Locked On Mariners - Daily Podcast On the Seattle Mariners - Mailbag: Have the Mariners Done Enough to Overtake the Astros and Rangers?

Episode Date: January 31, 2024

Ty and Colby answer some of your Mariners questions, including if the team has done enough to overtake the Astros and Rangers in the AL West, if Max Kepler would have cost the same or more as Jorge Polanco, if trading for Dylan Cease makes any sense, and more.Ask us questions!Follow the show on Twitter: @LO_Mariners | @TyDaneGonzalez | @CPat11Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Factor MealsHead to FactorMeals.com/lockedonmlb50 and use code lockedonmlb50 to get 50% off. eBay MotorsWith all the parts you need at the prices you want, it’s easy to turn your car into the MVP and bring home that win. Keep your ride-or-die alive at EbayMotors.com. Eligible items only. Exclusions apply. eBay Guaranteed Fit only available to US customers.GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDON for $20 off your first purchase.FanDuelScore early this NFL season with FanDuel, America’s Number One Sportsbook! Right now, NEW customers get ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS in BONUS BETS with any winning FIVE DOLLAR MONEYLINE BET! That’s A HUNDRED AND FIFTY BUCKS – if your team wins! Visit FanDuel.com/LOCKEDON to get started.FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

With the addition of Hore Polanco, are the Mariners good enough to overtake the Astros and Rangers? We'll answer that and more here on the Locked On Mariner's podcast. Colby, hit it. You are Locked on Mariners. Your daily Seattle Mariners podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Ahoy, sailors. It is Wednesday, January 31st, 2024. This is Tiding Gis Alas and Colby Vatnet for the Locked on Marriss podcast.

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is in the description of this episode. So today's episode is going to be a little weird. It's going to be kind of Frankenstein together because we recorded a full mailbag episode on Monday. We were trying to push that back as much as possible because we knew something was coming on Monday. But at a certain point, we said, screw it.

We need to do something productive with our day. So we recorded the episode. And naturally, as soon as we got done with that, the news broke that the mayor is traded for Horace Palanco. So we got right into, recording the emergency episode on that. So we're going to use some of what we recorded on Monday in this episode. Some of it, some of the stuff that we say in there might be a little outdated.

But yeah, so we're going to try to make it as current as possible. We did answer some things on Monday that didn't really have anything to do with the current Mariners roster or anything to do with the second base situation or anything like that. So before we get into those, however, we are going to start here with a couple of more recent questions we got in our Google form. And we're going to start with this one. It's an anonymous question. With these additions, do you think the Mariners have done enough to overtake the Astros and Rangers?

Colby? I think they've definitely closed the gap. And I think it's worth pointing out, as I've mentioned several times this winter. The gap is not large. It was not large, even at the end of last year. It seems like it because the Rangers won the World Series and Houston went to another ALCS and all that stuff. but it really wasn't. The Mariners were two games worse than both of those teams.

If Seattle wins one more game against Texas, they tie Texas. So you're telling me that you can go 162 games, finish one win shy of a team that wins the World Series, and they're significantly ahead of you? No, that's always been BS. The gap was never that large. So Seattle has certainly improved itself more than the other two teams this winter. They've certainly been more active. Texas still apparently is interested in Montgomery,

but we're running out of time here. Texas also recently we have learned, you know, probably won't be without Corey Seeger, but Corey Seeger is going to miss all of spring training with a sports hernia surgery. We'll see how that lingers. That's going to impact him,

at least early on in the season, though. So I think when you look at everything that's been put together, Houston's done some things, mainly just hater, and then some things around the fringes. but that's, you know, Houston trying to replace Graveman, Stanick, Mayton, and Nerris with one guy. Good luck. So to me, I look at this and I say, you know, Seattle, I don't know if they're the best team.

