The prospect Mariners would truly regret trading to Cardinals for Brendan Donovan

If the Seattle Mariners really want Brendan Donovan, it's going to cost them. We found out over the weekend that they're one of two frontrunners for the St. Louis Cardinals second baseman, and that the Cardinals have asked about Jurrangelo Cijntje and Lazaro Montes.

This is all courtesy of Katie Woo of The Athletic, who tabbed the San Francisco Giants as the other team in the mix for the 2025 All-Star. Yet that feels like a bidding war the Mariners can win, as they have a better farm system to pull from in trade talks with the Cardinals, who are entering a rebuilding phase under Chaim Bloom. And after losing Jorge Polanco on Saturday, the Mariners have that much more incentive to bring Donovan to the Pacific Northwest.

What we don't know is if the Cardinals are asking for Cijntje and Montes, or for a package led by one or the other. If it's the former, well, Bloom is within his rights to aim high. But Jerry Dipoto would also be within his rights to push back and insist the Cardinals can only have one.

From where we're sitting, Montes is the guy Dipoto should want to keep more.

Mariners would truly regret trading Lazaro Montes to Cardinals for Brendan Donovan

Cijntje is probably the better known prospect simply by virtue of being the rarest of baseball specimens: a switch-pitcher. And he's no Pat Venditte clone, as the latest report on him from Baseball America notes that he was up to 98 mph with both arms this season.

The Mariners clearly think highly of the 22-year-old Netherlands native. They notably picked him ahead of Trey Yesavage in the 2024 draft, and the organization bumped him to Double-A Arkansas after just 74.2 innings for Low-A Everett.

There is nonetheless a hefty dose of uncertainty when it comes to Cijntje's future. The whole switch-pitching thing is a cool gimmick, but his first pro season was not a successful proof of concept for it. Both lefties and righties got to him for an OPS north of 1.000 when he pitched lefty, and he also got dinged for an .845 OPS when he went right-on-left. Between that and the fact that he's slightly undersized at 5-foot-11, 200 pounds, he isn't a sure thing as a major league starter.

Granted, Montes is not a sure thing in his own right. He's a right fielder who has enough arm for the position, but with athleticism that would frankly play better at DH or first base. He also strikes out a bunch, courtesy of a big strike zone (he's 6-foot-5, 210 pounds) and a bunch of swing-and-miss that flows from an emphasis on doing damage at all costs.

The power, though, is the real deal. It's generally seen as a 70 on the 20-to-80 scouting scale, and this year it resulted in 32 total home runs. Only two players in the minors hit more.

Because Montes also worked a 14.2 walk percentage, he has upside as a hitter who papers over a high strikeout rate with a bunch of homers and walks. There are more of those in MLB than you might think, with their ranks including Shohei Ohtani, Kyle Schwarber and none other than Cal Raleigh.

Montes also occupies more of an organizational niche than Cijntje does. Whereas Cijntje is probably Seattle's third-best pitching prospect after Kade Anderson and Ryan Sloan, Montes is the best power-hitting and best outfield prospect the Mariners have. And his time is coming soon, as he could be ready to slot into right field in the first half of 2026.

To be clear, the Mariners shouldn't hang up if the Cardinals insist on having Montes in a Donovan trade. Donovan is an ideal fit for what the Mariners need right now, namely a versatile defender who can bat at the top of the lineup.

Hopefully, though, there's a deal to be made that would allow Donovan and Montes to one day be sharing the field at T-Mobile Park.