Seattle Mariners

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It’s no longer early in the off-season. The Seattle Mariners have yet to make any moves. Something has got to give. After missing out on Carlos Santana and seemingly being unwilling to find any takes for Luis Castillo (so far), the Mariners need to start to pivot from their original plan and come away with some solutions that actually make their 2025 roster undoubtedly better (on paper) than what they ended 2024 with.

The list of names heavily linked to the Mariners is well known at this point, and many remain “available”. Nick Hoerner, Justin Turner, Triston Casas, and Hye-Song Kim are just a few examples. But with the clock ticking, Seattle simply cannot stand without a chair when the music stops. It’s time to get creative—or, at least, get off the beaten path and forge your own way. Today, let’s identify three players who haven’t been talked about much this winter.

Maikel Garcia, Infielder Kansas City Royals

Garcia has certainly been discussed lightly amongst Mariner fans, and it’s not hard to see why they quickly turned their attention elsewhere. Garcia is a career .251/.301/.344 hitter with over 1,600 plate appearances in the big leagues. However, Garcia does offer a rather high floor thanks to good to great infield defense and the speed and base-running acumen to steal 40 bags a season.

The batting average isn’t a problem for Garcia, but the low OBP coupled with well below-average power makes him a risk for any team wishing to acquire him. However, a look at the batted ball profile suggests that Garcia may have more power than he has shown. Garcia’s average exit velo ranked in the 71st percentile in 2024 and the 87th percentile in 2023. 2023 also saw Garcia rank in the 93% percentile in hard-hit rate.

So how can a guy who hits the ball as hard as Garcia not produce more power? Garica hits a lot of groundballs and, well, it doesn’t matter how hard you hit a ground ball, they’re almost always going to be outs or singles. A swing adjustment to add more loft could lead to a sizable uptick in doubles and triples. And if Garcia is simply a .250/.300/.400 bat with his defense and base-running, he’s a solid 3-4 win player going forward.

Jonah Bride, Infielder Miami Marlins

I know, crazy right? That Jonah Bride? Yeah, that Jonah Bride. It might shock you to learn this, but Bride actually had a spectacular finish to the 2025 season, and could very well be this year’s Luke Raley. Bride is an average to above-average defender at third base and finished the 2024 season with a 123 wRC+. He clocked 11 homers in just 272 plate appearances, en route to a .276/.357/.461 triple slash.

Bride has been around forever. In fact, he turns 29 on December 27th. But he’s only managed 565 MLB plate appearances. But in that limited sample, Bride has managed to do two things consistently: take walks and avoid strikeouts. I’m not here to hard sell you on a 29-year-old who just now had a good half of hitting quality pitching. It’s not supposed to be exciting. But over the second half, Bride hit .282/.369/.485, good for a 133 wRC+.

Bride has five years of club control remaining and while the Marlins certainly won’t give him away coming off the second half he did, they are one of the only teams who are clearly willing to take prospects this winter. A lower-level prospect or two to take a shot on Bride is well worth the risk for the Mariners this winter.

Sal Frelick, Outfielder Milwaukee Brewers

Look, I don’t have any hidden number or deep dive to perform here. Has Sal Frelick hit in the big leagues? Not really. Is he a strong platoon bat? No he’s mediocre against both lefties and righties. But surely, he must be a premier defensive infielder, right? We don’t know, he’s never played in the infield in his Major League Career. He doesn’t even hit the ball hard or steal a ton of bases. How can a 25-year-old outfielder help the Mariners in the infield? Athleticism and development.

Frelick has just over a full season of PAs at the big league level and the results have been mediocre at best. He’s a career .255/.326/.339 hitter who has accrued 2.7 fWAR in 202 games played. So roughly a 2 fWAR player in a 162-game season and most of that value comes from his strong glove in the outfield.

But Frelick is one of the better athletes in the sport. The Brewers have already given him reps in the infield during spring training, and he was even able to handle shortstop for stints at Boston College and in the Cape Cod League.

All I can sell you on is Frelick’s athleticism and his feel for hitting. The overwhelming odds are that he’s going to be a fringe bat whose career fizzles out if he loses an ounce of athleticism or defensive prowess. But the odds also exist for him to turn into Tommy Edman, a player so valuable that the mighty Dodgers prioritized acquiring him at the deadline and extending him, and that’s a useful player.

None of these names were meant to excite you. None of them should be the best player you add this winter. But all of them could be had for a reasonable price, bring defense and some offensive ability to the table, and check off one position on your wish list, allowing you to focus more resources elsewhere. Oh, and they’re all making the league minimum in 2025 because sadly, that actually still matters.