3 former top prospects Mariners should target as trade reclamation projects

The one thing the Seattle Mariners can't do after a season like this one is play it safe. Perhaps that's asking Jerry Dipoto to change at least 54 percent of his stripes, but wouldn't you be in the mood to take big swings if people were speculating about your job security?

If anything, Dipoto will hopefully go into the winter with the mindset to throw it all at the wall. Big trades? Sure. Big free-agent signings? Why not. Heck, might as well toss a few low-risk, high-reward moves as well.

That last one is the genre we want to get into, specifically by looking at former top prospects the Mariners could target in trades.

These types are a dime a dozen, and quite a few of them belong in the file marked "Thanks, But No Thanks." A trade for, say, Royce Lewis doesn't sound especially appealing. Ditto for guys like Jasson Domínguez, Nolan Gorman and Mark Vientos. If the Mariners are going to spend trade capital on a former prospect, there needs to be some kind of assurance that there's still something there.

Pitching 3 former top prospects that make sense as Mariners trade targets

INF/OF Brett Baty, New York Mets

Brett Baty has spent parts of five seasons with the Mets, and he's been involved in trade rumors and speculation for what has felt like the entirety of the duration. That he's still with the Mets feels like a miracle, albeit one that has a clear explanation.

He just hasn't been a productive major leaguer for the most part. In 440 career games, he owns just an 89 OPS+ and 4.1 rWAR. The best year he's had happened in 2025, when he was worth 3.0 rWAR. That number has been cut basically in half to 1.7 this year.

If nothing else, though, this year has seen Baty make a successful transition into a super-utility role. As of Saturday, he's started games at all four infield spots. He's also started 27 games in the corner outfield spots. That kind of versatility is never not valuable, though his specific quality as a third baseman should have the Mariners wondering if he could have a home in the spot where Brendan Donovan looked out of place.

Also, dude's finishing the year on a heater. Baty has a 1.140 OPS and 18 RBI in his last 28 games dating back to August 21, with the fourth-highest xwOBA of any player in that span. It could be lightning in a bottle, but the Mariners should still be willing to find out if the Mets are willing to offer Baty for cheap.

INF Anthony Volpe, New York Yankees

This one is going to be trickier. As much as Anthony Volpe looked like an obvious change of scenery candidate once upon a time, now he has a couple potential avenues back into the Yankees' good graces. With Jazz Chisholm Jr. set for free agency, Volpe is a potential 2027 solution at second base. Or, he could play third base now that he's getting a chance to show what he's got there.

And yet, the Yankees need to reckon with how over 2,000 plate appearances in the majors for Volpe have only yielded an 83 OPS+. He may be what he is. And whatever that is, it's not the second coming of Derek Jeter.

What should interest the Mariners about Volpe is that he's proven to be a pretty good defender despite occasional complaints to the contrary. As a shortstop, he's firmly in the black for DRS (+26) and OAA (+14) after over 4,500 innings. The Mariners need to improve their defense and could be in the market for a shortstop, so go ahead and put two and two together.

Offensively, Volpe has shown 20-20 potential despite being a high-.200s OBP guy. That's not a lineup anchor, but a guy like that who also plays plus defense is more than welcome in the No. 9 spot.

RF Sal Frelick, Milwaukee Brewers

"Why aren't we the Brewers?" is apparently the question they're asking in Cincinnati. It's also something we've been asking around here, specifically as it relates to Milwaukee's overwhelming "next man up" style of offense.

Even knowing that he only has a 91 OPS+ for his career, you can see how Sal Frelick plays his part in Milwaukee. He rarely swings and misses, this year posting a whiff rate in the 99th percentile. He's also a type who can do productive outs, something the Mariners are neglecting to a fault with their offensive model.

Even better, Frelick is a very good defensive outfielder. He has spent time in all three outfield spots, and his totals for over 3,500 innings on the grass come to a +26 DRS and a +19 OAA. At the worst, he could be an upgrade over Victor Robles as a fourth option off the bench.

It's also possible that Frelick could be had for pennies on the dollar. He's coming up on his first year of arbitration-eligibility, and he's in that sweet spot of being too good to non-tender and not quite good enough for the budget-conscious Brewers to actually roster for 2027.

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