The Seattle Mariners will have several routes they could pursue in the offseason following the most successful year in franchise history.

The Mariners lost 4-3 to the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series on Oct. 20, and were one win away from making the World Series for the first time in franchise history.

Several key players on the team, such as first baseman Josh Naylor, third baseman Eugenio Suarez and second baseman Jorge Polanco will or are expected to be free agents.

There's been speculation on which, or any, of those free agents Seattle could bring back. There's also a chance the Mariners could be in the mix for the top international player available in free agency.

The Mariners have been rumored to be one of the top teams in the mix for corner infielder Munetaka Murakami, who is expected to be posted by the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball this offseason.

Murakami isn't the only NPB star expected to be posted this winter.

In a news conference held Wednesday, the Yomiuri Giants and Kazuma Okamoto announced that the player would be posted and made available for MLB teams to sign this offseason, according to a story from Yahoo Sports Japan.

Okamoto has been one of the faces of the Giants, the most popular NPB team, since his debut in 2015. 

In his 11 seasons with Yomiuri, Okamoto was a six-time NPB All-Star, led the Central League in home runs thrice (2020-21, '23) and RBIs twice ('20-21). He was named the Central League Climax Series (the CL version of MLB's Championship Series) MVP in 2019. He won a Gold Medal with Japan in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.

In 11 seasons, Okamoto scored 574 runs in 1,074 games and hit 212 doubles, three triples and 248 home runs with 717 RBIs. He slashed .277/.361/.521 with an .882 OPS.

Okamoto was limited to just 69 games this season due to an elbow injury. He finished his likely last NPB season with 38 runs and hit 23 doubles, a triple and 15 homers with 51 RBIs and slashed .322/.411/.581 with a .992 OPS.

Okamoto doesn't have the power profile of Murakami. Home runs is the biggest offensive facet Seattle would lose with the potential departures of Naylor, Suarez and Polanco. But Okamoto can fit in at several positions which would allow the Mariners to pursue one of those aforementioned players while also finding a role for the international star.

Okamoto has played 478 games at first base, 662 games at third base and 78 games in the outfield, according to Baseball Reference.

Okamoto has a better bat-to-ball profile than Murakami and doesn't strike out as much, which was one of the biggest weaknesses for the Mariners in the regular season and postseason.

Okamoto has struck out 796 times in 11 seasons compared to 977 times in eight seasons for Murakami.

Perhaps most crucially for Seattle, Okamoto will be cheaper. Okamoto will likely earn less due to his age and lower power tool. He'll turn 30-years-old next season. Murakami will turn 26-years-old before next season begins.

If the goal for the Mariners' front office this season is to keep the power that Seattle thrived on, Murakami will be the better option. If the front office's focus is on roster flexibility and consistency at the plate (while not breaking the bank), Okamoto could be the perfect fit for the Pacific Northwest.

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