The Seattle Mariners have agreed to a trade with the Toronto Blue Jays to acquire veteran third baseman Justin Turner ahead of the 2024 MLB Trade Deadline. The Mariners have been aggressive during the trade deadline to add to the roster to bolster the team for the final stretch of the year as the team looks to surpass the Houston Astros in the AL West standings. Let’s take a closer look at exactly what this trade means for the Mariners going forward.
What does Justin Turner do for the Seattle Mariners?
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Having Justin Turner join the Seattle Mariners, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, means a lot toward what the team is going to be able to do going forward. Seattle and Toronto must not have believed this deal was going to happen as he was actually in the lineup for Game 1 of the Toronto Blue Jays’ doubleheader against the Baltimore Orioles. The team was having Josh Rojas play third base on a consistent basis but adding Justin Turner significantly improves the Mariners’ lineup going forward. With the addition of outfielder Randy Arozarena and pitcher Yimi Garcia during the 2024 MLB Trade Deadline, the Mariners are ready to take the next step offensively.
Justin Turner has been doing pretty well at the plate with the Toronto Blue Jays as he has a .724 OPS with six home runs, 31 RBIs, and 37 runs scored. He can play either corner infield spot but primarily has been a designated hitter. He is a true rental as he signed a one-year, $13 million contract this offseason so the prospect capital is not as significant as if other players were moved on the Blue Jays’ roster.
Adding a veteran third baseman definitely helps this team as another middle-of-the-lineup bat gets going. The Mariners are bottom three in batting average, on base percentage, OPS and runs scored so these offensive additions make a lot of sense. It will be interesting if this is the end of their moves or if they are going to continue to be active in the trade market to improve while waiting for center fielder Julio Rodriguez to return to the lineup. They have the firepower to compete with the Houston Astros so this race will go down to the wire.
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