THIS AFTERNOON, ESPN-UPDATE: After formally bidding the San Diego Padres farewell, center fielder Lane Thomas agreed to a $180.7 million, seven-year contract with Seattle Mariners... However...

Mariners Trade Targets: 3 bats from teams on the bubble

The Seattle Mariners remain in a fight for the American League West and in need of offense with the July 30 MLB trade deadline drawing ever closer.

Mariners Roster Move: First baseman called up, Bliss optioned

The trade market has been slow so far this month, a result of so many teams remaining in the postseason race. Before the deadline hits, however, there are sure to be some teams that will decide to sell.

Who could be available bats from teams on the playoff bubble? ESPN MLB reporter Jesse Rogers identified three players when he joined Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy on a recent show.

Seattle Mariners Trade Targets: 3 bats from teams on the bubble - Seattle Sports

Rogers was asked by Michael Bumpus about hitters that could potentially become available that may help the Mariners despite not being the most exciting names, and Rogers pointed to the Washington Nationals’ Lane Thomas, the San Francisco Giants’ Jorge Soler, and the Arizona Diamondbacks’ Joc Pederson.

“I think there’s a bunch of teams that have decent hitters that are in the mix, and if they decide to sell, that could be fruitful for the Mariners – especially if they’re willing to take up some salary,” Rogers said. “… The key (is) which teams are going to sort of fall out of it, and at that point the Mariners should want to pounce. But even without that, we know there’s going to be some hitters available, and I think the Mariners should pounce either way.”

Morosi: Potential Mariners trade targets, rumors from GM meetings - Seattle Sports

Here’s a quick look at each of those three hitters Rogers mentioned, as well as the situations their teams currently sit in.

Potential Seattle Mariners trade targets

Lane Thomas, OF, Washington Nationals

The regular right fielder for the Nats, Thomas probably qualifies as the most interesting of the three players Rogers mentioned. He’s younger than the others, with his 29th birthday coming up next month, and he has a year of club control left. He’s making $5.45 million this year with one more season of arbitration eligibility before he’s set to hit free agency after the 2025 season.

This year, Thomas owns a .246/.315/.396 slash line for a .712 OPS with eight home runs and a career-high 25 stolen bases in 71 games, though he’s also been caught stealing a league-most 10 times. Thomas had a big season in 2023, slashing .268/.315/.468 for a .783 OPS with 28 homers and 20 steals.

Seattle Mariners Rumors, Trades & Free Agency - SoDo Mojo

Thomas’ Statcast page reveals some strong intangibles, as he’s 95th percentile this year in MLB in arm strength, 93rd percentile in sprint speed, and 92nd percentile in chase percentage (how often a hitter swings at pitches outside of the strike zone).

The Nationals entered Monday with a 47-53 record, which is four games back of the National League’s last wild card. There are a lot of teams between them and the playoffs, however, as three teams are tied for that last wild card, and there are another three before you get to the Nationals, who also happen to be tied in the standings with the Cincinnati Reds. Only two teams remain in the NL after that.