Rumor Roundup: McCutchen and Napoli?
While many of us settled onto our couches for a day of football, 2 interesting tweets surfaced. The first from Jim Bowden:
#Mariners among many teams giving #Indians serious competition for the services of Mike Napoli
— Jim Bowden (@JimBowden_ESPN) November 20, 2016
This shouldn't come as a shock as the Mariners have been linked to Napoli all offseason, many speculating that his close ties to Mariners Manager Scott Servais could be a major factor in the 35 year olds decision.
The case for Napoli is a strong one, at least from an offensive stand point. Napoli poses good to great power, hitting 32 HR's in 2016 and boasting a career .480 Slugging %. He also has a career .350 OBP, though he has failed to reach that mark in each of his last 2 season. Napoli strikes out a lot (30% k rate) but also is know for his control of the zone and his ability to draw walks. Napoli would probably hit either 5 or 6 in the lineup, depending if Seager hits 2 or 5.
All of this sound fine on paper, but something about this doesn't fit. Napoli is a 1B/DH type who is a really bad defensive first baseman. GM Jerry Dipoto really likes Dan Vogelbach, who he acquired in July from the Cubs for Mike Montgomery, and has also traded for veteran Danny Valencia to platoon with his young first baseman. Valencia does play some outfield, but doesn't do it well.
The DH slot is currently occupied by the extremely productive Nelson Cruz. Signing Napoli could point to several potential options: 1. The Mariners want Napoli to be the full time first baseman, Valencia to be a platoon outfielder with Smith, and can then trade or send down Dan Vogelbach or 2. The Mariners could be shopping Nelson Cruz.
As a fan, moving Nelson Cruz would be tough to swallow, but after back to back excellent years, his value may never be higher. He still has 2 years left on his deal for a very reasonable rate, and would no doubt have many teams vying for his services. If the Mariners could get a slew of young prospects or maybe a young starting pitcher or 2, they should consider trading Cruz so long as they have a Plan B for the DH spot... like Mike Napoli.
The second, and potentially less important tweet came from Jon Morosi:
Sources: #Mariners inquired on Andrew McCutchen earlier this offseason; those talks with #Pirates did not advance. @MLB @MLBNetwork
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) November 20, 2016
File this into the memory bank for a few reasons: 1. Jerry Dipoto is leaving no stone unturned in his quest to make the playoffs. 2. The Mariners are serious about winning, even if it means spending money. 3. All talks between 2 GM's is important. Dialogue now can create deals down the road.
Is it likely that Andrew McCutchen will be patrolling left field in Safeco Field for the 2017 season? NO. But the simple fact that the two teams discussed it is encouraging. The true question i; what do the Pirates want for McCutchen and are the Mariners willing/able to pay it?
The asking price is unknown, but I would imagine the Pirates started with asking for 2 of these 4 players: James Paxton, Tyler O'Neil, Taijuan Walker, Edwin Diaz. While that is total speculation, it is reasonable to assume that the Pirates would want a strong package of young MLB or MLB ready players to move the 30 year old former MVP.
Nothing is likely to come out of these talks, but just keep this conversation in the back of your mind. It is impossible to know if it will spawn more talks with the Pirates, or potentially land the Mariners an every day leftfielder, but there is no harm in talking.
