3 moves the Mariners should make after the Randy Arozarena trade

In case you were sleeping and missed this, the Mariners acquired outfielder Randy Arozarena from the Tampa Bay Rays for prospects Aidan Smith, Brody Hopkins and a player to be named later. Arozarena is a former Rookie of the Year and All-Star, whose numbers are down from his career average at the moment. Arozarena is a star in this league, and he will now pair with Julio Rodriguez in the outfield for the next few seasons.

Arozarena and Julio are both very similar. Both have tremendous power, and both can steal 20+ bases. Randy strikes out less and walks more, while Julio provides gold glove level defense. Once Julio and J.P. Crawford come back from the injured list, the lineup will look completely different than it did not two days ago. This is the biggest trade that the Mariners have made since they acquired Luis Castillo at the trade deadline back in 2022 from the Cincinnati Reds.

While that is for sure exciting, the Mariners still have some work to do to get this offense back on track. Like I mentioned before, both Julio Rodriguez and J.P. Crawford are on the injured list. J.P. will miss 4-6 weeks with a broken binky, while Julio has a high ankle sprain. There is still plenty of holes in the lineup as a whole, even if J.P. and Julio were in the lineup tomorrow.

While it is exciting that the Mariners added Arozarena, this can't be the only move they make. The Mariners have already designated Ty France for assignment, which was the first domino to fall for the team. There is still room for the Mariners too add a first baseman, outfielder, designated hitter and possibly a second baseman.

Here are three moves that I think the Mariners should make after trading for Arozarena. I do not expect the Mariners to acquire all 3, but if they were to get one or two of these guys, watch out. The Mariners have the pitching staff to win in October, and they could have an offense that could finally compete.

1. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 1B (Toronto Blue Jays)

Just imagine a lineup with Julio Rodriguez, Cal Raleigh, Randy Arozarena, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. No, that wouldn't be the lineup for the American League All-Star team (although, it could be in 2025), but this could be the Mariners lineup with just one more move. Vladimir is a legit superstar and would anchor first base for the Mariners for the next season and a half.

The Blue Jays have come out and said they are not shopping Vladimir Guerrero Jr and a handful of other players, but we have heard that from front offices before. They are not going to come out and say that their best players are available. Insiders are reporting that the Mariners have been in "aggressive talks" to try and acquire Guerrero.

We have written on what we think the price for trading for Guerrero would be. While the price would be steep, the Mariners certainly have the prospects to do it. Not to mention, the Mariners didn't trade any of their top ten prospects for Randy Arozarena. The Mariners seem like they are willing to part with some of their big time prospects, which is something the front office has not wanted to do in the past.

Vladimir is a game-changer. He is slashing .296/.366/.466 with an OPS+ of 141, the second-highest of his career. He would lead the team in almost every category except home runs while providing protection for Julio and co. in front of him in the lineup. It seems like the Mariners are waiting on the Blue Jays to decide what they want to do going forward. If the Mariners really were as aggressive as suggested, there is a lot to look forward to looking ahead.

2. Luis Robert Jr, OF (Chicago White Sox)

While the Mariners did just trade for a star outfielder, why not trade for another? Robert is a center fielder, which normally is occupied by Julio Rodriguez. But right now, Julio is on the ten day injured list with a high ankle sprain. He will be re-evaluated once he reaches those ten days, but there is no certainty that he will be ready once eligible to come off the injured list.

In the meantime, the Mariners have been linked to Luis Robert for some time now. He plays Gold Glove level defense while providing some serious pop at the plate. Robert's biggest struggle is staying on the field. Robert has only played above 98 games in a season just once in his career, so saying he struggles to stay healthy is an understatement.

But when he is healthy, he, like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., is a game wrecker. He has light tower power, which was on full display at T-Mobile Park earlier this year when the White Sox were in town. In the four-game series, he hit three home runs and drove in four. At that time (June 10-13), Robert had more home runs in T-Mobile Park than Julio Rodriguez did.

Unlike the Arozarena trade, the Mariners will have to part with some of their top-ranked prospects to get Robert. We are talking about one or more of Cole Young, Colt Emerson, Lazaro Montes, Harry Ford, or Felnin Celesten. That would be a major "High Risk, High Reward" trade, but one the Mariners should make. An outfield with Arozarena, Julio, and LouBob would be a massive upgrade over what the Mariners trot out there every day.