I'm not, I don't know if I'm willing to say they're the best team in the ALS right now. But I can't say that they're not. Like, I think it's a very close race right now between these three teams. But I do think that they are definitely, I would say they're definitively better than Texas. the gap in pitching right now is just so massive. You have to remember Texas won't have Jacob de Grom or Max Scherzer to start the year. Or I think John Gray is also going to be out as well. So we'll see what they can do with their pitching staff.

And then obviously Houston is, you know, their rotation is good, but it's just not quite in the same ballpark as the Mariners. And what the Mariners can do one through five is much better than what the Astros can do. The Astros may have the edge in the bullpen. if you just look at the high leverage arms because they have three. But Seattle probably has more bulk. It's a deeper bullpen. The lineup in Texas is probably better than Seattle's.

But again, Texas is relying on a lot of guys to repeat in order to be significantly better than Seattle. Corey Seeger has to put up like a 200 WRC plus for an entire season. Again. Right. You know, Jonah Haim has to continue to get better. Adolas Garcia has to continue to get better. So I think Texas has the best lineup of the group. I think Seattle has the best starting pitching.

I think the Astros have the best high leverage bullpen arms. I think Seattle has the best blend of all three of those categories. And so, you know, if you want to tell me that Seattle's the best team in the American League West, I'm not going to argue with you. If you want to tell me they're the second best, I'm not going to argue with you. But I do think they're better than Texas. I think I can say that right now. And we'll see what Texas does, you know, later or in the rest of the offseason to see if that narrative can change.

Yeah, I think you can make a strong argument that the, Marrars are the most balanced team in the AL West right now. And the big key here is like you mentioned, it's that, it's that rotation. It's the pitching staff as a whole. The rotation is significantly better than the Rangers right now. And not as significantly better than the Astros, but still better than the Astros. I would take the Mariner's rotation really over any rotation and baseball, except maybe the Dodgers at this point. The Dodgers are just ridiculous, but that's a whole other story.

But yeah, you know, this Mariners offense is not as good as the Rangers. It's probably not as good as the Astros. And obviously, it's relying on a lot of things to go in the right direction for them as well, especially regarding health. But yeah, I look at this division. I look at the Rangers, a lot of things have to go well for the Rangers as well. Like, I mean, that offense has to carry the rest of that team, the way that it did this past year. Can they repeat that? I mean, it's not out of the question for sure.

They certainly have a lot of talent. And if guys like Evan Carter and White Langford are as good as a lot of people are expecting, then, yeah, that's probably going to be the case. But I look at that bullpen, which they haven't really done a lot, which was an absolute disaster outside of the playoffs this past year. They had a David Robertson who's been good, but he's older. And that seems like that's the only thing that they're really going to do with regards to their bullpen this offseason. I have concerns about that.

I have concerns about that rotation. I just don't know if that offense is still going to be. good enough to carry them the way that I did this past year. And the Astros, I mean, the Astros are so talented. I'm not going to rule out the Astros. Even if we think that the Astros are getting older and guys are going to start to regress, I'm sure we're going to look up in September and they're close to 90 wins or 100 wins or something like that because that's just what the Astros do.

And then they're always going to be a problem in the playoffs if they get there. But right now, I think the Mariners are pretty close. again, things have to go well for them, particularly on the offensive end of things. But that rotation makes up a lot of the difference here. And with that rotation, as long as those guys stay healthy, you're going to be able to win any game that you play this year. Next question here from David. John Marosi tweeted this AM, the M's inquired about Max Kepler, but a deal never gained traction. Do you think it's simply because the twins likely demanded Wu or Miller?

And do you agree Polanco is a better fit anyway, for? the Ems and would rather have him than Kepler if the compensation they gave up for Polanco would have been the same. Colby, you're a bit biased on this because you love Max Kepler. I would just like to say a couple things here. A, Max and I have a connection that you'll never understand. Okay. So don't even try me.

