Diamondbacks' pitching search lines up perfectly with what Mariners can offer

The Seattle Mariners have been, frankly, too reluctant to trade from their wealth of starting pitching in past offseasons. Yet there now seems to be a collective hunch in the Pacific Northwest that this could finally change, and there may be no better offseason trading partner than the Arizona Diamondbacks.

As told to Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic, D-backs general manager Mike Hazen is in the market for a controllable starting pitcher. Signing one off the free-agent market might not be feasible. Starting pitching is always expensive on the open market, and Arizona owner Ken Kendrick is openly threatening to lower payroll in 2027.

The Mariners, meanwhile, have a surplus of starting pitching. Logan Gilbert is only controllable through 2027, but he's the exception to the rule. George Kirby is controlled through 2028. Bryce Miller and Bryan Woo, through 2029. Emerson Hancock, through 2030. Kade Anderson, through 2032.

Hazen's time with Arizona largely overlaps with Jerry Dipoto's time with the Mariners, and they have quite the trade history to show for it. The two have made nine trades in 10 years, including six just since 2022.

What could a pitching trade between the Mariners and Diamondbacks look like?

From the Mariners' side of things, their offseason shopping list contains as many as two right-handed bats. And with Randy Arozarena and J.P. Crawford having filed for free agency, the best places to put them are in the outfield and/or on the left side of the infield.

The Diamondbacks are better off than most when it comes to spare right-handed bats, with AJ Eustace of MLB Trade Rumors specifically speculating about outfielders Jordan Lawlar and Ryan Waldschmidt. Lawlar was considered a borderline top-10 prospect as recent as 2025. Waldschmidt was a top-100 prospect earlier this year.

Since both are in a similar "talented, yet compromised" boat because of a history of injuries and inconsistent results, a Miller-for-Lawlar swap could work. It could especially intrigue the Mariners that the 24-year-old Lawlar wasn't always an outfielder. His background is as a shortstop who occasionally saw action at third base in the minors.

If it's Waldschmidt that Dipoto prefers, we're probably talking more like a straight-up deal for Kirby or Hancock. Or, potentially a Woo-based deal in which the Mariners get more from Arizona. A trade of Woo for Waldschmidt and, say, top-rated infield prospect (and right-handed hitter!) Demetrio Crisantes could work.

If it's Anderson or Ryan Sloan the Diamondbacks want, that's where Dipoto would have to draw a line. Unless, that is, he favors getting aggressive and asking Hazen how attached he is to Geraldo Perdomo at shortstop.

Until there are rumors of the Mariners and Diamondbacks actually talking to one another, this is probably about as far as speculation should go. But since we know that these two teams A) have a trade history and B) can help each other out, it hardly feels irresponsible to dream big.

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