who the Mariners should go for. Out of Luis Castillo, Pablo Lopez, Tarik Skubal, and Frankie Montas, if you could name the number one option on your wish list, who would it be? With nearly 500 votes, the results are in.

1. Luis Castillo – Reds – 39.7%
2. Tarik Skubal – Tigers – 25.5%
3. Pablo Lopez – Marlins – 22.4%
4. Frankie Montas – Athletics – 12.4%

As the week goes on, we will have proposals up for all of them. We already put some out for Skubal and will have Pablo Lopez out on Friday. Montas and Castillo will come out this weekend.

I know that I mentioned that players might not end up costing as much as you would think… but that doesn’t mean that you are going to be able to get them for peanuts. You aren’t going to be able to straight up trade Zach Deloach for Luis Castillo or anything like that. But you also aren’t going to have to trade Noelvi Marte, Edwin Arroyo, Emerson Hancock, and Gabriel Gonzalez for him.

Here’s how I have been thinking about it. Normally, values jump up a bunch at the deadline because there are a handful of teams that are trying to pry a player away. Instead of that, I think it might end up looking more like the value that you would get in an offseason trade. When it’s not as hectic.

Normally, you’ve got half the league that wants to make a big splash all fighting over starting pitching. This year, you’ve got four legit top-of-the-line guys who could fit anywhere between a bottom-tier #1 and a strong #3. You’ve also got just 7-8 teams looking to obtain one of them. A team can only really bring themselves to make one big trade at the deadline. So, there might be teams that take themselves out of it by going after a different position.

Honestly, If the over/under was set at 2.5 for those four being traded, i would take the under. With the amount of control that guys like Lopez and Skubal have, I could see them both staying. Oakland loves trading, so Montas is likely gone. Personally, the hope is that Cinci and the Mariners keep up their recent trade history and make a deal for Castillo.

This is coming out the night of the 28th, with only 4.5 days or so left until the deadline. The Mariners have let it be known that they are being active and aggressive in looking to add an impact player to their team… and one of these four starting pitchers seems like a great candidate to be said player.