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# Analysis: Five Options for Extra Mariners Bat after Jorge Polanco’s Signing with Mets
- URL: https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/five-options-extra-mariners-bat-after-jorge-polanco-signing-mets/
- Published: 2025-12-14T01:28:31.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-08T05:54:23.000Z
- Author: Callaghan Bluechel
- Tags: Analysis, Mariners, Jorge Polanco, Brendan Donovan, Brandon Lowe, Eugenio Suarez, Nico Hoerner, Kazuma Okamoto, Cole Young, Ben Williamson, Colt Emerson

[Embed from Getty Images](https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/2236832940?ref=emeraldcityspectrum.com)

Mariners infielder Jorge Polanco, who slashed .265/.326/.495 with 26 home runs and 30 doubles in 2025, [agreed to a two-year, $40 million contract with the New York Mets](https://web.archive.org/web/20251213212652/https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/mets-to-sign-jorge-polanco.html), taking him off the board for a Mariners team that is looking for one more bat to take pressure off an upcoming crop of young infielders as the team eyes a championship run in 2026\. The deal, well above the $12 million average annual value (AAV) range the Mariners had reportedly offered Polanco, was yet another example of the [seller’s market around the league this winter](https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/home/orlando-action-three-takeaways-mariners-from-2025-winter-meetings-first-big-flurry) \- perhaps something to be expected with the league’s highly volatile labor situation ahead of the 2026 offseason and its CBA re-negotiations.

With Polanco taking a bite out of the Big Apple, who should the Mariners look at as their offseason impact bat? Barring a big shake-up in offseason strategy ([which Seattle might want to keep on the table](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zqn65AoVk%5Fk&ref=emeraldcityspectrum.com)), Jerry Dipoto and company will likely move on to the shrinking host of infield bats still available around the league, either by trade or by free agency. Although the Diamondbacks are listening to offers on star second baseman Ketel Marte, they are reportedly asking for a king’s ransom involving prospects and a proven big-league starter, something Seattle is unlikely to pony up. With that in mind, who should Seattle be pursuing in lieu of Jorge Polanco?

### 1\. Utility man Brendan Donovan, 28, St. Louis Cardinals.

Multiple teams around baseball have been [connected to Brendan Donovan negotiations](https://web.archive.org/web/20251213214254/https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/giants-have-shown-interest-in-brendan-donovan.html), though the Cardinals are evidently going through some restructuring under new president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom and will take some time to re-evaluate what these teams have to offer. That makes it unclear what the M’s would have to give up if they were to pull the trigger on Donovan, but with three years of control before he reaches free agency, it likely wouldn’t be like the astronomical reported asking price for Ketel Marte.

It’s not hard to see why teams around the league are interested in Donovan, who slashed .287/.353/.422 with 10 homers and 32 doubles in 2025 and has the ability to slot into most infield or outfield positions. He has a very controlled swing and an excellent ability to fend off pitches, striking out just 13% of the time in 2025\. While his walks haven’t been much to write home about, hovering around league average for most of his career, these excellent bat-to-ball skills give him a high floor on his batting average and allow him to tax opposing pitchers.

Although he has the ability to play all around the field and won a Gold Glove as a utility man in his rookie 2022 season, defensive metrics are skeptical of Donovan’s ability, with negative defensive runs saved (DRS) in each of his past three major league seasons while StatCast’s outs above average (OAA) put him near the bottom of their rankings during his first two years. Looking at footage, Donovan is definitely stronger in the infield than he is in the outfield, as there were noticeable issues with [slow jumps](https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/sporty-videos?playId=744ca0fe-b5df-357a-98c3-2d32c0072842&ref=emeraldcityspectrum.com) and [taking bad routes](https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/sporty-videos?playId=e8de79b0-186a-31e5-8916-64c368b9264b&ref=emeraldcityspectrum.com) to the ball when he played in left field in 2025\. Still, his defensive performance in left is better than usual Mariners left fielder Randy Arozarena (who Seattle could move to designated hitter if Donovan finds most of his time in left) and Seattle’s biggest positional hole is in the infield.

