Mariners need a righty bat and bullpen help, but adding them could be tricky

SEATTLE -- Buckle up, because Trade Deadline season has arrived.

Now that the sport has cleared the MLB Draft, front offices will firmly shift their sights to the Aug. 3 Deadline.

And how the Mariners address their very distinct needs -- against what’s shaping up to be a league-wide market of buyers -- will be fascinating to follow.

“The number of times I’ve sat watching our games with guys from the front office [and asked], ‘Who is going to be a mover at the Deadline the way the standings look today?’” president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said in a recent interview with MLB Network Radio. “And that’s certainly a reasonable question to ask.

“There are not a lot of teams that would be obvious sellers today. For our specific needs, I wouldn’t say that there are a lot of obvious teams that fit us.”

• Record at the break: 48-49 (2nd in AL West, 1.5 games back)
• Record at the break last year: 51-45 (2nd in AL West, 5 games back)
• Odds to make playoffs: 70.8% (per FanGraphs)
• Remaining Strength of Schedule: .490 (sixth-easiest in MLB)

Indeed, this year’s market is shaping up to be incredibly robust among buyers -- with a whopping 23 of the 30 teams either occupying a playoff spot or within four games of one.

It could lead to market behaviors that we haven’t seen in a while, which in turn could complicate the Mariners’ plans, given that their biggest needs -- for a right-handed bat and a right-handed leverage reliever -- are what many clubs will be seeking.

“I think there are enough contending teams with real holes or needs to fill that you might actually see more action with contender trading with contender -- like, buyer-to-buyer type trades to fill voids,” Dipoto said.

“It’s not a common thing in history at the Trade Deadline. But I do think that is something that is going to be pretty prominent in the next four or five weeks, simply because there are not enough obvious sellers with the kind of player availability that’s going to fill the needs of all the contending clubs.”

With all that in mind, here’s a Midterm Report of where things stand in Seattle:

Biggest need: Right-handed bat, proven reliever

Seattle has an MLB-worst .631 OPS against left-handed pitching that must be addressed, exacerbated all the more by the fact that their entire infield hits left-handed. And this doesn’t include Brendan Donovan, who hasn’t yet begun a Minor League rehab assignment and is expected to transition to a super-utility role whenever he returns.

Improvement, frankly, also must come in-house -- most obviously via Cal Raleigh, who has a .441 OPS and just one homer vs. lefties this season.

Their bullpen clearly needs at least one reinforcement, if not more, and they anticipate mid-August returns for Matt Brash and Cooper Criswell. Yet they’d prefer not to exclusively rely on players returning from lengthy injury absences. This is where a proven arm is vital.

Biggest chip: Starting rotation and No. 8-ranked farm system

Sources have said that the Mariners are more open than they’ve ever been to dealing from their rotation, but it’s still not their preferred route. And among that group, their preference would be to move Luis Castillo.

But Castillo comes with complications, chiefly the $24.15 million he’s due next year and the $25 million vesting option he’ll achieve by pitching 180 innings in ‘27.

That’s a lofty price tag, even in a Deadline market where many teams will be seeking starters, which could, hypothetically, force the Mariners to package Castillo with a big league hitter and prospect capital to offset the cost.

This is where things could get interesting -- and the increasing reality is that for the Mariners to add to the big league roster, they might have to subtract from the big league roster.

As for prospects, the Mariners have six within MLB Pipeline’s Top 100, and just about all of them would be on the table in prospective trade talks, other than Kade Anderson and Ryan Sloan, who very well could be part of the post-Deadline roster plans.

Key player for second half: CF Julio Rodríguez

Second-half Julio is one of the very best players in the league. Dating to his 2022 rookie season, he ranks sixth in OPS (.902) and ninth in homers (59) among 112 hitters who have played at least 200 post-All-Star break games. The bigger concern is how he recovers from a concussion that sidelined him the final nine games of the first half, and how much longer he could be out.

Determining factor: Who can they match up with?

Another glaring reality is that they have a crowded roster among position players, with no distinct spots to plug Deadline adds. Last year, it was so obvious that they could do so at first base and third base, then netted Josh Naylor and Eugenio Suárez.

It’s not as simple this time.

Seattle has permanent staples at catcher (Raleigh), first base (Naylor), second base (Cole Young), shortstop (Colt Emerson) and center field (Rodríguez).

Their best hitter since June is their designated hitter (Dominic Canzone), while their All-Star (Randy Arozarena) and veteran leader (J.P. Crawford) are on expiring contracts. It’s hard to imagine them trading from these three for both production value and optics, unless they were to get really creative and really bold -- which should never be discounted with this front office.