Kuzul

Contrary to what it may seem, the Seattle Mariners are a mess at first base. 

Justin Smoak was supposed to be Seattle’s first baseman of the future, but has been wildly inconsistent, even getting demoted to Triple-A for stints in each of the past two seasons. The relegations have helped, but he hasn’t made great strides in his offensive game. 

Dustin Ackley can play first, but may need to share time at second base or in the outfield next season, depending on who Seattle can sign in free agency. He’s also been disappointing and may be better suited for a utility role until further notice. 

First round pick D.J. Peterson will probably eventually be making the transition from third to first, but is in Single-A and won’t be seen in Seattle for at least another season or two.

Kendrys Morales is the ideal first baseman for the Mariners, although he was mostly a DH. He’s already said he won’t accept Seattle’s qualifying offer, but that doesn’t mean Morales won’t play for the Mariners next season. He’ll be tough to bring back, considering the limited power on the market, but his familiarity with the club and the organization could help Jack Zduriencik’s chances of bringing him back, or hurt them depending on their relationship.

Based on their career-long body of work and estimated salaries, here are free agent first basemen the Mariners should target this winter.

All stats via ESPN.com and baseball-reference.com.

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Even if the Seattle Mariners want Kendrys Morales to come back next season, it doesn’t sound like he’s going to stick around. CBS Sports‘ Jon Heyman reported on Tuesday that the slugger would likely turn down the one-year, $13.8 million qualifying offer that the Mariners are prepared to make, in order to seek a lengthier deal as a free agent.

The report comes a week after Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik told 710 ESPN radio in Seattle that the team would definitely be offering Morales a one-year qualifying offer, per Greg Johns of MLB.com:

This move appears to be a head-scratcher on the parts of both the Mariners and Morales.   

First of all, it seems hard to justify paying the 30-year-old Morales $13.8 million based off his career thus far. Everything changed for Morales on this grand slam, walk-off celebration in 2010, when he jumped on home plate and broke his leg:

In the season-plus before that injury, Morales possessed one of the most potent bats in baseball, batting .302, smashing 45 home runs and driving in 147 in 203 games. But in the two seasons since he returned from his injury, he’s averaged 22 homers and 76 RBI with a .275 average. Those are good numbers, but not nearly good enough to warrant a $14 million payday.

It’s interesting to hear Morales would turn down so much money when he figures to make less as a free agent, but Seattle has lost at least 90 games in three of the last four seasons, so perhaps he’s looking for a change of scenery.

Some pundits like ESPN’s Buster Olney think Morales would be wise to accept the team’s one-year offer:

Teams are about to enter the second offseason since the qualifying offer was introduced into the MLB collective bargaining agreement, and it can be thought of as MLB’s answer to the NFL’s franchise tag. MLB Trade Rumors has a breakdown of the specifics of the offer, which is based on the average salary of the 125 highest-paid players in baseball.

By making Morales an offer, the Mariners would either sign Morales or receive a first-round compensatory draft pick in 2014 if they lost him to another team. Morales’ new team would then have to give up their first round pick in 2014, changing the dynamics of Morales’ free agency and making him less attractive on the open market.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com tweets that Seattle Mariners DH/1B Kendrys Morales has been claimed off revocable trade waivers.

An unknown team has put in the claim, but it would make sense for the claim to come from an American League team. Every team in the AL would have a chance to acquire him ahead of National League clubs because the waiver process works in reverse order of the standings.

The Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians, Texas Rangers and New York Yankees have been in the market for offense as their divisional races heat up, and the Yankees had been linked to Morales earlier during the season (even though they never called about him, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com). Even though he’s played just 27 games at first base this season, he would serve as the right-handed counterpart to Lyle Overbay.

The Yankees did just pick up Mark Reynolds—who hasn’t been terrible—but picking up a bat like Morales’ would be ideal for their playoff push.

Morales has performed well in his first season with the Mariners, posting a line of .281/.338/.446 with 17 home runs and 67 RBI. He’ll be a free agent at the end of the season, though, and Seattle general manager Jack Zduriencik could choose to let him walk.

Instead, he’ll now have two days to work out a trade with the claiming team. Again, this team is currently unknown. They will likely remain unknown until a trade is either reached or falls through.

The Yankees have some recent trade history with the Mariners, as they dealt Jesus Montero and Hector Noesi prior to last season for Michael Pineda and Jose Campos. Yankees general manager Brian Cashman and Zduriencik could have a more open line of communication due to their recent history.

Acquiring Morales shouldn’t take all that much. The Yankees can offer the Mariners the ability to take on the remainder of his $5.25 million and even swing a low-level prospect their way. A guy like pitcher Zach Woods or catcher Tyson Blaser (both from High-A Tampa) could interest the M’s.

Adding a switch-hitter like Morales to the middle of the lineup could have huge implications on the AL East for the Yankees. With pretty much the entire lineup finally healthy (minus Mark Teixeira, of course), bringing in some more power could be the last piece to a playoff berth.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The trade deadline is less than two weeks away and there is no doubt that several high-profile players will be changing teams before it passes. Players like Matt Garza, Cliff Lee and Chase Utley could all be dealt soon and may end up having huge impacts on playoff races.

