3 free agent bullpen arms the Mariners need to target for 2024

Mariners Bullpen Target: Reynaldo Lopez - 2 or 3 year deal for 8/9 million a year

Lopez was a guy that I wanted the Mariners to get when the Angels placed him on waivers. Lopez is a legitimate high-leverage arm that would add some strikeout ability to pair with guys like Andres Munoz or Matt Brash. He will turn 30 in January, and the veteran reliever threw 66 innings with a 3.27 ERA. He had a 4.6 BB/9 and an elite 11.3 K/9 in 2023 with a 2.1 bWAR. Since moving to the bullpen, Lopez's fastball has ticked up to average 98.2 mph, a pitch he relied upon over 64% of the time. He also has a plus slider that averaged 87.9 mph and he used it 29.3% of the time.

I would love to see the Mariners add a high-leverage bullpen arm. It is something that they really haven't gone out and done, as they have trusted their development, but at some point, you have to think that you want a little bit of surety in the pen, and Lopez is someone who gives you that. I think a comparable deal would be Carlos Estevez from last offseason. Both were 30 at the start of the year coming off very solid years, but Lopez has the edge as he possesses better strikeout stuff. I think to get Lopez you would need to do something along the lines of a 2- or 3-year deal that pays him 8 or 9 million a year.