Almost as soon as the Seattle Mariners signed first baseman Josh Naylor to a five-year, $92.5 million contract, there was question on what the team would do next this offseason.

The deal with Naylor was done early enough in the offseason at a relatively cheap cost for the Mariners. The contract gives president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto a level of roster and financial flexibility that he hasn't had since he joined the front office in 2015.

Seattle still needs to find an answer for second base and third base as well as some bullpen help. The team has internal options for all three but there's a completely full pool of free agents the Mariners can pursue, including an international free agent.

Corner infielder Kazuma Okamoto was posted by the Yomiuri Giants of Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball on Thursday. He'll have until Jan. 4 to negotiate a deal with an MLB team, according to a report from ESPN's MLB insider Jeff Passan.

Okamoto scored 574 runs in 1,074 games across 11 seasons in NPB from 2015-25. He hit 212 doubles, three triples and 248 home runs with 717 RBIs. He has a career slash line of .277/.361/.521 with an .882 OPS.

Okamoto is capable of playing first base, third base and the outfield and is capable of drawing walks and has a strong understanding of the strike zone.

And ESPN analyst Paul Hembekides thinks Seattle should take a flyer on him.

"He's gonna play (in 2026) at (30-years-old) and Okamoto is a really fascinating player," Hembekides said in a post on "X." "The biggest strength is a ruthless command of the strike zone, truly. He ran a 90th-percentile-or-better walk rate in each of the last three seasons. During that time, his wRC+ was 178. The biggest weakness is the defensive trajectory. We're probably talking about a 50 or 55 power-grade. Which means the batting line only really plays up if he can play third base and I've read probably the same thing you're hearing from industry sources. We're not convinced he can stick at third base, at least not long-term. My projection is that he's a player that rhymes with Christian Walker — someone who averaged about 2.5 WAR per season, a .781 career OPS. The contract I have projected here is four-years, $68 million. That's $17 million a year, that runs through the age of 35. And the team I have circled is the Seattle Mariners, who now have a hole at third base with Eugenio Suarez walking."

If Okamoto does sign for the $17 million a year Hembekides projects, it would push the Mariners to the edge of its offseason budget. Dipoto did say the projected $30-35 million available to the club to spend is a "starting point" and Seattle can clear up more money to spend via trade.

Regardless, Okamoto is an intriguing option and could be a consistent on-base threat for Seattle in the middle or bottom third of the lineup.

RELATED MARINERS STORIES

MARINERS ANNOUNCE DATE FOR RANDY JOHNSON'S NUMBER RETIREMENT: The "Big Unit" will have his name and number forever immortalized at T-Mobile Park in 2026. CLICK HERE

MARINERS EXECUTIVE JERRY DIPOTO DISCUSSES IMPACT OF SPRING TRAINING: Several young players on the Mariners will get more opportunities in Cactus League action with the WBC looming. CLICK HERE

MARINERS REUNION WITH JORGE POLANCO COULD BE IN THE WORKS: Fresh off re-signing Josh Naylor, there's a chance the Mariners could be in line for another reunion this offseason. 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!