Seattle Mariners Should Target Joe Smith in Trade

The trade deadline is rapidly approaching which means teams have to decide whether they will be buyers or sellers heading into the home stretch of the 2016 season. If the Seattle Mariners decide they are going to make a push for the playoffs this year, they should target relief pitcher Joe Smith of the Los Angeles Angels via trade to add some much-needed depth to the bullpen.

With the Angels currently in last place in the AL West, 16.5 games back of the Texas Rangers, it’s no surprise that many believe Los Angeles will be selling at the trade deadline and Smith may be their best available trade piece. The 32-year-old right hander has had success in high-leverage situations late in games for the Angels, compiling a 3.02 ERA and 1.100 WHIP with 26 saves in three seasons with the team.

This season, Smith has struggled a bit, landing on the DL for three weeks in June with a hamstring issue. that time away cost Smith his role as the primary setup man for the Angels and he has seen his ERA rise from 3.91 when he went on the DL June 4 to 4.80 currently with a 1.47 WHIP (both stats significantly higher than his career 2.99 ERA and 1.21 WHIP). All of that has made him expendable in LA and has a number of teams kicking the tires on Smith to see if a trade would be beneficial.

For Seattle, adding a veteran arm to the back end of the bullpen would be a boost to the team’s depth of relief pitching. Injuries to the starting rotation have seriously taxed the Mariners’ bullpen over the first half of the season and has led to some letdowns. Add in the existing relationship between Smith and current Seattle GM Jerry Dipoto (who signed the reliever when he was with the Angels), and you can see how Seattle could be an ideal landing spot for the reliever.

At 45-44 at the All Star Break, 8.5 games back of Texas and 5.0 games out of the Wild Card, Seattle must decide if they are going to make a move to get back into the playoff hunt. With the starting rotation seemingly on the path to getting healthy again, adding a veteran arm like Joe Smith could be a major boost to the Mariners’ chances of making a playoff push this fall.