Mariners linked to All-Star trade after losing Eugenio Suárez

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – OCTOBER 17: Eugenio Suárez #28 of the Seattle Mariners celebrates after defeating the Toronto Blue Jays 6-2 in game five of the American League Championship Series at T-Mobile Park on October 17, 2025 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images)

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By Jackson Roberts

Contributing Sports Writer

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By all accounts, everyone associated with the Seattle Mariners loves Eugenio Suárez. But that didn't motivate the club enough to bring him back.

On Sunday, Suárez reportedly agreed to a one-year, $15 million deal with the Cincinnati Reds, including a $16 million mutual option for next year. It was a shockingly small contract for an All-Star slugger who hit 49 home runs last year, and even at a lower price tag than virtually anyone projected, the Mariners didn't seem to be meaningfully involved in his market.

Per Adam Jude of The Seattle Times, Suárez was never the Mariners' top priority. Jude also reported that Mariners general manager Justin Hollander said Sunday, hours before Suárez came off the market, that he believed the two-time All-Star's return was unlikely.

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SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - OCTOBER 17: Eugenio Suárez #28 of the Seattle Mariners celebrates after defeating the Toronto Blue Jays 6-2 in game five of the American League Championship Series at T-Mobile Park on October 17, 2025 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images)

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So what's up next for the Mariners? According to a Sunday post on X from ESPN's Buster Olney, some executives around the league believe St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Brendan Donovan could be traded within the next couple of weeks. Olney also singled out the Mariners as a fit.

"Perhaps most interesting position player available in the market: The Cardinals' Brendan Donovan. Some rival execs fully expect he'll be moved in the next couple of weeks," Olney worte. "The Mariners have had interest."

Jude also reported that a Donovan acquisition, assuming there was still one more move to be made, would make the most sense for Seattle.

"Donovan still appears to be the most likely target for the Mariners, and there is industry-wide belief that the Cardinals are motivated to move him," Jude wrote.

Donovan comes with two years of team control, which would nicely fit the Mariners' competitive window while allowing the possibility of a young player like Cole Young or Colt Emerson graduating to a full-time role if and when he departed as a free agent.

It's a situation that could be resolved quite soon, as pitchers and catchers report to spring training next week, and the Cardinals won't necessarily want the distraction of Donovan rumors hanging over their camp in Florida.