The Seattle Mariners come out of the All-Star break at 48-49, 1.5 games behind Texas in the AL West and tied with Minnesota for the final AL wild card — and the shopping list they carried into the break now has a name attached. Bob Nightengale reports the Mariners are among the clubs showing interest in Cincinnati’s Spencer Steer, the right-handed hitter whose market we covered Wednesday, alongside the Blue Jays and Yankees.
The fit is plain. Seattle’s reported priorities — a right-handed bat and bullpen help, per The Seattle Times before the break — match the break-point numbers. Mariners pitching owns a 3.61 ERA, sixth in the majors, while the lineup has hit a collective .230/.310/.380. MLB Trade Rumors’ July 9 deadline outlook identified Randy Arozarena and Dominic Canzone as the only regulars performing well above league average — and put Cal Raleigh, hitting .169 with nine home runs and a .581 OPS, at the other extreme. Steer would not fix Raleigh, but he would stop a lineup this thin from depending on him.
The bullpen half of the list is just as live. Matt Brash remains on the injured list, per MLB Trade Rumors, which leaves Seattle one leverage arm short of where a two-month wild-card fight demands, and the front office was shopping for relief help before the break. Nothing about a tie with Minnesota — with Boston half a game behind both — has made that less urgent.
The second half opens Friday at home against the San Francisco Giants. The deadline is August 3.
For fantasy purposes, a Steer trade to Seattle would come with a park downgrade real enough to trim his rest-of-season projection even with an everyday role secure, so temper any bidding-war instincts if the deal happens. On the Seattle side, Raleigh is the dynasty buy-low — the track record is too long to believe the .169 — and any reliever the Mariners add before August 3 is worth a speculative grab while roles sort out.
