Grading all 12 trades the Mariners and Jerry Dipoto made during the 2023-24 offseason

While the offseason started slow for the Seattle Mariners, i was surprised at the actual number of trades the front office managed to pull off. 12! I would have guessed less than 12, which was a bit of a shock. Some trades were small, blink-and-you-missed-it types, and some were franchise-altering moves. Were they all good trades? No. But is the team now better in 2024 than they were in 2023? I think so. Today, I will grade all of the trades made this offseason, going in order of oldest to the most recent.

1. 11/2/2023 - Mariners trade cash considerations to the Pittsburgh Pirates for RHP Cody Bolton.

Okay, I know this trade is not going to move the needle too much for most Mariners fans. Cody Bolton has struggled in his short stint in the Majors so far in his career, pitching to a 6.33 ERA and a 2.10 WHIP in just 21,1innings. His 6.3 walks per 9 innings is worrisome, but he does have the tools to become a good reliever. You can read more about him here. Overall, I think this trade is good. A toolsy reliever for some cash. Low risk, maybe high reward? Overall, I give this trade a solid B.

2. 11/3/2023 - Mariners send RHP Riley O'Brien to the St. Louis Cardinals for Cash Considerations

This trade was about as small as they come, and most Mariners fans may not even know who Riley O'Brien is. He pitched just 1 inning for the Mariners in 2023 before being sent back down to Tacoma. He struck out a ton of batters in Tacoma last year, 14.1 batters per 9 innings. He walks guys too much (5.1 batters per innings), and he was moved to clear a roster spot. Should he stop walking people, O'Brien has a chance to be a good reliever in The Show. I give this trade a B, just because the roster spot may be worth more than what O'Brien can provide at this time.

3. 11/6/2023 - Mariners trade catching prospect Tatem Levins to the Tampa Bay Rays for catching prospect Blake Hunt.

This trade flew under the radar for most Mariners fans, and that is understandable. Blake Hunt needed to be added to the 40-man roster for the Rays, or he would have been subject to the Rule 5 draft in December, where he was sure to be taken by another team. Hunt has not appeared in the Majors yet in his career, but he is viewed as a Major League ready catcher. Between AA and AAA in 2023, he hit .256/.331/.484/.815 with 12 home runs in 246 at-bats.

He is not a top 100 prospect, and may not even be a top 30 prospect for the Mariners entering this year. But he will help the organization's catching depth, and will surely make his MLB debut this season. Cal Raleigh and Seby Zavala occupy the 26-man roster spots for now, but a strong showing from Hunt in spring training may force the Mariners to add him to the roster. If not, He will be the starting catcher in Tacoma and wait for an injury/poor performance from Zavala. I grade this trade a B+.

4. 11/17/2023 - Mariners trade RHP Isaiah Campbell to the Boston Red Sox for INF Luis Urias

Here is where we find the first bad grade for this offseason. It has little to do with losing Isaiah Campbell, who I really liked, and more to do with Urias. Luis Urias was a top prospect at one point for the San Diego Padres, before being traded to the Milwaukee Brewers. He had a really good 2021 season, hitting .249/.345/.445/.789. He had an OPS+ of 112, noticably higher than his career OPS+ of 97.

The Brewers ended up trading Urias to the Red Sox at the deadline in 2023, seemingly giving up on him due to poor performance. He did not fare better in Bean Town at all, so what gives? This quote from Moneyball fits perfectly here. "Luis Urias. Who? Exactly. Sounds like a Seattle Mariner already". Yeah, I changed the name and the team name, but you get it. Jerry and Co. must feel like there is still juice to squeeze from Urias, and should he be the starting third baseman for the Mariners, I hope there is. Maybe I am wrong, but I give this trade a solid D. Priove me wrong, Luis!

5. 11/22/2023 - Mariners trade 3B Eugenio Suarez to the Arizona Diamondbacks for RHP Carlos Vargas and C Seby Zavala

This trade was really the first surprise trade of the offseason, and it did not go over well with fans or players. Suarez was a leader in the clubhouse and was viewed that way by fans too. Sure, he struck out a lot (and I mean A LOT), but who would the team get to replace him? This is still a major question today as it was back then.

But when you take a deep dive into Suarez's 2023, you understand why the Mariners had to move him. He led the American League in strikeouts, his bat speed was rapidly diminishing, and his power was dropping. The Mariners were looking to shed strikeouts, and between trading Suarez and not bringing back Teoscar Hernandez, they did just that. Luis Urias and Josh Rojas seem to be battling for the starting third base job in spring, so we will have to wait and see how this pans out.

The Mariners got Carlos Vargas and Seby Zavala for Suarez, which at the time seemed light. Given Suarez's 2023, and his contract, this seems like it could be a good trade. Carlos Vargas is wild, but he has some really solid pitches. Zavala is not the backup catcher, taking over that duty from Tom Murphy. Is Zavala going to be better than Murphy was? Probably not. But Murphy had a tough time staying healthy, and Zavala does not. And Zavala is much cheaper on the books than Murphy, Today, I am giving this trade a C+. It has the potential to be much higher than that if Vargas turns into something, and Zavala fulfills his expectations for 2024.

6. 12/3/2023 - Mariners send LHP Marco Gonzales, OF Jarred Kelenic and 1B Evan White to the Atlanta Braves for RHP Cole Phillips and RHP Jackson Kowar

We here at SoDo Mojo have covered this trade extensively, and I still feel the same today about this trade as the day it happened, just without that shock value. Kelenic was a lot of things as a Mariner: A Franchise savior, a bust, a disappointment, a spark plug, a crybaby... I could go on and on. His ceiling was still so incredibly high, and the tantalizing nature of his game still has me wishing he was here. And they gave him away to one of the best teas in all of baseball in a salary dump.

