AL West rival's high-profile agent change is a sigh of relief for the Mariners

One of the biggest challenges of the Jerry Dipoto era in Seattle has been trying to overtake the Houston Astros as the team to beat in the AL West. And even though the Mariners finally started getting the better of their hated rivals in the head-to-head meeting the past two seasons, they still finished behind them in the standings both times and ultimately missed out on the playoffs.

So far in 2025, it's trending towards more of the same, with the Seattle Mariners 6.5 games behind the Astros at the top of the division following a disappointing 2-2 road series split versus the Minnesota Twins. However, recent developments in Houston will potentially be a cause for some hope back in Seattle.

The Scott Boras effect might help the Mariners

According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the Astros and Jeremy Peña had apparently been making progress in talks regarding a long-term contract extension. However, the shortstop recently made the decision to switch agents to a certain Scott Boras, and those same talks have now been put on hold for the time being.

Such is the reputation of Boras, the decision to suspend talks is no surprise given that the larger-than-life agent typically doesn't do extensions. We of course had effectively the opposite situation in Seattle, with Cal Raleigh leaving the Boras Corporation for new representation and subsequently agreeing a six-year, $105 million contract extension to remain with the Mariners.

On the subject of Raleigh, he's a good comparison to give you some idea of just how important Peña has been to the Astros in 2025. There's no denying the Mariners' catcher is having a special AL MVP-worthy season, but consider that his 4.4 WAR actually pales in comparison to the 4.7 WAR accumulated so far by the 2022 Gold Glove Award winner in Houston, Texas.

Jeremy Peña stepping up big time with his bat

Peña has always been a phenomenal defender thanks to his strong arm and superior speed, but this year has seen him take a significant step forward with his bat, resulting in controlling the strike zone better. Heading into Friday's slate of MLB games he has a .324/.379/.492 slash line, .871 OPS, 144 OPS+ and .384 rOBA, which all project to easily be career bests.

You would have to assume Peña's offensive surge was what helped influence him to change agents to Boras, in order to maximize his potential earnings. This in turn could lead to him leaving the Astros and the AL West, which we feel pretty confident in saying the Mariners are their fans wouldn't mind after revisiting this infamous moment from 2022:

Peña has had a penchant for stepping up in big moments since entering the majors, as best evidenced by being named both ALCS and World Series MVP in 2022. However, with him now producing offensively on a more consistent basis, Mariners fans will be hoping Boras can work his "magic" in getting the 27-year-old to move on to pastures new to continue plying his trade.