I'm going to take a victory lap on this, just for a second.

I was a huge fan of Jorge Polanco re-signing with the Seattle Mariners this past offseason, even though his 2024 was dreadful. In his first year with the Mariners, Polanco hit .214 with 16 homers, also dealing with a significant knee injury that required offseason surgery, I just felt there was potential for him to bounce back, especially on a contract that was less than $10 million.

You can go find 'Refuse to Lose' episodes from back in March, and I was talking about the potential for Polanco to hit 25 homers in this campaign. Well, he's got 24 home runs now and has become a significant part of the M's lineup.

I also wrote about why the Mariners should bring back Polanco on January 4th, though it was for another outlet at the time.

But the situation with Polanco moving forward is complex, so let's examine it.

Polanco was given a mutual contract option in his deal for 2026. However, if he hit 450 appearances, that mutual option converted to a $6 million player option. He's already hit that benchmark, meaning he can stay in Seattle for $6 million, or he can hit free agency. Furthermore, if he hits the 550 plate appearance threshold, his option becomes $8 million. He's at 461 plate appearances with 17 games to play. Let's say he gets four PA's a game for the rest of the year, that would be 60 more plate appearances, placing him at 521 and falling just short of the 550 marker.

Again, that would mean that Polanco could come back to Seattle on a $6 million deal, or he can opt-out for free agency. And if he opts-in, I'm all-in. But, presuming he opts-out, things get messy for the Mariners, and quickly.

The Mariners have money coming off the books. Mitch Garver's $24 million deal is set to expire. The money they are paying Mitch Haniger still is going to be gone, which was about $17 million this season. That frees up $41 million more right there. The $6 million for Polanco makes $47 million free, and then you add in other possible losses, like Josh Naylor and Eugenio Suarez, who are also ticketed for free agency, there's some more. The Mariners can non-tender guys like Trent Thornton and Leody Taveras if they want, and they can also go a more drastic route and trade the likes of Luis Castillo, freeing up more money.

Remember, some of those free-ups will go towards increasing salaries for players already on the roster, so it's not quite as much open space as it looks.

But the point is: The Mariners will have funds, but how much does Polanco want? At 32 years old, Polanco will play half of next season at 33. Two years, with a maybe a third-year option, seems fair. Somewhere between $30 and $45 million, all-in, also seems fair.

Is that a good use of the Mariners' money? That much for a player who is 32 and about to be 33? Especially when considering....

Cole Young, who was a Top 100 prospect at the time of his promotion in May, figures to once again play second base most of the time. If Young becomes the player that the M's want, and assuming they give him the workload in order to do that, Polanco isn't a regular option at second base.

Cal Raleigh is going to be in the lineup most days, right? If the team elects to preserve his health next year and not catch him as much, that means more designated hitter days, which means less time for Polanco there.

Again, Polanco can play the DH spot on days when Raleigh catches, but it's not an every day position, either.

The team could let Suarez walk and elect to play Polanco at third again next season, but it didn't necessarily look pretty when they tried it early this season. Will it look prettier at age 32 than it did at age 31? And down the road, would the M's want to block any or all of the combination of Ben Williamson, Colt Emerson or Michael Arroyo, who could theoretically all see time at third base if the team really needed it?

Could they turn around and try to teach Polanco first base? With Naylor a free agent, that position is wide open. He's played it only once in his career, so it's not a guaranteed success.

Again, if Polanco comes back at $6 million, you figure all this out. You just do. But if it's $30-45 million, he needs to be playing every day. First base could be the ticket, and it would be the cleanest fit for the M's roster.

My first inclination is to try and re-sign Naylor, who is younger and a natural first baseman, but if they can't, using Polanco at first is certainly an option. Seattle can't afford to lose all three of Naylor, Suarez and Polanco. They are too valuable to the lineup, and though the situation isn't easy, they need to be prepared to pivot - and pay - if necessary.