Seattle has been pretty cold these past few weeks, but not as cold as the Mariners' offseason. They've signed one infielder to try and plug the gaps, but few are of the opinion that the front office has done enough to compete in 2025. While the team has as much of a chance of winning the World Series as they do of signing Alex Bregman, he could still hold the key to a successful offseason.
In baseball, top free agents like Bregman tend to garner many suitors. As such, they often end up freezing the rest of the market until they ink a deal. If a team is ready to cough up a significant amount of money on a single player, they won't turn their attention to their backup options unless they're officially out of the race. A recent example is the Yankees, who quickly signed Max Fried, Devin Williams, and Cody Bellinger after their pursuit of Juan Soto fell through.
Right now, Bregman almost singlehandedly controls the market for third basemen. There are several teams that are reportedly interested in his services, including the Cubs, Red Sox, Blue Jays, and Tigers. If he is acquired by one of these teams, it could open up one of their incumbent players to trade discussions, but these candidates specifically don't have much to concede.
The Mariners were reportedly heavily pursuing Nico Hoerner in a trade until the Kyle Tucker acquisition changed the Cubs' willingness to part with additional infielders. However, bringing Bregman in could create enough of a roster surplus to reignite the conversation.
The residual effects of his eventual signing will also help the Mariners, even if it doesn't directly drive a crucial trade. Once he's off the board, the market value for other position player free agents will become clearer. The only third basemen that have been signed are Josh Rojas (White Sox) and Gio Urshela (Athletics). The players that are in between replacement level and perennial All-Star likely won't enter serious discussions until Bregman has decided on his forever home.
One of the upsides of signing Donovan Solano is his defensive flexibility. If needed, he could cover the hot corner to allow the front office to pursue second basemen. The market for middle infielders is equally as thin, but potential options like Brendan Rodgers could give Seattle just enough upside for the right price. For now, it's probable that the team will wait until the last few big dominoes fall before finally playing their hand.