The Seattle Mariners enter play on Thursday night at 44-43 and in a tie for first place in the American League West.

They'll look for a three-game sweep of the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday (6:40 p.m. PT), having taken the first two games of the series by scores of 6-2 and 8-3. 

But despite the M's being in first place, it's been a generally frustrating year for the organization. Seattle entered the campaign with big expectations has failed to hit them thus far, and injuries have taken their toll at several key spots.

I've argued that the Aug. 3 trade deadline probably won't yield massive help because the M's don't have massive needs, but ESPN MLB Insider Buster Olney did drop an interesting idea on the most recent edition of the 'Refuse to Lose Territory' podcast.

"I think, for example, a week ago the Royals' playoff chances were at 15 percent. They go 1-5, and all of a sudden their playoff chances are down to 1 percent. So they're defining themselves in the marketplace.

We thought two or three weeks ago the Tigers were showing signs of coming back, and even in recent days they've been beating the Yankees, and maybe they hang in there, but they had kind of drifted backward. The Orioles are kind of drifting backward.

I actually think when you look at potentially what's out there in the marketplace, there's a possible interesting fit there with the Orioles for the Mariners, and that's Taylor Ward, a right-handed hitting outfielder who gets on base. He could absolutely slot in as their leadoff hitter.

I don't think the Orioles are close to being sellers yet, but they are trending in the wrong direction. Ward is a free agent at year's end. He would be a perfect fit, in my opinion, for what would help the Mariners."

Now 32 years old, Ward is a nine-year veteran of the Angels and Orioles. He's hitting just .250 this season but he has a robust .378 on-base percentage. He has only five home runs, a far cry from the 36 he had in 2025 and 25 he had in 2024, but he's drawn 66 walks, which, to Olney's point, gives him an on-base skillset that the Mariners struggle with.

He has a $12 million dollar-ish salary this season, which will be heavily pro-rated by the deadline. For a Mariners team that is cash-cognizant, that's likely a palatable number.

Baltimore is 40-48 and losers of six of its last 10.

The most recent 'Refuse to Lose Territory' podcast featuring Buster Olney of ESPN is out. You can listen here, or you can watch in the YouTube player below.

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