The Cubs are one of the teams who have spoken to the Mariners about Luis Castillo’s trade availability, according to Ryan Divish and Adam Jude of the Seattle Times. The depth of Chicago’s interest isn’t known, or if this interest still exists now that the Cubs have already swung a blockbuster deal to land Kyle Tucker from the Astros. Castillo also has a no-trade clause in his contract, so he could veto things entirely if he doesn’t have interest in going to Chicago.
Since the Cubs were known to be looking for pitching, however, it would make sense that they would at least check in on what seems to be an increasingly available trade candidate. Rumors have been swirling about Castillo’s availability in recent days, as while Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto has publicly downplayed the idea of trading from Seattle’s rotation depth, it is thought that Castillo might be the most available of the starting five. The 32-year-old Castillo is at least five years older than any of George Kirby, Logan Gilbert, Bryan Woo, or Bryce Miller, and much more expensive — Castillo is owed $68.25MM in guaranteed money from 2025-27, plus a $25MM vesting option for 2028 that becomes guaranteed based on health and an innings threshold.
This salary might be the chief reason the M’s would be open to trading Castillo, as the club is known to be operating within pretty limited payroll parameters. Divish and Jude note that the Mariners are thought to have around $15MM in spending space, and for a team with several needs to address on offense, their options for signings or other trades widen greatly if Castillo’s contract was off the books. Freeing up some money might allow the M’s to make a more full-on pursuit of Christian Walker, who the Mariners have had “atop their wish list since the start of the offseason,” Divish and Jude write.
A deal that saw Castillo go to Wrigleyville could also logically bring at least one bat back in Seattle’s direction. The M’s have already been linked to Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner, so a swap involving the two of them (if not necessarily a one-for-one) would address both teams’ needs. Hoerner is owed $23.5MM over the next seasons, so that represents some salary offset if Chicago absorbed all of Castillo’s contract.
On the other hand, sending Isaac Paredes to Houston in the Tucker trade package has already cost the Cubs one starting infielder, so Chicago might now be less willing to move Hoerner. Top prospect Matt Shaw is viewed as the likeliest candidate to step in at third base in Paredes’ place, and while James Triantos is another highly-touted youngster who might be ready for the big leagues at second base, entrusting two infield jobs to rookies is a risk for the Cubs.
Getting Castillo for Cody Bellinger or Seiya Suzuki would be a cleaner fit for Chicago in dealing from its outfield depth, but the Mariners already have Julio Rodriguez, Randy Arozarena, and Victor Robles slated for starting jobs. The M’s have Luke Raley set for at least part-time duty at first base and Mitch Haniger penciled in at DH, as well. This all being said, the Mariners have such a broad need for hitting that it certainly isn’t beyond Dipoto to target a big outfield bat and then get creative in either fitting that bat into the lineup, or perhaps trying to deal Raley or Haniger to land the infield help Seattle more clearly needs.
Installing Castillo alongside Shota Imanaga, Justin Steele, Jameson Taillon, and the newly-signed Matthew Boyd would suddenly give the Cubs one of the more appealing rotations in baseball. Plenty more pitching would be on hand as well, since acquiring Castillo would turn fifth-starter candidates Javier Assad, Ben Brown, Jordan Wicks, or top prospect Cade Horton into depth arms. Speculatively speaking, one of these younger depth arms could also be sent to Seattle in a hypothetical Castillo trade, to give the Mariners a ready-made replacement for the new vacancy in their rotation.
That would stick in my Krall, if he ended up on a NL Central rival
Not gonna lie, if Hoyer can’t get Sasaki, I’d love Castillo on the Cubs. Watched him pummel the Cubs while with the Reds, so he’s quite familiar with the NL Central.
Congrats Acoss, seems like your Cubbies are full throttle! Sidenote: I suspect this news of Cubs having interest in Castillo signals that they *might* know their own Roki situation has been resolved. (Or at least the feel has been tested.)
Roki, at pennies on the dollar, shouldn’t effect any teams pursuit of starting pitching. If they had the budget before hand, it will still be there after signing him. Get both!
Castillo would slot in between Fergie Jenkins and Ken Holtzman with Bill Hands now the #4. Whoops. Wrong decade. My bad.
True stymee, but if you know you aren’t getting Roki then you might be wise to start your pivots now.
They’d be better off with Bellinger.
Bill Bonham says hi
Bill Bonham was awesome! I wonder what would’ve happened if the Vida Blue to the Reds trade wasn’t voided by the commish
Ray Burris Larry Biitner and Jorge Mitterwald too. Glory days
Jerry Martin….Mick Kelleher
Roki? Why not Fire stick
Castillo for Bellinger makes too much sense not to happen.
Actually
Castillo for Suzuki makes more sense.
Not to the cubs
It makes zero sense for the Mariners and no way they’d trade Castillo for Bellinger without additional pieces and salary relief on his deal
I don’t agree but hey ask. Hoyer is a moron.
Why not? He’d be an immediate upgrade at 1B and can play all outfield spots at near gold glove level and can DH. If the Cubs pay down some of the $$, this deal does make sense.
Cubs fans: we’d take Skenes for Bellinger but only if the Pirates threw in some top prospects too
After the 2024 all star break Yankees and Cubs had the same winning record.
Cubs have a real chance to win the division, so as long as they don’t trade Caissie, Horton and Ballesteros, then I like the moves.
But they need to get two back end relievers more than another starter. Don’t want to see Hodge and Brown in innings 8 and 9 if it can be avoided.
Moron? He let Wisdom go to Korea, didn’t he?
MLB….do you feel like the Brewers have gotten weaker? the REDS are definitely a threat in the central
just for fun: would u trade Elly for julio rodriguez? kinda improve reds position wise
Neither team should make that deal, especially not the Reds.
The Mets should be on Castillo. Especially if they let Manaea walk and they’re currently playing a dangerous game with Manaea and Alonso. They could lose them both.
I heard both Alonso and manea said they would give the Mets an opportunity to match any deal they could get. I hope that stays true. Bc they need both imo.
I think that the Mets should aim higher with both Burnes and Sasaki still unemployed and keep their trade chips until the trade deadline.
Orioles need a lefty SP. Crochet gone, Manea up next? Go get him Elias.
Orioles need a good starter. Whoever cares which arm he throws with.
Mets would have to offer Baty, Mauricio and Acuna to get that done.
I love watching the Rock pitch. He’s a pitchers pitcher. Leaned off the hard stuff last year more than ever and made some changes. I think he’s going to have a nice 2nd act to his career. Tough to see him go, but it DOES make a lot of sense for our club, and it’s fun to think about who we may get in return.
Seconded. I always loved watching him pitch.
I don’t think we should trade him. Our starting pitching depth is pretty much non-existent.
I’m with you on this. If Hancock is pitching any significant innings for us this year we are in trouble.
I disagree. Hancock had some very good games with the big club. Yes he had some bad ones too. Seems he is pitching with the hope of staying up. If he has the job and can pitch with the knowledge he has the job he will pitch much better.
Heck all our pitchers had some stinkers this year. Only difference is they had near 200 innings to hide their turds Hancock had what 30? I could be all wrong but watching him it seems when things got bad he got tight and frustrated. Needs to be able to relax and know he doesn’t have to be perfect to stay up.
I also bought a bunch of his autograph cards so I need him to be a great starter. LOL They were under $10 when comparable cards for mid tier pitchers were $30-50 and Superstars were $200 and up. A little hint is look for your minor league potential stars and buy their auto cards. eBay is a good spot or local card shop.
