MLB Insider Mentions Luis Robert Jr. as Possible Trade Target For Mariners
According to ESPN MLB Insider Jeff Passan, Chicago White Sox' outfielder Luis Robert Jr. could be a name to watch when it comes to the trade market for the Seattle Mariners.
He made the comments on Tuesday's edition of "Brock and Salk" on Seattle Sports 710:
“I understand you’ve got a center fielder already (in Julio Rodríguez), but Luis Robert is the impact of impact-type players, and a guy who’s under contract for multiple years, too,” Passan said.
The AL is wide open, ESPN's Jeff Passan said, and the M's may not need to trade a pitcher to take advantage.
— Seattle Sports (@SeattleSports) May 14, 2024
"There’s an argument to be made the position-playing prospects in the #Mariners organization are the best," he told @BrockHuard & @TheMikeSalk.https://t.co/bmdPopt9CP
It's certainly clear that the Mariners need offensive help with Mitch Garver, Jorge Polanco and Mitch Haniger all performing below their career norms, not to mention Rodriguez's slow start in the power department, so Robert Jr. is undoubtedly an intriguing name to watch. In addition to being a Gold Glove outfielder (2020), who could likely play left or right, he could also spend time at designated hitter to get around the positional redundancy with Rodriguez.
The question will be if the M's are willing to pony up the group of prospects it would take to pry Robert Jr. away from the South Side. The M's have four players in the Top 100 of MLB.com's latest prospect rankings (Cole Young, Colt Emerson, Harry Ford and Laz Montes), and they'd likely need to part with multiple of those prospects in order to faciliate anything for Robert Jr.
Robert Jr. is 26 years old and comes with three years of team control (beyond this one), so the age and contract status work, but he comes with some injury risks. Currently on the injured list with a hip issue, Robert Jr. has missed time in each full season since 2021, though he did play 145 games a season ago.
A lifetime .278 hitter, he hit 38 homerse and drove in 80 runs during the 2023 season for the White Sox.
The trade deadline is July 30th this season.
BRADY FARKAS