Mariner Talk Chat Forum

Here is an article from SI back in May regarding Joey Ortiz's struggles and the Brewers needing to make a move with him soon:

https://www.si.com/mlb/brewers/onsi/bre ... rtiz-curt9

Ortiz is set to become arb eligible in '27 and despite middling splits in '26 of .270/.328/.408/.736... I think Dipoto could him as a fit for the M's at 3B.

Why would the Brewers trade him?

1. The Brewers top 2 prospects will be MLB ready at points in '27... they're both top 20 overall prospects in the sport and will need to play SS and 3B at the MLB level given how good Brice Turang is at 2B.

2. The Brewers may not to pay a utility guy arb money and could look to move Ortiz as a result.

Why would the M's want him?

1. He has absolutely smashed the ball while playing 3B. It seems there's a big offensive shift depending on the position he plays. At 3B this year he leads all 3B's in wRC+ at 149. He's slashing .323/.353/.562/.914 as a 3B this year and just .243/.321/.320/.641 as a SS... and as a 3B he has a 125 OPS+ plus to just an 80 OPS+.

2. He's right handed and the M's desperately need a right-handed hitter at 3B.

3. He's "cheap" and can play a variety of positions in the IF in a pinch.

Anyway... seems like the obvious Dipoto type move. Not that I'm supportive of it, but I could this being an example of moves they continue to make.

Argee that Jerry might interested but I don't get why he is a better hitter playing 3B. Seems like it has be a coincidence and he would revert back to his overall line only playing 3rd base.

Ortiz has a career OPS of .674 and has hit 27 home runs in his three-year career while playing half his games at Miller Park. Even though his OPS is up to .736 this season, how do you think that's going to transfer over to T-Mobile? Answer: he'll SUCK.

Frankly, unless we can acquire someone who would hit a lot better than Ortiz it looks like we're going to roll the dice on Donovan in 2027.

You know who we should be going after to play third is Teruaki Soto, assuming he posts. That of course is if the Mariners lift their self-imposed ban on Japanese players.

D-train wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 16, 2026 10:32 pm

Argee that Jerry might interested but I don't get why he is a better hitter playing 3B. Seems like it has be a coincidence and he would revert back to his overall line only playing 3rd base.

There's feel that some players have when they're at a certain position and not.

Geno Suarez is a good example. He was absolutely miserable offensively when at SS for the Reds. Career .807 OPS at 3B, .700 as a SS, .732 as a DH.

I do think SS adds more pressure. But it could be that players just feel comfortable doing one thing vs the other and it translates to other parts of the game.