You I got some Celestin autos for under $20. I got a couple for $2. Those cards will never be worth much. If he turns into the superstar we hope will never in my life be over $100. My son can sell them and make the profit.
proton- What do you think of those baseball cards that contain a piece of a game jersey? I thought those might be kind of fun to collect but maybe not. I haven’t done anything with baseball cards since the 1990s, so I’m out of the loop. (I’m a signature collector anyway; so I like your idea regarding signed cards.)
The game used stuff is fun and interesting. They peel bats or bags unis a bunch of stuff. One thing you need to watch is they will say game used but it is a T shirt or sock. They also will take the most boring jersey and cut up with just a swatch of gray or white cloth. The fewer cards made the better of course the look is. Logos buttons etc.
One thing you need to know is you can’t get the graded. They are altered so they won’t grade them. Grading is pretty big now. I have a Penix Odunze dual auto card. Last I looked awhile ago ungraded it was $700-800. Mine is a PSA 10. It is worth $17-1800. A 9 is about $1000. The reason is they get handled more so a 10 is not as common. Check with your local card shop mine will send anyone’s in and you get it cheaper because of volume. I think it cost me $26. I got one graded through WhatNot and it was $45 plus shipping was $14 or so. If you don’t know WhatNot download it and watch some auctions.
I got addicted to it. Spent way too much money. They do a few different types of auctions. You can bid on teams depending on the cards and team it can get expensive though. A couple grand if they are opening up multiple boxes of high end product. I ended up with the Texans which was a good team to have. It was from Strouds rookie year. They will do that at times with good boxes. I pulled a Stroud color rush card. It was weird because I had to go. Sometimes it takes a couple hours to sell all of the teams. The real long ones is when they sell players. My color rush I sold for $2300.
One thing you might want to do is pick a certain set of cards like Topps Chrome. I quit in the 90s too. When the subsets came out. Now they have base cards they have refractors and lava donut circles in 5-6 colors. Then there are base cards that are numbered. Not a thing different except they stamp a number on them. Also the subsets can have numbers on them. Pretty common to have an auto card that has a run of 50 25 10 5 and 1. That is along with the regular run of base autos. I started about a year and a half ago and have piles of cards all over. It is fun but confusing. If you have anymore questions let me know.
Excellent info! Okay so what I think I might be interested in is if I have an extra $5, $10, or $20 I like to gamble so I think it would be kind of adrenaline inducing just to buy one high end pack when I have extra cash and see what I get. I don’t necessarily want to collect a whole series or have a bunch of worthless stacks of commons laying around…but it would be fun to pick a high end card out of a pack. I just don’t know what that card series could be and where to find them. And then there is just the argument of going out and purchasing the exact card you want and save myself the hassle, but that would take all the fun out of it haha. I am attracted to the gambling aspect and pulling a high end card out if I get lucky. (IS there anything out there that could fit my interest level, or do you think it would turn into a wild goose chase?)
Sorry haven’t been on for a few days. Whatnot has exactly what you want. You can get on and see what they are selling at that time. They sell more of a player and open 6 boxes. You get the opportunity to get theplayer/team you buy or spin the wheel. It is a bit confusing at first but watch a couple auctions before you spend any money.
Whatnot can get pricey. It all depends on what they are running. There is a kind of new card out called Wildcard. I really like them but the value is not super high. They will run sets for QBs still in college but probably going into the draft. There are a bunch of subsets there. I went into these kind of blind. There were guys buying a pack for what they could get 3-4 packs for the same price. If you like FB these cards are good to get off eBay.
I like Bowman especially the chrome edition. Topps they are the same company now but they have chrome and sapphire I like too. Domruss doesn’t have the cards with huge value. They have a few but not like the others. What you know about cards from the 90s is all mute. Cards are warmly different now. eBay will give you the a good idea what cards are worth. We all want that rookie Jackson Holliday auto 1/1. Better is the Holliday Ripken Rutschman triple auto 1/1. You can get lucky and get the $9000 1/1 card. Don’t count on it though. .
Mariners have the best pitching depth in all of baseball ⚾️ roght now. Any other team wouldve rushed Evans up last year and Hancock wouldve started on 27 other teams in the 5 hole last year…
Agreed. He’s a true pitcher, mixing speeds and locations. Making guys think and miss.
My dad and I went to an M’s game in spring training simply because he was the starter.
Sodo- I’ve always loved Luis Castillo. You have to have some cajones, a little bluster and self belief to pitch in CIN ballpark. Not many guys succeed there- you need to be able to miss bats and generate GB’s that die on the INF. He does both.
His flair and energy and changeup usage remind me of Felix.
If the Ms FO trade Castillk they should be ashamed that they have to trade a SP who gives you 30 QS’s a yr on a yearly salary that is in the same ballpark as what the A’s gave Severino? How utterly depressing is it that our recently Rebuilt Team has to ship off a Front End SP who eats inns and gives you a QS nearly every night, because we have payroll issues! How can a team that just went thru a rebuild not afford to keep Luis Castillo? How is it that we have just $15M to spend on supplemental talent to back up a nearly all homegrown Rotation? One of the best Rotations in MLB?
Don’t Owners know winning generates more $$?
You are saying pretty similar things as I did in 2022.
Sheesh are the Cubs in on everybody? Cubs are ruining baseball!
You must be a dodger fan. Lmao
He makes a ton of sense for the Tigers. Jung is miscast as a 3B option but is a good defensive and offensive 2B. He is MLB ready and could front a package for Castillo.
The thing is, the Mariners are trying to win right now. Jung is, to this point, unproven at the major league level. If the M’s trade Castillo, they’d want a guy who’s already had at least some success at the plate in the majors.
Guys like Bellinger or Suzuki make a lot more sense.
Spot on. We have some nice young hitters with potential, it’s simply not our team strength and we need to supplement them with guys that can go help us win playoff games.
(Gotta make it there first)
Sure, they make more sense, but at more money. Every star starts as a rookie. Bellinger and Suzuki had pretty good rookie years, and then weren’t available. Doesn’t having success in the minors mean anything? That’s what scouts are for. You were probably reluctant to see JRod get his opportunity, because he was “unproven.” Sure you could get a contract, but then there is less money to fill other needs.
Bellinger makes little sense with that contract
If the M’s were trying to win right now, they wouldn’t be trading Castillo.. I’m not convinced even the M’s know what the M’s are trying to accomplish.
I do, trying to replace the 3rd baseman Dipoto gave away for FREE… and trying to find a legit 4hole hitter to protect Julio in the 3Hole… Hoerner is the perfect 2Hole hitter behind Robles and in front of Julio problem is the MONEY he makes… Mariners need a LOW strikeout High rate contact hitter to Mkve Robles and legit 4Hole hitter to get Julio pitches in the Zone… Cal is a 5 or 6 Hole hitter because of his Wiff rate…
I laugh at ur comment bro
Maybe try coming back with a constructive response like the ones above dude. Like most people on here I didn’t post to be insulting. You guys know your team needs better than i do, just like i know my teams needs better than you. Castillo is a great pitcher but if the needs don’t match up, they don’t match up. At least I made you laugh! Cheers
Classy response Motor City +1
Enjoy the Army Navy game today buddy. I’m sure you will be watching 😉
I’m from Canada dude so not my thing. Cheers
Don’t forget! Castillo can void any trade.
Put some money on the cubbies!!!!
