LAS VEGAS -- It took until the final minutes of the Winter Meetings, when Jerry Dipoto wound up signing off on a deal from a hospital bed, but the Mariners lived up to expectations in being one of the few teams to make a trade at the four-day gathering that concluded Thursday at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino.
For Dipoto, the heavy lifting had already largely been done with six trades prior to arriving in Las Vegas, but the Mariners general manager finalized a deal that flipped recently acquired Carlos Santana to the Indians for veteran slugger Edwin Encarnacion and a Round B compensatory pick that will give Seattle the 77th overall selection in the 2019 Draft.
Thursday's deal was completed after Dipoto was driven to the hospital on Wednesday after feeling severe chest pains. He spent the night in a Vegas hospital undergoing tests that showed he was dealing with blood clots in his lungs, but was released Thursday afternoon and has been cleared to fly home to Seattle on Friday.
Even after Dipoto's seventh trade of the winter, there is still some work to be done, and the Mariners continued setting the stage to make a few more necessary moves in their makeover process while meeting with agents and potential trade partners at the Winter Meetings.
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The Mariners talked with representatives for Japanese left-hander Yusei Kikuchi, the one prominent free agent they're pursuing. The 27-year-old is young enough to fit into Dipoto's window of contention in 2020 and beyond and be part of a next wave of talent if he should agree to a four- or five-year deal, which is what he's believed to be pursuing.
Given the Mariners' history with Japanese players, Kikuchi would seem to be a potential match, though it's not clear yet if he is interested in the Mariners. The hard-throwing southpaw will hold face-to-face meetings with MLB teams later this month in Los Angeles and must sign with a club by Jan. 2.
Dipoto also is interested in some lower-tier free agents to fill short-term holes on the 2019 roster, preferring to spend money rather than trade prospects to acquire help for the bullpen and depth at several positions.
The club also figures to continue testing the trade waters to see if it can add more prospects in exchange for veterans like Ryon Healy, Mike Leake and now Encarnacion, who could himself be flipped if the right deal pops up.
It's hard to imagine Dipoto not engineering a few more trades of that nature, given he's already dealt James Paxton, Robinson Cano, Edwin Diaz, Jean Segura, Mike Zunino, Alex Colome, Guillermo Heredia, James Pazos and Juan Nicasio for a flock of younger talent in the hope of restructuring an aging roster for a better chance of contending by 2020.
The club also picked up infielder Kaleb Cowart from the Angels in a waiver claim on Monday, with Cowart expected to make a unique bid to see if he can pitch as well as fill a utility role this spring.

Biggest remaining needs
1. Bullpen: After severely depleting their relief staff with the array of trades and some free-agent departures prior to the Meetings, the Mariners will focus largely on that area between now and Spring Training. Dipoto is looking to add a late-inning lefty candidate as well as a couple of veteran right-handers capable of contributing in high-leverage situations.
2. Outfield: There remains a need for a right-handed-hitting outfielder to help balance a group that includes lefties Mallex Smith, Jay Bruce and Ben Gamel, as well as right-hander Mitch Haniger. Again, Dipoto won't chase a front-line starter, but would like to add depth to that group.
3. Shortstop: While the club traded for 24-year-old shortstop J.P. Crawford from the Phillies, Dipoto would like to bring in a veteran who could hold down the fort if the Mariners decide to have Crawford open the season in Triple-A Tacoma.

Rule 5 Draft
The Mariners landed 27-year-old reliever Brandon Brennan from the Rockies in the Rule 5 Draft on Thursday and will give him a shot in their bullpen mix. The right-hander pitched mostly Double-A ball for the White Sox last year. Seattle lost a trio of players in the Triple-A phase of the Rule 5 Draft process, with outfielder Chuck Taylor going to the Nationals, right-hander Adonis De La Cruz to the Yankees and right-hander Chris Mazza to the Mets.
The bottom line
"If we have an opportunity to speed up the timeline on our stepback, we'll do what is best for the Mariners in the long run. And we're trying to make the long run shorter, trying to condense that timeline of when we're ready to contend. So if we can pick up an asset that helps us going forward, we'll do that." -- Assistant GM Justin Hollander after the Mariners acquired Encarnacion, who could be flipped for more prospects