Mariners Rumors: Seattle may have hit a snag in pursuit of 2nd major reunion

The Mariners couldn't have started their offseason much better, after securing the first big splash of Major League free agency by re-signing Josh Naylor to a five-year and reported $92.5 million. However, as per SoDo Mojo's Zachary Rymer, the team still has some more reunion work to do in the form of Jorge Polanco.

Prior to the beginning of free agency, the general sentiment seemed to be that Polanco was more likely to re-sign with the Mariners even though Naylor was a higher priority. However, just because the latter has now agreed to remain in Seattle doesn't mean Polo is also coming back, especially when you consider some fresh intel from The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon (subscription required).

According to Major League sources, Rosenthal and Sammon write that Polanco wants to play out the free agent market following a better-than-expected 2025 campaign which included a career-high 134 OPS+ and some clutch playoff hitting. And helping his case is that there are teams considering him for other positions aside from second base, which is where he spent most of his time this past season in Seattle when he wasn't in his primary role of designated hitter.

Jorge Polanco an option for the likes of the Red Sox and Blue Jays

Designated hitter still figures to be Polanco's main position next year in order to protect his health, but other teams are apparently considering him for first and third base. Rosenthal and Sammon include the Boston Red Sox if they lose third baseman Alex Bregman and the Toronto Blue Jays if Bo Bichette leaves, as just two possibilities.

Certainly this is a spanner in the works for the Mariners' hopes of re-signing Polanco, but you can't blame him for wanting to see what his market appeal is like after such a tremendous bounceback year. What makes it all the more intriguing though, is that this approach is in stark contrast to the one taken by Naylor.

As per Adam Jude of The Seattle Times, Naylor could have easily waited to see what the likes of the Red Sox, New York Yankees and Mets were willing to offer him. All three teams have the money and need a quality first baseman, which in turn would have helped the eccentric and lovable Canadian maximize his position in contract negotiations.

Mariners benefited from Josh Naylor's love for Seattle

The fact Naylor decided against this approach, especially when you can imagine his agent pleaded with him to wait things out for at least a little while, speaks volumes. The 2024 All-Star backed up his previous comments about how much he loves playing in Seattle by signing for the long-term with the the Mariners prior to the annual MLB Winter Meetings.

According to Jude, Polanco enjoys playing in Seattle just as much as Naylor, but it remains to be seen if this ultimately counts for anything. At the end of the day, this is a player who is now 32 and likely looking to get the best possible deal while he's hot, especially when you consider he's injury-prone and does have defensive limitations.

We're not going to go as far as saying the door is closed on Polanco in Seattle, with there still being room in the budget to get him re-signed. However, the Mariners will only go so far financially, especially when factoring in that they have Cole Young to also play second base and Harry Ford likely looking at time as a DH due to being Cal Raleigh's main backup at catcher.