He has been trending down for 3 years straight and his home/road splits aren’t good. This would be a mistake.
Ridiculous take. If he had a better next season than crochet, would that even be a surprise ?
I’d assume it’d be because Crochet got hurt
Part of that is Pitch selection by Cal, have you ever seen A pitcher in Seattle shake off CAL? he calls Castillo slider too much in 2 strike counts and Castillo leaves it over the outside plate… he had a trouble getting it off the plate last year… Castillo needs to get back to thr Change up he had in Cincy… Castillo’s veteran enough to trust himself and know what pitches he has Feel for in games… that is the last element of his game missing… Too many Anaylstics in Baseball ⚾️ now a days for each batter… Castillo needs to get back to hard up and in and slider/change away regardless of the Hitter… In my opinion I believe he tired or was suffering from fatigue that’s the reason his FB ticked down last year… Would the Mariners be better off waiting for the start of the season to move him? His Fastball may tick back UP and then you know who your 5 Slot Starter is post spring training? Only thing is you risk injury but Castillo has a good History against injury. The most over looked part of all this is Castillo is also insurance against an injury to any of our other 4 starters Gilbert, Miller, Woo, Kirby…
If I’m Dipoto I stand Pat, resign JT which is a Championship Veteran for 6M plus incentives in Club House that Needs One…Who else on that Mariners Roster has a Ring? GARVER doesn’t count as he never plays move then what 60games that signing was a joke… JT actually has very good control of the strike zone and is a great example for the younger players of how to approach an AB with runners ON…
Facts are Facts… the Mariners are no where Near a World Championship… they’re missing a Whole Infield.. JP may flop again meaning you need to replace him also next year… Once again we’ll run out the WORST 5-9 hitters in Baseball again next year… Mariners are 2 years away unless Dipoto ruins it by trading away the Fabulous Farm system we have and under no circumstances should he trade away Castillo unless its for a Young player like Westburg
& Prospects(our single A for their AAA)from Baltimore that can relate to the young players coming up but has enough expierence in a couple years to help the young guys… we’re never going to be a top6 team in Payroll so you need to bring them up from the farm system like our team did before… Edgar on a team friendly deal and Arod on a Rookie deal, Cameron on a Cheap deal,Wilson on a friendly deal, Buhner friendly deal, that starting rotation on friendly deals, and that was with a non debatable BEST lead off hitter to every play MLB in Ichiro…
Stay the Course and build the depth from within like Baltimore Did with a 95M dollar payroll to start the year last year… once Garver and Haniger are off the books you can spend some money… all of our pitching is Controlled for the next 3-4 years and 36M in payroll dropping off between Garver and Haniger you’re in good position to add to the team VIA trade of recent draft picks this year and next year from the BOTTOM of your ranks that are still 3years away 2029+
Question is… “Does Hoerner make you a good enough team minus Castillo if one of our starters go down?” I don’t believe he does… especially if the CURRENT JP Crawford Shows UP…
Regardless of what Dipoto does… GO M’s!!!!
Thanks for the analysis Stranded, enjoyed reading it. Wanted to run something by ya; …Just about the only thing that bothers me about the Mariners rotation is they give up too many gopher balls, particularly Castillo, Kirby, and Gilbert. Do you think that HR/9 stat is something that can be whittled down, or do you think it’s just part of their game because of how they stay around the plate so much and don’t walk batters?
I think there’s a bit of a Jim Palmer “problem” going on here. Getting ahead of hitters (and avoiding walks) is so crucial to these guys’ games that they inevitably risk giving up a few more home runs. It works better in T-Mobile than on the road, but it works everywhere.
When Robbie Ray was with the Mariners, he was particularly vulnerable to the gopher ball and it always frustrated me because he would dismiss the dinger as “just a fly ball.” No Robbie, it wasn’t just a fly ball. It’s an earned run, at least one you knucklehead lol.
That is partially because of the heavy use of the FBs and Sinkers. It’s actually impressive really because who on our staff has a Curve or Circle change as an OUT pitch? And yes our pitchers are way too close to the plate in 1-2 counts when Cal knows their slider isn’t sliding… or the Sinker isn’t sinking… sometimes we don’t even give the batters a Chance to CHASE because it’s too far in the zone… those fastballs should be 8inches ABOVE. The strike zone up by their head… the slider should be caught 6inches off the ground by Cal yet they end up on the middle away with 2 strikes… I think we see a better approach next year with Wilson buy we’ll see… those 2strike HRs are the difference… Go M’s
A swap for Bellinger makes to much sense for both teams
Yes—Bellinger + one of the prospects makes sense. Offsets the minor salary difference.
Castillo slots between the lefties at the top of the rotation and just as important slots Taillon down to #4 or 5, taking the 2016 role of Lackey or Hammel.
Also allows this group to slot to the pen for strength and depth: Assad, Wicks, Brown (assuming Boyd is #4-5). Or gives you four options for the fifth starter with a deeper pen.
Reading between the lines a little bit–I think the Cubs signaled yesterday that Hoerner is not going anywhere and they expect him to ready for Spring Training/Opening Day. By trading Paredes AND Cam Smith that clearly points to Shaw as the option to compete at 3b, not 2b. Including Hoerner in any deal now would force the need of two young or new infielders.
Hoyer is a fool. Instead of keeping his prospects for a possible shot at a good future team he’s chasing people to win the NL Central. This is no WS team he’s assembling. It’s a trying to save my job team. he needs to be fired before he ruins everything. He’s horrible at his job.
Last week you pegged him doing a great job. Matthew Boyd, remember??? You slotted him as a $15M a year relief pitcher….recall that?
He literally just went out and got a top ten player in the game yesterday and you continue to cry..
i literally just checked and the Cubs have exactly zero games scheduled this weekend. None! It’s December 14th in my time zone.
If you really think that Shaw and Triantos and Smith can all play at the same time you are clearly mistaken. If you are 100% positive the Cam Smith has a significant higher percentage chance than Matt Shaw at being in Cooperstown then you are costing the Cubs a boatload of money.
All this time, the Cubs are paying professional people when you have been building a champion for free.
Last week he had only foolishly traded 1 prospect away and had made some decent signings. Boyd was a a risk but not a terrible one. Now he trades a 30HR , 100 RBI 3B away for a 1 year rental. If you think they’ll re sign him you’re soft in the head. It’s obvious he’s going to keep dealing prospects away for 1 year rentals like his hero Epstein. Again if you think this team as Hoyer constructs it will compete for a WS, You’re an epic dreamer. He needs to be fired before he destroys the last 4 years of drafting. This is the second time Ricketts has asked for an organization that can self sustain itself. He lost the first one for 1 WS win. OK. Now this fool is doing it again. Going against the owner and keeps his job. How?
He already constructed a World Series champion–actually, more than one..
“needs to be fired before he destroys the last 4 years of drafting”……um—who do you think is ultimately responsible for that…oh, yeah—Jed Hoyer (president of baseball operations)
ps—his “hero Epstein” is notably the most successful baseball executive in the past 25-50 years.
