The fans have spoken, and they want Cody Bellinger in Seattle on the Mariners

We ran one of these already, and will have more poll related content out through the remainder of the offseason. The one that we look at today focuses more on the offfense. The Mariners needs to improve on offense. It's apparant to everyone, and getting at least one bat is needed. There is an argument for going after multiple bats, but that isn't the focus of today's question.

If the Mariners could go out and add just one bat, and a non-Ohtani signing at that, who would you want it to be?

Fans have spoken... get Cody Bellinger to the Mariners

Bellinger ran away with the vote, earning 64% of the total, leaving Jung-Hoo Lee and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. in the dust. Let's start with Lee, and work our way up. Only 25, he's got a bit of speed and will look to stay in center, as it's where he has played the last three seasons for the Kiwoom Heroes. He's a doubles machine, but there is a question about his power, with 23 (142 G) and 6 (86 G) homers the last two seasons.

However, he never strikes out. 6.38% over the last five seasons, with a BB rate of 10.02%. That's insane, and would be a drastic change for the Mariners strikeout-heavy lineup. He's projected to get somewhere around 4YR/$56M by The Athletic. Oddly enough, they predict Lourdes Gurriel JR to get the same thing, but Spotrac has him a tad higher at 5YR/$73M.

Gurriel is coming off a trip to the World Series and an All-Star season, even though he posted his "worst" numbers since his Rookie year. He hit for a 108 OPS+ this season with a slash line of .261/.309/.463. The last four seasons he had averaged .285/.332/.471 with a 119 OPS+. He doesn't walk a ton, but has posted a low K rate of just 17.7% over the last three seasons combined.

The Athletic has Bellinger at 6YR/$162M, while Spotrac has him at 5YR/$112M. I'd say it will be closer to the $22M per year mark that Spotrac has, as his track record is very up and down. He was a monster to start his career in Dodgers Blue, and actually had people asking if he could hit .400 at one point. He won ROY and then an MVP his third season.

Then, he was downright terrible for three years. .203/.272/.376 with a 76 OPS+ and high K rates. 2023 changed the narrative as he reverted to a good hitter once again. He would post a .307/.356/.525 and 133 OPS+ for the Cubbies, with 26 HR and 20 SB, all while playing average/above-average defense. If you're getting that hitter? Oh, it's worth it and then some. You just have to ask yourself which Bellinger you are going to get.

Rhys Hoskins, JD Martinez, and Matt Chapman were all mentioned as well. It does seem like the overwhelming majority agree though... get Cody Bellinger to the Mariners.