4 Mariners players who won’t survive on roster past MLB trade deadline

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The trade deadline is quite aways away, as we are only in the middle of June. Rumors abound, though, and it's time to start thinking not just about the players that could be potentially coming to the Mariners, but the ones who could be leaving the team as well. Whether it be in a trade or sending them down to AAA, the roster is definitely going to look different once the calendar turns to August.

Who are the players who could end up being "casualty's"? Let's take a look, starting with the section of the team that moves around the most.

Casualty #1: Bullpen Arm(s)

UPDATE: Look how fast things change for the Mariners. Eduard Bazardo and Jhonathan Diaz were called up on 6/11, with Kirby Snead and Matt Bowman being DFAd. Then, Diaz was sent back down on the 12th, with Brett de Gues being recalled.

I think you're going to see two of Eduard Bazardo, Mike Baumann, and Brett de Gues not on the team at the deadline. Shoot, it could be all three. The Mariners are going to start getting healthy (hopefully), and that means that we should see Gabe Speier and Gregory Santos join the team.

Alongside of that, add in the fact that the team could look for a rental arm to add in to "replace" Matt Brash and his absence to pair with pulling the burden off of Munoz a bit to decrease his workload, and there is going to be a lot of movement in the bullpen. Take a look at the active arms in the pen as of 6/11/2024.

Mike Baumann
Eduard Bazardo - called up 6/11
Jhonathan Diaz - called up 6/11, sent down on 6/12
Brett de Gues - recalled on 6/12
Matt Bowman - DFA 6/11
Andres Munoz
Tayler Saucedo
Kirby Snead - DFA 6/11
Ryne Stanek
Austin Voth
Trent Thornton

If you can tell me, with a straight face, that the bullpen is going to look like this in August, I'd call you a liar. It wouldn't surprise me to see 3 names on here change by then, and I think it starts with Mike and Brett. That's the obvious move though, and it's probably going to change even by the end of June. Shoot, probably within a week of this being posted. (editor's note, it was changed before it even posted). Let's start increasing the risk here with a position that has recently changed on the team, even without adding to the roster.

Casualty #2: Seby Zavala

To be blunt about it... what is this man's role on the roster? Obviously, he's there as a backup catcher, but why? He can't do anything productive (at least from a fan standpoint), as he is providing just an awful slash line as well as some below-average defense.

Then, you can add on top of it that the Mariners have started giving Mitch Garver work behind the plate. In turn, it's helped bring Garver's bat back to life a little bit. Having one guy be able to fill the DH role and the backup catcher role is huge for the team and essentially makes the spot for Zavala null and void.

It's not even just that. If Garver couldn't catch at all, it seems like the Mariners would still look for an answer elsewhere. Even though he's dominating, Harry Ford is too young to come up. There has to be a move out there to be made, and does bring up a legitimate question about why the team moved off of Blake Hunt so quickly. For now, even Garver is enough to move on from Zavala.

Casualty #3: Bryce Miller or Bryan Woo

Now we start getting into it. Could this really happen? Would the team be willing to move from such a position of strength and deal one of their young and controllable starting pitchers for an impact bat?

It's the question that has been asked since the end of 2023. The Mariners have been a steadfast "no" on this, but things change, especially if you can get the right type of return. I don't know what kind of deal it would need to be, you would have to think it would need to be a top-level bat, maybe even more than Vlad JR? Would you trade Miller and his 5.5 years of control for the 1.5 that Vlad has left?

Do you capitalize on Bryan Woo having one of the most insane starts to a season ever? OR do you ride that and hope that he actually is an Ace, and add him to the stable of nastiness that is the top of the Mariners rotation?

Another part of this is that the Mariners don't really have a replacement in the Minors. Dollard is still coming back from injury, Hancock has been up and down, and Evans was moved to a reliever. Would you turn down a Miller or Woo deal for a massive impact bat to place into the 3/4 hole for the Mariners? It's a worthwhile question, and one that is worth pondering.

Casualty #4: Dominic Canzone

This one should seem obvious when you think about it. Canzone has great power potential, and could get a nice return still in a move, having improved his value since the Mariners got him from Arizona last season, even if only by a little bit.

Here's why he is likely gone. The Mariners have a platoon that they like in left with Raley+Robles. Julio is in center. Locklear+France+Garver locks up the DH spot. That leaves RF as the position to go and improve via trade, and turns Canzone into a piece that they should be looking to move.

Would Canzone+prospect(s) net you a big OF? I think so. Or you could move him for an impact relief pitcher (with some other parts attached to one side or the other), possibly an Adam Ottavino style who brings a vastly different type of arm to the Mariners bullpen. Teams love homers, and Canzone has great power. Teams would likely take that gamble on him to hope he figures out the average side of things, and the Mariners could capitalize on it.

Bonus Bold Prediction: Only one of Mitch Haniger or Jorge Polanco is on the team

I think the first part of this goes along with Canzone. Where are you going to put Mitch Haniger? He is one of the worst defenders in baseball, and he isn't even hitting that well. Sure, he had a big hit in the comeback against the White Sox, but he hasn't done much all season. A net zero on offense and a -1.0 dWAR show that he isn't bringing anything, outside of leadership, to the team. It sucks, because I want him to succeed more than any other player on the team... but he just isn't doing it.

First base, DH, and LF are all full. I'd rather see Canzone play everyday as opposed to Haniger, but I don't know if both of them, or either of them, can be on this team and expect to make a run in the playoffs.

The same goes for Jorge Polanco. I don't know what happened to him, but the .595 OPS is awful, especially when you pair it with a 30.9% K rate. With Rojas playing like a top-ten third baseman in baseball and Ryan Bliss trying to make a name for himself at second, is it worth admitting a loss on Polanco and moving on from him? It depends on how Bliss does, but that speed and sneaky power is worth having in the lineup, especially to set the table for the guys at the top.

I don't know how many of these guys are actually going to move. If i were a gambling man (only where legal, of course), I would put my money on the Mariners making a handful of moves before the deadline, and with a few of these guys being involved with it.

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