Couple of things that I have missed if you can send me the links…
1) Kyle Tucker’s press conference of Dc 10th, 2025
2) Dylan Cease’s ring ceremony
3) Eloy Jimenez ring ceremony
4) Gleybar Torres ring ceremony
5) The back of Cam Smith’s baseball card with the 400 HR and 1200 RBI accumulated
6) Here’s one I think you can get—-Lou Brock’s obituary—he’s been dead for four years and hasn’t played in 45—and that was a prospect that did come back to bite them. (I’m pretty sure Jed wasn’t involved in that one)
A lot of these prospects are blocked. Some trades are going to have to happen. Cam smith is probably going to end up a corner outfielder or 1st base. That’s not a need for the Chicago cubs anytime soon. This team is vastly improved over 2024 and there is a lot of off-season left. If he gets a real closer and pitcher like Castillo, I’d be ecstatic. They would be favorites to win the central. No matter what they do, the dodgers are going to have more talent. If they are waiting on a dodger rebuild to make their move, it will be a long time.
If all you’re interested in is winning the NL Central, Have a ball. I have bigger aspirations.. Enjoy. I’m still not sure this team will win the NL Central. When I dream, I go big, Not small.
Yes, Led!
I’m not the biggest Jed guy in the room, and more often than not he hasn’t won the World Series, but it’s not from the lack of trying.
Hey, over the past week or so a top ten talent in the game became available and he made a move to get him. Credit due, credit given.
I can make a solid guess that it won’t turn out like Dempster for Hendricks or Feldman/Clevinger for Arrieta/Strop but they made the trade and maybe even as quick as 11 months from now it may turn out bad.
As to guys being block—Uncle referenced trading Rosario (about #23 prospect on the list at the time) for Eli Morgan. PCA is entrenched for many years + Alcantra, Caissie, etc they have to deal from strength from time to time….and to be honest—this may be Jed’s weakest point—he needs to use that system more often to get proven caliber guys.
Yep, only Soler has another ring and he got hot as the sun to earn that one.
Ok–Uncle MIke—two points:
1. Cubs only play in the NL Central. (that’s the avenue in)
2. Explain to me how you think a lineup that includes Triantos, Caissie, Alcantra, Shaw, Ballesteros, and before yesterday Cam Smith is going to beat the Dodgers, Padres, Phillies, or heck–even the Reds, Cardinals, Pirates or Brewers.
They ALL cannot possibly become stars—they need to use their strength to try to be better other ways.
And let me be clear to all—I am old enough, been a season ticket holder long enough, etc to live through the “Once Before I Die” cycle. I have my ONE, I have my World Series ring on my dresser in the nice little case. I still get disappointed when they lose (but never mad anymore). I hope they win the World Series again, but am living to my promise of “Once Before I Die”. (and you need to be a Cub fan to know what that really does mean).
You could not be more wrong or you’re a White Sox fan trying to manifest things. Prospects are not guaranteed successes, in fact 70% fail to achieve success.
Wowzers I’m getting out the popcorn, it’s UncleMike vs. mike127…gonna be a barn burner! Let’s Go!
I’m a Mariners Fan but that is a Good Take… good luck next year
Not Horton, but I agree. They can add one of their young blocked starters
Bellinger makes sense to turn this into a 3 team trade. There are teams looking for OF help. They might have a 1st or 3rd bm on the cheap. If we do trade Castillo they will likely be all in for the 3rd bm forget his name now Richard’s maybe? They will be looking for a 1st bm I suspect. We have our comp pick to use at around 25. I would hate to use it but if it improves is this year will be worth it. Also could be looking for international money too.
Agreed. And despite what the article says, Haniger shouldn’t be a road block for any move. They’re not holding the DH spot for him if a better hitter is available.
They should ask Mitch to retire and pay him half what they owe him. If he won’t do that put him on waivers. We still have to pay him but will have the 40 man spot to use. Love Mitch stand up guy but those injuries have destroyed his body. Not the player he was before them.
Mitch never came back from losing a ball to the ball
He didn’t lose one they rebuilt it. They made it faster and last longer. The million dollar nut. I watched part of a video on how they do it. Had to stop my stomach and berrys started to hurt. You are correct all the injuries and surgeries did him no good.
*too
That’ll never happen and makes absolutely no sense for either side. Bellinger is on a 1 year 32.5 mil contract, which has negative value, but more importantly- the M’s can’t afford that. So even if the cubs offset that with prospect value – Ms still can’t do the deal. Also, I like belli, but keep him out of a pitchers park !
The Mariners, right now, are on the hook for over $95 M for Castillo so there is no negative value to Bellinger’s contract (even with opt in next year to over $50M) to them.
If the Mariners can’t afford the uptick of $8 M for one year, they certainly can afford, even less, the remaining $70M on Castillo’s deal.
As MLBTR notes: “Castillo is owed $68.25MM in guaranteed money from 2025-27, plus a $25MM vesting option for 2028 that becomes guaranteed based on health and an innings threshold.”
Baseball Trade Values currently assigns Luis Castillo a surplus value of $7.7 million and Cody Bellinger a negative value of $7.7 million.
The market remains fluid but the market for a starting pitcher might be getting tighter than the market for an outfielder/first baseman.
Thanks muskie—that makes things much easier. Bellinger and $8M (no prospect) for Castillo.
Mariners get their OF/1B/DH need filled.
Cubs get a starting pitcher.
Strat-o-matic trades are so simple and fun.
The Mariners return Julio Rodriguez, Randy Arozarena, Victor Robles and Luke Raley to their outfied and first base.
This year all but Arozarena (1.9) posted higher fWAR than Cody Bellinger (2.2).
Wrong. Money over three years is different than payroll for 2025. The Mariners are reported to have, at the current time, about $15-17M more available in payroll for next season, and they need to address multiple infield spots. Taking on Bellinger’s contract for Castillo would wipe out half of that amount. As someone else stated, the Haniger contract would need to be included, and I don’t think giving up Castillo merely for an upgrade at DH makes any sense for the Mariners.
That would get the Cubs to zero. They’d need to throw in a pitcher similar to Wesneski, but the Cubs would get to keep Assad (17 BTV), Wicks (11) and Brown (20).
tjhaul—of course it doesn’t make sense for the Mariners—trading a starting pitcher for a DH/1b/OF type rarely ever makes sense.
But the article is titled “Cubs interested in Luis Castillo”.
The Cubs, right now, actually have one too many players to fill the lineup spots of OF/1b/DH. That’s where the fun game of throwing “strat-o-matic” (old time dice baseball game if you’re not old enough) trades is just for fun on Saturday morning.
The Cubs and Mariners are probably not a fit for a trade, I see that, but if they are really interested in Castillo the Mariners have to be part of the trade.
And, from my personal point of view—i never care about the money (positive or negative—even though math games are fun). #1—it’s not my money and #1a—all the owner’s have enough of it to do whatever they want/need to.
Well the last two owners have used our team as a savings account. Mr Nintendo bought the team with good intentions. He spent money to get Ichiro. Told the team to get him no matter the cost. When the gaming scene took a nosedive used the team to keep Nintendo USA solvent. When it came back still used it for income.
It would need to be Castillo + Haniger to justify taking back Bellinger’s negative deal for the M’s. More likely it would be a deal around Castillo + Bliss for Hoerner.
Bellinger has value to the M’s, but makes a lot more sense on the Yankees who have a clear need in the OF. Bellinger would also make more sense as a Blue Jay or Phillie.
Belli has negative value. By a decent margin.
Bellinger makes a lot of sense to a lot of teams—and now with Belli, Happ, PCA, Tucker, Suzuki, and Busch they have six guys for five lineup spots. Thus, ZERO need for Haniger in the deal.
I would like to think the Cubs are suffering PTSD from the Trey Mancini, Garrett Cooper tries the last couple of years so Haniger is a solid no go.