B, I don't think they were asking for Miller or Wu for Kepler. That would be ridiculous. and Polanco probably has more trade value than Kepler since he has two years of club control left, and he also plays a more premium position. So if you're not getting Wu or Miller for Polanco, you're certainly not getting it for Kepler. Even if both were combined, you're not getting it for Kepler or you're not getting Wu or Miller for Kepler and Palanco. Just not going to happen. That was not going to be a part of these negotiations.

I think Polanco is a more pressing fit for the Mariners. They needed that, they really wanted that infielder. And the fact that he is a switch hitter also is, you know, a pretty nice bonus. So I think that Polanco is the guy. If the Mariners had to choose one or the other, they were going to choose Polanco. And I think they probably should have. But there's no denying Kepler certainly brings a little bit more availability to the table, which is a trait that the Mariners should place some value on,

considering, you know, how the rest of their build is. and Polanco's not quite as reliable as Kepler in terms of playing every day. So I think that, you know, and also we don't know when exactly they inquired about Kepler. Is this before or after they got Rayleigh? Is this before or after they got Hanigar? If it was after, then fine. And it might point to the idea that the meritor still think they need an outfielder, which would be welcome news to me.

So it's possible that. It could be possible that this happened before. You know, before they acquired Rayleigh in Hanager. And now they're just like Kepler just doesn't make a lot of sense for us. So we'll see. Not all that surprise that they inquired about Kepler. He was one of the few bats that's going to be available that filled a roll, filled a hole in your lineup. That wasn't going to cost elite prospects or, you know, elite contracts.

So I'm not surprised at all that they went that they at least talked about Kepler. And I wouldn't be surprised either if we get into the summer. and Minnesota is willing to trade him if Seattle doesn't circle back because we know that Jerry circles back. So keep that in mind, you know, in the back. And also one other thing, Kepler is a free agent after this year. So keep all that in mind, store it away. I think, you know, to answer the question, I think Polanco was their priority. I don't know if this Kepler news is relevant or not because I don't know when they discussed Kepler.

if they were discussing him recently as they were talking about Palaco, then I think that points to the Mariners understanding they have a need in the outfield they have to fill. But other than that, I think this was probably just due diligence. You know, hey, let's see if we can expand the package without getting too crazy here and let's do it that way. But yeah, I think that Polanco is the better fit for Seattle specifically. But Kepler would have made a lot of sense as well.

Yeah. second base has been such a problem area for them in recent years, basically, since Cano's departure. So, yeah, I think that was a big need for them. And they clearly did not feel super comfortable rolling into opening day with just Rojas and Ureus for those two spots at third and second. And, you know, Polanco was arguably the best second baseman feasibly available this offseason, which makes the acquisition.

all the more impressive and all the more exciting for the Mariners that they were able to go out and get that guy. And they had to give a solid package to the twins, but they didn't give anything that I'm losing sleepover either. And so if it's a similar package for Kepler, which I don't think it would be because, again, there just wasn't a whole lot out there at second base. So from the twins perspective,

you should be asking more for Polanco than a corner outfielder like Kepler. but I mean there's also not a lot of corner outfielders who hit left-handed that can hit for power to play good defense, etc. like Kepler can. So there's certainly, I'm sure, a premium on Kepler as well, even though there's only a year left. But I can't imagine that they were asking for more than Polanco. So no, I don't think it was Miller or Wu. And at the end of the day, if I had the choice of one or the other, it's close, but I'd probably go with Polanco, especially as things currently stand on the Mariners roster. because I feel better about the mayor's outfield group than I do Rojas and Ureus and those guys both being guaranteed starting spots in the mayor's end field.

All right. Yeah. Anything else? One last. You want to add before we move on? One last thing, Ty. We are back on top. We have overtaken locked on Astros and we are now.

We have. Once again, the according to social blade. or whatever. We are about 15 subs over them right now. So it's close. And sometimes those take a little while to update.