The major issue with Donovan, however, may be his platoon splits. Although he has a .293/.373/.439 career slash line against right-handers, the lefty bat’s line versus southpaws is just .249/.325/.326\. For a team that already has a number of platoony left-handed bats - including 2025 rookie Cole Young and probable 2026 rookie Colt Emerson - they might want their offseason addition to swing it from the right side.

### 2\. Utility man Brandon Lowe, 31, Tampa Bay Rays.

Perhaps less appealing than Donovan but still very much viable in the near-term, Rays utility man Brandon Lowe has just one year left on his contract, an $11.5 million team option that the Rays [chose to exercise for 2026](https://www.mlb.com/news/rays-pick-up-options-on-brandon-lowe-taylor-walls?msockid=1da2c747e1d7653920dcd66fe06464f5&ref=emeraldcityspectrum.com). He slashed .256/.307/.477 with 31 homers and 19 doubles in 2025, but unlike Donovan, whose contact-heavy profile would fill a similar role to Polanco’s, Lowe is very much a high-strikeout, high-power guy in the vein of Eugenio Suárez.

This lowers Lowe’s floor compared to a guy like Donovan, though there is always the possibility he pops off for a good chunk of the season, especially in a contract year. When he does make contact, Lowe tends to hit the ball hard and in the air. Still, for a team with plenty of swing-and-miss on the roster, the slump risk inherent in Lowe’s profile could result in a bad hole in the lineup during key games in the season. He also played in the very hitter-friendly George M. Steinbrenner Field during his 2025 season, and a move to Seattle would almost certainly mean a drop in home runs. 

Just like Donovan, Lowe is a left-hander with hefty platoon splits, as his .256/.341/.500 slash line against right-handers declines to .219/.275/.420 against lefties. The difference in his eye when he’s facing a lefty is just as apparent in his career walk rate, which is 10.4% versus right-handers and 6% versus southpaws.

Unlike Donovan, who has had a bit more fluctuation and inscrutability in his defense, Lowe’s defense is more of a concrete liability. Both DRS and OAA gave him well below average ratings in 2025, and his -14 DRS (generally the more reliable one for infielders) at second base was the third worst of any second baseman in the majors. Seattle does have infield magician Perry Hill on staff, but that defensive underproduction (along with a propensity for injury) should give the team pause before pulling the trigger on a Lowe trade. 

### 3\. 3B Eugenio Suárez, 34, free agent.

Seattle had three infield bats test the waters in free agency, and two of them are now signed: [Josh Naylor back with Seattle](https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/home/mariners-re-sign-josh-naylor-five-year-deal-mark-biggest-offseason-item-off-checklist) early on and Jorge Polanco away in Queens in December. That leaves the third, Suárez, still available to be picked up by any team. 

Suárez’ age clearly lowers his long-term ceiling - and his declining walk rate and increasing chase rate will do him no favors - but as I’ve argued before, [he probably still has at least one good year left](https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/home/should-mariners-bring-eugenio-suarez-back-2026), and that might be enough for Seattle to run it back with their third baseman in lieu of Polanco. Unlike Donovan and Lowe, Suárez is a right-hander and hasn’t shown very much in the way of platoon splits during his career.

The M’s would keep their “good vibes only” guy on the team with a Suárez signing, and clubhouse vibes are something that aren’t very obvious when they’re going well but can be a serious detriment if they’re going poorly. Tied into that is the fact that Suárez is a known quantity for Seattle, both in advantages and drawbacks.

However, Suárez’ mostly exclusive positioning at third base would take away some of the versatility offered by guys like Donovan or Lowe and would probably block Ben Williamson from getting significant reps unless Suárez moves to a designated hitter role. Top prospect Colt Emerson, set to debut in 2026, is also slated to get some starts in at third, and this greater logjam at the hot corner is likely why the M’s were reported to be [largely inactive in the third base market](https://web.archive.org/web/20251213234058/https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/mariners-not-active-in-pursuing-third-base-help.html) during the winter meetings, even though they have kept the line open with Suárez. 