Trading Bellinger “opens” salary for much needed pitching, whether front line or depth and Castillo’s money makes sense.
Also—fully understand and agree about a deal around Hoerner from the M’s side, but I just think trading two third basemen yesterday absolutely slides Shaw to 3B and I think that means that Hoerner must be on track to be ready to play. I don’t see them trading Nico and having young/inexperience at both 2b and 3b. I don’t know a lot about Bliss but I don’t see the Cubs lessening themselves at another position when they can use Bellinger and the prospect pool to strengthen spots.
The cubs are going to have to eat some money or send something else or both. There is definitely a path.
I agree that Haniger doesn’t make sense for Cubs, but the Mariners would not take back more salary than they send out. Therefore, the Cubs would need to pay down $10M of Bellinger or take back Haniger (M’s might put in a bit of cash). In the end, Haniger should be DFA’d and not on the Opening Day roster of any team aiming to make the playoffs.
It doesn’t seem like teams are willing to trade for prospects generally and as an M’s fan can tell you that the 2nd/3rd base market is not strong. I agree that Shaw probably takes one spot, but unless the Cubs are a surprise destination for Bregman they’ll struggle to get a 3B.
Maybe the below 3 team trade could work?
Phillies receive Bellinger + Harry Ford
Cubs receive Bohm + Castillo
Mariners receive Hoerner + Assad
You nit only want to trade Castillo but add Bliss? I wouldn’t trade Castillo straight up for Hoerner
Imagine if Dipoto didn’t want Suzuki or Bellinger bc Victor Robles
Robles definitely feels like someone who’s about to turn back into a pumpkin. It would be prudent to have a backup plan if/when he disappoints. If they get another outfielder and Robles somehow maintains his performance, they can just rotate the outfielders through the DH spot. Give them a day off their feet, keep them all fresh.
The backup plan for Victor Robles is Luke Raley, who this year posted 3.2 bWAR and an OPS+ of 129 in 137 games.
Robles will be fine because he went back to using his best tool.. Speed instead trying to be a Power Hitter… as long as he hits .265+ and walks .350 he’ll be the best leadoff hitter we’ve had since Ichiro… and he’ll steal you 50+ bags… he was the difference in that offense last year and he gets the 2Hole & 3Hole WAY more Fastballs because if not he’s on 3rd base…
Robles fits the system much better, costs 15-20M less per year. And you know what you’re getting from him in Seattle. Trading Castillo and getting Bellinger as the key piece of a trade would be just about as bad as a move gets.
Are you kidding me? I’m a Mets fan and just watched a LOT of Victor Robles. Would be great if he was that guy that was on fire for a month in Seattle, but sadly I don’t think he is. Suzuki is genuinely a very good player and has proved that for years lol
And Bellinger is a significantly better risk than Robles
Robles is an anomoly: someone who hits in Seattle (.955 OPS career at T-mobile)
I think the sweet spot for Robles is about 400 abs. I love the guy and ultimately glad he’s on the team for sure but I remain skeptical of the extension we gave him.
Skeptical of a 2yr extension at a hair over $4.75M a year? Total guarantee is only $9.75M over 2yrs. The rest is only attainable by producing. My biggest concern with Robles is him staying healthy
Sure, but by extending you’re making the choice to retain the value of his arbitration,, which I’m not calling a great deal, either. The Nationals didn’t think so. It’s the total package that comes with the extension, betting a lot on potential and 250 or so abs
Though, it is hard to argue that his 3.1 WAR in less than half a season’s worth of ab’s made him worthy of some extra attention. I just, idk, we don’t spend very much anyway and that’s a lot to give, regardless of possible market value for him
You never know or we as fans never know how Robles was treated in DC. Maybe he felt unwanted and things got into his head. He comes here and feels wanted. The players take him in and feels like he is on a team that need want him. I don’t know just spitballing. Baseball as we know is a head game and if he got his head screwed up with his play and what I said above it could have been the problem. He took a couple weeks to really get into playing like he did. Hopefully he keeps it up.
So Robles is in his sweet spot. JRod (whose lack of hitting against teams over .500 is 90% of the mariners offensive woes) is still gonna play 150-160 in CF. Arozarena will get 130-140. Robles 100. With Raley getting 60 and DMo getting 30. That puts Robles at 400 pas.
Trading Castillo is only worth it for Seattle if they get a major improvement bat or save the money to buy a bat. Bellinger isn’t that. And Chicago wants to trade Bellinger like a former MVP on a short-term deal, but he’s a huge question mark with a massive salary that would prevent Seattle from having 3B money. And Chicago isn’t gonna eat that money. It’s a poor trade matchup unless they worked a three team deal.
90% of their offensive woes. Really??! Julio had a terrible year, but #’s5-9 in that lineup would prove otherwise. Strikeouts and lack of hitting with RISP as well as lack of XBH are the bulk of their issues. They need serious upgrades up and down the lineup. The good news is that Edgar Martinez has signed on for another year as hitting director so hopefully Julio and the others will continue to build on the improvement they showed after he took over last year. Dipoto needs to find a way to move Haniger and Garver. It’s probably not likely but if he could that would free up the salary they need and they wouldn’t need to trade Castillo. Nobody ever thought Evan white’s contract was moveable but he found a way, so you never know.
When you’re a superstar receiving MVP votes just signed to a potential lifetime contract and you have an OPS of .601 against teams over .500, that’s atrocious. It should be better than what Leo Rivas, Dom Canzone, and other replaceable players are doing. Just like a hitting powerhouse like the Yankees needs a true Ace like Cole, a pitching powerhouse needs a superstar bat and instead the Mariners have a guy in the 2 or 3 hole who is playing below replacement level in games that matter. If his OPS is .700 in those games, they’re a playoff team with the playoff’s best rotation and someone like Bryce Miller in their playoff bullpen. If not, it would take a Soto signing or a couple massive moves to be a playoff team. His improvement is the key to 2025 more than any transactions could be.
His improvement is definitely one of the keys to a successful season next year and hopefully he stays on the right track and Edgar’s mentoring will continue to pay dividends for him. The ultimate goal is to win the World Series. Maybe not the organizations goal, but the fans, players and coaches goal for sure. The Mariners have the pitching to legitimately contend, but they desperately need to upgrade their lineup to be considered championship caliber. With a severely limited budget Dipoto’s gonna have to get creative.
Julio hit at a 160 OPS+ for a month before Edgar took over as hitting coach. Julio tried to change his approach to get better over last winter and made things worse. It took him 3 months to fix.
Remember when Robles was rated higher than Soto in the Nats farm system?? Robles was untouchable but Soto could be had and that was before Soto turned down the extension. Crazy times they was and are today. Every sport has that “change of scenery” type and I’m hoping for Robles and the Mariners he’s one of them. Watching him play in Seattle I can tell you he’s having fun. Didn’t see him much with the Nats so I couldn’t speak to his demeanor there but he’s enjoying the game. Take the exact same skill set in two guys and one of them is having fun and the other is just doing his job. The having fun guy is almost always gonna perform better.
Very accurate assessment. Man, April was rough.
He’s cheap and .250,.320 OBP, 50+ Steals is a BARGAIN for him…
Cubs are killing their decent minor leagues for 1 yr of Tucker and now if they get a declining Castillo would really be short term thinking.
Like to see them trade Suzuki and the Reds seem to like dealing with Seattle for Suzuki. Very wishful thinking on my part.
We won’t know for 11 months or so if it is for one year of Tucker. There is very little to support that Castillo is really declining. Three years in Seattle, nothing eye popping terrible.
