There's 1 thing working against Mariners amid Brendan Donovan stalemate

With two weeks left in January and less than a month to go until spring training, it is frankly surprising that the Seattle Mariners have not traded for Brendan Donovan yet. He makes too much sense for them, and the St. Louis Cardinals couldn't ask for a better trading partner.

Right now, the situation seems to be a stalemate. Adam Jude of The Seattle Times reported last week that Donovan is still Seattle's "top priority." The Cardinals, meanwhile, value the 29-year-old as a star, and would like for his trade sweepstakes to be resolved soon one way or another.

Perhaps the Cardinals will blink and make a deal that favors the Mariners. It seems more likely, though, that the Mariners will end up blinking.

A lack of other options is working against Mariners amid Brendan Donovan stalemate

There was a point when the Mariners had plenty of options for the infield bat they still needed after re-signing Josh Naylor in November. Re-upping with Jorge Polanco was the obvious one, and other potential fits included Kazuma Okamoto and Ketel Marte.

But with all three now off the board, there just aren't many fallback options left for Jerry Dipoto.

As Jude covered, Chicago Cubs infielders Nico Hoerner and Matt Shaw are prospective fits for Seattle. But the Cubs are a win-now team that may prefer to get established MLB talent back for either one, and the Mariners reportedly want to keep their major league roster intact.

A free-agent reunion with Eugenio Suárez remains possible, but he seems to have other options elsewhere, including an attractive one in Boston. He's also an imperfect fit for Seattle's plans, which consist of wanting to roll the dice with Ben Williamson or Colt Emerson at third base.

There otherwise isn't a whole lot left out there in free agency. Maybe you beg to differ if you're a fan of Luis Arraez, Isiah Kiner-Falefa or Enrique Hernández, but all three are more supporting characters than regulars — yes, even Arraez, who's the most famous 1-WAR player in baseball.

It's not quite "Donovan or bust" for the Mariners, but it is "Donovan or take your chances on Cole Young after his rough rookie season." You can bet your bottom dollar that the Cardinals understand this, in which case they have the excuse they need to hold firm in talks with the Mariners.

Sure, they could otherwise trade Donovan to the Red Sox, the San Francisco Giants or someone else. But the benefit of dealing with Seattle is the chance to get at the Mariners' prospect riches, including switch-pitcher Jurrangelo Cijntje and slugger Lazaro Montes. Boston can compete with that more than the Giants, but the last thing the Red Sox need is another left-handed hitter.

There should be a point at which the Mariners walk away from Donovan, but that point needs to be flexible. Even if he isn't the star the Cardinals think he is, he's still a quality hitter and defender. And should Young earn his shot this spring, well, Donovan can also play the other three infield spots, plus left field in a pinch.

If the Cardinals mean to push the Mariners' walk-away point as far as they can, that's their prerogative. And for their part, the Mariners could angle for whatever price they pay for Donovan to also buy another player, such as JoJo Romero.

Either way, they're probably negotiating from their back foot at this point. If the surprise is that they haven't gotten Donovan yet, the miracle will be if they get him on their terms.