8 players who are still there for Mariners' taking after 2025 Winter Meetings

The Winter Meetings consisted of the Seattle Mariners going to Orlando, Florida and not doing a whole heck of a lot. As Kyle Schwarber, Pete Alonso and former Mariner Edwin Díaz came off the board, the only things linked to Seattle were a few quotes and the odd rumor or two.

It was a disappointing showing, but two things make one feel better about it. For one, the Mariners had already checked off two big items on their offseason to-do list by re-signing Josh Naylor and trading for Jose A. Ferrer. For two, there's still a lot of winter left.

Here are eight players who are still out there for them, split between three realistic options and five fallbacks who are very much on the radar.

8 players who are there for Mariners' taking after 2025 Winter Meetings

2B/DH Jorge Polanco

A report came out from ESPN's Jesse Rogers before the Winter Meetings that Polanco was expected to sign before the event was over. That didn't pan out, and we even learned there's a gap between what Polanco is seeking and what the Mariners are comfortable offering.

Yet even if the Mariners don't go as far as a three- or four-year deal to retain Polanco, the mutual interest is there. The team can also offer him a shorter deal with a higher average value without breaking its budget, even if it meant having to include an opt-out after 2026.

Yes, there are other teams sniffing around the 32-year-old switch-hitter. Yet the Mariners remain the best fit for him, and the reunion ship has hardly sailed despite the lack of action in Orlando.

C Mitch Garver

The Mariners didn't wait until they arrived in Orlando to make their second major move of the winter. They sent Harry Ford to Washington for Ferrer on Saturday, filling a need in their bullpen while simultaneously opening one at backup catcher.

As Adam Jude of The Seattle Times reported, the Mariners are open to reinstalling Garver in the role:

It's probably not what Mariners fans wanted to hear, but Garver would not be in line to disappoint if he were to return to Seattle. He wouldn't be coming back on a $24 million deal, and he wouldn't be looking at much playing time. If the Mariners can get him back for, say, $5 million or even less on a one-year deal, you take that for stability underneath Cal Raleigh.

RHP Tyler Rogers

Jude is clearly well-connected within the Mariners organization. He had Ferrer listed among the bullpen options the Mariners were considering last Friday, and they traded for him the very next day.

Whereas Ferrer was one of four lefties on the list Jude presented, Rogers was the only right-hander. One catch with him is that he isn't going to come cheap, as a two-year deal could cost as much as $20 million. Another catch is that the Mariners already have a Rogers clone in their farm system.

Then again, Rogers is one of the only relievers in MLB who can give you 70-plus appearances and an ERA in the 2.00s or even the 1.00s. He doesn't have the bat-missing stuff Seattle needed in its pen this year, but he's good for strikes, ground balls and certainly a different look if nothing else.

5 more on the radar: Ketel Marte, Brendan Donovan, Brandon Lowe, Eugenio Suárez, Bryce Eldridge

These are all players the Mariners have been linked to in some form or another in recent days. It's certainly Marte's name that stands out the most, as the three-time All-Star second baseman is probably the best player they can acquire this winter.

Just don't hold your breath. Though the Mariners can feasibly offer the Arizona Diamondbacks what they want for Marte, other teams (namely the Boston Red Sox) line up better as trading partners. And between Polanco and Marte, the former seems like the more likely add at second base.

Donovan might be the most feasible Plan B if the Mariners can't bring back Polanco, in part because the St. Louis Cardinals are reportedly in no hurry to move him. He doesn't have Polanco's power upside, but he'd upgrade Seattle's defense and would be an option for a leadoff spot that struggled in the OBP department in 2025.

Lowe is the better option if the Mariners want a Polanco profile without actually re-signing Polanco. Lowe is limited defensively, but his power potential is somewhere in the 20-to-30-homer range. His $11.5 million salary could be too rich for the Tampa Bay Rays, but it's surely less than what Seattle is looking at paying Polanco.

Eldridge, meanwhile, is a pure wild card who would only fit with the Mariners as an everyday DH, or perhaps a converted right fielder. He only has 10 games of major league experience with the San Francisco Giants, yet MLB Pipeline has him down as a 70-grade hitter with a solid hit tool.