But as of my understanding is right now, we are officially, once again, the number one YouTube channel on the Locked-on MLB network. So thank you guys so much. Let's keep on adding to it.

And we'll probably do something to celebrate being number one again, where we belong, where you guys belong, really. So yeah, we'll probably do something here in the next few weeks. We're going back to a full

slate of shows next week. So it feels like a good time to do a giveaway of some sort. So stay tuned to. It feels like a good time for you to do some Fortnite dances. I never agree to that. This is like a 40-minute show now. Move on. Okay.

So we are now going to cut to what we recorded on Monday. But before we do that, reminder, this episode of the lockdown on Marys podcast is brought to you. by Fanduel. Happy Super Bowl to all who celebrate from Fandul, America's number one sportsbook. If you like me, Super Bowl Sunday is all about scoring the best seat on the couch, grabbing your favorite football snacks, and placing some super bets. I'm sure a lot of us Seahawks fans are going to be hate watching the 49ers and cheering on Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs, but the only thing

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part of the Locked-on podcast network of your team every day. With the reports from yesterday about the Dillon C's trade talks, don't you think that it would be an overpay to give up Bryce Miller or Brian Wu, plus more potentially for a guy with only two years of club control, seems more like leverage talks than anything else? Colby, what do you think about the Dillan Seas rumors? Sounds like leverage talks more than anything else to me. So, yeah, the Dylan sees fit in Seattle just doesn't make sense if the White Sox are, you know, adamant that they have to have Miller or Wu.

They just, that doesn't make sense from a Mariners perspective. While they do get a better pitcher, you know, in the short term, at least in theory, you know, for this year, they might not get a better pitcher next year. And then they lose four years of club control on Miller or Wu. So, you know, it's really, I don't see the point in that because you're also not a team that is right now, like, you're not a, you're not a franchise that is like a go for it these two years type of thing. And then we got to rebuild, you know, again, like you want to be sustainable. You want to have a, you know, a window, the window open a long time. So making these trades where you swap essentially, you know, six years of a mid rotation starter for two years of a mid rotation starter. doesn't make any sense for you really. Now, C's can definitely be better than that, but there's a, you know, a somewhat significant chance that Miller and or Wu are as good as C's this year,

at least in terms of value or at least close to it. So you don't make that trade. And then, you know, if you're the White Sox, you probably are asking for more than just one of those arms. I mean, just trading that arm for C's straight up is a no-go if you're the Mariners. Now the White Sox want prospects on top of that, not going to happen. And when you look at, you know, well, can you expand the deal? Can the White Sox add something to make it worth your while?

Not really. They really don't because they have Luis Robert. You're not getting Luis Robert. I think we can agree he's probably not getting traded, almost certainly not getting traded. And then you look at the other guys that, I mean, like, I think Mercatus do like $20 million this year, not happening. Andrew Benatinez do $15 million. this year and $60 million over the next four. Not happening.

Andrew Vaughn has hit less than Thai France, like in his career. So that's not really a fit. There's a couple guys in the bullpen. But again, like you're going to trade six years of Miller or Wu or two years of Dylan Seeson and a reliever. It doesn't make any sense either. So I don't see any fit for the Mariners and the White Sox unless there's a third team involved or unless there is basically a three.

team deal, but it's two separate trades. There's another shoe that has to drop. Right. The Mariners acquire cease, and then they go and they get their bat from somebody else. And maybe it's, we get cease from the White Sox and that player, that other player we get from the White Sox, we then turn around and we flip to so and so to get this player. Like, so I just don't see a way that just a straight up deal, cease for Miller or Wu makes any sense whatsoever. I don't see a deal where cease to the Mariners makes a ton of sense unless,

Luis Robert is is available and cheaper than we think. But assuming that's not the case, I don't see it. I don't see a fit here. I think this is more just like the White Sox wanting somebody to meet their price. So they kind of leak this out to the Nightingale like, oh, yeah, well, the Mariners are involved. And by the way, we knew the Mariners were involved earlier. Right. So this isn't new information.

