Seattle Mariners Offseason Rumors: Will M's Be Active Before MLB Lockout Hits?

The Seattle Mariners contingent is officially in Las Vegas, Nev. for the general managers meetings, which run until Thursday.

Because the lockout is set to take affect on Dec. 1 at 9:00 p.m. PT, this will be the only chance of the offseason for the Mariners to meet with other teams about trade possibilities and it will be the only chance for the M's to meet with agents about potential free agent deals.

While it's unclear if the Mariners will actually get anything done in the next few days, it is fair to assume that if they get anything done before the lockout, there's a good chance that it was discussed and planned at these meetings.

So, with that in mind, how active do we think the Mariners will be before the lockout?

As is typical, I think the Mariners will be active in exploring the trade front. Since 2020 alone, the Mariners have acquired the likes of Ty France, Matt Brash, Andres Munoz, Eugenio Suarez, Jesse Winker, Jorge Polanco, Josh Naylor, Suarez again, Randy Arozarena and Brendan Donovan.

Jerry Dipoto likes to trade, and he's generally been pretty successful at it. The Mariners are willing to use their prospect capital to get deals done, and I expect it to be the same thing here.

This is not a report, it is pure speculation: I could see any of George Kirby, Emerson Hancock, Lazaro Montes, Luke Raley or Felnin Celesten being moved this offseason. Of course, you need another dance partner to make a deal happen, and we don't know if other teams will be willing to trade in an uncertain environment, but I do think the Mariners will be active in exploring things. ESPN's Buster Olney has already reported that the team is "poking around" the trade market.

As I talked about on the most recent "Refuse to Lose Territory" podcast, I think the M's are going to be rather disappointing before the lockout here. I just think the financial situation around the league is too uncertain for the M's to get really involved.

Why swim in the deep end when you don't know if the pool will even have water? 

There are too many variables around a possible salary cap/floor, as well how many years it will take guys to get to free agency, service time, etc. The economic climate is just too volatile in addition to many other aspects of the looming CBA battle. I think the M's will largely wait until things are resolved and see how the dust settles.

"I just don't think that the Seattle Mariners are going to do heavy free agent lifting at the general managers meetings, and I don't believe they're going to do heavy free agent lifting before the lockout hits.

I believe that they are going to wait until the lockout is over and see what the financial landscape looks like, and then they are going to act as part of the frenzy on free agency. Free agents.

Does that mean they will get the best free agents? Can't tell you.

Does that mean they will get a cut rate on free agents because everybody's signing quickly? Can't tell you.

Does that mean they'll get a cut rate on free agents because there's a cap and a floor system? I have no idea what the landscape is going to look like, and that's kind of the point."

Please note that I said I don't expect them to do "heavy lifting." I do believe the Mariners will continue to sign flier-level bullpen arms, and I think they might be able to find a backup major league infielder. I don't think they'll be completely inactive, I just don't think they'll go after the big-name free agents that most fans are clamoring for.

For instance, ESPN's Paul Hembekides recently linked the Mariners to free agent slugger Seiya Suzuki. I don't see that happening.