Mariners could go different route in trade talks by dangling 'bonus' asset

As things stand, the re-signing of Jorge Polanco is apparently the last significant move the Seattle Mariners are going to make this offseason. According to Adam Jude of The Seattle Times, the roster is effectively now set heading into spring training, which we understand is disappointing for a large segment of the fan base.

This means relying on the likes of Polanco, J.P. Crawford and even Julio Rodríguez (to a certain extent) having bounce-back seasons, while needing others such as Dylan Moore to take their game to another level. However, what if there was still one more card for Jerry Dipoto and company to play to potentially help strengthen the roster?

More specifically, we're referring to the Mariners' Competitive Balance Round (CBR) draft pick for 2025. Giving due credit to Mark Polishuk of MLB Trade Rumors, what if one of the clubs who gained an extra pick decided to trade it? (Unlike other MLB draft picks, CBR picks can be moved.)

In total, 15 clubs have CBR picks for the 2025 MLB draft. Eight come at the end of the first round of the draft and are called CBR Round A, while the other seven come at the conclusion of the second round and are named CBR Round B.

Mariners have the 35th overall pick in 2025 MLB Draft

For the Mariners specifically, they hold a CBR Round A pick which is 35th overall in the 2025 MLB Draft, making it extremely valuable and theoretically very enticing. The question is: does the organization want to actually use this to their advantage, in order to try and add more quality depth?

Now, we appreciate there will be those who believe Dipoto would prefer not to give up a potentially valuable pick. For all the criticism he (both rightly and wrongly) receives, the Mariners' President of Baseball Operations has a strong track record when it comes to finding quality prospects in the draft who pan out positively.

However, we can think of a couple of reasons why the Mariners might be prepared to move their 35th overall pick for this year's draft. The first is that they traded away their 2024 CBR Round B pick around this time last year as part of the return package for reliever Gregory Santos.

One of the retorts to this is that the 2024 CBR pick was not as valuable as this year's, with it "only" representing the 69th overall selection. This is a fair point to make, but this does bring us onto the second reason why Dipoto and company might still consider moving their 2025 CBR draft pick.

It relates to the fortuitous turn of events at the MLB 2025 draft lottery back in December, which was held during the annual winter meetings. Despite only having a 0.53% chance of landing the first overall pick — the second-lowest of any club in the lottery — the Mariners somehow beat the odds to secure the third overall selection.

The point being, that having such a high selection in the 2025 MLB draft — the highest ever in the Dipoto era in Seattle — might just persuade the front office to put their 35th overall pick on offer to other clubs, and see who bites and with what. If nothing else it sure wouldn't hurt, as the Mariners really could use another quality infield bat but are hamstrung in other ways to try and obtain one.

Ultimately, if we're being honest, we realize this is not likely to be the case. Knowing how much Dipoto always has one eye on the future and loves building through the draft, it's tough to imagine him trading away one of the two first round picks he's holding for the same year.

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