And–the Cubs are certainly not killing their minor leagues. They traded one prospect who is a minimum 20 years from hitting the podium for the induction speech for which I probably won’t be around for.
Of course, you want Suzuki. You and probably 28 other teams.
They traded one prospect in Cam Smith. Paredes didn’t profile well in Wrigley and Wesneski is a fringe MLB pitcher and the Cubs have a lot of depth similar to him.
What does “didn’t profile well in Wrigley” even mean?
Paredes profile is a dead pull hitter. Popped a lot of home runs in Tropicana and should do well with the Crawford boxes. Wrigley Field has a deep well down the line and is tough to hit HRs when the wind is blowing in
The left field wall in Houston is about 20-30 feet shorter than Wrigley. Paredes is a dead pull hitter whose HRs have literally all been to left field. Statcast says he would’ve had 7-8 more HRs in Houston last year.
Cubs farm is loaded ! They b alright
One minor leaguer for Tucker. They will get a compensatory pick back after the season if he leaves. They gave up a swing man that has a propensity to serve up HR balls and a decent third baseman. Parades didn’t hit the ground running after being traded to the Cubs.
Wesneski has been around for awhile and might be out of options. If so that lowers his value if he’s viewed more a depth piece.
Wesneski does have one option year remaining.
Forgot to mention Wesneski had the so called forearm strain injury from last July until Sept. 20th. Watch for him to go under the knife in ST.
Says the jealous reds fan.
Declining, he had 18 Quality starts for 4 years in a Row with ZERO injury…
If Haniger is the opening day DH, I’ll vomit…
Contact a medical professional, not an MLB website.
Mitch Haniger knows a lot of medical professionals, maybe drop him a line
He’s done more for the Mariners than almost anyone else.
Put Edgar in at DH then??? He’s done more for the Mariners than Haniger.
I love Mitch and what he has provided to the Mariners, but unfortunately at this stage of his career, he does not belong on a contending team.
Would like to see a Bellinger & Brown return for Castillo here. Belly fills the need for 1B and OF flexibility. In addition, we’d get another young arm for our rotation… could be exciting.
Due to the Mariners need to dump salary so they can attend there other needs, NO, Belly and his more expensive contract for next year, does not fill the need!
Cubs ain’t trading Brown.
No… very good point about the Mariners needing to dump salary. I glossed over that fact. Still like Brown… so fingers crossed.
They don’t need to Dump salary, they can play with what they got and sign JT and wait for Young, Ford, Emerson and Company next year…
That would be a fair deal for both. I could see Ben Brown being a nasty starter for the mariners. Not sure why cubs didn’t give him a real shot to start last season – they kept giving hendricks horrible starts instead. If they’re gonna misuse Brown trade him to a team that sees his potential and gives him a real chance!
They did give him some starts. He had a couple of memorably good ones. But his odd neck injury cut his season short. (They have stated he’s on track to be good for ST).
I would add that I’d hate to see him go in any deal. I think he’s gonna be great.
I don’t see the cubs agreeing for a 2 for 1 of that high profile of a “kicker”. We like brown. I’d lower the expectations a bit but I think Bellinger is the logical starting point
I really hope Cashman does not lose Bellinger and Hoerner in this trade. He needs to Stop messing around and get who he needs for the team. Take on all of Bellinger’s contract and give up good prospects if it means getting both in a trade.
I think it’s cubs postering to get something from yanks. Cashman is excellent at slow negotiations, he did well with SD last year !
Even if they trade castillo for Sasaki +, i still see the cubs trading belli to yanks. Yanks are only team that have a need so large they can afford his contract
Thank you, you just saved my Saturday. I’ll pick up the pieces to the TV I smashed…. lol.
I doubt after trading their third baseman (Paredes), the Cubs will open up another infield position by trading Hoerner.
Cubs are not giving up Hoerner. I don’t want to see Masterbouni on the active roster come Opening Day.
Truth be told, I just saw different pundits discussing the possibility of including Hoerner to the Yanks in a trade; but I am not aware of the viability of such a move. As a Cubs fan, you would have a much better handle on their willingness and desire to move Hoerner.
BUT, wouldn’t it be interesting if the Cubs flipped Tucker to the Yankees for Luis Gil and whatever prospect they included? To make it clear, I do not see this move as a realistic possibility…. But the Twins did that with the Yankees.
If the cubs trade Nico they would definitely need a 3rd baseman. Not impossible but creates another hole. They might still add one for depth. Whoever posted it earlier please do not have Miles Mastrobouni on the opening day roster, please!
Led—I think Gage Workman is the newer Mastrobuoni. Only one, not both will possibly be on the roster come opening day. Being a Rule 5 guys, Workman needs to be on the roster all year or go back to Detroit. I think you are safe 🙂
Hoerner ain’t going anywhere after trading Paredes. You can put that notion out of your head.
Clipper i posted a 3 team trade a bit ago. I was torn between Bellinger or Raley to Yanks. buy ultimately Raley strikes out way at a much higher clip than Bellinger
Cubs look like the Mr. Go after the biggest names via trade and it still won’t be enough I guarantee you
Bellinger and a prospect makes sense talent wise, but i think seattle is trying to shed some salary trading castillo, so it doesn’t make sense financially. Suzuki is too much to give for castillo. It would have to be castillo plus a prospect, and cubs already have enough prospects they can’t play. I dont even understand why cubs are shopping suzuki, he’s their best hitter
You forgot about Tucker already.
Ha I did! Okay, correction… pre-Tucker trade
You “think Seattle is trying to shed some salary”? Gee, what ever gave you that idea. The cub fans that know nothing about what their trading partner needs is just amusing.
Why does everyone say he is declining? Is it his age or you think he is in Seattle so he is declining? His stats are similar to his best years. He has done very good here. Nobody wants him traded because he is not good we want him traded because we could use the money elsewhere. He is a 3 on an excellent staff and a 1 on many staffs.
He’s a #2 on any team in the 30team MLB league… he averages 18Quality starts a Year for 4 years straight… he hasn’t declined & he had another 18 Quality starts again last year. Cal over called his fastball/Sinker a bit and Servais left him in there too long in some games pushing his 3.00 ERA up above 3.50 but make no mistake… if Wilson gets him to throw that Change again in 2 strike situations he’ll have a better year and hjs FB will rock back up… Go M’s
I’d take Matt Shaw and a #5 starter for a Castillo trade at this point. Our infield is so terrible, a AAA prospect like Shaw would not only be the headliner…it would be an improvement to our current roster.
Shaw would not be in a deal for Castillo.
Shaw straight up at best…if you were lucky. I think that he’s pretty close to untouchable right now for the Cubs.
The Cubs simply cannot trade Matt Shaw at this point. They already traded their starting 3rd baseman and their prospect 3rd baseman to get Kyle Tucker. If they deal Matt Shaw they would have a real hole at 3rd and no real option to fill it. Matt Shaw is off the table here.
Castillo of saski, Ben brown and a lotto ticket is a great trade for both sides imo.
If you mean Susuki you’re out of your mind. Cubs aren’t trading their second best hitter after just trading for Tucker. Wish casting for Brown in addition is sheer buffoonery.
So he was their best hitter then prior to Tucker trade or are you just overhyping Suzuki? They also seem to have about as average lineup as anyone in majors so how big of a lose is it really ?
Last I saw on brown, they were trying to stretch him out as a starter but it wasn’t working out. Is there a different plan with him ? If he’s not closing then how is he not accessible ?