I am not saying Kelenic's value was at an all-time high, either. He missed a good portion, a key portion, of the season from a broken foot he got from kicking a freaking water cooler. The guy was sometimes a head case. But he fought hard every single day for this team, only to be traded for Jackson freaking Kowar. A guy with more earned runs given up than innings pitched. 76 runs in 75 innings. Give me a freaking break.

Moving Gonzales and White was necesary this offseason, given the restrains put on the front office from ownership. Are the Mariners able to sign Mitch Garver, or trade for Jorge Polanco without this move being done? Probably not. Will this trade come back to bite the Mariners? Probably. The Braves ended up releasing both Marco Gonzales and Evan White, and plan on playing Kelenic everyday in left field. WIth all of this being said, I give this trade a D-. The only reason it is not an F is because they moved out from Gonzales and White's contracts, but when Kelenic wins the MVP in 3 years I might cry.

7. 1/5/2024 - Mariners send LHP Robbie Ray to the San Francisco Giants for OF Mitch Haniger and RHP Anthony DeSclafani

This was the first of 2 shocking trades the Mariners pulled off back in January. Mariners fans, including myself, were caught completely off guard by the Mariners moving on from Ray, who missed most of 2023 with Tommy John surgery. Ray will not be ready to go until July at the soonest, so it was not like he would have helped the team much this season.

So they got Mitch Haniger back, an obvious fan favorite. Haniger was here from 2017-2022 when he left in free agency and signed a 3YR/$43.5M deal with the San Francisco GIants before the 2023 season. Mitch was hampered with injuries in his lone season with the Giants and struggled when he did actually play. His strikeouts were high (28.4%) and his walk rate went down (6.6%). Do we chalk his poor performance to injury in 2023? Sure, you can make that argument. The days of him playing 157 games again are gone, but hopefully, he can still be great when he does play for the Mariners this season.

Anthony DeSclafani was only part of this deal to help even out the money owed to the players, and Desco was eventually traded to the Minnesota Twins. He did not have a role for the Mariners, barring injury. He had injury issues of his own in 2023, so it is not like he would have been starting 32 games for the Mariners.

Overall, I give this trade a B+. Mitch Haniger for Robbie Ray seems wild on paper, but Ray just did not fit well here. He was reduced to a bullpen role for the Playoffs in 2022, then blew his elbow out in 2023. He was fine for the Mariners in the 2022 regular season, but he did not live up to his contract. Haniger is a favorite, and if he could get some of his 2021 back when he got MVP votes, the Mariners win this trade.

8. 1/5/2024 - Mariners send INF Jose Caballero to the Tampa Bay Rays for 1B/OF Luke Raley

January 5th was such an exciting day. First came the news of the Robbie Ray trade, then, what, 15 minutes later came the news of this trade. I understand if people had to look up Luke Raley's name and stats before you could react to this trade. While Luke Raley is not a household name quite yet, Mariners fans should be thrilled with this move.

According to a friend of mine, who is in the know with the Tampa Bay Rays, Luke Raley might be one of the most underrated players in the game. He has taken the "Mitch Haniger" path to the Majors, as he is somewhat of a late bloomer. His first "full" season was in 2023 with the Rays, where he earned 2.8 bWAR in just 118 games. He hit .249/.333/.490/.824 with a 126 OPS+ (100 being league average). He does strikeout at a high clip (32.2% career K%), which may be his only knock.

I know that Cabby was a fan favorite for Mariners fans. He took his walks, he got plunked a lot, and he sure made a lot of people mad. But he did not do enough at the plate to warrant being an everyday starter, and that is exactly what the Mariners needed. Cabby now gets the chance to be the starting shortstop for the Rays, and we wish him all the best.

I give this trade an A-. Raley has the chance to be a difference-maker for the Mariners, something Jose Caballero just couldn't be. Even if Raley does not take the steps forward needed to be great, the Mariners took a chance on a guy without giving up top prospect talent. These are the kinds of moves that give length to the lineup, and I am here for that.

9. 1/29/2024 - Mariners send RHP Anthony DeSclafani, OF Gabriel Gonzalez, RHP Darren Bowen, RHP Justin Topa and cash considerations to the Minnesota Twins for INF Jorge Polanco

On the surface, I absolutely love this trade. Polanco is a switch-hitting problem at the plate. He gives the Mariners something they have not had since peak Robinson Cano: power from the second base position! He has hit a combined 63 home runs over the past 3 seasons, but it is not just home runs he provides. He has a .796 OPS (3rd best on the 2023 Mariners) and a 120 OPS+ (3rd ranked on the 2023 Mariners) over the past 3 seasons.

He has spent a lot of time on the Injured list over the last 2 seasons, as he only played in 80 games in 2023. He still had 2.0 bWAR in just 80 games. I know it is a lazy way of thinking, but if you double his numbers from 2023 to show a complete season, 4 bWAR from your second baseman is an extreme luxury. He is a serviceable defensive second baseman, but he will not win any gold gloves there.

The Mariners did have to give up a top-100 prospect to get this deal done. Gabby Gonzalez has been shooting up prospect rankings, and deservedly so. He currently ranks at #79 in MLB Pipelines top 100 prospects. He is still a few years away from making it to The Show, but he is an exciting player that I am sure we will miss.

I give this trade a solid A. The front office had to work extremely hard to get this team better on less money, and I think they accomplished that with this trade. Polanco could be here through the 2025 season, should the Mariners exercise his club option after 2024. That is well worth the price paid to get his services.