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Mark Feinsand of Mlb.com has these 4 free agents as a potential fit for the Mariners
MLB free agency has begun and the GM meetings are underway in Arizona. In his article Mark ranks his top 25 free agents of the offseason and gives 3 potential fits for the players, mentioning the Mariners as fits for 4 free agents
Hot stove season is finally here for Mariner fans. For me, I sit on my phone all day refreshing Twitter to see if any breaking news has happened from the many MLB insiders that I follow. Does anyone remember how wild and exciting free agency was before and after the MLB lockout of 2022? It was awesome, while most seasons aren't like 2022, free agency is still exciting for fans.
There are plenty of places that you can look to for rumors and rumblings, lists and predictions. From ESPN to MLBTR, Sports Illustrated, Fox Sports, MLB.com itself, or even The Athletic, they've all got lists of top Free Agents and some of them even have predictions where they think players will be going.
In this article I look at Mark Feinsand of Mlb.com and his MLB Free Agent Top 25 of 2023-2024 piece. In his article Mark ranks his top 25 free agents of the offseason and gives 3 potential fits for the player, he mentions the Mariners as fits for 4 free agents.
Here are 4 free agents that Mark Feinsand sees as potential fits for the Mariners.
Potential fit #1: Jung Ho Lee
Jungo Ho Lee is a 25-year-old South Korean left-hand hitting outfielder who most recently played for the Kiwoom Heroes of the Korean Baseball Organization. Lee only played 85 games of the 2023 season because of season ending ankle surgery.
In 2022 he had a slash line of .349/.421/.575 with 23 home runs and 113 RBIs. In 627 plate appearances, he walked 66 times and only struck out 32 times. Lee definitely fits the control-the-zone philosophy of the Mariners and would help the strikeout problem they had in 2023.
MLB Trade Rumors predicts Lee to get a contract of 5 years at $50 million. Definitely a cheaper free agent option for the Mariners that could reap huge rewards.
Potential fit #2: Shota Imanaga
Shota Imanaga is a 30-year-old left-handed pitcher from Japan. He most recently for Yokohama Bay Stars of the Nippon Professional Baseball League. Over the last 3 seasons, he has averaged 155 innings pitched, with an average of 25 starts in those 3 seasons. Imanaga has been a very reliable pitcher in Japan.
Imanaga is a little bit older for someone making the jump to the MLB but that hasn't stopped the Mariners from signing a player like Imanaga, the Mariners signed Hisashi Iwakuma when he was 31. In 2023 Imanaga had a 2.66 ERA, a 1.019 WHIP, 188 Ks, and 24 walks. I think Imanaga could be a fit if the Mariners do end up trading one of their young pitchers and don't want to fork out the money for Blake Snell.
MLB Trade Rumors predicts Imanaga to get a 5 year $85 million deal.
Potential fit #3: Teoscar Hernandez
Not much to say here it sounds like the Mariners are moving on from Teo as they didn't offer him a qualifying offer as they look to cut down on strikeouts in 2024. Teo ranked 3rd in the MLB with 211 K's just behind Suarez with 214.
Dipoto said one of the reasons they didn’t offer a qualifying offer to Teoscar Hernandez is trying to find a way to cut down strikeouts in their lineup. They are looking for hitters, preferably right-handed hitters, that can provide offensive impact with less swing and miss.
— Ryan Divish (@RyanDivish) November 7, 2023
Potential fit #4: Rhys Hoskins
The last fit is 30-year-old Rhys Hoskins. The right-handed first baseman who has played his whole career for the Philadelphia Phillies. Hoskins didn't play in 2023 because he tore his ACL in spring training. But he could be someone the Mariners bring in to play 1B/DH. Hoskins did play 135 games of OF in 2018 but hasn't played there since, so I don't think that is an option.
Hoskins last full season was in 2022 where he had his best WAR season of 2.9, but he also struck out 169 times. In 2022 he hit 30 home runs and had 79 RBIs. While Hoskins does strike out a lot he does walk a lot, in 2019 he walked 116 times, and in 2022 he walked 72 times. Hoskins is definitely someone the Mariners could look to add if they decide to trade France this off-season. Or they could add him to be their DH if they don't sign the unicorn. But Hoskins could also sign somewhere on a 1 year prove-it deal, and Seattle is not ideal for that.
MLB Trade Rumors predicts Hoskins to get a 2 year $36 million deal. I think all of these players could be great fits for the Mariners if they decided to spend money but don't want to break the bank for players like Ohtani and Bellinger.