SEATTLE — The Seattle Mariners are coming off the most successful season in its 48-year history.

The Mariners fell to the Toronto Blue Jays 4-3 in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series on Oct. 20. It was the first time Seattle, which remains the only club in the majors to not make a World Series, came within one game of the championship.

Almost as soon as the dust settled on the final pitch of Game 7 of the ALCS, there were questions on what the Mariners would do in the offseason.

Seattle president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto and general manager Justin Hollander both said in respective interviews they're still processing the emotions of losing the Game 7 and will take time before fully committing to the offseason.

"We won the AL West for the first time in a generation, a lot of guys had fantastic seasons," Dipoto said Thursday. "To come within eight outs of making it to the World Series — painful. But we'll wake up at some point in the offseason and get back after it, putting our team together for '26. Can't say enough about our fans and how they showed out."

But Dipoto and Hollander already have a general idea of the approach this offseason.

First priority: bringing back first baseman Josh Naylor.

On a broader scale, Dipoto mentioned first base, third base and bullpen help as priorities this offseason. In addition to Naylor, third baseman Eugenio Suarez is also set to be a free agent and second baseman/designated hitter Jorge Polanco is expected to decline his $6 million player option.

"This year, we go in (the offseason) being divisional champions," Dipoto said. "And that means something to us. It was part of our goal. ... It's a priority (bringing Naylor back). And we'll take a step back from where we are before we truly assess. And we'll communicate with the player before we say anything publicly. But we're still in grief mode, and so are they. Loved every minute with those guys and with others who are pending free agents, or potential pending free agents. We've obviously been in planning mode and competitive mode and trying to put together plans and rosters to win games. We've discussed 2026 and beyond and we do that fairly regularly, so it's not gonna sneak up on us. But it is appropriate to communicate with those guys before we do it publicly."

The top expected first baseman available in free agency are Naylor, Pete Alonso, Ryan O'Hearn and Cody Bellinger.

For third base, the market is expected to be headlined by Suarez and Alex Bregman.

International players Munetaka Murakami and Kazuma Okamoto are expected to be posted by their respective teams in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball and can play both first and third base.

David Robertson, Kirby Yates, Kenley Jansen and Rafael Montero will headline the free agent market for relievers.

RELATED MARINERS STORIES

JOSH NAYLOR A PRIORITY IN THE OFFSEASON FOR MARINERS: Justin Hollander was optimistic about the potential of bringing back the the Mariners' key acquisition from this year's trade deadline. CLICK HERE

DAN WILSON NAMED MANAGER OF THE YEAR: The Seattle Mariners skipper earned the honor, which was voted on by his peers. CLICK HERE

ANALYSIS: COULD MARINERS PURSUE SIX-TIME NPB ALL-STAR: In addition to slugger Munetaka Murakami, multi-time Central League home run leader Kazuma Okamoto is expected to be posted. CLICK HERE

JOIN THE CONVERSATION

Remember to join our MARINERS on ROUNDTABLE community, which is FREE! You can post your own thoughts, in text or video form, and you can engage with our Roundtable staff, as well as other Mariners fans. If prompted to download the Roundtable APP, that's free too!