SEAside Thoughts: 6 Moves for the Mariners at the Deadline

Another series against a playoff caliber team, and another series win for the Seattle Mariners.They've gone 16-9 in July, including a 6-1-1 record in their last 8 series. These series wins came against Arizona, Minnesota, Toronto, Houston, San Francisco and Tampa Bay - all legitimate contenders. With the deadline just hours away, it is clear that Jerry Dipoto needs to buy.

With the Boston Red Sox in town and a 4 game road trip to Anaheim on the horizon, the Mariners have a chance to jump two teams this week, while closing in on not just a wild card spot, but the AL West. Despite all the frustrations and disappointment this season, this flawed team has a real shot to make some noise, and they deserve the opportunity to get better.

With the trade deadline at 3pm PST on Tuesday August 1st, here are 5 moves I'd consider if I was in charge of the Mariners at the trade deadline.

Move #1 - Hold onto the golden arms

I think this is a pretty easy decision for me. The Mariners are sitting on a gold mine of incredible pitching arms, who all happen to be young and under club control for many years. Despite the temptations to trade a young pitcher (specifically Gilbert, Miller, or Woo), I'd hold off.

It's the pitching that has carried Seattle to this point heading into August, and I don't think there's a realistic trade this close to the deadline that makes sense for Seattle to take the risk.

When making such a potentially massive trade, I think Dipoto, GM Justin Hollander and most GM's across the league prefer to make these deals at the winter meetings.