And Castillo would compete as best pitcher on the staff. Iant that more important than hitting ?
You might get Suzuki since Tucker is forcing him or Belli out of the lineup.
Hold on Cubs! Save some for the other teams. You’re starting to look like the Dodgers.
The moaning will be deafening when the Cubs get Roki, too.
I dont see the Cubs trading Hoerner after just trading Paredes.
Castillo
Robles
Haniger
For
Bellinger
Suzuki
Wicks
Cubs get a top of the rotation starter and 2 outfielders who are better fits as 4th and 5th outfielders. Mariners downgrade their rotation but get 2 good hitters to help their lineup.
I think the trade would be simpler: Castillo for Bellinger and Wicks
I dont think the Cubs are giving up enough in your proposal.
They could throw in a Top 30 pitching prospect like Birdsell.
Need to take Hanigers contract. Bellingers contract has negative value.
And Haniger’s trade value is more negative than Bellinger. So, the Cubs would just be sending Cody. No pitchers incuded. But, I don’t see the Cubs doing that as that would fill in their remaining payroll space.
I think Haniger and Bellinger have about the same trade value.
The Cubs would trade Suzuki that would clear up payroll space for other moves. It’s almost like I thought this over before suggesting it……
Hanger is an injury waiting to happen. And if there is a trade, it won’t include Suzuki. They didn’t trade for Tucker to boost their struggling offense just to turn around and give up their second best hitter.
Bellinger + money + wicks
I think Haniger and Bellinger have about the same trade value.
============================
I don’t see it. Belli is a maybe 2.7-3.0 player, while Haniger you could argue should be cut.
No way Mariners would do that
Right, Jerry wouldn’t include Robles after extending him at 2/$10MM.
Jerry is a wheeler dealer. He’ll consider trading anybody not named Julio, Gilbert, Kirby, Miller or Woo.
What’s a wicks?
In fine with this trade to rid ourselves of Haniger
As long as the mariners do a bit more
Wicks is the new Jamie Moyer!
Robles is sort of redundant on the current cubs roster even with bellinger gone. I also don’t trust him to keep up his level of play
If the Cubs trade Bellinger there is ZERO chance that they want ANY type of outfielder/first baseman/DH type back.
Right now they have six guys: Happ, PCA, Tucker, Suzuki, Busch, and Belli for five lineup spots. Trading Belli with an outfielder coming backs keeps that six quantity at six.
Belli (or Seiya if it happens to be him) will be traded for another position, probably pitcher or salary reallocation to get pitching.
The Yankees are still the probably landing spot for Belli—but this article is about interest in Luis Castillo so that’s where this morning’s fun is at.
I don’t know enough about Yankees/Mariners matching up but a three teamer with the Cubs getting Castillo, the Yankees getting Belli and the Mariners getting something makes sense—I just don’t think Cubs would have any interest or need in Robles/Haniger etc.
6 guys for 5 spots makes plenty of sense as long as at least some of them are not full time players. Robles is not a full time player. Armstrong isn’t either quite yet.
PCA will be in Iowa if Bellinger isn’t traded. They could trade Busch, but he’s inexpensive the next couple of years and they’ll probably end up losing both Tucker and Bellinger next offseason.
Fair enough BITA—but PCA is an every day player and has been since at least midseason .
The bench outfielder will be and should be league minimum prospect guys, most likely Caissie/Alcantra/Canario….not a $5M guy like Robles, although I did reflect and respect your assumption.
Certainly won’t be a guy like Haniger and $15M leaving roster construction the same, if not worse.
And–if Belli goes, it does leave the Cubs lacking depth at first base. Mervis is not really an answer and the emergency back up type guys like Wisdom, Parades are gone.
I think it’s a nice balanced trade that helps both but leaves the cubs with the same outfield log jam they’re trying to fix and the mariners still have an infield hole. So would have to preclude future moves.
Lunacy
Robles isn’t getting traded under no circumstances he’s the only Lead off hitter we’ve had since Suzuki and his SB’s put pressure on the Pitcher getting more FB’s for the 2Hole &3hole and he’s the perfect line drive hitter you need for Tmobile with Plus/Plus Speed… not happening…
Caissie would be a great fit in Seattle if they can stomach MLB learning curve. Seattle needs power and Caissie has a ton of that.
What makes you think Seattle needs Power? Are you a Mariners Fan? Do you know where we finished in HR ranking last year? Do you knkw what our batting avg was last year? Strikeouts? That’s is the Opposite of what we need… we need contact hitter with low K rates, especially in the 2Hole behind Robles putting Julio in the 3Hole. We need a 4Hole hitter like JT if need be in the 4Hole and Cal in the 5 Hole… problems was Seattle had too many guys swinging for the fences that’s why we’re always last in sacrifices and Sac Flys… Hoerner is actually a Good fit for the Mariners in the 2Hole but not at the cost of Castillo… maybe Logan Evans or Hancock and 2prospects…
Worst HR total (not including 2020) in Dipoto tenure is 176. In 2001 (steroid era) they hit 169. Our ballpark is built for hitting singles/doubles and running. That’s why Robles, Raley, Rojas, Turner, Moore, etc have all come to Seattle and improved while Pollock, Garver, Teo, etc have struggled. The problem last year was a massive shift in hitting philosophy and this year it should be balanced out.
Teo had a regular Teo year in Seattle TBH…
That’s some good cooking Mr.Hoyer and Mr.Ricketts. stove is getting hot quick. Buckle up Cubs nation gonna be a fun summer and October. Go Cubs Go
How about a 3 way trade with Chicago, Seattle and Boston?
Boston gets Suzuki
Seattle gets Casas
Chicago gets Castillo
Seattle doesn’t want Casas, or that would have happened already
This is not true
They didn’t want to trade Kirby or Gilbert for Casas. If it means moving Castillo and opening up 23M to spend on 3B and a depth starter it would be worth it.
Seattle wants no part of another high K player that’s why we gave Suarez away for FREE!!! at a premium position making 13M dollars which is HALF Price!!!
I think Boston needs Castillo far more than they need Suzuki, but some kind of Casas-for-Castillo framework would make sense if Breslow hadn’t been shouting his willingness to trade Casas from the rooftops for the last three months. At this point I think the Sox are better off holding onto Casas and hoping he develops into an inexpensive, consistent 30/100 guy than they are trading him while his value’s so low.
Do the Cubs have any interest in Devers? lol
Seattle wants no part of FREE swinging High K rate players, we already have a Few… Cal, Rozy, Raley, and JP… shoot even Julio gets in his funk pressing with ZERO protection behind him and K’s with RISP… If Dipoto is doing it right we need plus defenders with 15%k rates.. period…
Already looking forward to the NL Central next year.
The Cubs are seriously better with Tucker and Castillo would be a great pickup for them too. Brewers of course have lost Devin, though that was expected and they have an interesting return from NYY plus Trevor Magill roadtested any ready to take on full time closer duties after holding the fort beautifully while Williams recovered fitness in the first half of last season.
I’m sure all the clubs still have some business to do, and these Cubs move(s) might even prompt other teams to push a little harder in the market in coming weeks. If so, all good for the NL Central.
Not sure why you are looking forward to this so much. The Cubs are the only team that appears to be getting better. Lot left of the offseason but this isn’t that exciting so far in the NL central unless you are a Cubs fan.
