Mariners Reportedly Listening to Offers on Luis Castillo, Not Interested in Salary-Dump Trade
The Seattle Mariners appear open to creative solutions for improving a roster that finished 85-77 last season, missing the playoffs by only a single game. And that includes fielding offers on All-Star hurler Luis Castillo.
Castillo, who turned 32 last Thursday, has been made available via trade by the organization, as The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal confirmed over the weekend. But, the front office doesn’t intend to move him just for the sake of doing so. If a deal is to occur, the return must significantly enhance the roster makeup.
Rosenthal added Seattle isn’t interested in dumping the remainder of Castillo’s contract, which includes $68.25 million over the next three seasons, plus a 2028 vesting option that triggers with 180 innings pitched or more in ‘27 – a mark he’s hit in two of the four previous campaigns.
As free-agent prices for pitching have soared, the Mariners have received numerous inquiries regarding the three-time All-Star, whose no-trade clause gives him full control of his future. Thus, he can choose his next destination if he’s open to a trade.
Among the clubs who’ve expressed interest include the New York Mets, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs and Baltimore Orioles, according to Rosenthal’s report.
The Cubs, in particular, appeared to be an intriguing trade partner for the Mariners, given the franchise’s desire to acquire an impact second baseman. But that may no longer be the case, with Nico Hoerner likely unavailable following the Kyle Tucker trade.
Chicago needed to create a pathway for top prospect Matt Shaw, and the front office did precisely that by including Isaac Paredes in the package sent to Houston for Tucker, likely reducing the urgency to trade Hoerner.
After declining Jorge Polanco’s club option, making him a free agent, Seattle’s depth has become extremely thin at second base, leaving Ryan Bliss – who owns just 33 career games of major-league experience – as the projected starter in 2025.
The Mariners possess one of the deepest starting rotations in baseball, featuring Castillo, Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, Bryce Miller and Bryan Woo. But, part of the hesitation around trading from that group lies with the uncertainty involving the organization’s next wave of starters.
Emerson Hancock, selected sixth overall in 2020, is easily Seattle’s most MLB-ready arm in the pipeline. However, the 25-year-old likely requires a bit more seasoning at triple-A – same for the rest of the franchise’s top pitching prospects – after posting a 4.75 ERA in 12 starts with the big-league club last season.
Still, after Max Fried signed an eight-year, $218 million contract with the Yankees, a deal that Corbin Burnes may now look to surpass, teams will likely continue to contact the Mariners about a Castillo trade.
The right-handed starter has been one of the most durable pitchers of this era, ranking tied for fourth in innings pitched (971) with Gerrit Cole since 2019, trailing only José Berríos (1,009.1), Zack Wheeler (1,024.2) and Aaron Nola (1,052.1).
Castillo’s strikeout rate (24.3 percent) took a minor step back in 2024, declining three percent from the previous season. But he still managed to record a sub-four ERA for the sixth consecutive year, earning a 3.64 figure and a 3.91 FIP in 30 starts, worth 2.3 fWAR.
Even coming off a down season, at least for his standards, Castillo remains an extremely appealing trade target for any club looking to raise their rotation’s ceiling this winter.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @Hall_Thomas_
Photo: Erik Drost. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.