Seattle Mariners Eager to Add Bullpen Help at the Trade Deadline
The St. Louis Cardinals are slipping fast. After a 5–0 shutout loss to the Miami Marlins on Tuesday night, they find themselves teetering near the .500 mark. With less than 48 hours remaining before the MLB trade deadline, the team has already committed to selling—and all eyes are on their bullpen.
Relievers Ryan Helsley, Phil Maton, and Steven Matz are all on expiring contracts and generating interest from contenders across the league. Among the most aggressive suitors? The Seattle Mariners.
In a recent MLB.com roundup of potential trades, Mariners beat writer Brian Murphy postulated a compelling scenario: Seattle acquiring both Helsley and Maton in a packaged deal to make a postseason push.
The Trade Speculation is Furious this Season
Or will it be the Texas Rangers in a similar deal? or the Cleveland Guardians, who lost their closer to a gambling suspension? Oooorrr will Helsley go to Detroit along with Arenado?
“Seattle’s bullpen is anchored by two hard-throwing right-handers with unhittable sliders: closer Andrés Muñoz and setup man Matt Brash,” Murphy wrote. “But there is plenty of room for improvement behind that duo, and the Mariners could turbocharge their ‘pen with a couple of rental relievers from St. Louis.”
There’s logic to the fit. Helsley has been a steady presence at the back end of the Cardinals’ bullpen, recording 21 saves with a 3.00 ERA across 36 appearances. Maton, meanwhile, has been one of the league’s more underrated arms, carrying a 2.35 ERA over 40 outings with 11.3 strikeouts per nine innings.
Both pitchers offer swing-and-miss stuff that could pay dividends in a tight playoff race. And for St. Louis, the return could be substantial. Bundling Helsley and Maton gives the front office a shot at securing a strong group of prospects. Much needed prospects, given the Cardinals’ depleted minor league pitching depth. Particularly after a wave of injuries this season, including Tommy John surgery for one of their top pitching prospects.
With the Cardinals now 4.5 games behind the Padres for the final NL Wild Card spot and trailing the division-leading Cubs by 10 games, the postseason outlook is fading fast. Turning rental relievers into long-term pitching assets would be a sensible—and possibly necessary—next step.
The only question now is whether a contender like Seattle is willing to meet St. Louis’s asking price. Oh, and one more. Who will close for the Cardinals is Helsley is traded?