So he's talked about this more. He was on MLB network about an hour or so ago, or at least the clip was posted about an hour or so ago. he says they've been engaged for the last couple weeks in these talks. Right. But even this, I feel like we had heard about this even well before a couple weeks ago. So it still, to me, feels a little bit like this is rehashed. This is a rehashed report. It just doesn't line up because I was told, again, I'm going off of the whole like I was told stuff.

But like, I was told that the Mariners are essentially asking the world for Miller and Wu. This doesn't seem like the world for Miller and Wu. This defeats the whole purpose of trading one of those guys. When you're sacrificing four years of club control for a guy that, yeah, might be better and more dependable than either of those guys in 2024, but long term. And I'm not even fully confident that ceases. a better pitcher the Miller or Wu in 2024.

I think it's a very, very high likelihood. I bet pretty heavily on it, but it's not a 0% chance. Yeah. It's just, it feels so unnecessary. Unless Jerry is just, Jerry and Justin are absolutely

feeling the pressure. They feel like they have to make some sort of win now move. And even then, that would be stupid. I just don't. don't see a way that like if you're not getting louise robert on top of you know if it's just a trade with the white socks there's no third team involved and there's no other shoe that drops if you're not getting louis robert on top of dillen ceas and you're trading either brian woo or bryce miller or both to the white socks it's stupid yeah you're not getting i mean you're not

maximizing your roster by doing that so no um now again if you can get Cs for prospects, like just for prospects, then yeah, you're in. You're interested in that. And if you could get, like you said, Robert and Cis and Miller's the headliner, and then that'll cost you even more prospects. But like,

if you're getting... It might cost you both Miller and Wu. It might. And, but even that makes more sense than just giving up one of those guys for C's straight up. Like, if you're giving up Miller and Wu for Robert and Cs, that makes sense. You still have to go and replace the starting pitcher, but that makes sense because now you've gotten kind of the star bat you're looking for and you've gotten a replacement for at least one of those arms for two years. Yeah. So that would make sense.

But we're not hearing anything about that. All we have is, you know, cease. Mariners are interested in cease to some degree. And the White Sox are telling them you have to give us Miller a woo. And there's a very strong probability that the Mariners hear that and they chuckle. Like, no, we're not giving you that. Dylan Sees and, you know, and Luis Castillo cost probably going to be pretty similar. Maybe a bit more because you're getting an extra three months of cease, but like, that's probably what it costs.

And that cost is Harry Ford, Gabriel Gonzalez, you know, Tyler Locklear and, I mean, I don't know, Emerson Hancock or somebody like that. Like, that's the cost. It's not Miller or Wu. That's not going to happen. So I don't see this. I think this is just kind of the Mariners just checking in regularly. And I think they're just waiting to see if the price, asking price drops. And if it does, then they'll have a conversation.

If it doesn't, I don't think they're going to trade Miller or will. I just don't see the point in trading either of those guys for a pitcher. Not for one who's got, you know, less than three or four years of club control at least. Yeah. Just kind of defeats the purpose. well and we've talked about how important Wu and Miller could be to this organization two or three years down the road

if these financial restrictions that the front office are very obviously under continue because you know Luis Castile might get traded once his no trade clause goes away you know they might trade Logan Gilbert once he's down to you know one to two years left of

club control. And at that point, you need Wu and Miller who are who have a ceiling of being mid rotation arms on the cheap. Why would you trade that for a guy that's making

$8 million? Because like, again, look at everything they've done this off season. Now think about a Dillon C straight and take into account again, the affordability of both Wu and Miller and then the money that Cease is making an arbitration this year, what he's going to make an arbitration next year,

and tell me, does that make any sense to you? No. It's essentially, do you want to sacrifice four years of one of these arms for one extra win in 2024? Yeah. Because that's probably what the difference is going to be, right around that range. It's probably going to be one win.

