Mariners Land Jorge Polanco from the Twins
The Minnesota Twins and the Seattle Mariners made one of the blockbuster trades of the MLB offseason on Monday night when the two teams agreed on a five-player deal to send former All-Star second baseman Jorge Polanco to the Mariners. The Twins have received starting pitcher Anthony DeSclafani, reliever Justin Topa, and two minor league prospects, outfielder Gabriel Gonzalez and pitcher Darren Bowen. Gonzalez, who is the 79th-best prospect in baseball, is the higher profile prospect in this deal. The 23-year-old Bowen spent last season in low-A. The Twins are also getting a much-needed innings eater that they can throw into their rotation with DeSclafani, and a solid reliever option with Topa who was a reliable option for the Mariners last season.
As for the Mariners, this deal puts them in an apparent win now mode. They are obviously still in a tough division given they must contend with the defending champion Texas Rangers, and the talented Houston Astros who have made seven straight American League Championship Series appearances. Polanco will be plugged in at second base to make up a talented middle infield tandem with shortstop J.P. Crawford. Polanco received an 80-game suspension for performance-enhancing substances during the 2018 season with Minnesota, but he has been able to rebound from that in a big way. He put up an All-Star season the very next year in 2019 with a .295 batting average, 22 home runs, and 79 RBI on 186 hits. That was arguably not even his best season with Minnesota as in 2021 he set franchise records in both home runs and RBI by a switch hitter with 33 home runs and 98 RBI. Polanco was limited to just 80 games last season due to a hamstring strain where he slashed .255/.335/.454 on 77 hits. The Mariners have control of him for the next two years as he is set to make $10.5 million for the upcoming 2024 season, and he also has a $12.5 million club option for 2025.
The new Opening Day infield for the Mariners projects to be Ty France at first base, Polanco and Crawford up the middle, and Luis Urias at third base. This is obviously still a lineup that is headlined by super star Julio Rodriguez and veteran slugger Mitch Haniger in the outfield, but Polanco will fill out this Mariner infield nicely, as well as deepen out this lineup. Polanco is a weapon for his new manager Scott Servais given his versatility both in the field and on the lineup card. He can play all infield positions other than first base at an average to above average level, and he is an effective bat almost anywhere in a lineup one through nine. Overall, this looks to be a good deal on paper for both teams, but obviously a much more exciting deal for Mariners fans as they hope to make a run this year in a competitive AL West Division.