Yep, Cubs are getting better so it’ll be more competitive with them. You can never tell with the Brewers and one of these years they’ll no doubt flatline, but I enjoy seeing how they cobble together a competitive team almost every year recently and last year’s approach under Murph tells us how they’ll be playing again next year. It’s true the rest of the NLC isn’t doing much so far but – as I said in my first post – let’s hope the Cubs’ proactive offseason encourages the rest of the division to be more aggressive/creative than they might have been otherwise.
I like what Milwaukee has done.
Aren’t you a Cubs fan?
I think people don’t want fair competition.
Not sure what you mean by this?
@ the author- wrong Cade Horton linked. FYI.
The Cubs will throw in the wrong Cade Horton for Castillo.
The limited market for 2B and 3B, plus the Ms limited budget, plus the limited options the Ms are willing to trade from their MLB team are conspiring to make it very hard for “Trader Jerry” to get anything done this offseason. If the Cubs aren’t willing to trade Hoerner at this point (and i don’t think they should) I don’t see a trade here.
I agree. The Mariners need a 2nd and or 3rd basemen and are not trading their best “trade chip” with the Cubs without addressing one or the other. I like the idea of trading Castillo to the Rays for Y. Diaz and B. Lowe but the Rays would not take on that salary and perhaps don’t need the SP. Castillo is going to be dealt to a team with deep pockets. What about to the Dodgers for Muncy and Lux? The Phillies for Bohm and ? To the Mets for Mauricio and Baty?
Yandy Diaz and Lowe seen like too good of fit for the mariners. But that will just require prospects not Castillo
Best move is probably keep Castillo and pick up those two and then trade for geno Suarez and bring the band back together
They cannot take on Diaz, Lowe, and Suraez’s salaries. $10, $8.75 and $15 Million, I believe.
Me either.
Hoerner and Bellinger for Castillo, Haniger, G Santos
That Seattle rotation is nasty.
The Rangers owe the Cubs a steak!
Seattle doesn’t want a huge contract back. Castillo’s contract is the only reason they are willing to move him. Any player making more per year is not someone they will take back. Why is this such a difficult concept for Cubs fans?
It’s not. The teams aren’t a good match now that the cubs got Tucker. Trading Paredes pretty much made Hoerner unavailable.
Trades I wanna see happen….
Seattle should ask for Seiya Suzuki and Ben Brown for Luis Castillo.
Yankees lose their minds and deal Jasson Dominguez for Cody Bellinger and cash.
Cubs use an outfield of Happ, PCA and Tucker with Dominguez as the primary DH. Castillo anchors a revamped rotation!
Let me expand on this….cubs sign Pete Alonso to take 1st and roll out this lineup….
Dansby Samsonite
Nico Horndog
Kyle Untuckit
Pete Polarbear
Jasson Martianman
Ian Happhazard
Matt Shawshank
Pete The Crow Armstrong
Whoever TF the catcher is Amaya
Rotation….
Luis Castellanos
Shota Imanagya
Justin Steele Toed Boots
Jameson Taillum Up
Javier Al Assad
Closer doesnt matter cuz these games won’t be close!
Bill Swerski, everybody….
Obviously the Orioles are a strong match here. They have Mountcastle available at $6 mil which would give the Ms both the righty bat and cost cutting they desperately want. That wouldn’t be enough so the teams would still have to match up on a secondary piece. Maybe urias or Mateo would have some value to the Ms as IF depth. Maybe a couple of fliers in the organizational top 30. Maybe a lesser starter for the back end of their rotation like Kremer or Wells. The point is that the cheap right handed Mountcastle fits their needs and I’m unaware of any other team that can so easily match up with the M’s needs for a bat.
Not bad. Maybe Three for One or The Mariners Throw in a prospect not from their Top Ten. . Mountcastle, Mateo or Urias, Kremer or Wells. Would they do Westburg if the M’s added Cole Young?
The wrong Cade Horton is linked here and maybe that’s an important name to remember, because I would bet Seattle would ask for him and Hoerner for Castillo.
Maybe a bigger deal is possible, but I would anticipate a starting pitcher in any return for Seattle.
Castillo isn’t worth either of those guys in trade. He’s good, but his contract is compensating him correctly.
Also Castillo loses value the second he’s not pitching in Safeco
Cade Horton should absolutely not be traded. Let alone for Luis Castillo.
I agree. But I don’t want to see Castillo traded. An overpay could change my mind.
Bellinger and a solid prospect for Castillo.
A Bellinger/Julio/Robles outfielder would be impressive. Defensively, anyway.
Raley’s a poor defensive 1b, especially for a guy who’s pretty good in the outfield, and Randy’s sporadically poor defensively in the outfield, despite good speed.
If only teams weren’t required to play infielders too, that team could compete.
Castillo to the Mets for Baty+
Rather have one of Gilbert, Kirby or Woo. That ain’t gonna happen.
M’s fans need to realize that Castillo loses a lot of value the second he’s not pitching in Safeco.
Cubs have 1 of the best minors systems in mlb. Probly top 3-5
Sad they trading everyone away
Actually redsox have 1 of the best too, maybe #1
And they just moved half their best prospects
@johncoltrane: The BoSox traded their #4, #5, #8, and #18 ranked prospects. That’s not even half of their top 10 and none of their top 3.
Moot point now, looks like Cubs are circling Luzardo from Marlins
Cubs and Mariners don’t match up on a deal.. Trade with Baltimore for Mayo sign Walker and the 2nd baseman from Korea there’s your infield…Spend about 5 million extra after getting out of Castillos contract find a good solid #4 and off-season is done..
Mayo is going to cost a heck of a lot more than Castillo. Maybe for Woo.
We give them Ford in the deal..
I think a 3 team trade is in order.
CHI send Bellinger to NYY, Suzuki to SEA.
NYY sends Stroman to SEA, Peraza to CHI.
SEA sends Castillo to CHI.
Cubs are backing off of Castillo…
DiPoto won’t do this trade unless the Mariners are at a net draw or slight loss. He’s crafty like that.
Fire Justin Hollander
He traded Geno for a backup catcher
Let Teo walk
Dumped kelenic
Traded Sewald
Can’t organize a trade this offseason
Make a move already . Show that your job depends on this
I vote to dump Hollander and put this squarely on DiPoto
Why would they? They’re top5 in baseball ⚾️ for PROFIT every year… its a BUSINESS just ask ownership
Dipoto should’ve lost his job by trading Suarez for free on a half price contract, not putting Qualifying offer on Teo for the 1st rd. Pick, the signing of Garver to a 2year deal when he avgs what 60games a year? His refusal to get rid of the Anaylstics department/Offensive Philosophy after 3years of record strikeouts, refusal to fire his Buddy Servais, and he isn’t the Mind behind the pitching staff. That title belongs to someone else and you know the name if you’re a Mariners Fan and thank goodness he’s the ONLY one who’s survived last seasons blow out sessions…
Hey, Jerry Dipstick, please don’t waste a trade by bringing Cody to the M’s. He isn’t the type to stay in a mid or small basement market cities.
I’m hoping we keep Castillo and resign JT and wait for next year with Hani/Garver off the books and see if Young,Ford, and Emerson are ready… then we can be Picky on who sign or trade for with nice payroll available….
Okay quick question here for you O’s fans… “Is Westburg worth more than Bellinger if you take Money out of the picture?” I don’t know if he’s worth more than Hoerner IMO… if given the choice between Westburg or Hoerner straight up for Castillo I’d take Hoerner for the 2slot first… especially since he has a Proven track record over years…