And then I think next year they're roughly the same, value. I think that's about right. So maybe you maybe you get an extra two wins split out over the next two years, but you sacrifice four years, including two very cheap years of Wu and Miller. Two years where Wu and Miller are going to make less than $5 million

after cease has already left. Yeah. It's just, it's bad baseball to make that trade. It doesn't make any sense. And it goes directly against everything the mayors have preached about building sustainability and building a winner. that can compete for multiple, you know, multiple years out of a decade. So it just doesn't make a lot of sense. So I don't buy it.

I'm just going to say that. This has all been a long-winded way to say, I don't buy the report. I don't think that it's factual. Or if it is factual, I don't think the Mariners are, I don't think there's any chance of the mayor is actually paying that kind of price for Dillen C's. We'll be answering more of your questions in just a moment. but first a reminder of this episode of the Lockdown Marr's podcast is brought to you by eBay Motors. Passion, drive, and patience.

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Keep your ride or die live at eBaymotors.com. Again, that is eBaymotors.com. Eligible items only, exclusions apply eBay guaranteed fit only available to U.S. customers. Tyson wants to know. when evaluate a player is a person who puts up a consistent 110 WRC plus throughout the whole season more valuable to you than a person who puts up a 110 WRC plus but is streaky like Kelnick or Teo last year yes yeah I want more consistent production spread out over the course of a season it's kind of uh it's a it's a much less significant conversation to the one that we had about Julio all year this past year, where it's like, I would shave off a few points off of the, you know, the WRC plus if I just got more consistent production out of Julio this past year. Whereas, like, you know, his number, his overall numbers look amazing.

But a lot of that is carried by a literal historic month of August. Right. And then some of the other months, he was really streaky. And at some point, she's not all bad. Right. And it gets even more extreme when you look at a guy like Teasker Hernandez who also had an incredible August and then it was just mediocre for April, May, June, July, and September. So, yeah, you want consistency because you want something you can bank on.

You always want something you can trust. And, you know, not knowing when a major piece in your lineup is going to be, you know, killing you at the plate and knowing when he's going to carry you, like, that doesn't work. You can't have a lineup full of those guys and the Mariners kind of did last year. That's what ultimately is why they were just a mediocre offense because it certainly wasn't the lack of talent at the plate. It was basically everybody in their lineup was streaky. And, you know, everybody's going to have ups and downs throughout the year. So the idea that you're going to have a consistent like 110 WRC plus every month, not really going to be the case.

But you can't be 145 and then be 38 in back-to-back bonds. That doesn't work. You've got to be 80, 90, 120, you know, 110, 105, 90, 90. You got to be like in a range where even in your bad months, you're still usable. That's much more valuable than somebody who's, you know, not usable for three, four weeks because you still got to play that guy because he's got to find his way out of that, that slump. So you have to keep playing that guy. So, yeah, consistent production is always more valuable than erratic production. All right.

Next question here from Steve Colby. Why are you so high on Aidan Smith, who's a mariner's prospect, recent Mariners draft pick in the fourth round? I know he is tall and athlete. but what tools does he possess that makes him so intriguing to you? Oh, it's just the height, you know, everything for taller guys. So what do you mean? What tool? Aidan Smith might be the second best athlete in the entire system behind only Tai Peet.

And we know Tai Pete is a freak. So that's what I like. I like that this guy's probably going to be able to play center field. I like that he's a plus runner. He's got a strong arm. I think he's got 25 home run pop. I think there's a chance he's an above average centerfielder with 25 homer, 25 stolen base, you know, potential.

He's got a long way to go. He's raw, but he's 18, 19 years old. And he's a freaky athlete. So that's why I like him. It's you're banking on the athleticism. And this isn't exactly fair to Aden Smith, but basically like, he brought the tools. And now the Mariners have to make him into a baseball player. And the Mariners are good at that.

