MLB Trade Grades: Mariners upgrade infield landing Jorge Polanco from Twins

Jerry Dipoto is at it again, making another trade.

It's been a strange offseason for the Seattle Mariners, who have gotten substantially worse after narrowly missing out on the postseason this past season. Seattle traded Eugenio Suarez, Jarred Kelenic, and Robbie Ray away just to shed some salary while also losing Teoscar Hernandez to the Dodgers. They've added players like Mitch Garver, Mitch Haniger, and Luke Raley, to help, but they look worse on paper than they did this past season. Acquiring Jorge Polanco from the Minnesota Twins should help them substantially.

Mark Feinsand of MLB.com broke the news that Minnesota was finally trading their longtime infielder after he appeared in rumors all offseason. The return, brought to us by Kiley McDaniel of ESPN, is quite substantial for the Twins with Seattle sending four players.

MLB trade grades: Mariners make much-needed infield upgrade but pay hefty price to do so

With Josh Rojas and Luis Urias penciled in at second and third base respectively, the Mariners desperately needed to add another bat. Polanco can play both of those positions at a respectable level, while also adding a big bat to the middle of their order. This past season he was limited to just 80 games but posted a .789 OPS and hit 14 home runs in those games.

Durability has been an issue for the 30-year-old, but there's no denying his prowess at the plate when healthy. He's hit as many as 33 home runs in a single season and has put up at least a 115 OPS+ in four of his last five seasons. The lone exception came in the shortened 2020 season.

Polanco comes to Seattle on a very reasonable contract, making $10.5 million for this season with a club option worth $12 million in 2025. With the Mariners showing clear restraint from spending substantial amounts of money, a team-friendly contract like that will come in handy.

In order for the Mariners to get a player of Polanco's caliber, they'd have to give up a lot. While a lot was expected, a four-player deal with multiple good pieces was not expected. The MLB players going back to Minnesota are Anthony DeSclafani and Justin Topa. DeSclafani adds a much-needed veteran presence in the Twins rotation after Sonny Gray's departure, while Topa was dominant out of Seattle's 'pen this past season, posting a 2.61 ERA in 75 appearances. He'll be a strong addition to the Twins bullpen which already features one of the best closers in the game in Jhoan Duran.

In addition to the two MLB contributors, the Twins received a pair of prospects including Gabriel Gonzalez who was ranked 79th overall on MLB.com's updated top 100 prospect list. Gonzalez is still a couple years away from the majors, but can be very impactful for the Twins.

As good of a player as Polanco was, trading him away in this deal is a no-brainer for Minnesota who lands a controllable reliever and a top prospect as well as valuable rotation depth for a player who was more of a luxury than anything. Edouard Julien, Carlos Correa, and Royce Lewis are all slotted into the positions Polanco plays, and top prospect Brooks Lee is almost MLB-ready as well.

The Mariners got a piece they needed, and getting Polanco who is under a team-friendly deal for two years is huge. They did, however, give up a lot to get that piece.

Mariners trade grade: B+
Twins trade grade: A-