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

The Mariners ability to develop strong, sometimes elite bullpen arms has become somewhat of a normal thing in Seattle. They have taken borderline AAA guys and turned them into serviceable and sometimes high leverage arms. They have turned guys like Paul Sewald, Justin Topa, Gabe Speier, Erik Swanson, Drew Steckenrider, Penn Murfee and the list goes on and on, into very solid contributors at the major league level.

So why do they need to target these 3 bullpen arms? Well, you want proven, high leverage arms. Guys that you know will be there throughout the year and you will be able to count on. You would like to think Speier and Topa and Trent Thornton will be solid again but see Drew Steckenrider and that is point A of why you need to add 1 or 2, proven high leverage arms.

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.

Mariners Bullpen Target: Matt Moore - 1 year, $7-$8 million

Matt Moore is a familiar name, having spent time with 8 different teams, his potential was very well-known early in his career. He never really reached that full potential as a highly touted left-handed prospect, but he has really carved out a valuable role later in his career as a very solid reliever. 2022 saw him throw 74 innings with a 10.1 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9 and a minuscule 1.95 ERA. He followed that up with a very solid 2023, throwing 52 2/3 innings. He cut his walk rate down to 2.6 BB/9 while maintaining his strikeout ability, to a 10.3 K/9, and an impressive 2.56 ERA.

As you can see from the tweet above, Matt Moore has gotten a lot more value out of his curveball since 2021. The shape of his curveball looks vastly different, as it is harder and sharper versus the loopier 2019 version. His whiff % went from 15.7% in 2021, to 29.5% in 2022 and up to 32.4% in 2023. Moore is a veteran that gives a pretty young bullpen, some experience and leadership that could serve guys like Brash, Munoz, and Campbell well. He signed with the Angels last year on a 1 year $7.5 million dollar deal, and being that he will turn 35 in June of 2024, he will require no more than a 1-year deal, and I would be interested in the $7-$8-million-dollar range.