So that's why I like, I like the profile. I think the swing's pretty good. think that the power the raw power certainly there he's a great athlete like i said he runs well so um i i just think that in general like if i'm going to hand the mariners a toolsy player and rely on them to develop him into a baseball player i like those odds i'll take that chance and so uh the upside is is so vast and he produced a little bit last year performed a little bit last year too so uh which is pretty rare so i like i didn't smith same reason i like colt emerson Emerson's just more polished.

Like, give me the toolsy guy. Give me the guy who's got, you know, multiple chances, multiple avenues to get to the big leagues as an everyday player. I'm going to like those guys more than, say, you know, typically more than somebody like Las Montes, who if he doesn't hit, he's not a big leader, not even close. Vaden Smith is a mediocre bat. He's still probably going to be a really good defensive outfielder.

Multiple paths to the major leagues. I tend to value that. Yep. Last question of the day comes from distraught. If you were Jerry slash Justin and Luis Urius struggles, how much of a leash are you giving him before deciding if last year was a fluke? Colby, you're the Louis Urias guy, so. Who says Luis Urius is going to be on the team?

All right. Didn't see that coming, did you? Oh, no. I think you got to give him at least as long as you gave Colton Wong, which I mean, I know fans don't want to. here but like you're not going to give up on any player after two weeks right no matter how bad it is and you shouldn't because that's stupid like bad teams do that um so i think you know probably the end of may before you seriously the beautiful thing though is that you he has a minor league option so

you can just send him down yeah if you want it's not like a a life or death thing it's not like you know i got a df a him so i really have to stretch this out as long as i possibly can yeah yeah you got to give him at least the month of April. And he's got to be pretty bad. Like, you know, he's got to be like a 60 WRC plus or lower. It also just straight up depends on what are your other options. Right. I mean, like is Rojas hitting?

Is Dylan Moore hitting? Is Ryan Bliss, you know, surprising you? Like, did you acquire somebody else who can play second or third so you can kind of move those guys around? Yeah. Like, who knows? Possibly on January 29th, 2024. Sure. I mean, probably not until February 4th, but sure.

I mean, why not January 29th? But yeah, if you bring in somebody that changes the equation. Like if you bring in a third baseman who's going to push Eureas to, you know, second base some days, then yeah, you probably have a, you probably have a slightly quicker trigger than if you just don't bring in anybody because you don't have a viable third base backup plan to Euras right now. I mean, it's Rojas. But if, you know, if Bliss doesn't click, then you're running a platoon of what, Haggardie and more for a long stretch of the season of second base.

So yeah, you're going to give him at least, I'd say at least 150 plate appearances before you decide. And you could, you know, you start to trend one way or the other at like 70 plate appearances. You could be like, okay,

this isn't looking too good, but you have to give him time to kind of crawl out of it if he gets off to a slow start. So just like if he puts up a 130, WRC plus, 150 plate appearances. We're not like, oh,

the Mariners got themselves an All-Star. I mean, I'll say that, but, like, I'll say that too. Yeah.

Let's be real about it. We're going to chills it up. You have to give the guy at least 150-ish plate appearances because it's early in the year and you don't really have a plan B right now. So give him time to figure it out, see if it's the ground running. And then you kind of make adjustments. So,

yeah, I think it's at least 150. And I think that would probably take him. middle of May roughly. So yeah, I think at least that. All right. That is going to do it for our show. Thank you so much for joining us here on the Lockdown Mariners podcast for Colby Patnode.

I'm Tadang Gonzalez. Be sure to give us a follow on Twitter at L0 underscore Mariners. You can follow me at Ty Dane Gonzalez and Colby at C-Pat-11. That's C-P-A-T-1-1. You can also find all that stuff in the description of this episode. Thank you again for making us your first listen. Have yourself a beautiful baseball day and we'll see you next time. Peace.