Is anyone still hoping the Seattle Mariners will be able to re-sign Randy Arozarena? If so, stop that.
Is he worth breaking the bank for? Absolutely. He was good for the Mariners in 2024 and 2025, and beyond merely good in 2026. Without his 148 OPS+ and 5.7 rWAR, watching the Mariners this year would have been like that one time The Simpsons shaded the Denver Broncos as a bunch of alleged professionals doing nothing right.
Alas, John Stanton is out there telling everyone that he doesn't believe in paying big bucks to "a 30-year-old or 31-year-old star player who had been a star in their 20s." Arozarena is 31, so that sure sounds like shots fired. Besides, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times forecasts a nine-figure deal and a move back to the East Coast for the 2021 AL Rookie of the Year anyway.
Who can the Mariners trust to take Randy Arozarena's place in left field?
As for what Jerry Dipoto thinks of the Arozarena situation, there's a quote in Divish's piece that would seem to tip his hand: “Obviously, we have free agents coming up. We need to refill those voids, and they’re not small voids to refill, especially Randy in left field, but we are excited about our young players.”
One can surmise a likely scenario in which Arozarena's shoes are filled from within. Let's break down the in-house options from worst to least bad.
Worst: Dominic Canzone
Canzone does have experience in left field as a major leaguer, but only 36 starts compared to 147 as a right fielder. If the Mariners want evidence that they're better off showcasing his bat at designated hitters, here are his splits for the last two seasons:
- As DH: 373 PA, .890 OPS
- As RF: 409 PA, .804 OPS
There's nothing wrong with an .804 OPS. It's just not as right as a .890 OPS, especially if there's nothing much to be gained from playing the 29-year-old in field on a daily basis.
Bad: Lazaro Montes
The scenario at play here involves the Mariners leaving the DH spot open for a rotation heavily featuring Cal Raleigh, or perhaps a new addition. In this case, Canzone would largely play right field and Montes would move to left field.
We say "move to" because the 21-year-old has only three professional starts in left field across five seasons. That doesn't indicate much interest on the Mariners' side in playing him out there, and it's no wonder. His profile as a power-first hitter with a strong arm fits right field to a T.
Somewhat Bad: Michael Arroyo
Arroyo is almost certainly who Dipoto is referring to when he expresses excitement about "young players," at least in context of Arozarena. Arroyo started out as a shortstop and then shifted to second base, but this year was largely about grooming him for left field.
On paper, Arroyo's primary function would be to ensure that Arozarena's good right-handed bat was replaced by another good right-handed bat. Across all levels, the 21-year-old's 537 professional games have yielded a .401 OBP and .476 SLG.
Yet even after he started more games as a left fielder (66) than he did as a second baseman (41) in the minors this year, it remains an open question whether Arroyo is a viable option on the grass. To quote Divish from an article in September: "In left field, he looks like a career infielder trying to convert to a new position."
Least Bad: Brendan Donovan
Donovan might not be the favorite to take over for Arozarena, but he is the safe pick.
The 29-year-old mostly played third base when he did play this year, but we're only talking 39 games that were marked by visibly subpar defense. His career track record suggests he'd be of better use in left field. He has 0 Defensive Runs Saved for 1,245.2 innings out there, which looks solid when compared to Arozarena's -5 DRS for 6,691.0 innings in left field.
For the Mariners to use Donovan in left field, they will first need to add a new regular to the left side of their infield. Rather than a tall order, though, this should be seen as an opportunity. The need to upgrade there is real, and we can recommend some compelling options for trades.