Estimates on Suárez’ eventual contract range from three years for $63 million [according to MLB Trade Rumors](https://web.archive.org/web/20251213234901/https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/2025-26-top-50-mlb-free-agents-with-predictions.html) to around $15 million per year [according to Spotrac](https://web.archive.org/web/20251213234521/https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/free-agents/available/%5F/year/2026). If Seattle is able to negotiate a contract around the $15 million AAV mark for two or three years, they very well could find budget space for him in the roughly $165 million-$175 million range of likely Opening Day payroll, but a contract closer to $21 million AAV might price the M’s out of the Suárez market barring a greater payroll shakeup.

### 4\. 2B Nico Hoerner, 28, Chicago Cubs.

Unlike the previous three players, Seattle has not been connected to Nico Hoerner, though the [Cubs are reportedly taking offers](https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6880509/2025/12/10/what-were-hearing-cubs-winter-meetings/?ref=emeraldcityspectrum.com) on him as he approaches a contract year in 2026\. There is little doubt he will be a highly productive player, with a .297/.345/.394 slash line, 29 doubles, and 29 stolen bases in 2025, but moving Hoerner to Seattle would signal a greater strategic shakeup than any of the other moves on this list.

Hoerner is fresh off a well-deserved Gold Glove season with 17 DRS and clearly elite play in the middle infield, but that also means that he would be the undoubted starting second baseman for Seattle for his year with the team, blocking Cole Young and Colt Emerson from developing at that position. While Colt Emerson has the versatility to play third base, the same can’t be said for Young, who would be pushed into a designated hitter role at most. Given that Hoerner would likely be a year-long rental, the team - especially with its current plan very much involving Young as an everyday player - might be reticent to make such a deal.

The nature of Hoerner as a rental, however, would likely get the M’s somewhat of a discount. I proposed a [Hoerner for Luis Castillo](https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/home/six-trades-mariners-could-make-bolster-roster-offseason) trade earlier in the offseason as one to address both Chicago’s pitching needs and Seattle’s infield needs, and although the public statements of Mariners brass have all run counter to both the idea of trading Castillo and of impeding Young’s trajectory, such a deal (which would probably require extra juice from the Mariners’ side) would have the added benefit of freeing up a little over $12 million in budget space that Seattle could use to augment their roster in other ways, or at the very least sign a fifth starter to a one-year deal.

Again, that would be a stark departure from what the Mariners’ front office has indicated up to this point, but given that Seattle’s Polanco plans fell through and teams around the league are taking more and more players off the board, that kind of shakeup might be necessary.

### 5\. 3B/1B/LF Kazuma Okamoto, 29, posted from NPB’s Yomiuri Giants.

Kazuma Okamoto, like Hoerner, has not been connected to the Seattle Mariners this offseason, but an Okamoto deal would be more in line with what Seattle currently wants to pick up. He has a positional versatility to play first, third, and left field, and as such could end up as an outfielder alongside an Arozarena transfer to designated hitter all while keeping the spots open for Williamson, Young, and Emerson. With a .322/.411/.581 slash line over 77 games in 2025 and similar numbers in a longer 2024 season, Okamoto has consistently proven his worth in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), and his high contact and walk rates alongside low strikeouts are good indications that Okamoto has a decently high floor in the majors. Additionally, Okamoto is a right-hander, neutralizing the worry that Seattle might develop an overabundance of lefty platoon bats with guys like Donovan or Lowe. 

MLB Trade Rumors estimates a four-year, $64 million contract for Okamoto, and that $16 million AAV is likely doable for the Mariners, though it would push their overall payroll towards the upper end of expectations.

Okamoto is not the only big-name free agent third baseman posted from NPB this offseason, as he is joined by Munetaka Murakami of the Yakult Swallows. Although the 25-year-old Murakami has a clearly higher ceiling than Okamoto, his profile includes more obvious weaknesses that will have to be addressed by big-league coaches, and Seattle’s emphasis is on adding veteran talent to immediately augment Seattle’s prospect crop. Okamoto also doesn’t have MLB experience, however, and would have to develop into a major league player with whatever team signs him. Still, he profiles as an above-average hitter with positional versatility, and that’s what the Mariners need.