*This is a prediction*
The Seattle Mariners are starting to look at an issue surrounding their infield. They were looking to re-sign Jorge Polanco, but it was reported that he is looking to get $15-17 million a year for three years. It seems unlikely the Mariners will look to pay Polanco $45-50 million, meaning they must look to pivot and look elsewhere this offseason to add to their infield.
The Mariners could either make a big swing in free agency, or they could look to make a trade to solve this issue. If they look to go the trade route, Brandon Lowe from the Tampa Bay Rays makes sense.
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Tampa Bay picked up the $10.5 million team option for Brandon Lowe in 2025. For a Rays team that needs to reconfigure some things, as they currently are coming off a 2025 season in which they had a 77-85 record, their worst record since 2017, allocating 12% of their payroll to Lowe isn’t ideal when they could instead look to use that money to improve other positions on the team.
This makes Brandon Lowe a prime trade candidate. While him being injury-prone will be a drawback for some teams, his production when full healthy is evident. Last season, Lowe had a .256/.307/.477 slash line with 31 home runs and 83 RBIs. The consistency that Lowe has shown throughout his career has led to a career slash line of .247/.326/.481 with 157 home runs and 446 RBIs.
By trading for Brandon Lowe, his offensive impact for Seattle would pair well alongside Cal Raleigh and Julio Rodriguez in the batting lineup, and he would provide the Mariners with a solution at their second base spot. With Seattle making it to the American League Championship Series in 2025, they are close, and need to continue to round out the rest of the roster to maintain this success.