Mariners among teams expressing interest in Kemp

The Mariners have no outfielders, but do have money to spare. The Dodgers have four outfielders. Seattle liking Matt Kemp makes sense.

by Noah Jarosh

Nov 13, 2013, 6:33 PM UTC

Victor Decolongon

The Seattle Mariners are among the teams that have shown an interest in trading for Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp, reports Jon Morosi of Fox Sports.

Kemp is one of several Dodgers outfielders available via trade. The team is looking to trade at least one of Kemp, Andre Ethier and Carl Crawford as all have big contracts. With Yasiel Puig also on the team, they have four outfielders all vying for three starting spots. Trading one would clear up some money and solve the logjam.

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All four outfielders--including Puig--have drawn interest from teams. The Dodgers are not actively seeking to trade Puig, however, so the asking price for him is likely sky high. The Dodgers could also trade two of the four and look to the free agent market to sign a replacement.

The Mariners are looking to make a big splash for an outfielder this offseason. They have also been heavily reported as the favorite to land free agent Jacoby Ellsbury and are also interested in Nelson Cruz. The team traded right fielder Mike Morse late in 2013 to the Orioles and left fielder Raul Ibanez is a free agent this offseason.

That leaves Seattle with Michael Saunders, Dustin Ackley and Abraham Almonte listed as the starters in the outfield on their depth chart, with no designated hitter listed. That certainly is not the lineup the team will want to run out on opening day. The Mariners have some money to spend: They have maintained a payroll between $80-100 million the past five years and have under $34 million under contract for 2014 with just two players, Justin Smoak and Michael Saunders, eligible for arbitration.

That payroll flexibility would come in use if they hope to trade for Kemp, who is owed another $128 million through 2019. What the Dodgers are hoping to receive in return is unknown, though it’s possible it may not take much if a team is willing to take on nearly all of Kemp’s contract.

Kemp, who has suffered a variety of injuries the past two seasons, had a down year in 2013. Playing in just 73 games, he hit .270/.328/.395 with six home runs. When healthy, he can be a five-tool player as evidenced in 2011 when he hit .324 with 39 home runs, 40 stolen bases, a 986 OPS and won a Gold Glove award.