Even the teams in first place coming out of the All-Star break know they have holes to fill, and now that there are two Wild Card spots, more teams feel they can make a run, and you can bet that the players on this list will be pursued heavily.

The following players are ranked according to the impact they can have if traded.

Present and past statistics, as well as present ability, are the best ways to judge the impact a player might have if traded.

It is also important to note how a player’s current environment factors into their statistics. A power hitter who plays in a big park might not have great numbers, but could do a lot for a contending team that plays in a hitters’ park.

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This spring, the Seattle Mariners have been, dare I say, entertaining. 

As an organization, there are quite a few positive signs to point toward for the future, but what about this season?

With a mix of youth and experience, the team seems keen on taking a positive step forward toward competing in the American League West.  

Do they have a shot to put up a fight against the Los Angeles Angels, Texas Rangers and Oakland A’s? 

Or will they be fighting to stay out of the division cellar with the Houston Astros?

Although it’s always hard to place much value on what happens in spring training, for fun I wanted to see what are some of the key takeaways we’ve seen from Mariners camp as we approach Opening Day. 

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The Seattle Mariners are going to have a good season. In fact, they might be one of the surprise teams in 2013. As one might expect, some of the early 2013 predictions (via CBS Sports) are not particularly favorable. One can assume that many previews will keep the Mariners towards the bottom of the American League West.

It isn’t like the M’s are necessarily going to rise up, take the league by storm and make a miracle run to the World Series in 2013. However, this team has real potential and if they can get into a groove, they could make some noise this season. The predictions are not insulting, but there are a few reasons this Seattle Mariners team may be better than some experts think in 2013.

The Mariners will hit

Seattle has struggled to get on base, and this has been a glaring weakness the past few seasons. As noted by Dayn Perry of CBS Sports, “Yes, Michael Morse and Kendrys Morales have pop, but they don’t address the team’s central shortcoming, which is getting on base.”

The reality is that Morales is a career .281 hitter and Morse has hit .295 during his eight-year tenure. Will this not theoretically have a positive impact on a Mariners team that finished with a .234 team average in 2012?

There are other reasons to believe that this team will hit better in 2013. While nothing is guaranteed, it seems reasonable to project that Dustin Ackley will improve on his 2012 average of .226 and Justin Smoak will not hit .217 again. In addition, there is optimism that young players like Jesus Montero, Kyle Seager and Michael Saunders could continue to progress.

Add in the tutelage of Raul Ibanez, and this team just might produce on offense.

This is not to suggest that Seattle will jump from a team average of .234 to .275 in 2013. However, a .250 average and a .315-.320 OBP seems reasonable. If the Mariners had hit .250 in 2012, they would have ranked 19th in the league, which is lot better than 30th. How many more wins might that have produced?

The future may be now

Perry also notes, “Yes, Seattle’s strength lies not in the present, which, insofar as the 2013 season is concerned, is not a good thing. But as dismal as things are in the short term, the Mariners have cobbled together an exceptional collection of young talent.”

To suggest that the present is “dismal” seems a bit negative given the changes that Seattle has made since the end of last year. This is a team that finished 75-87 in 2012 and arguably improved their roster in the offseason with the additions of Kendrys Morales, Michael Morse and Raul Ibanez.

In addition, it would not be a shock to see some of the top prospects in Seattle this season. Perhaps players like Taijuan Walker, Mike Zunino, Danny Hultzen, James Paxton, Nick Franklin, Stefen Romero and Brandon Maurer will not make their presence felt until 2014 and 2015.

Then again, some of these players have looked pretty good in spring training. Seattle is obviously going to be hesitant to rush their young talent, but why couldn’t the Mariners start infusing young talent into the lineup this season?

Does the plan always have to be focused on two to three seasons from now?

The finish will be strong

It seems reasonable to assume that most experts are going to project that the Mariners will finish fourth in the American League West. The prediction from CBS Sports is in line with this prognostication. Still, there are some flaws in the argument.

The worst-case scenario presented by CBS Sports is that the Mariners will finish in last place. Obviously this prediction is a way for the author to cover his bases (no pun intended), but there is no way that the Houston Astros finish ahead of Seattle. To be fair, anything is possible, but a last-place finish is not going to happen.

This may be a bit bold, but a second-place finish is not out of the realm of possibility for this team. Certainly a lot of things would have to go right, but could the Mariners show offensive growth and maintain their solid pitching? Could this lead to overcoming the Oakland A’s and the Los Angeles Angels or the Texas Rangers?

The Angels and the Rangers obviously have formidable offenses, but pitching is what gets things done in baseball. If either of these teams take a step back on the mound, the Mariners could actually find themselves at the top of the division rather than the familiar cellar.

Perhaps the Mariners will have another mediocre season. Then again, perhaps there is reason for genuine optimism.

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There are always questions with the Seattle Mariners.

While other teams are readying for playoff runs in 2013, the Mariners faithful are left to wonder if their team will be competitive. After the weak hitting of the last few years, just being relevant would be nice.

Seattle missed out on Josh Hamilton, but moves are being made. Kendrys Morales is a solid addition, and perhaps Jason Bay will rediscover his power stroke with the Mariners.

Still, there are lingering questions that remain unanswered. This is a team that is definitively in progress, and there are multiple areas of weakness.

With that in mind, here are five big offseason Seattle Mariners questions that need to be answered.

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