We don't know what the labor structure will look like for baseball in 2027, but we know that Randy Arozarena is positioning himself the best he can.
Because of Major League Baseball's (ongoing/eventual) battle for a new collective bargaining agreement, we truly have no idea what baseball contracts will look like in 2027 and beyond.
Yes to a salary cap? No to a salary cap? More money for players? Less money for players? It's completely unclear at the moment.
All we can say for certainty is this: Seattle Mariners left fielder Randy Arozarena is positioning himself the absolute best that he can for a nice deal moving forward, whatever "nice deals" look like under the new system.
As noted by Thomas Nestico on Monday, Arozarena's 2.2 fWAR leads all left fielders in the American League West by more than triple, and it trails only Cody Bellinger (2.4) in the American League as a whole. In a generally weakly-regarded free agent class of hitters, Arozarena is positioning himself as one, if not the best, offensive options.
While there were questions before the season about Arozarena's relationship with Cal Raleigh, and there are still questions about his defensive ability, he's been excellent for the M's this season.
He's hitting .285 with six homers, 29 RBIs and 18 stolen bases entering play on Monday. He's carrying a .376 on-base percentage, an .818 OPS and a 135 OPS+. He's 31 years old.
His 18 doubles are tied for fourth in Major League Baseball while his 18 steals are fifth. He's been an incredibly impactful player for a team that has missed Raleigh for a large portion of the season.
Who are the other offensive free agents in 2027?
Well, Tarik Skubal will be the biggest free agent in general, but how about elsewhere on the offensive side?
--Bo Bichette, if he opts out of his deal with the Mets
--George Springer
--Trent Grisham
--Gleyber Torres
--Ian Happ
--Seiya Suzuki
--Eugenio Suarez
--Jorge Soler
--Taylor Ward
Seattle Mariners left fielder Randy Arozarena (56) hits an RBI single in the seventh inning against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Rick Osentoski-Imagn ImagessUp next for the Mariners
Before Arozarena can think about next offseason, he and the Mariners have to finish out the rest of this season. The M's and Baltimore Orioles will start a new series on Monday afternoon at 3:35 p.m. PT as Emerson Hancock takes the mound. Hancock has been excellent this season, pitching to a 2.84 ERA.
He is coming off a game in which he gave up just two runs and two hits over six innings against the New York Mets.
The M's are 34-32 while the Orioles are 31-35.
Also of note
A new episode of the 'Refuse to Lose Territory' podcast will be out on Tuesday morning at 6 a.m. ET/3 a.m. PT. It features the second part of our conversation with Mariners broadcaster Ryon Healy. Listen to part one HERE:
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