Major League Baseball held the annual General Manager’s Meetings this week, stoking the hot stove with a few trades and rumors. Not to mention, uber-agent Scott Boras’ filled his press conference with hyperbole on free agents Carlos Correa, Michael Conforto, et al. The Mariners are ever-active, and Jerry Dipoto can’t seem to go a day without making a couple of calls.
Cashing in on Pitching Depth is a Possibility for Jerry Dipoto and the Mariners
President of Baseball Operations Jerry Dipoto made the media circuit with some interesting nuggets for the fan base. One of the most telling signs is multiple sources, such as Seattle Times reporter Ryan Divish uncovering this juicy tidbit.
Dipoto said Chris Flexen drew plenty of trade interest at the deadline and continues to be asked about. Seems likely Flexen could be moved in a package of players to get a position player.
— Ryan Divish (@RyanDivish) November 9, 2022
As we wrote a few weeks ago, this was always a possibility, but now it seems more like a reality. The Mariners have a strong pitching development program that graduated George Kirby and Logan Gilbert in the past two years. The next wave of high-upside pitching is in Arkansas, where Bryce Miller, Emerson Hancock, and recent 40-man addition Prelander Berroa made considerable strides in 2022.
Dipoto also told Divish that flamethrower Matt Brash would be bringing his triple-digit heat and gyroball slider back to the rotation next year. He isn’t guaranteed a spot in the five but will compete for the final spot.
Dipoto said they plan to have Matt Brash come to spring training stretched out as a starter for depth purposes, but will move him back to bullpen if the rotation remains healthy and unchanged
— Ryan Divish (@RyanDivish) November 9, 2022
Dipoto also expressed interest in Japanese hurler Kodai Senga. If they sign him this offseason, starters with less upside could be leveraged to help fill holes in the lineup, preferably at second base in the corner outfield. J.P. Morosi sat down with Dipoto this week and parsed the tea leaves with Seattle Sports 710, Wyman, and Dave.
"“Perhaps Teoscar for (Mariners outfielder Jarred Kelenic and more) could make some sense… I think Kelenic is a really interesting guy. I think the Mariners like him maybe more than anybody else does, but I also believe that there is the chance that he in a different environment would really find something. And Toronto has a history of finding guys who … didn’t quite put it all together (elsewhere), and honestly, Teoscar Hernández was one of those guys in Houston.”"
Plenty of available bats would look great in the Mariner’s lineup. Teoscar Hernandez or Brendan Rodgers would help raise the team’s on-base percentage or provide some thunder in the lineup.
Rockies 2B Brendan Rodgers led all second basemen in Defensive Runs Saved - he also led them in diving plays made.
— SIS_Baseball (@sis_baseball) November 1, 2022
You can see it in action - and we talked to him about it in this article.
He's the NL Gold Glove winner at 2Bhttps://t.co/91oAiNvqDk pic.twitter.com/L2rpKQmWD3
Next. Mariners Free Agency Target: Going after OF Aaron Judge. dark
But even the casual fan knows “Trader Jerry” is good at making deals that force us to fire up the Google Machine. So buckle up because if these first few days indicate what’s ahead, the stove is just getting warm.